Bass Strings.

[fretless6]

anyone tried DR extra life and think they are worth the price? last i checked 5 string black beauties cost S$60-ish. bought D'adarrio in the end but kept wondering how nice the black beauties will sound...

Black Beauties sound like muted Hi Beams. Minus out the zing and abit of the punch. Personally for me, once my strings start to die, I throw em into a tupperware filled with mineral spirits. Throw em back on the next day and they sound brand new all over again. So I'm not concerned bout getting coating strings for longevity.

Just an important note (IMO) with regards to this thread. Strings sound very differently on different instruments. Something that works on one bass may vary alot on another bass. E.g. throwing a bright set of strings onto a very mellow instrument may balance it out, but throwing em onto an already bright sounding bass may make sound brittle and thin.

Furthermore people's idea of good tone differs. One man's "warm and phat" could mean "muddy and no definition" to another. So always take recommendations with a pinch of salt.

 

[-Rhythm]

Thanks for the important note. =]
Does the mineral spirit help on removing rust?

 

[shinobi]

bass strings are wound so a lot of muck gets trapped in them. mineral spirit, methylated spirit, denatured alcohol etc etc help clean it. there is a seriously old skool method of BOILING the strings in water. this makes them clean(er) but wears out the string greatly, i wouldn't recommend it.

i've been using sadowsky blues. my next set will be sadowsky blacks.

tried the dr black beauties before, look great but the sound seriously doesnt cut it. used elixirs before, sound OK feel great but coated strings just don't do it for me.

i've used daddario prisms some time back. i kinda liked them. that was before i started using stainless steel strings.

 

[-Rhythm]

Where can I find D'addario Round Wound EXL 160m strings?
Are Darco strings good too?

 

[mockingbird]

What's the cost like for a set of Sadowsky's? Am not quite a bassist, but got a bass at home that's still with the stock strings. They're probably stainless steels as I've had it for almost 2 years now; and it's still with the strings that came with the guitar.

 

[Morlock]

i think its around 40 sgd per set

 

[volux]

What's the cost like for a set of Sadowsky's? Am not quite a bassist, but got a bass at home that's still with the stock strings. They're probably stainless steels as I've had it for almost 2 years now; and it's still with the strings that came with the guitar.

At TYMC, the nickle blues costs 30 bucks. Can't remember how much were the blacks but defo under 40.

 

[fretless6]

Thanks for the important note. =]
Does the mineral spirit help on removing rust?

If ur strings have already started to rust, I would recommend replacing em. Soaking in mineral spirits gets rid of oils and gank that build up on the strings, not remove rust. If u wanna try mineral spirits make sure u get the right type from Homefix. Not white spirits or rubbing alcohol from pharmacies. Its like $2.80 a bottle and can be reused many times over. A nice flat circular tupperware from like Daiso works perfectly. $4.80 keeps ur strings fresh and reduces the frequency of having to replace em

 

[-Rhythm]

Okay thanks!
How long should I soak it?
Can I soak it when I go to sleep and put back them on my bass the next day? =X

 

[fretless6]

Overnight is more than enough. For myself I have spare sets which I leave in the soak lol, I just switch between sets.

Give the tupperware a few swirls before u take out the strings. The evaporating alcohol will chill the strings and cause condensation on them, so just wipe em dry instead of letting the string "air dry".

 

[mockingbird]

At TYMC, the nickle blues costs 30 bucks. Can't remember how much were the blacks but defo under 40.

Thanks for the info, will definitely check it out next payday; since it's stainless and I don't play bass as much as compared to my guitars 'cos the strings on my bass have been there forever and though I'm not a bassist, I can tell it sounds pretty "dark" now.

 

[Indigo_blues]

I've tried both the sadowsky blue nickels and the blue stainless steels and i prefer the stainless steels.

I think the price is closer to $30 than $40 ..

 

[freezer000]

Any idea whether Sadowsky Blue Label Stainless are Flatwounds or Roundwounds? Couldn't find any information on their website.

 

[volux]

Any idea whether Sadowsky Blue Label Stainless are Flatwounds or Roundwounds? Couldn't find any information on their website.

The Blues are roundwound, Blacks are flatwound.

 

[jbarks]

no, blacks come in both roundwound and flats. blues are round-only.

 

[volux]

Woops! My bad! Didnt know there're roundwound for blacks.. Haha! But what's the difference between the blue and black rounds then?

 

[fretless6]

One comes in Blue packaging, the other in Black If u do a quick search on Talkbass, there was a thread about the string differences. Roger Sadowsky didn't even wanna talk bout material/construction differences, just that they are different >.>

 

[freezer000]

Just bought a pack of Sadowsky blues Stainless steel today, the standard gauge for 5 Strings, for $42.

Comments: Tone is bright even on a rosewood fretboard, I had to tweak my treble and mids down to get less bright tone. Great for popping and slapping, but I didn't like the open string E tone, sounded brighter than what I wanted. The B, A, D, G strings are decent. Also, true enough being the roundwound strings, its difficult to slide, I had to oil my strings and still there is some resistance. I am hoping that after some time of seasoning the strings, it will be easier on my fingers.

I might change to Sadowsky Black flatwounds the next round.

 

[Morlock]

give it a month or so it will mellow down been using my set of sadowsky stainless steel blues for 9 months now and they still sound great I prefer dialing down treble than dialing them up coz less noise