To Change Strings or Not- That is the ?

[Geddyfleaharris]

Tomorrow night our band is going to play its first gig together. We have been together for about 9 months. The band is beyond solid and ready to go. Its mainly originals and we are playing on a bill with 3 other bands at a local club. My dilemma is whether or not I should change the strings on my bass. The bass is a 4003 Ric that I bought new 6 weeks ago. The music is heavy rock. I play with a pick and play fairly hard. I figure I have about 24 hours of playing (rehearsals) on the factory strings. They still sound great but as this is our band 's debut I don't want to have to deal with a busted string. I am leaning to changing them as I don't like leaving things to chance but thought I would get some other TBers opinions first.

Cheers!

[TrevorOfDoom]

eh, change 'em!! i change my strings before every show, but i also kill strings fairly quickly.

as far as how often you should change strings, many factors should be taken into account. like your body chemistry, the age of the strings, what kind of strings, yadda yadda. nickel strings only last me one show, then they're dead. coated steel strings will last me about three months before they die a horrible death. buuuut... i like the sound of nickel better, so i use them more often. expensive, but great tone isn't cheap. so i'm pretty sure you'd use steel strings, and if so, get DR coated. they're amazing. and they last. just listen to your strings and you'll know when to change them.

[billbern]

If it were me , I would not change them at this late date. And if you do change them don't change brands or gauges. I would try to live with less than fresh sounding strings, than have a neck relief and/or intonation problem at the gig.
Next time change them earlier (at least a few days) so you can make sure the neck doesn't do anything "funny".
Just my input, but in the 30 years I've had Rics (4001s), my experience is they don't like changes in string tension, gauge or weather.
Bill

[Geddyfleaharris]

Originally Posted by billbern

Next time change them earlier (at least a few days) so you can make sure the neck doesn't do anything "funny".
Just my input, but in the 30 years I've had Rics (4001s), my experience is they don't like changes in string tension, gauge or weather.
Bill

I had a Ric 20 years ago and the neck was always a concern. As you say they can do "funny" things.The lateness of the gig is simply because we were a last minute substitute for a band that dropped out (friends with 1 of the other bands on the bill). So we said heck ya - let's go!

[scootron]

Okay, this is not exactly on topic, but more of a warning and bit of advice.
My band played its first gig together here about three months ago. I was ready, but the first thing I noticed was that the venue was much more humid than our regular practice room. As a result, my hands and fingers felt 'sticky' and slow during the sound check, and I started to freak out.
I wound up applying some GHS "Fast Fret" string cleaner, which I think is basically mineral oil. I even put a little on the back of the neck. I wiped most of it off, but left a little more on the strings than I normally do. As a result, it felt like greased lightning.
Our next gig was at an outdoor festival, just after a heavy shower. Very humid. I tried the same thing, and this time the guitar player followed suit.
This may be a trick everyone else already knows, but it sure was a lifesaver for us.
Go get 'em tomorrow night!