fretmeister

I’ve used both. The Rotos have less highs and more of a low mid bloom.

The EBs are more even in tone to my ears.

With the same gauge the Rotos are massively stiffer / higher tension. They make La Bella’s look like string. I found the EB to feel nicer under the fingers.

If you have any type of nickel allergy / sensitivity at all then avoid the Rotos. They give me finger blisters these days.

It seems Markbass do a nickel version of their soft touch strings called "Ultimate"

https://www.markbass.it/product/ultimate-series-soft-touch-electric-bass-nickel-plated-steel/

14 minutes ago, JJMotown said:

Really, you should make a thread about that. Should probably also read the OP is looking for nickel rounds.

 

Actually he said "Presumably" about the nickel part and there are SS options that are not finger chewing.

And my other thread doesn't give any hint about tension or even string material in the title about it.

I am very sorry I tried to help a fellow member of this community. How dare I?! I really should do better.

4 hours ago, tayste_2000 said:

This has recently piqued my interest if anyone wants to sell or lend me one 😅😇

 

I got a mk1 Beta and love it, even or maybe be because of the baked in lows. 

I've got one that I might be tempted to move on. I don't seem to be using dirt at all these days, just some compression and the odd bit of envelope filter.

@tayste_2000

I've just got some Mark Bass Advanced Stainless rounds and they are very flexible for the gauge 45-105. Quite similar to Hi Beams in that regard.

I'm really liking them.

£20.99 + postage at Andertons at the moment, so a bit of a bargain.

There's a couple of long threads on the other place about the reliability issues of this model. Some claim that the issues were solved after the first couple of years of manufacture but others dispute that.

Nice sounding amp, but I wouldn't sink any money into one.

2 minutes ago, bassbora said:

Out of curiosity what is the difference in tone between the BO and NT? I only have experience of NT. I agree with previous posters the emg pickups in the older ones are great. 

Not massive differences, but still noticeable.

I've just seen that Nordstrand are stopping making "Factory" basses meaning the Cat / Acinonyx shortscale bass is being discontinued in it's current form.

I know they've been working on a 5 string version but now I wonder if that will be a USA made model with a price to match.

Presumably the decision is at least partially caused by the Tango Shitgibbon's tariffs plan for just about everywhere.

This is annoying as I'd really like one at some point, but ideally not at USA custom shop prices.

4 minutes ago, neepheid said:

 

Yes, but if you spread that force over a wider area, the pressure is reduced.  P=F/A.  Force doesn't go into your body, pressure is applied to your body.   It explains why knives cut through substrates better than a length of 4"x2" wood or a concrete block with the same force applied (in this case, gravity).

 

And that's quite enough high school physics for one day!

I know that but the pressure is only spread out on the part of the body the strap is touching. Surface pressure on part of the supporting structure (the shoulder) is not the same as total load through the entire supporting structure.

A 10lb bass hung on a bootlace thin strap still puts the same force on the spine as a 10lb bass on a 6inch wide strap. The body is still supporting a 10lb item. Nothing can change that. The 6inch wide strap user will just not have a big dent in his shoulder. A wider strap gives a localised benefit only. So it depends what the user needs to achieve. If there is back pain and no shoulder pain then a wider strap will not help at all.

3 hours ago, chris_b said:

 

These are all good things that can be done, but there are really only two sensible routes to take if you have a bass that is too heavy to be comfortable; work out until you can deal with the weight, or sell it and buy the right bass for the job.

 

Most of us were OK with 10lb basses in our youth so why can't we deal with that weight now we are older? Because we've become sedentary and lost a lot of our muscle mass. Work out and put that muscle back. You won't be limited by weight and, according to statistics, you'll live longer and happier lives.

 

You can do a lot of DIY on a bass, most of which won't enhance it's value, instead will reduce it's resale value. There are plenty of 6, 7 and 8lb basses around at all levels, from Asian production lines to boutique. Straps don't make a bass lighter, so if weight is the problem buy the right bass for the job.

 

 

Can't argue with a lot of that, but then again while we can all cope with a 10lb bass when we are 20 years old, perhaps we wouldn't have so many issues when we get older if we had lighter basses from the start. Wear and Tear accumulates. There's been reports of school children and early 20s people with degenerative type back injuries because they are carrying excessive weight in books / laptops etc all the time.

All of us have asymptomatic degenerative changes far earlier than we'd think possible. Joint degeneration is already able to be seen on an MRI scan from the age of 30. Might not even notice it at all before we hit 50, but it's there.

For me personally - I've had 5 hernias. No amount exercise will fix that weakness and I'm now "strongly advised" to not do certain exercises at all.

The irony being the last 3 all occurred during exercise - and I was doing it properly.

3 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said:

 

Meanwhile, in a parallel thread, people are adding lead to their pickup cavities to cure neck dive.

 

 

 

TBH, whatever the OP's preference was, strap choice, wearing and setting the strap comfortably and a good stance cure 90% of balance and weight issues.

A strap can fix comfort. It cannot make a bass lighter. The amount of force from the bass into the body remains the same.

It also cannot cure balance issues, it only papers over the cracks. An unbalanced bass remains an unbalanced bass. A grippy strap just grips.

Very quick first thoughts.

They are very flexible - quite like roundcore DR Hi-Beams, although the MBs are hexcore.

They have more treble than the Dunlop Super Bright Steels but it's not harsh at all.

The windings feel nice under the fingers - not too rough and there is minimal finger noise compared to other strings I have tried.

I will need a tiny truss rod tweak as the bass I've put them on had flats on it with a much higher tension, but I'll let it settle in for a day (aka too lazy to find the allen keys I put somewhere safe!).

