DR Strings up close and personal....

Mikeyd74 · #1 03-24-2008, 01:13 PM

After years and years of using Ernie Ball Slinkys I decided to try something new. After hearing so much hype about them I decided on trying a few sets of DR "Marcus Miller" strings on some of my basses. A few months have gone by and I've noticed that the DR's have become completely lifeless where as my Slinky's have lasted as long as 4-5 months while maintaining a nice bright warm tone.
I decided to change my strings today while at work in order to be ready for a recording session tonight. At work I have the benefit of having access to a MicroVu, which is basically an industrial video microscope. Right away I noticed the uneven winding and gaps in the strings. All four guages had the same look. So I decided to put the Ernie Ball strings on the MicroVu and there was a huge difference. The EB's had nice uniform windings with zero gaps.
So I thought that maybe the fact that the DR's had been used and abused was a factor so I grabbed my spare set of brand new DR's to check them out on the MicroVu and I found the same thing.
It's back to Ernie Ball Slinky's for me.

Tony G · #2 03-24-2008, 01:19 PM

Interesting. This thread would have been better if you were able to take pictures of said views under the MicroVu. I would love to see those.

Mikeyd74 · #3 03-24-2008, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony G

Interesting. This thread would have been better if you were able to take pictures of said views under the MicroVu. I would love to see those.

LOL, I was just complaining to my superviser about that. I wonder if it would look ok if I took a pic with my phones camera. Although I need to ask if I could do it before hand, afraid of industrial espionage lol

Lesfunk · #4 03-24-2008, 01:26 PM

I'll take the one's that play and sound better over the one's that look better under a microscope every time

newfuture · #5 03-24-2008, 01:28 PM

Odd. I've had the exact opposite experience WRT the longevity of DRs. That said, I've used mainly the "HiBeams" model, not the MM. I did try the LoRiders once and didn't care for them though. Good luck with the Flats so far...

Tony G · #6 03-24-2008, 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lesfunk

I'll take the one's that play and sound better over the one's that look better under a microscope every time

I don't think anyone would agrue with that. I think the point is that while strings like DR's may sound fantastic (I use Hi-Beams and Fat Beams regularly), if they die on you too fast not everybody can afford to change their strings as frequently as others. Viewing them under the microscope like this could help explain why, in the case of the original poster, that DR's would go dead on him quicker than Slinky's.

Parabolic Box · #7 03-24-2008, 01:34 PM

AFAIK, round core strings are wound slightly differently than hex core. I'd be interested to see how a set of Lo-Riders look under the microscope.

Chebass88 · #8 03-24-2008, 01:37 PM

Mikeyd74,

You teased us with a quantitative analysis of strings without pictures from the microscope!

imp

Mikeyd74 · #9 03-24-2008, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chebass88

Mikeyd74,

You teased us with a quantitative analysis of strings without pictures from the microscope!

imp

Can't promise anything, but I'm working on it.

**KJung** · #10 03-24-2008, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikeyd74

After years and years of using Ernie Ball Slinkys I decided to try something new. After hearing so much hype about them I decided on trying a few sets of DR "Marcus Miller" strings on some of my basses. A few months have gone by and I've noticed that the DR's have become completely lifeless where as my Slinky's have lasted as long as 4-5 months while maintaining a nice bright warm tone.
I decided to change my strings today while at work in order to be ready for a recording session tonight. At work I have the benefit of having access to a MicroVu, which is basically an industrial video microscope. Right away I noticed the uneven winding and gaps in the strings. All four guages had the same look. So I decided to put the Ernie Ball strings on the MicroVu and there was a huge difference. The EB's had nice uniform windings with zero gaps.
So I thought that maybe the fact that the DR's had been used and abused was a factor so I grabbed my spare set of brand new DR's to check them out on the MicroVu and I found the same thing.
It's back to Ernie Ball Slinky's for me.

I've never used the 'Marcus Miller' sets, but the Hi Beams last longer and stay brighter than any string brand I've ever used. They are quite amazing. You might want to give them a try. Many have posted how long these strings last and stay bright.

I've used them exclusively now for about 3 years.. wonderful!

Not sure what design the Marcus Millers are. The Hi Beams have the round core, which gives them a very smooth feel to the hand, and a nice 'moderate to low tension' feel... almost like 'super Nickels'. Wonderful!

I remember using the Slinky's for a short while back in the day.. nice strings also, but they lost the top end too quickly for me.

Tony G · #11 03-24-2008, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KJung

I've never used the 'Marcus Miller' sets, but the Hi Beams last longer and stay brighter than any string brand I've ever used. They are quite amazing. You might want to give them a try. Many have posted how long these strings last and stay bright.

I've used them exclusively now for about 3 years.. wonderful!

