Long lasting strings

[sblueplanet]

Ive often wondered if there is a system for choosing strings that will stay 'as new' for the longest playing period. Is there a choice of string wind, or metal that truly makes the difference irrespective of brand?

[BobVbass]

Stainless roundwounds mine last errm longer than my bass

[MiltyG565]

[quote name='sblueplanet' timestamp='1367349292' post='2064584']
Ive often wondered if there is a system for choosing strings that will stay 'as new' for the longest playing period. Is there a choice of string wind, or metal that truly makes the difference irrespective of brand?
[/quote]

Possibly.

I know that GHS nickel plated rounds last nowhere near as long as similar strings from Ernie Ball or D'Addario.

I think the sound and life of the string has as much to do with it's construction and the quality of the material it's made from. Having said that, I have no idea why the GHS strings died so much faster than Ernie Balls or D'Addario. Honestly, they died after a month of light use. If you want long lasting strings, there are plenty of suggestions. Elixirs new coated stainless set I've heard are just the bees knees when it comes to longevity. Similarly though, my bass teacher was using a set of D'Addario prosteels for over a year before he took them off, and they still have a good amount of life left in them.

If you're gigging heavily though, you should probably just pick what string you think sounds the best, because you'll likely change them often enough to not have to worry too much about how long they will last.

[Mr. Foxen]

[quote name='sblueplanet' timestamp='1367349292' post='2064584']
Ive often wondered if there is a system for choosing strings that will stay 'as new' for the longest playing period. Is there a choice of string wind, or metal that truly makes the difference irrespective of brand?
[/quote]

What truly makes the difference is how you like your strings sounding. If you like a dark sound, flats or tapewounds are going to tend to sound about like they do new for ages. I like Elixirs, they stay bright for ages, and don't squeak so much if you run a finger along them changing position, meaning you can use more treble boost.

[MiltyG565]

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' timestamp='1367367015' post='2064872']
meaning you can use more treble boost.
[/quote]


Eeewww

[chrismuzz]

Another vote for Elixir steels here. They sound like any other great bright roundwound stainless steels, but they keep their sound for months and months and months... You don't have to care for them as much either, I don't even wipe mine down with a cloth and it's had no negative effect on the sound after 6 months!

[xgsjx]

I used to like a bright zingy sound & DR Strings fit that bill, but they're short lived.
Bought a set of TI flatwounds a couple of years ago & have no intention of changing them unless one breaks (& it'll get replaced with another TI).

So the answer to your Q is that the string wind makes a huge difference to both longlivity & sound with flatwounds far outlasting roundwound strings but having much less zing (ok, no zing. But I'm a bassist, not a zinger ). I dare say the choice of metal does too, as according to what I've read on here, the TI flats are much brighter in sound than the La Bella's.

[MiltyG565]

Do you reckon the diameter of the outer wrap makes a difference to longevity? It's something I've just thought. I could just be talking balls though.

[PaulWarning]

I use DR neon pink or green, the coating comes off where I thrash them with my pick but they never seem to die on me, the last 2 sets I've put on didn't sound any different new as the ones I'd taken off after 6 months

[danthevan]

[quote name='PaulWarning' timestamp='1367412570' post='2065285']
I use DR neon pink or green, the coating comes off where I thrash them with my pick but they never seem to die on me, the last 2 sets I've put on didn't sound any different new as the ones I'd taken off after 6 months
[/quote]

I've had the neons on for about 6 months now and they're still like new

[xgsjx]

You guys need to play more bass!

Or maybe it's just the Peacock Blue ones. The G string would snap after @ 6 months (at the longest).

[PaulWarning]

[quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1367432254' post='2065632']
You guys need to play more bass!


[/quote]
Practice every 1 or 2 weeks, 2 or 3 two hour sets every month, I would have thought that was enough

[JTUK]

Depending on your definition of bright, but if you are getting more than 3 weeks or so of every day use plus gigs, then you are doing well, IMO.

I don't want super bright but I don't want dull either.
As soon as the character goes out of the string..and you can feel this as much as hear it, then it is time to change as far as I am concerned.

[sblueplanet]

I once toured as part of a support act to a major band and I was horrified to watch the bass tech snap the strings off the bassist's four basses after every performance whether all the basses had been played or not and put on new ones for next gig.

Pretty soon I had befriended the bassist and his tech and was getting 4 sets of 'as new' cast-offs a show and no more strings were being chucked into a plastic bin every night.

I guess some people want their strings sounding BRIGHT

[MiltyG565]

[quote name='sblueplanet' timestamp='1367618262' post='2067747']
I once toured as part of a support act to a major band and I was horrified to watch the bass tech snap the strings off the bassist's four basses after every performance whether all the basses had been played or not and put on new ones for next gig.

Pretty soon I had befriended the bassist and his tech and was getting 4 sets of 'as new' cast-offs a show and no more strings were being chucked into a plastic bin every night.

