MiltyG565

[quote name='machinehead' timestamp='1410124476' post='2546452'] I've recently discovered the D'Addario ELX220BL balanced tension strings. I like these strings so much that I've fitted them to two of my basses, a USA '75 reissue jazz and a MIM 70s classic jazz. I have a third set waiting to go on my 2008 US Precision. They just feel so lively. Bending and vibrato seem somehow easier to accomplish and overall, I think my playing is a little better due to these strings. Yummy. Frank. [/quote] Try a set of ProSteels for a nice, crisp, piano ring

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1410109847' post='2546211'] And D'Addario are one of the few manufacturers who consistently quote tension figures. [/quote] Yes, that's why I used them as an example earlier in the thread. They also make a really good set of strings.

[quote name='lurksalot' timestamp='1407067982' post='2516982'] [font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]I have been very lucky to acquire a set of Ernie Ball regular slinkies from a fellow BCer through the recycling , these are Brand new in a sealed foil pack , virginal to any purchasers grubby mits.[/font] [font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]These were destined for a project that I am playing with , and a dry run set-up was on the cards , [color=#282828]except , on opening them , I opened the 105 E first and strung it on , then the A 85 , I thought it seemed a bit thin , but carried on , then the D then finally the G , I had terrible issues tuning the thing , so I got out the vernier and would you believe the labelled packet with the 85 was indeed a 70 , so bizzarely from a sealed unopened pack of strings it was put together wrongly , so now I need an 85 to suit .[/color][/font] [color=#282828][font=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]I generally use Rotosounds and have never had an issue like this , have I been incredibly unlucky ,or is this a relatively common occurrence ? [/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]ps anyone go a spare new EB .085 roundwound spare , [/font][/color] [/quote] You've been unlucky. It happens sometimes, but tbh, I've never had it happen, and I've never had any complaints as such. Somebody on the production line simply put the wrong string in the wrong bag, unfortunately. [quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1407159230' post='2517860'] With how good string companies are with any issues I'd have been very surprised if they hadn't got back to you. Good news! [/quote] Yup!

[quote name='Shonks' timestamp='1409586729' post='2541205'] I personally love the twangy sound of brand new roundwound strings. I think you can use eq and damp 'em down for the old school sound or ramp 'em up for the biting twang I adore. Either way, they are, to me anyhow, the most versatile, and if I could afford it I'd change 'em at least once a week, sometimes twice, and if in the studio, I'd change 'em every day. At £15 on average, that's a hefty amount of cash, and unless you're endorsed by a decent string manufacturer, you're gonna suffer. I used to have an endorsement with Rotosound, but now I'm not famous enough for them I became rapidly unendorsed... anyway, if you look on Ebay there's all these unknown brands going for about £5, and some known brands, eg Stag etc [/quote] Try TGI. We get Brunswick guitars in at work from Barnes and Mullins (who own TGI and Brunswick, among many other brands), and they strings they have on them don't sound bad at all. In fact, it's probably the strings that make some of the guitars sound good. They aren't a big brand of string that sells well, so don't expect to find them in your local music shop (although you might be surprised), but looking around online, it seems you can pick up a set for less than £10 - mega cheap by bass string standards. A basic set of a big seller will often be double that price.

[quote name='TheSiberian' timestamp='1410079194' post='2545824'] Ok I understand your technical background but I was speacking about the same brand and type of string set. For ex: the tension of the D'Addario EXL 165 nickel strings set is higher on a 35" than on a 34". Now, if you want to lower this tension on the 35" ( we are speacking of the same brand and EXL strings) you should use a lighter set like EXL 170 nickel. If you want however a lower tension, then you can replace the EXL 170 nickels with the EPS 170 Pro Steel set. Why? ...because the EPS 170 Pro Steel has lower tension thst the EXL 170 nickels. For the rest of technical detail I believe you know better but that was my point. Best [/quote] You're quite right. D'Addario are quite consistent - they have one construction, and many variations, like the EXLs, which go from a set of .008 on a guitar, to a set of somewhere around .155 for a 5 string bass. They're all round-wound, nickel plated, on a steel hex core. If you want to use a set of EXLs, but with a lower tension, simply get the next set down.

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1410077392' post='2545795'] Mass per unit length is dependent on the construction of the string such that if two strings are differently constructed then they can be the same gauge but have different tensions because they have different masses per unit length. [/quote] This is why the flex steels have the same gauges as the pro steels, but are lower tension, I suppose.

[quote name='andydye' timestamp='1409137164' post='2536644'] Well, I've got a set of D'Addario ENR71 Halfrounds (045-065-080-100) to try...we'll see how they do [/quote] Lovely! I had a set of those a couple of years ago.