Not sure what design the Marcus Millers are. The Hi Beams have the round core, which gives them a very smooth feel to the hand, and a nice 'moderate to low tension' feel... almost like 'super Nickels'. Wonderful!

I remember using the Slinky's for a short while back in the day.. nice strings also, but they lost the top end too quickly for me.

I can't say for sure, but I thought I remembered reading that Fat Beams were essentially hi-beams that were wound even slower or something. The sound pretty much identical to my ears, with the Fat Beam being a little sweeter up top and a little deeper down low maybe, but this could easily be my mind playing tricks since they put Marcus' name on the package and charge a few dollars more for them compared to hi-beams.

Double Agent · #12 03-24-2008, 02:25 PM

I've never had a set of DRs go less than 3 months and I've never had a set of Slinky's that were good for more than 1 month before they died.

But, if you were happier with EBs, then go for it.

mjolnir · #13 03-24-2008, 02:37 PM

Could have something to do with the fact that DR's are hand wound.

...Aren't they?

Mikeyd74 · #14 03-24-2008, 02:42 PM

I just want to make it clear that I am not Anti-DR Strings in anyway. Of course personal preference comes into play regarding string choices. I was just surprised by what I saw with the DR strings and thought I would share it with you all. It makes you wonder about "handmade" strings, does that mean quality and performance may vary from set to set?
As for access to the MicroVu, I may be able to use it again tomorrow during my lunch or possibly after work today if my co-worker will stick around to help me. I'm not trained or authorized to use the MicroVu even though a 5 year old could master it in 2 minutes.

ProfessorString · #15 03-24-2008, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Parabolic Box

I'd be interested to see how a set of Lo-Riders look under the microscope.

Here you go...

-Prof

ProgRapture · #16 03-24-2008, 02:47 PM

Odd. My DR High Beams are still on since Christmas and sound zingy and full of life, while any set of EBs I've used are gone within a week. I respect your opinion (with actual backup, good job!), but I cannot stand Ernie Ball strings. Love MM though!

Mikeyd74 · #17 03-24-2008, 03:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ProfessorString

Here you go...

-Prof

Good pic, but you'd be shocked by how much farther we can zoom in here. You can see the gaps easily in this pic but nearly as dramatic as what I have seen and definitely not as uneven. I'm guessing that I must have got a lot of dirt and grime in those gaps that make the strings go dead so fast. On the other hand, the Ernie Ball Slinkys have very little gap at all.

Tony G · #18 03-24-2008, 03:16 PM

Here is a question for you. Have you looked about both the DR Fat Beams and the Slinky's under this microscope, both before they've been installed and put under tension and after they've been installed and played? I'd imagine that with any string the gaps between the windings would get a little spaced out, and depending on how hard and where you play the strings most. A fresh string from both sets might yield nice tight windings, but after you put them on and play them for a while, they stretch right out and deform a bit.

**KJung** · #19 03-24-2008, 03:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikeyd74

I just want to make it clear that I am not Anti-DR Strings in anyway. Of course personal preference comes into play regarding string choices. I was just surprised by what I saw with the DR strings and thought I would share it with you all. It makes you wonder about "handmade" strings, does that mean quality and performance may vary from set to set?
As for access to the MicroVu, I may be able to use it again tomorrow during my lunch or possibly after work today if my co-worker will stick around to help me. I'm not trained or authorized to use the MicroVu even though a 5 year old could master it in 2 minutes.

I've found the Hi Beams very consistent... although I think every string is in this day and age.

Your experience is interesting, since many, many, many of us love the DR strings (especially the Hi Beams) because they last so long. They stay reasonably bright for literally months. I've never been able to keep another round wound steel string on a bass for more than 5 gigs or so, or for more than about a month, whichever came first.

So who knows... could be some strange interection with you playing style, rig and bass.

All I know is the Hi Beams last forever

Not sure if 'tight windings' are a positive or negative either way.

However, if you have a set of strings that works better for you, that's cool also!

Mikeyd74 · #20 03-24-2008, 03:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony G

Here is a question for you. Have you looked about both the DR Fat Beams and the Slinky's under this microscope, both before they've been installed and put under tension and after they've been installed and played? I'd imagine that with any string the gaps between the windings would get a little spaced out, and depending on how hard and where you play the strings most. A fresh string from both sets might yield nice tight windings, but after you put them on and play them for a while, they stretch right out and deform a bit.

The first string I looked at was the DR off my bass, it was played on for about 3 months I'd say. Then I looked at a brand new EB slinky and thought the same thing as you did. So I grabbed my spare set of brand new DR's and found the same thing as the used DR's. Large gaps to where you can actually see the core and a lot of the gaps were actually uneven.