Weedwackers

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

Just ordered a set of Slap Happy Weedwackers for my cheapo Stentor DB via eBay
[url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140471271501"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...em=140471271501[/url]
Not sure of what to expect, but they seem to get good reviews and as long as I don't get ripped off with customs charges they've cost me £17.14 GBP inc delivery.

I'll report back when I get them & have had a play on 'em.

[derrenleepoole]

For the very short time that I owned a DB I give these a shot too. They're specifically for rockabilly and bluegrass style playing - lots of heavy slap percussive work etc. The feel of them is very odd, being all smooth and fat as anything. I personally didn't get on with them. However, I gave them to an acquaintance who does rockabilly DB and at first he hated them, but now absolutely swears by them.

[kingforaday]

i like the ones i use (i [i]think[/i] they're the same as the ones you're getting...) but to be honest i'm pretty new to upright playing and the only other strings i've tried are the ones that come on a stagg edb... i think when/if i get a double bass i'll try out some decent strings but right now for the stagg these are cool, cheap and in my opinion an improvement in sound and feel over the stock strings

[Dr Phibes]

Usually with wackers you'll find that the D and G are pretty good, the A is just about passable and the E is like playing wet spaghetti (with about the same tonal qualities too). See how you get on, but I'll wager you'll swap out the E for a Roto, Silverslap or Presto in fairly short order!

[kingforaday]

thats what i'd heard about the lower strings but i haven't found them that bad at all, they are really thick though which took some getting used to. tone wise i get kinda of a dead thumpy sound but for what we're playing i think it works! shoulda said earlier, check out the link in my signature to 'the seven year itch' the full band songs on there are played on a stagg edb with weedwackers

i see you have the blonde prima bass Dr Phibes, how is it?

[Dr Phibes]

[quote name='kingforaday' post='1030238' date='Nov 20 2010, 11:01 AM']thats what i'd heard about the lower strings but i haven't found them that bad at all, they are really thick though which took some getting used to. tone wise i get kinda of a dead thumpy sound but for what we're playing i think it works! shoulda said earlier, check out the link in my signature to 'the seven year itch' the full band songs on there are played on a stagg edb with weedwackers

i see you have the blonde prima bass Dr Phibes, how is it?[/quote]

I like it a lot. I've owned a few basses including a B&H and it compares favourably. It's had a few tweaks, including replacing the adjustable bridge (it rattled) with a solid one and swapping out the metal tailpiece for a wooden one, but I've no complaints.

To be brutally honest I bought it because I'm a sucker for blonde basses with violin corners rather than for the acoustic tone but I've been pleasantly surprised.

[tiki613]

if you want to play weedwacker, you must play with Lambert Strings, they resemble gut, both in sound and in touch.

Lambert offers several types of strings, one of which Wound E substain and is playable, there are also a G 0.80 with a sound full of harmony and they also offer half a set D & G red in homage to the red O Ray, which they are made for the jazz player who wants a typical sound of guts.

[url="http://www.myspace.com/cordeslambert"]http://www.myspace.com/cordeslambert[/url]

[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0B5rEqfC_Q&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0B5rEqfC_Q...feature=related[/url]

[url="http://www.youtube.com/user/tehcuodub#p/u/6/SFhNQeUQ0Eg"]http://www.youtube.com/user/tehcuodub#p/u/6/SFhNQeUQ0Eg[/url]

[Clarky]

I once tried Weedwackers (the cheap ones off eBay). After several weeks they were still stretching and going horribly flat each time I picked up the bass, and like an above poster said, I swapped the E and A for Innovations (Blacks, I think?) as there was no sustain or volume with them, just a percussive dull thud. That said, I have heard there are better quality Weedwacker-types that solve these problems (I assume the prior post is referring to these, Lamberts).

Edited November 21, 2010 by Clarky

[kingforaday]

[quote name='Dr Phibes' post='1031280' date='Nov 21 2010, 11:50 AM']I like it a lot. I've owned a few basses including a B&H and it compares favourably. It's had a few tweaks, including replacing the adjustable bridge (it rattled) with a solid one and swapping out the metal tailpiece for a wooden one, but I've no complaints.

To be brutally honest I bought it because I'm a sucker for blonde basses with violin corners rather than for the acoustic tone but I've been pleasantly surprised.[/quote]


cool, thanks for the reply. to be honest i have the same problem, i'm very keen to pick up a blonde double bass but finding a decent second hand one is a bit needle in a haystack so i've been looking at the various new cheapish ones but trying to pick between them is a bit tough without playing them...
anyway i guess this is going a bit off topic. think i may need to start a thread about it and ask for advice cuz its starting to drive me mad

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

[quote name='tiki613' post='1031452' date='Nov 21 2010, 02:59 PM']if you want to play weedwacker, you must play with Lambert Strings...[/quote]
I've seen the Lamberts on the web - they haven't really got their web marketing together yet; using myspace as the primary website doesn't seem to inspire confidence. I've read good things about them on TB, but they're quite a bit more costly than the el-cheapos & I'm skint at the moment.

I'll see how I get on with the cheapies & may upgrade to a set of Lamberts if I get more into playing the DB.

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

My slap happy weedwackers have arrived and I've put them on the bass, which was a much more fiddly affair than I expected. I haven't tried it amplified yet, but I love the blurry sound. I can achieve a nice bit of rockabilly slap, which I was never able to do with the spirocore weichs.

I'll see how they go. I doubt I'll be going back to the spiros, but may upgrade to a set of Lamberts in the future. I wonder what the going rate for a used, but hardly played, set of spiro weich is