[quote name='TheSiberian' timestamp='1409652953' post='2541825'] Thanks MiltyG for the information...this must be new and I will give them a try. Best [/quote] They are brand new! They only came out a month or 2 ago. They're about the £22 mark, so roughly similar price to the standard nickel wounds

[quote name='TheSiberian' timestamp='1409641992' post='2541694'] If I remember well; the longer the bass'scale the higher the tension. (this means a lighter gauge of strings 130 -40 will have a lower tension compared of your actual 135 -45 set.) Considering this and the fact that ( for ex.) the D'Addario steels have lower tension than the same gauge of D'Addario nickels, I think the D'Addario Pro Steel EPS 170-5 SL could be a good choice for your 35" bass. Best [/quote] Good shout, but the Flexsteels have a lower tension across the set, and are brighter than the pro steels too

[quote name='natjag' timestamp='1409180595' post='2537311'] Looks like this scheme is a victim of it's own success. I wonder what the scrap value of strings are? [/quote] It certainly does seem to be that! Scrap value - £0.00! There's too many materials in 1 string to effectively be melted down and made into more useful things, like potato peelers, in my opinion. Maybe some wimpy, plain steel guitar strings, but not good 'ol bass strings!

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1408012014' post='2526203'] *Sigh* Well, I don't know. That's just the impression I got from the information on their site. Bottom line is, they're great strings. In my humble opinion, of course. [url="http://www.status-graphite.com/status/frames/stringsinfo.html"]http://www.status-gr...tringsinfo.html[/url] [/quote] It seems they're saying that they've developed their own strings, and they're manufactured in the UK, however, it doesn't say that they make them, so it's possible (and likely) that they ask a company to make them for them. That doesn't make them a re-pack job, though. Small businesses often pay larger companies, that already have the resources and equipment, to produce a product for them.

[quote name='0175westwood29' timestamp='1407964553' post='2525929'] thinking that it could give me a proper deep bass heavy sound and i have a spare bass aswell, so im happy to play that at home and get a feeling for them, however are flats likely be happy on my modulus? andy [/quote] I really couldn't say. I've never played a modulus or flats. From what I hear of the Modulus FB4, it's quite a bright, brittle tone, whereas flats are known more for their mellow, more subtle tone. But, you could try it, and see how it works out. If it doesn't sound great, you can put the set of flats onto another bass Flats on a P bass sound nice. Full of bass and mids.

Normal D'Addario XL Nickel tension chart. EXL170-5 has a total tension of 197lb http://www.daddario.com/DADProductFamily.Page?ActiveID=3768&familyid=16 A similar set of D'Addario EFX Flexsteels has a total tension of 187lb (EFX170-5) http://www.daddario.com/DADProductFamily.Page?ActiveID=3768&familyid=63 so that's 10lbs less tension between the 2 sets, which is not an inconsiderable amount. They are steels, though, and maybe you prefer nickels?

[quote name='BassBus' timestamp='1407169221' post='2518007'] I use the 40-95 with a 30 C string. When i've used 100 Es before I can't really say I notice much difference from a 105. It's only .005 of an inch after all. [/quote] Personally, I'd go for a lighter set just to compensate for they lack of flexibility compared to rounds. Also their higher tension will mean a lot of adjustment is required if you simply go from 45-105 rounds to 45-105 halfs or flats.

[quote name='BassBus' timestamp='1407151513' post='2517747'] D'addario do a set of nickel half rounds. I have a set on my Overwater and they are lovely strings. [/quote] Preach it! Fantastic strings!

[quote name='0175westwood29' timestamp='1407793626' post='2524152'] so first practice with the pro steels yesterday, they've got a bit of bite to them very nice strings they really work well with the jazz. def looking at grabbing some flats i think as a trial for some darker sounds andy [/quote] Nice! I found that the D'Addario half-rounds gave a subtle woodiness to the tone, whilst retaining a slight presence in the piano-esque ring. Quite versatile, really. I've never tried flats (of any brand, apart from a the ones that came on a fretless I bought once). Sorry I can't give you any thoughts as far as the flats go. But, some people will say that they sound best when they are well played in (or what you would call "dead" for a bright string), and that after that, you could play it for years with just that one set of strings on. Definitely worth investigating the sounds that please you first before spending £40 on a set if you want them to last you a considerable time. [quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1407794361' post='2524166'] A decent set of nickel rounds should last a long time, more zing than steel flats but darker than steel rounds and they feel nice for fingerstyle playing (less abrasive to the touch than steel rounds). I was gifted some La Bella SN45 and they're great! [/quote] Yes, well it depends on the brand really. I've tried super-smooth nickels, and some that were just as rough as round steels. Ernie-Ball slinky definitely have the smoothness sown up, I feel. If that's the kind of thing you're after, then that's the set of strings you want.

