Can Someone list the different DR String sound qualities by make?

[brooklyn]

Hi beams
Lo-Riders
Fat Beams
Black Beauties
Etc..........

I'm interested in trying some new strings on my fretted jazz and wanted to know what some of you guy's think of the different sound characteristics of the DR strings. I'm currently using Rotosound Swing 66's.

Ideally I'm looking for warmth, with punch, clarity but with some darkness to it- and something that's not too bright. (please not too bright)

Kindly, please respond ONLY if you have tried the strings in question.
I'm not interested in things people have told you.

Many thanks.

[Roland777]

I'm interested in this as well - but only the how HiBeams are in comparison with LoRiders. I can say what I think about LoRiders - a bright string with a great snap when slapping/popping and good warmth when fingerstyling. Understandably becomes warmer in pace with the wear. I can't tell you how fast it wears out, since I'm coming from Elixirs, which last probably an era or two, but in my opinion, they do wear out kind of fast. Either that, or I have really sweaty hands.
I'd personally like to know how HiBeams differ from LoRiders because I'm thinking about making the switch, since HiBeams are the only of their models that offer a .135, and I'd probably get a lighter gauge of HiBeams to go with it. (Currently strung my bass with 50-110 LoRiders + D'Addario .145. Great for fingerstyle, too cumbersome and heavy for slapping)
A side question to go with this (No hijacking intended): When using lighter gauges, are the strings more "springy" when slapping, and do they have a more trebly response? As far as I can remember, my Elixir strings had a nice clicky response when slapping/popping, while my LoRider+.145-configuration has a much more muffled "CTUNCH" when they hit the fretboard/frets, unless I really move up the neck towards the 22nd fret. Will going down the gauges rectify these issues?

[sunbeast]

brooklyn- I would try the Black Beauties (or any of the DR coated strings- they are all the same design, just different colors). Thats what I currently have on my 2 "players". Before that I had used DR Sunbeams (nickel + round core), Steel Lo-Riders (they also make a nickel variety of Lo-Riders- these are all hex core), and Steel Hi-Beams (round core). I've also been using the Hi-Beams Flatwounds on a bass that I don't play too often.
I honestly don't think you can go wrong with any DR sets, and I've now tried them all except the nickel Lo-Riders, the Marcus Miller Fat Beams, and the Long Necks....

Like I said though- I think the Black Beauties fit your needs pretty well- they are apparently the same strings as Hi-Beams (round core steel strings), but the coating seems to curb the extraneous high end that Hi-Beams have (which does wear out fairly quickly, by the way). The Black Beauties are very warm and articulate, and also very growly if you want them to be- which is my favorite aspect. They also have lasted twice as long on the same bass as any of the other DR sets I've tried- they do cost almost twice as much though (...almost). My second suggestion would be one of the Lo-Rider sets- as I said, I've only tried the steel- but I also want to try the nickel eventually (if these Black Beauties ever wear out!). They are much warmer/ less bright than the Hi-Beams, and have a very strong low-mid response. I would say that the Hi-Beams have more low bass, which is not what I needed as much- but they also have really cutting high-mids, which I loved about them (Black Beauties seem to have the best of both worlds). The Sunbeams are just super middy strings all around- they have really nice harmonics as well (if I had a bass with a maple fretboard, these would definitely be my first choice!).

Hope I could be of some help, though strings are one of the hardest things to describe (and agree on)...

Karl

[ElBajista]

Originally Posted by brooklyn

Ideally I'm looking for warmth, with punch, clarity but with some darkness to it- and something that's not too bright. (please not too bright)

I find that Lo-riders have a strong Mid prescence with differently voiced highs, not clanky like Hi-beams, but sweeter sounding. Overall, a great string for punchy slap tones and nice warm fingerstyle tones.

I find DR Black Beauties to be warm similarly to the Lo-riders, but with a more subtle high end. They don't have as much as a slap-able high end IMO, but overall fantastic strings for fingerstyle. Overall, they're warm strings but with a darker personality.

FWIW....

[ihateusernames]

I've converted to DR lo-riders recently from GHS boomers. They wore very slowly, however it was a quick descent when the started going. Night and day difference from newer to worn strings. I'd estimate about 50 hours on a set before going south. Moving on to black beauties next time to try for longevity. I love the sound of the lo riders until they wore off.

[Ampeg SVT]

I find the DR's are great for slap and pop, i find them well to complement my Stingray's fingerstyle and slap tone

[hasbeen]

for the tone you described, I'd recommend DR Sunbeam Nickels before the other DR's.

[Kristopher]

Funny thing I'm noticing with my DR Hi Beams...

