Guitars are stringed instruments and are equipped with six strings which are to be plucked to play the instrument. Acoustic and electric are two key types of guitars, however the difference lies in the electric connection. Guitar strings are made of metals, such as copper or brass. Electric and acoustic guitar strings are primarily of the following types: light, custom light, and extra light.
The global electric & acoustic guitar strings market is estimated to surpass US$ 645.7 million in terms of revenue by the end of 2028, exhibiting a CAGR of 3.7% during the forecast period (2021 to 2028).
Drivers
Increasing sales of guitars across the world has been augmenting the target market growth. For instance, according to National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM), U.S. report '2016 NAMM Global Report', in the U.S. fretted products (including acoustic guitars, electric guitars, strings, amplifiers, and ukuleles) market was valued at US$ 1,449.9 million in 2014 which increased to US$ 1,475.2 million in 2015. Furthermore, in 2015, acoustic guitars and electric guitars accounted for 67.4% of the fretted products market.
Development of new technology in terms of electric & acoustic guitar strings is expected to foster the market growth of electric & acoustic guitar strings. Advancement in new technologies along with development of new guitar strings are expected to increase demand for electric & acoustic guitar strings in the near future. For instance, in 2017, researchers at School of Physics and Astronomy - University of St Andrews (U.K.) developed a new guitar string for electrical guitars, which will allow strings to be balanced in sensitivity.
Among regions, North America held dominant position in the global electric & acoustic guitar strings market in 2020, accounting for 39.6% market share in terms of revenue, followed by Asia Pacific.
Figure 1. Global Electric & Acoustic Guitar Strings Market Revenue Share (%), By Region, 2020
Market Restraints
Disadvantages associated with guitar strings is expected to hamper the market growth of electric & acoustic guitar strings over the forecast period. Most of the acoustic guitars strings are made of steel. Steel strings have the ability to produce a loud, sharp, and twang sound. However, these strings require more pressure from the guitar player to produce sound which can be painful for beginners. Moreover, beginners can find it difficult to tune their guitar correctly. For instance, according to researcher Dr. Jonathan Kemp, lowest pitch strings sound bad and are poor at harmonizing with higher notes.
Market Trends
Electric & acoustic guitar strings Players operating in the target market are focusing on new product launches with the objective to attract new customers and to retain their market position. For instance, in July 2019, C. F. Martin & Co., a guitar manufacturing company, launched its 14 new guitar models and three guitar string products at Summer NAMM in Tennessee, U.S. The new guitar string products include authentic acoustic flexible core, authentic acoustic bass, and the original m140.
| Report Coverage | Details | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Year: | 2020 | Market Size in 2020: | US$ 483.4 Mn |
| Historical Data for: | 2017 and 2020 | Forecast Period: | 2021 to 2028 |
| Forecast Period 2021 to 2028 CAGR: | 3.7% | 2028 Value Projection: | US$ 645.7 Mn |
| Geographies covered: |
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| Companies covered: |
D’Addario & Co., Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, Gibson Brands, Ernie Ball Inc., GHS Strings, C. F. Martin & Company Inc., Dunlop Manufacturing, Inc., Dean Markley USA, Inc., Kistron Co., Ltd., Rotosound Manufacturing Ltd., and DR Handmade Strings |
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Figure 2. Global Electric & Acoustic Guitar Strings Market – Opportunity Analysis
On the basis of product type, in 2020, light segment accounted for 46.7% of the revenue share. The light or .012 gauge is the most common string used in a guitar. The strings are made up of different materials, wherein for an electric guitar high strength material such as high-carbon and cobalt is used while for an acoustic guitar phosphorus is used. The lighter gauges provide ease to play and produce more high-pitched tones, while heavier-gauge strings make it difficult to play and produce extra bass tones.
Figure 3. Global Electric & Acoustic Guitar Strings Market Revenue Share (%), By Product Type, 2020
Global Electric & Acoustic Guitar Strings Market - Impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic
The coronavirus had not impacted the music instruments market. During the pandemic, there has been a rise in sales of guitars as several people were indulged in learning new things during their free time. For instance, according to Apple Inc., the company saw increasing level of interest in GarageBand (Apple’s digital audio workstation app), with 13 million downloads from its add-on “Sound Library” since February 2020, and hundreds of thousands of free trail downloads of GarageBand’s pricier siblings Logic Pro X and Final Cut Pro X.
Competitive Section
Key players operating in the global electric & acoustic guitar strings market include D’Addario & Co., Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, Gibson Brands, Ernie Ball Inc., GHS Strings, C. F. Martin & Company Inc., Dunlop Manufacturing, Inc., Dean Markley USA, Inc., Kistron Co., Ltd., Rotosound Manufacturing Ltd., and DR Handmade Strings.
Guitar strings can vibrate freely. Guitar strings are lengths of a flexible material that a musical instrument holds under tension controllably. Guitars typically have six strings with different thickness. Guitar string is the vibrating element.
Market Dynamics
Increasing sales of guitars across the world is expected to drive demand for electric & acoustic guitar strings over the forecast period. The increasing number of music festivals and live concerts at the global level is driving the sales of guitars. Participation of young generation in these concerts and festivals is promoting organization of music festivals and live concerts. For instance, according to a data published by SCI Maritime Training Institute (MTI), an integral part of The Shipping Corporation of India Ltd. (SCI) in 2019, the Rolling Loud music festival in Miami drew over 180,000 guests and nearly 200 million eager hip-hop fans in May 2018.
Various electric & acoustic manufacturers have been focusing on the development of innovative products related to the target market. The new guitar strings coupled with innovations in strings will allow for improved tone when playing high up the neck of the instrument. Additionally, the innovative guitar strings do not require any expensive changes to guitar players’ existing instruments.
Moreover, key players are focusing on various strategies such as regional expansion coupled with business expansion. For instance, in March 2020, D’Addario & Co., a manufacturer of strings for musical instruments, announced to commence direct distribution of its products to the Italian dealer network from June 2020. The company will provide a direct sales and marketing service to Italy from its office based in Lyon.
Key features of the study:
Detailed Segmentation:
“*” marked represents similar segmentation in other categories in the respective section.
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