Elixir bass strings.. Thoughts??

[Sparty]

When I bought my ibanez sr600 it came with elixir nanoweb strings on.. Rather than change to my usual highbrid rotosounds I gave them a bash.. Two months and many practices n gigs later they still sound really bright.. The sound isn't half bad either. Has anyone else any thoughts or experience with these strings?
They are also supposed to last 3-4 times longer than your average strings.. If this is the case then the price isn't too bad.. I'm gonna see how long they hold out for before I try a new set tho...

[73jbass]

I've been using them since 2007. They cost about twice the standard price of a regular string,but last at least 3 times as long,so you come out ahead. Great tone,easy on the fingers and frets,and John Paul Jones uses them. Nuff said!

[rydin4lifebass]

I had a set on my ibanez srx300 when I first bought it. I loved it in store but not a fan when I got it home and played it. I went through 5-6 strings before settling on DR Red Devils which I just put on a few weeks ago. I wish I would have kept the elixir's on longer and really gave them more of a chance. I like the DR's but just feel like I didn't give them long enough.

[rudedog]

My new SR 1205e came with them. I'm an old school round wound guy but am finding them to be very good tone wise. Not sure how long they last.

[SquierJazz72]

I can't say anything about them yet for bass, but I just put a set on my Stratocaster, because I got a really good deal on a three pack, 9-42.

So far, I like the snappiness of the tone and the feel of them, so I will see.
If I continue to like them on my guitar, I will definitely give a bass set a try.

[Floyd Eye]

I didn't like them. Too harsh in the upper end for me. I'm a Rotosound guy. I have considered the Red Devils though. What do they sound like, compared to Rotos or Blue Steels?

[junkman]

I have been using them since 2004 and love them. Last year to see if I was missing out on something I tried some other popular rounds, the whole time I was just waiting to put elixirs back on my basses. I like the tone and the long life and I love the feel 'pretty slick'. With uncoated strings I found it was easier to burn my hands doing slides. I don't like to sound like a fanboy but damn, I don't understand why more people aren't playing them.

[Mike M.]

My SR505 came with Elixir's and I think they're the perfect string for that particular bass. They feel great, perfect tension, they last forever and the low B just slams.

Thought I'd try the same set and gage on my Fender AM STD 5 string Jazz bass....not so good. The tone was great, but all the strings had a very loose feel to them.

I've yet to try a set on my 4 strings.

[tomsgandl]

I use them as well on my G&L L-2000. Yeah, for the tone, longevity and feel, it doesn't occur to me to try anything else. Great strings.

[Solarmist]

Congrats on the excellent choice in a basses ... I have one too (10')

Elixirs are really beautiful sounding strings, and do last about twice as long as non-coated strings. I still have the set that came on the bass, and they weren't dead when I took them off after 4 months, but I couldn't wait to slap some D'Add Prosteels on it.

The Prosteels just bring an Ibby SR to life.

[JoeWPgh]

They last FOREVER. I don't know everything that's out there. But these sound/play very nicely out of the box. They stay that way for a very long time.

[Aljazz]

I have been using Elixirs for about 5 years now on my gigging bass. The tone lasts a lot longer than regular nickel strings for me.

I get about 3 months on average of playing with Elixirs, compared to about 4-5 weeks only on regular nickel strings, such as D'Addario or GHS. I change them usually not because they are sounding dead in 3 months, but because they are usually showing signs of wear from the frets by then. They usually still sound decent when I replace them. I also like the feel of the coated Elixirs, smooth and slick.

I do like GHS strings too, they just don't last as long for me.

[pauliebass]

I'm a fan as well.

[bass12]

I liked Elixers when I was playing Warwick basses. When I switched to playing a Fender I found I wasn't as big on the sound of the coated strings on that particular bass. They do last longer than regular strings but, in the end, I probably didn't get any more playing time out of them as I can boil my usual strings but can't boil the Elixers. Also, I don't like the texture of the coating once it begins to shred.

[Basshappi]

I put them on my fretless, good match there. They sound ery good and have the added benefit cutting down string noise.
I had a set on my '62 RI Jazz and they sounded great. When they finally died (which IIRC was after 2 years of hard use) I tried some DRs which are good too. However, I think I'll be going back to them on that bass as they seem to be its "voice".

[Hobobob]

I've run a few sets on my SR706. They're bright up top, but there's a certain range of treble frequencies that are just a slight bit muted compared to uncoated nickel rounds. There's also a bit of midbass boom inherent to the tone of these strings. On the right bass, these strings can work really well.
I've also heard that the coating on elixirs is non-conductive, so passive basses with finicky grounding schemes might give you some extra body and volume to your hair with these strings Generally I've found this to be a non-issue with actives.

[Sparty]

Originally Posted by Solarmist

Congrats on the excellent choice in a basses ... I have one too (10')

Elixirs are really beautiful sounding strings, and do last about twice as long as non-coated strings. I still have the set that came on the bass, and they weren't dead when I took them off after 4 months, but I couldn't wait to slap some D'Add Prosteels on it.

The Prosteels just bring an Ibby SR to life.

That's interesting may just try a set of pro steels to compare...
It seems that ibanez is setting up all their SR's with elixir strings I. Wonder if they build them with that string in mind.
I'm a great fan of the SR600 it almost plays itself (I'm sure the slickness of the strings add to that also) and so light with great hardware.. I don't get cramps, my shoulder doesn't ache from the weight.. Bass heaven for me..

[Toptube]

I loved the tone of Elixirs on my Fender Jaguar. I hadn't used them for about two years, though.

I just recently bought some again. Last January they came out with steels and they changed the coating. Reportedly, they no longer shred/get hairy/fuzzy. Time will tell, but after playing a new set of the nickels a few days I can say that they are way more flexible now. I'm probably going to have to go up a gauge or two. I used to like the lightest gauge.

The tone is a bit different. They seem to have more punch! The top end is still pretty sweet. I think the only thing they could improve on now is balancing the tension more. The stated tension in lbs on their E strings is quite a bit less than the other strings in any given pack. I can definitely feel it in the set I have. It probably wouldn't be a problem on my Ibanez SRT, becuase it tends to string up more tense, but my Jaguar strings up more loose and its noticeable here.

I'm also not really feeling like there is less string noise here, but I also felt that way about the older Elixirs. I think the coating is more about string life and keeping true un-coated like tone. Rather than damping. I've been using some DR Dragon Skins on my SRT for while and they definitely feature less finger noise, but they also have more of coated tone and feel. Its a pretty good tone, but its not nearly as brilliant or punchy as these elixirs.

[lucam]

I love them on my trb 6p, and - as somebody else already said - every time I put some other strings on it I just hope they break soon so I can get another Elixir set!
They're just the perfect companion for that bass, plus the Elixir guys are very nice people - met them at the Musikmesse last year

[slngd]

Are the Elixirs kind of sticky, like the coated DR strings?

I'm thinking about trying out a set, but if they're sticky, they would go right off the moment after i mounted them.