[quote name='venividivigor' timestamp='1407098231' post='2517355'] I bought this set a couple of days ago and I would like you to tell me your experience with this one, and if you've tried others like the regular or super slinky. They feel good so far and I'm liking the sound. Looking forward to reading your impressions and opinions. [/quote] I work in a music shop, and one of our regulars and friends of ours used Ernie Ball regular slinky religiously for his guitar. He came in one day, however, and we were out of stock of the regulars. He was persuaded to try to Hybrids instead. Anyway, he came in through the week, lifted a set of Hybrids, and I asked him why he didn't want the regulars anymore. He pretty much just said that he realised that the hybrids suited himself much better. That was for guitar, though. I've tried Ernie Ball bass strings before (just the regulars), and I found them to be alright. They have a good life to them, but they sound a bit... I dunno... generic? And they are quite expensive, IMO, for that reason.

D'Addario strings are great, IMHO. They have that lovely piano-like ring to them, and the pro steels are very bright, but not to a shrill or annoying degree. The sustain of the pro steels too is immense. I know a guy who got a year's worth of playing from one set of pro steels. If you keep you keep them well, they will last a good long time As an intermediate step, to find out what works for you, you probably should try some D'Addario half-rounds, which retain the lovely piano-like ring to them, but don't have as much of the brightness. Tone rolled off - flats. Tone fully up - semi-flats. They have some of the higher frequencies, which is good for fuzz. Do remember though that they do take a bit of playing for them to kind of settle and become a bit easier to play - definitely not a string that you want to stick on, then go gig straight away, although you could do that if you like. But, being semi-flat, they'll hold their tone for a long time. The downside - they cost £30+. They are very good strings, however, and should last you a long time. [quote name='Thunderbird' timestamp='1407592931' post='2522127'] I cant recommend the Daddario EXP strings enough they are fantastic and I play metal/rock and love them and I really was not much of a Daddario fan before trying the EXP's out but I love them I am also a Huge Rotosound fan and love the sound of a set of Roto 45's on my active bass [/quote] Yup, EXPs are like pro steels, but coated. The coating is very fine, so the strings don't feel plasticy or sticky or anything like that. They actually feel very natural. The only difference being the difference in string life. In this respect, they are like Elixir coated bass strings (although I prefer D'Addario). Rotosounds - if you're talking about the rotobass 45s, they do indeed sound good, although I found that they don't last so long. But at roughly £14 a set, I couldn't complain at all about the sound quality. When I was doing my A Levels, I bought a set for the school bass (a Farida jazz copy). Walking past the music room one day when the GCSE group was practising, it sounded amazing. Lovely deep bass from it, and a bit of zing to give it a bit of a kick. But, being used every day by a lot of kids who were learning to play on it, they lasted only a couple of weeks before needing to be replaced. The sets that I put on my own personal bass lasted maybe 3/4 weeks before needing to be changed.

Soundbars are great, especially for TV, which usually have tiny, cheap speakers installed in them. Go for something with a good bass response (although cheap, bassy speakers tend to ruin the higher frequencies). I spent a weekend at a place that used a Bose sound bar. Bose tend to be over-heavy with bass response, IMO, but that's fantastic for outdoor or wide open spaces, but the thing is that they engineer it so that the bass doesn't cloud out the treble, and vice-versa.

Sold Richard a capo and some strings weeks ago, and subsequently forgot about the entire thing until Rich reminded me. The sales that are a hassle always stick out in my mind, but this sale was so slick, that I forgot that it had even happened Buy and sell with Rich (Grangur) with confidence, folks. You'd be hard pushed to find better on BassChat

Thanks Rich To be honest, I'd forgotten about this sale and had to think for a minute to recall it I suppose that's just testament to exactly how uneventful the transaction was on both sides of the sale

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1407233472' post='2518516'] I don't think there's anything wrong with advertising products you don't have in stock. However, it should be made clear to you within a reasonable time from ordering [/quote] A buyer or potential buyer should always be told when a product isn't in stock, IMO. If a company ran out of stock on a Monday afternoon, and got it back in on a Tuesday morning, that's fine, but having a delay of more than a couple of days just isn't acceptable, IMO. The whole point of internet shopping is convenience. A delay of days or weeks when you need something is less convenient than actually going into a shop and buying something.