I put them on my late 70s Fender Precision with a maple fretboard and original pickups and they sound way too zingy for me, almost chorus-y sounding. I put them on my newish Fender Standard Jazz with a rosewood fretboard and DiMarzio Model J pickups and they sound perfect.

Edit: I play fingerstyle in a three-piece rock band, if that makes any difference.

[Ampeg SVT]

ah i forgot to say that Lo-Riders complement my Stingray but my Stingray needs repair again...thakns to a jammed battery door. I dont like Hi-Beams, I found them to me very quiet and dull when I put them on my Jazz bass, I might have got a bad set but im not sure. I do love the Lo-Riders though

[rsautrey]

Here's my take on some different DR roundwounds. All sets gauged 105-45:

All opinions are based on my Fender Jazz Bass strung through the body with tone control and volumes wide open through an Ampeg BA115 combo with the EQ set flat.

Hi-Beams (stainless steel on a round core) - Extremely flexible. The strings seems to roll under you fingers much like a classical guitar string would. Seemed to have a scooped midrange sound naturally. Super high end and a well defined bottom but not really thick sounding. Emphasis on these is with the treble. I did not like playing these with a pick because of the lack of tension and the lack of ample, natural bottom. Fingerstyle was ok but the flexibility makes faster passages difficult to play. To me these strings really would shine for someone who slaps or plays fingerstyle and wants a very clear, articulate, hi-fi kinda tone.

Black Beauties Coated (stainless steel on a round core) - Designed just like the Hi-Beams but with a black coating, I did not like these at all. The feel is ok. The coating seems to add a little more stiffness than the Hi-Beams of the same gauge which is a plus in my opinion. The sound was not as mid scooped naturally as the Hi-Beams and because of the coating, they do not sparkle on the highs either. The bottom was clear but not very thick. My jazz bass is passive and the output of these strings, probably due to the coating, was lower than the non coated DR strings. Overall, these sound like a broken in set of Hi-Beams with a little more stiffness.

Fat-Beams (stainless steel on a round core) - These strings were designed with Marcus Miller. The DR rep I spoke with says that they sent him numerous sets with differents windings, cores, core to wrap ratios, etc. and Marcus finally settled on these. Constructed just like the Hi-Beams (but wound much slower according to the DR rep), these strings are higher tension than Hi-Beams and much more midrange pronounced. This is supposedly what Marcus was looking for. It is ironic though that Marcus only uses these on his 5 string and fretless basses. His main slapping basses still gets the Hi-Beams. These strings don't sparkle as much as the Hi-Beams. They do have a much more pronounced bottom end though. The sound is closer to Lo-Riders with much more midrange. A good string for fingerstyle and pickstyle but on a side note, the 3 sets I tried all seemed to die much quicker than any of the other DR sets I have used. I like these strings well enough but they are not my first choice.

Lo-Riders (stainless steel on a hex core) - These are a hex core string, just like Rotosound Swing Bass, Dean Markley Blue Steel, etc. DR markets these as having a stiffer feel and while that is true compared to Hi-Beams, I'd say that compared to other companies stainless steel roundwounds, these are still more flexible overall. I love these strings. They are very balanced overall. Thick bottom, good mids, bright and smooth treble. Respond extremely well to pick playing and fingerstyle. They can be polite and aggressive sounding. Warm and bright at the same time. My favorite DR set so far.

Bootzillas Coated (stainless steel on a hex core) - DR says these use an imported stainless steel for a distinctive "crunchy" tone. Whatever the hell that means I don't know but I found these strings very warm sounding and overall kinda boring. Bootsy Collins used the stainless steel Lo-Riders before these and to me, these strings sound like a very, very, (did I say very?) very broken in Lo-Riders. They just don't have any sizzle out of the box to me. I suppose that the coating dampens a lot of the high end. I tried 2 different sets and they sounded identical. For warm, fingerstyle funk these probably work great but I didn't like them. Overall feel was very much like the Lo-Riders.

Sun-Beams (nickelplated steel on a round core) - Not being a fan of nickelplated strings, I tried a set of these based on a recommendation from a friend that said these were very stainless steel like. I disagree 100%. These strings a fairly flexible (compared to D'Addario EXL of the same gauge) but they do not seem that special to me compared to other nickelplated roundwounds. I've never tried the nickelplated Lo-Riders though. Overall, sound was good for basic fingerstyle, pickstyle. Good mids, shy top end. Pretty good bottom. I'm not a fair judge of nickelplated strings because their is just something about them I don't like. Even the warmest stainless steel rounds just have a certain sound that a nickelplated string can't match.

OK, I'll shut up now. This is all my opinion of course. Hope it helps.

[1kinal]

rsautrey:

Excellent review!