And finally, Andertons are by far the cheapest with them at the moment at £20.99 + shipping. Hi-Beams are a good £15 more expensive.

I'm planning on playing a lot this weekend so I'll update after that.

One of the guys on thefretboard won that lovely white Gibson Explorer last week.

I'm jealous - l've always loved an explorer.

I've never tried a slap ramp at the front that the astonishing Henrik Linder uses:

and something filmed only for SBL a few years ago just went live on youtube as well:

I can see how that would help - I've played some older design basses where the neck we set higher than the body and I found it was really easy to get too much of a finger under the string for a pop.

He's such an amazing player.

Just an idea...

I'm obsessed with bass weight. I really don't like heavy instruments and after a lot of surgery I can't put up with a lot.

For basses and guitars that I love but are too heavy I have tried everything. I even routed out the back of an Epi Zakk Wylde Les Paul to try to get the weight down. I took loads of wood out but ultimately the density of the rest meant that it only saved about 1/2 pound. Just routing under a scratch plate has such a small difference that if that is the only reduction planned then it's not worth doing.

There's a bit more scope on basses but usually because a lot of basses still use large plate tuning machines that weigh a stupid amount. Swapping the type of tuners you'd get on a vintage Fender, or a reissue to Hipshot Ultralites can save 1/3lb on a 4 string and 1/2lb on a 5 string. That is a very noticeable difference in both weight and overall balance. Obviously if the starter bass has more modern tuning machines in the first place then the difference won't be as much but due to the lever effect of the weight saving being at the end of the neck the comfort levels can still be increased a lot.

Chambering isn't really an option on an already build bass unless you are willing to have it sliced in half, then chambered, and then have the 2 halves stuck back together. With an extreme chambering layout you might save 1lb but the remaining wood will remain as dense and there's nothing you can do about the neck wood.

This is why my 3 main basses are Cedar and Paulownia. Very light without needing any chambering. Sandberg also uses Norwegian maple for necks as it is lower density than Canadian and saves quite a bit of weight.

The Colin Chapman (Lotus Cars) approach is really the best - acknowledging that weight savings accumulate. So, 1/3lb off the headstock. Maybe only 100g off the bridge by swapping to something lighter. I saved 150g once swapping metal control knobs to plastic ones - that's 1/3 lb!  I saved nearly 50g by swapping a scratchplate to a single ply. Those savings add up really fast.

Then, if you really need to, there's the finish. A poly finish on a bass body can easily weigh 1lb (454g) or more. If the weight is more important than the look then the pain can be stripped and then replaced with an oil finish.

If you've got a bass that can deal with all these little changes then that's 2lb (904g) reduction.

For me the headstock weight saving is most important as it affects the balance the most too. You can get a feel of the difference by calculating the difference in weight of the existing tuners and the new ones and then (before you spend money on the new ones) get a little bag of sugar and hang it on the headstock. If a tuner swap would save 1/3 lb then put 1/3lb in the bag and see how much of a bad effect it has on the end of the neck. 

Or just take 2 stock tuners off and stand with the bass for a while and see the difference. 

Ergonomics (and weight) are the problem for me too.

Even long time Thumb enthusiast Ryan Martinie has moved away from them and had Fodera build him something that sounds exceptionally close but with a body that allows for good balance.

9 hours ago, Cosmo Valdemar said:

The only 5 string I've ever played where the B sounds like it's supposed to be there, rather than an extra few floppy notes. 

The greatest 5 string ever in my humble opinion, and such a killer growl. 

8 hours ago, Terry M. said:

I have to agree with this. It totally debunks the "have to be 35 scale" thing which I personally don't subscribe to.

I had a Marleaux like that - the low B was as clear as all the others and was 34 inch scale. Construction and string choice is far more important than scale length.

That's ace!

When I sketch out anything - even a simple Cab to see if it will fit in a space under the stairs it looks like my cat did it!  

Nate always does the most interesting demos.

It's too expensive for me, but I like the sounds - probably because they don't sound like the now very common DG sound.

3 hours ago, MartinB said:

As above, if you want flat response with rolled-off highs, the Low and High Cut EQ block should do the job. Or the high cut control in the Parametric EQ block, or global EQ, which behave the same. If the roll-off isn't steep enough for you, you could try the high cut in the IR block instead - you can use this "empty" without an IR file loaded.

 

Low/high block = green

IR block = blue

Both set to 6 kHz

 

I had no idea an empty IR block could be used. Never even thought of it, and also I'm surprised that there is such a difference between the IR Slot version and the separate high cut block.

That's great info! Thank you.

That's an interesting idea. I don't think I've ever heard of an adapter. 

I'd be worried that it would just get knocked out and disappear under a dark stage.

On 06/03/2025 at 20:14, Normski said:

Would really like this for my Genz Benz Streamliner but it looks like it won't quite fit! 

I used to have both of the mounts. The Streamliner one definitely won't go with a Shuttle and v-v.

Took me ages to get them too - and that was when Genz was still in business! I had to get a US based friend to buy them and then ship them onwards.

Need someone to properly measure them both so at least there's the option of going to a good fabricator.

Andertons have them for £20.99 with £2.99 delivery.

So I've ordered a set to try. Thought I'd do that before trying the North Korean strings.

Don't use a cab at all. Then EQ out / hi cut 4K and over.

I see Ian Allison has a set about to hit the shops - slightly smaller gauges and apparently slightly less of a polish so there's a little more roundwound feel.

I wonder if La Bella will expand the range with non-signature lighter gauges.