I know their has been some talk about the new Velvet Garbos, comments such as; hard to bow, loud, good, bad. I need to find out as much as I can about these strings before I buy them. Please give me all the info.

Thanks

C. Landry
Acoustic Bass Player

I'm surprised to see that no one replied to this. I unfortunately don't have an answer. I would like to try the Velvets myself but haven't gotten around to it yet. Mostly also because I am concerned about the suitability of the strings for bowing. I would like to try the Anima because the Garbo G does not have a metal winding and is reportedly very, very hard to bow.

Adrian

I asked these same questions on another messageboard and I got the same feedback about the G-string(not a thong) This was a Rockabilly guy who said the G was uneven and sounded bad the further up the fingerboard. I do not know from experience I am just passing this info on. Check out
www.markrubin.com I think they sell them and the site will probably offer some support on them. See ya. :D :D

The Garbos rule. Yeah they may not be the best string for bowing but neither are the Golden Spirals. Anyway I bought them I think the piz sound is ridiculous. They have so much sound and I don't find the sound uneven at all. Will I buy another set? Yes I think I will. Their is still a part of me that want's to own another set of the Compas 360's because they sounded great too.

Peace

Chris: Are you at William Paterson?

yes

I'm 15 minutes from there. Maybe sometime I can hear the Garbos. My luthier swears they'd be great on Old 87, my American Standard.

Well that's a big endorsement of the Garbos. What is the sustain like?

Based on the assumption that the arco is better for the Animas, that's what I will be trying. I hope that the pizz is almost as good as the Garbos. I ask about the sustain because the Velvet literature explicitly says that the Animas have a long and deep sustain.

Adrian

The Garbos don't have nearly the sustain as a steel string. However I didn't really want that I wanted a dark sound with the gut pull. Maybe the animas have more sustain, I can get a decent amount of sustain from the garbos on the low E string where I guess it is most important.

Chris

Did you have to increase the bridge height because of the thickness of the strings and/or the amplitude?

I don't mind raising mine if the tension really is low (unlike these Innovation 140Hs I put on my bass the other day). I like to be able to pull the stream with my fingertips and not the distal joint on my fingers.

Adrian

Definately had to raise the height of my bridge to accomodate the thickness of the string. No problems after that. I guess the question you have to ask yourself is what height do you use for steel strings. If the height is 2mm off the fingerboard. A height where a 4 year old is able to play the instrument then the height that's required for these strings is going to be too much for you to handle.

Also I went back and played my bass to check out the sustain. I then realized that my bass with these strings has a good amount of sustain throughout the instrument (up until thumb position that is) However the sustain is a lot different than the steel strings.

Yo, Chris, do you know the thickness of the strings? Either mm or .00000 inches. The strings are expensive enough. If I have to change the bridge grooves, it could be one very expensive experiment if I want to go back to Spirocore.

I don't know about the thickness of the string however I was switching between this type of string and spirocores and was having no problem. Also if you have to increase the groove of your bridge it is very cheap to get it shaved if it doesn't work out. But I don't think that will be a problem.

Originally posted by Chris Landry
I Also if you have to increase the groove of your bridge it is very cheap to get it shaved if it doesn't work out.
Seems to me trimming the top of the bridge to file new grooves gives you a thicker bridge than you started with; and sanding down the underside flat service, you're getting from the original geometry.
But hey, now we have a luthier to ask.

Perhaps me? If not, I'll still comment-I've lots of spare change bouncing around in my head and apparently it only costs two cents to do this.
Don is right about the fact that filing the bridge down will change things. The bridge will thicken at the top. This may not be of consequense though. If one files or sands down to where the mark of the groove is still visible and then re-grooves the bridge, thickening will be visibly apparent-but only slightly. Depending on how thick the bridge was before, this might not need addressing. I think that most times this will be mostly a cosmetic issue and not one that impacts tone or playability. By the way, if you were to lower the string at the bridge one mm. it translates to about .4 mm. under the string at the end of the board.--Also, if you perform this operation yourself keep in mind to double and triple check the string spacings. As you lower or change the curvature the spacing will begin to wander.

Originally posted by Jeff Bollbach
Don is right about the fact that filing the bridge down will change things. The bridge will thicken at the top. This may not be of consequense though. If one files or sands down to where the mark of the groove is still visible and then re-grooves the bridge, thickening will be visibly apparent-but only slightly. Depending on how thick the bridge was before, this might not need addressing. I think that most times this will be mostly a cosmetic issue and not one that impacts tone or playability.
Nice to hear you say that. Arnold is doing some neck/fingerboard work on my dream bass, and in the process, did this very thing, with the same comments as you make. He knows I'm a fanatic, and if he were to suggest a new bridge he knows I'd do it in a split second. And don't say "Arnold who?"

Ahhnold "The Terminator" Schnitzer- that's who!