I totally agree with you for the:

-Hi-Beams
-Lo-Riders (stainless)
-Fat Beams

I've not had the chance to play any of DR's coated strings.

However, I have to disagree with you concerning the Sunbeams.

I really like the Sunbeams and prefer them to the nickel Lo-Riders.

The Sunbeams have a very open and fat low-end, even mids and a somehow muted treble. That's why I like to use them on a very bright J-Bass that I have (ash/maple). I also really like the feel and tension of the Sunbeams. They are very easy and comfortable to play. I'm still a stainless steel guy but for certain basses Sunbeams are just perfect for me.

I was a little disapointed with the Nickel Lo-Riders. To me the low-end don't sound as fat as the Sunbeams. The mids also seems a little boosted on the Lo-Riders. Still one of my favorite nickel set when compared to other manufacturers.

Again, thanks for the detailed review. I think that's what the OP was looking for and you made it happen.

[Flatwound]

rsautrey seems to be right on, but even though I pretty much agree with his assessments, I prefer the Fat Beams. Pretty much for the characteristics he describes - roundwound sound with strong mid emphasis. I never cared for Lo-Riders much; they die too quickly for me, and the Fat Beams last pretty well. Maybe a body chemistry thing. I haven't tried either nickel set, but I did try a set of Peacock Blue Extra Life strings, and they sounded dead-ish brand new to me, so I'll be skipping them in the future.

[ElBajista]

Originally Posted by Kristopher

Funny thing I'm noticing with my DR Hi Beams...

I put them on my late 70s Fender Precision with a maple fretboard and original pickups and they sound way too zingy for me, almost chorus-y sounding. I put them on my newish Fender Standard Jazz with a rosewood fretboard and DiMarzio Model J pickups and they sound perfect.

Edit: I play fingerstyle in a three-piece rock band, if that makes any difference.

It's probably the Model J's. They're very thick pickups, so they probably tamed down the Hi-beams.

[Curry46]

I'm getting very irritated with the stores in my town. I can't find sunbeams anywhere yet I have yet to check the store with the jerkface employees yet though, and could drive up to the musicians friend warehouse if I really feel like it...

I'm gonna apologize for the hijack in advance. So I've been playing on some reaaal thin la bella slappers (nickel roundwounds, similar to the sunbeams I think.) Like, .03 to .08. So I'm looking for something for great fingerstyle, I'm pretty bad at slapping, with a jazz through a GK 400RB. So far, I'm thinking I'll stick with nickel, on both guitar and bass I've loved the sound of nickel strings. As for tension, anything I pick up is gonna feel a lot stiffer since I've been on such a light gauge. I kinda like warm and mellow. I dont have any really set in tonal demands, but I'm a big fan of RHCP and Rush, but then again, every bassist is.

Gah I feel like such a gear newbie on bass. As a guitar to bass convert, I could spout of info about guitar gear for hours and then on bass it's just like "Uhh.... I play stuff, I like it to sound.... Good."

So... any suggestions or comments?

[1kinal]

Originally Posted by Curry46

I'm getting very irritated with the stores in my town. I can't find sunbeams anywhere yet I have yet to check the store with the jerkface employees yet though, and could drive up to the musicians friend warehouse if I really feel like it...

So... any suggestions or comments?

Don't loose your time shopping in stores...You're just a few clicks away from your Sumbeams (or any other string set):

http://www.juststrings.com/electricbassguitar.html

Great service, great prices and fast shipping.

[primemover]

Originally Posted by Roland777

I'm interested in this as well - but only the how HiBeams are in comparison with LoRiders. I can say what I think about LoRiders - a bright string with a great snap when slapping/popping and good warmth when fingerstyling. Understandably becomes warmer in pace with the wear. I can't tell you how fast it wears out, since I'm coming from Elixirs, which last probably an era or two, but in my opinion, they do wear out kind of fast. Either that, or I have really sweaty hands.
I'd personally like to know how HiBeams differ from LoRiders because I'm thinking about making the switch, since HiBeams are the only of their models that offer a .135, and I'd probably get a lighter gauge of HiBeams to go with it. (Currently strung my bass with 50-110 LoRiders + D'Addario .145. Great for fingerstyle, too cumbersome and heavy for slapping)
A side question to go with this (No hijacking intended): When using lighter gauges, are the strings more "springy" when slapping, and do they have a more trebly response? As far as I can remember, my Elixir strings had a nice clicky response when slapping/popping, while my LoRider+.145-configuration has a much more muffled "CTUNCH" when they hit the fretboard/frets, unless I really move up the neck towards the 22nd fret. Will going down the gauges rectify these issues?

I put some lowriders on my dean and they absolutely suc for slapping. I mean they have no bounce at all. They would be good strings if you play in a metal band with a pic but not for slapping.