Does short scale strings fit Epiphone Viola?

[gsbkv10]

I have Epiphone Viola bass. It's short scale bass, 30.5".
But it seems its tailpiece is longer than others.

The string I want is Rotosound Tru Bass 88.
It has three kinds of lengths, short, medium, and long.


The list below is string length guide on Rotosound website.

- Scale Lengths -
Short Scale 30"
Medium Scale 30.5 - 32
Long Scale 32 - 34

- String Lengths - Ballend to Silk -
Short Scale 32.5
Medium Scale 35.25
Long Scale 37


Which one should I get?

[fretlessguy]

From all I have read here on the site the Hofners and their clones will need medium scale strings (even though the fingerboard itself is short scale ) due to the trapeze tailpiece.

[OldDog52]

I can confirm that short-scale strings do not work on the Epi Viola. I rather stupidly ordered short-scales without really researching it and discovered during the changeover that they're wrong. D'oh.

[JustDavid]

My Epi & my tape measure make it 32.5" from ball end to the center of the nut. But there's a zero fret. I've never stripped back the silk on those strings, & I really don't want a silked portion in the nut. Measuring an older set of long scale 88s, it looks like there is about 5/8" of silk before the windings step down. Also, from a page on Roto's website where I found their length specs, "When fitting Rotosound Bass Strings, be sure that the silked part of the string ONLY is wound around the machine post. If the speaking length of the string is wound around the post, the string may then be prone to breakage. This type of breakage is not covered by our normal warranty." No mention if stripping back silk impacts the warranty.

35.25" from the ball end to the center of the E & G tuners. I've medium Chromes on my Epi & haven't noted any issues with the full winding on the E being on the tuning machine's spool, but those ARE different strings with different structures.

Why not email jason@rotosound.com & ask? Epi Voilas aren't a rare instrument.

[anonymous122511]

Originally Posted by fretlessguy

From all I have read here on the site the Hofners and their clones will need medium scale strings (even though the fingerboard itself is short scale ) due to the trapeze tailpiece.

The one exception I know of are Thomastik Jazz Flats short scale. These seem to be made with the Hofner type tailpiece in mind and are too long for top loading fixed bridge shorties like Mustangs and Danos.

[lazerbrains]

Here's the link to the website for rotosound:

http://www.rotosound.com/guide_scroll.html

They say not only the silk should wrap around the post. I recently ordered a set of 88's for my Greco violin bass and when I measured, the medium set would have wrapped the actual string around the post, so I ordered the short scale. I haven't yet received the strings, so will see how it goes. I have used the rotosound shorts 77's for the same instrument and they worked fine, but I did have to remove about 1/4" of the silk to keep it off the nut.

[Pilgrim]

Medium scale for ALL the violin-shaped basses. The tailpiece setup requires it.

[lazerbrains]

Originally Posted by Pilgrim

Medium scale for ALL the violin-shaped basses. The tailpiece setup requires it.

Just installed the short scale Trubass 88's on my Greco violin bass and they were a perfect fit. The silks were just above the nut. If I had ordered the medium scale they would have been too long. FWIW my Icon violin bass is the same length from tailpiece to nut as well - can't comment on the viola.

These strings have a nice sound right out of the box. They sound like warm broken in flatwounds. The feel takes a bit of getting used to - they are so smooth. Tension is a bit higher than I would have guessed, but not bad. The set is nicely matched string to string - I think I am going to like these.