Panamonte Posted July 18, 2014 Share Posted July 18, 2014 (edited) I recently bought a Yamaha TRB 1005 here and - as it was my first 5er - I did a bit of research when I came to restringing it. I wanted steel rounds and decided the LaBella steel rounds sounded like a good bet. The B string got good reports which I figured was pretty important. However, when I played them I found that not only was the sound darker than I was expecting from steels, but that the tonal balance across the strings was quite uneven - the B in particular sounding a lot darker. I don't think they're bad strings, but they just didn't give me the sound I wanted from this bass. I've had Elixir steels on my L2000 since last autumn and love how they play and sound - it's my go-to bass for recording - so I ordered a set with the .125 B string. I am happy to report that there is a night and day difference. The fretted notes on the B string are far clearer and there is better tonal consistency across the strings. I had been wondering whether I needed to change the preamp in this bass, but this is yet another demonstration of the huge difference that strings can make. For a quarter of the price of a John East U Retro Deluxe, my bass now sounds amazing. Edited July 19, 2014 by Panamonte Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panamonte Posted July 19, 2014 Author Share Posted July 19, 2014 ****IMPORTANT CAVEAT**** Naturally this doesn't mean that I won't go ahead and buy a U Retro Deluxe (5 knob model) in the not too distant future; but a little self-delusion goes a long way. 😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted July 19, 2014 Share Posted July 19, 2014 I've got to say, Elixir steels are the best strings I've ever used... My first set lasted me one year and I'm quite 'clumsy' with my right hand!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BanditSid Posted July 19, 2014 Share Posted July 19, 2014 I agree with the comments above, I am a convert and use them on all my basses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyclaret Posted August 2, 2014 Share Posted August 2, 2014 Best strings I've used period! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lukeward2004 Posted August 2, 2014 Share Posted August 2, 2014 Been an Elixir Nanoweb user for nearly 10 years (when they first came out) - every bass I have is strung with them. I changed my last set on the Streamer Stage 2 a few months back, as they where 6 years old and had been gigged almost every weekend throughout that period. Id say thats a pretty immense return on investment, even at £50 a set! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grissle Posted August 2, 2014 Share Posted August 2, 2014 Tried their early ones and they started to break down and get frizzy. I heard they updated the formula recently so I gave them another shot, way better. And the SS sets sound like SS. If I were recording I might, might change them? I don't know though, they've really raised their game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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