I guess some people want their strings sounding BRIGHT
[/quote]

I think loads of big names do this. Flea does it, be he uses those GHS nickel wounds which I think don't last a crack. I think it's more about consistency. If your strings start fading, you'll need to EQ to compensate, and if you're doing 4 or 5 big gigs every week, that's a bit of a hassle, because then the PA need to EQ the bass channel again too. And as has been said on another thread, strings lose their intonation if you use them too much, as you actually flatten the winds where they meet the fret, so you don't get a single sharp point of contact anymore.

Plenty of good reasons for changing strings every gig if you can afford to, which I'm guessing he could.

[iiipopes]

What is your body chemistry? The reason I say that is different people react to the different metals differently. For example, I interact with nickel, but not iron or chrome. So conventional nickel-plated rounds, like D'Addario XL's or GHS Boomers die almost immediately on me. Stainless steel strings go clank on me. Fender 9050 flats, however, being a duller steel, last a long, long time for me, and sometimes in the next ten years or so I might have to change the chrome wrap Spirocore E string on my double bass - or not. It depends on your body chemistry, the way you play, and how often.

Edited May 9, 2013 by iiipopes

[sblueplanet]

Body chemistry? *puts some ph paper on tongue*

Im guessing you mean sweat and grease build-up over time.
I wipe my strings down every time I play/practice. I guess the life-span of certain strings is,
to some extent, down to the production process.
Obviously flatwounds will last longest given the types of tone they give out.
There are lots of brands out there and maybe there is a perfect match out there for me somewhere.

[iiipopes]

There is as much to a player's perspiration chemistry and playing style that will determine how long strings last as anything. In spite of wiping down the strings, etc., I can take all the above mentioned conventional nickel-plated round strings, and since my hand perspiration reacts with nickel, they will be dead before the gig is over. Stainless rounds will fare a little better, having to only change the E string between gigs, but even then they will still last only a couple of gigs before they go from clang to clunk. I am not reactive to chrome or iron, so strings like GHS Progressives, which have more iron in the mix, or D'Addario Chrome flats, or Fender steel flats last a long, long time. As a matter of fact, I put on my current set of Fender 9050CL flats more than two years ago, and they just keep getting better, and better, and....

Edited May 20, 2013 by iiipopes

[Mexicola]

I know this is an entirely different question but it kind of relates to the topic... Is it worth spending almost double the price on a set of coated strings as they are meant to last longer or are you better off just buying two pairs for roughly the same price?

[Truckstop]

Well you'd get whichever set sounds and feels the best!

Luckily for me I prefer the sound of worn in LaBella Stainless steels. I change them every 6 months or so. LaBellas tend to lose their sparkle fairly quickly which suits me just fine but then their tone stays consistent for a few months after. I also love their feel; nice and smooth.

Strings are a funny old thing. The one thing that can change your tone the most and change your playing style the most too. You can have a P bass and an amp with the exact same settings all the time but just a different set of strings will change everything rather dramatically.

Truckstop

[Mr. Foxen]

[quote name='Mexicola' timestamp='1369180184' post='2086096']
I know this is an entirely different question but it kind of relates to the topic... Is it worth spending almost double the price on a set of coated strings as they are meant to last longer or are you better off just buying two pairs for roughly the same price?
[/quote]

Depends on the coated, yet to wear out a set of elixirs (although lending a bass to a pick player for recording gave them dandruff), but the DR blue coated jobs died in standard sort of time.

Being on certain medications affects the sweats ability to corrode stuff. Think there is some other effect, I don't get a funky buildup on my fingerboard, some people manage to have compost heaps on theirs.

[MiltyG565]

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' timestamp='1369186176' post='2086116']
Being on certain medications affects the sweats ability to corrode stuff. Think there is some other effect, I don't get a funky buildup on my fingerboard, some people manage to have compost heaps on theirs.
[/quote]

I find that the build up is usually down to both sweat and shedding skin. For a long time after I started playing, skin was tearing off my fingers at a fairly worrying rate, and it all kind of stuck in between the winds of the string (killing the tone) and some got mashed into the fretboard. Although, I've never had a sting corrode on me.

I've found to make strings last, you shouldn't just wash your hands before playing, but scrub them habitually with one of those little nail brushes. My hypothesis is that grease and the like gets trapped between the grooves of our fingerprints and normal washing doesn't shift it. I was my hands as much as anybody else, but scrubbing seems to make the difference.

[sblueplanet]

Maybe Lady Macbeth was a conscientious bass player. All that hand-washing.

[MiltyG565]

[quote name='sblueplanet' timestamp='1369224272' post='2086474']
Maybe Lady Macbeth was a conscientious bass player. All that hand-washing.
[/quote]

Careful, my hairs parting as that one flies over my head.

[sblueplanet]

Lady Macbeth from Macbeth play by Shakespeare:-) Walks around naked washing her hands once the murder starts.

Much better than Inspector Poirot or Morse.