Played bass few times in 3 years - when do I change my strings?

[Nail Soup]

Just remember the old bass players adage:

If you like a zing - fits new strings. If you like it mellow - leave them, fellow !

 

(Ok I might have made that up!)

[Chrisbassboy5]

Just now, Nail Soup said:

Just remember the old bass players adage:

If you like a zing - fits new strings. If you like it mellow - leave them, fellow !

 

(Ok I might have made that up!)

Awesome… learning all the time. Cheers mate!

[Boodang]

On the extreme, my double bass strings have been on for about 15 years and I've got no intention of changing them!

[Bassfinger]

Change them when they snap, physically deteriorate, get rattly, or sound dead.  If you wipe them down with a microfibre clith after playing a quality set of flats may sound good for decades.

[Woodwind]

4 hours ago, hooky_lowdown said:

Folks who like super bright round wounds are the ones who change strings most regularly, flatwounds if wiped down now and again, or never if you thats your thing can just let it be. Flatwounds get better with age!

 when I played rounds I changed them before every gig (originals band playing once a month).

 

Now I play on light weight ground-wounds.

I have the had the same set for 6 years. I think about buying a fresh set, but that's more remembering habit rather than desiring a new sound 😂

[skankdelvar]

Last time I changed my coated round wounds was 2004.

 

They don't zing anymore, obvz, but they sound OK, maybe because I clean them off after I've played them. Couple of years ago I wondered if the intonation might have gone a bit iffy after all that time but I checked the notes up the neck with a tuner and they were fine.

 

They'll be staying on a bit longer.

[yorks5stringer]

When to change strings?

I find doing it on a full moon and a spring equinox ( for obvious reasons as they retain their 'spring' better) facing the direction of Stonehenge ( which will vary depending on your location). I also find winding the strings on the posts the same direction direction as the bath water drains out (or shower) helps them last longer too.

Finally wiping my fingerboard with the blood of a freshly slaughtered goat ensures no one asks to borrow your Bass at the local open mic....

[Bolo]

On these threads, nobody asks what sound you're after or what music you play. People just want their preferences validated I guess.

 

I'm no different but I'll give a little background at least.

I play thrash metal, use steel round wound strings and change them every year when I give my bass a good clean, oil the fretboard and change the 9v batteries in the preamp. I use Dr Strings DDT heavies.

 

Iron Maiden's Steve Harris changes his flats before every gig apparently. 

[Chrisbassboy5]

1 minute ago, Bolo said:

On these threads, nobody asks what sound you're after or what music you play. People just want their preferences validated I guess.

 

I'm no different but I'll give a little background at least.

I play thrash metal, use steel round wound strings and change them every year when I give my bass a good clean, oil the fretboard and change the 9v batteries in the preamp. I use Dr Strings DDT heavies.

 

Iron Maiden's Steve Harris changes his flats before every gig apparently. 

Cool mate, as a past professional tuba player I love a deep rich bass tone with little treble so these work for me.. 

 

 

 

 

[Skinnyman]

Rick Wakeman tells the story of working with Chas Cronk on the Six Wives album. Forty-odd years later he worked with Chas again;

 

RW: “Is that the same bass, Chas?”
 

CC: “Yep. Same strings too”.

[Marvin]

I've used Flats for the last 6 years, maybe more, on both my basses. I've only changed strings 3 times. Once on my P bass because one of the strings had become damaged, it'd started to rattle so I could only think the core had started to go downhill. On my Jazz bass, I changed my flats to rounds a couple of months ago...then changed them back again after 10 days because I really didn't like the sound of the rounds. So a total of 3 times in 6 years  

[Sparky Mark]

I have TI flats on one of my precisions and will only replace if a string breaks, which hasn't happened to me in the past 25+ years. I much prefer broken in roundwounds as when first on they are heavy on the bottom and top frequencies. Once roundwounds age a bit the mids come through better for me.

One trick I use to add a little zing back to old roundwounds is to slacken (one at a time) each string so it's really floppy then pull it up sharply around the 12th fret and allow it to slap back on the fretboard. Do this repeatedly for as long as you can (or get bored) then tune back up. They won't sound new but usually a little brighter IME.

Edited October 31, 2021 by Sparky Mark

[vantagepointrocks]

When one of my strings break I take that as my que to change them.

[petecarlton]

On 30/10/2021 at 18:45, Reggaebass said:

I change my strings regularly, once in 1984 then again in 2004 😁

You must be thinking about changing soon then! 🤣

[Reggaebass]

5 minutes ago, petecarlton said:

You must be thinking about changing soon then! 🤣

I’ve got a few years to go yet 😁

[TimR]

If the B sounds dead and the others sound OK, I'd look at reasons for that. I don't think strings lose much if you're not playing the bass much.

 

Buying singles isn't particularly easy for Bass, or at least that's my experience. 

[Sparky Mark]

21 hours ago, TimR said:

If the B sounds dead and the others sound OK, I'd look at reasons for that. I don't think strings lose much if you're not playing the bass much.

 

Buying singles isn't particularly easy for Bass, or at least that's my experience. 

I thought the low B on 5 stringers was notorious for tonal differences, especially on standard scale instruments? Hence the 35+ inch scales.

Edited November 2, 2021 by Sparky Mark

[Chrisbassboy5]

H Folks, after ages of looking for the string box they came in I have discovered that they are.. Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Flatwound JF345, .043 to 0.136. 5 string..
 

seems they live forever. Need to change them at all or not?

 

cheers, 

 

chris

Edited June 8, 2022 by Chrisbassboy5

[Reggaebass]

2 minutes ago, Chrisbassboy5 said:

seems they live forever. Need to change them at all or not

If they still sound good to you then no, all that happens to flats is that they mellow with time and get smoother , I prefer them like that but some like them to sound brighter 

[Bunion]

On 30/10/2021 at 17:48, Chrisbassboy5 said:

‘how long is a piece of string’

Twice the distance from the middle..

[nilorius]

If You want to change them to another flats - wait a year, if roundwounds - then now.

Edited June 8, 2022 by nilorius

[TheLowDown]

Some rarely change their strings. Even with rounds a lot of people like the thuddy sound that comes close to flats. If you're happy with the sound then there's no reason to change. Not everyone likes the sound of new rounds.

Edited June 8, 2022 by TheLowDown

[alyctes]

I change strings when I can't get reliable harmonics off them to tune.

[nilorius]

2 hours ago, alyctes said:

I change strings when I can't get reliable harmonics off them to tune.

Do You use harmonics much when playing songs ?

[skankdelvar]

3 hours ago, Chrisbassboy5 said:

Need to change them at all or not?

 

No, not really.