G&L L-2500 - Roto's?

[Iron Rose]

I have a L-2500 on the way.
I have always used Roto RS66LF's on my P"s.
Will the Rotos be long enough to fit the L-2500?
Will they be too bright on it?
Gage choice for the B string?

[Stuggi]

I have the stainless steel roto's on my L-2k, and they fit and sound great, so you shouldn't have any problems (as long as the L-2k and L-2.5k are the same scale).

[ljazz]

ewwwww!!!!

I absolutely hate SS on the L2x00's..... and I'm not the only one. Overtone city. Maybe once they're good and broke in, but new, those MFD's pickup absolutely every single little overtone and harmonic. Playing on the E almost sounds like you're running through a chorus pedal. A local friend plays a L2K also, and he has the same problem.

Try a good ol' set of nickels. Many folks here love the Infeld SuperAlloys, and find them to be a great match to the L-series. That's what I typically use, except I hit a great deal on D'Addarios a month ago, and have them on there now. The D'Addario XL's actually work nicely. While I haven't tried, I bet the DR Nickel Loriders or even Sunbeams would sound great.

[Stuggi]

The D'addario XL's are my go-to strings, so that's a safe bet as well, but the Roto SSs works really well on mine. Maybe it's the thumpy Swamp Ash body that does it...

But I'm getting a bit worried here on what I exactly have on my bass, does anyone here remember which Roto's come with blue silk and which come with red? Cause the strings that are on it now are the red silk ones.

[PluckyThump]

The key factor with the L-2500 is that it is not a good idea to string through the bridge because it is only held down by two screws. You run the risk of pulling the bridge out of the body. It is safer to string through-body, but to do that you need extra-long strings. From my experience these are the strings that will fit:

DR strings - any type
D'Addario super long scale - any type (regular long won't fit)
SIT strings NR545125XL

Any string made to fit a 35" scale should be long enough. The L-2500 is 34" scale but with through-body stringing and the long stretch from the nut to the tuners you need a string with a 38" winding length. If they're a little too long you can always cut them but if they're too short you're outta luck. Chances are your local music store won't have any stock of extra-long strings, unless they sell DR. I recommend juststrings.com; they have a huge selection.

I also recommend nickel strings for G&L. Steel sounds too harsh with these pickups (unless harsh is what you're after ).

[BigOldHarry]

Rotos are fine strings. Why not!?!?!

[Iron Rose]

Thanks all for the info.
I like the piano sound of the Roto's.
They do seem to go dead quick,but oh the sound.
Have used them for so many years it just seems normal
to change them often.
Juststrings is where I buy from.
How about the nickel Swing Bass?
How close to the sound of Roto"s do some of these others come?

[ljazz]

With the treble boost on, you should get pretty much all the zip of SS's if you're using nickels.

Seriously, try the Infeld SuperAlloys. Not a lot of zip out of the pack, but they settle in quickly, and stay that way for a long time. Flip on the treble boost, and you'll get some zip.

[songwriter21]

A string that I HIGHLY recommend, if you like the big zing of SS, is La Bella's "Hard Rockin' Steels". They are AMAZING strings, don't eat your frets like Roto's, last much longer, and the B really has the piano ring to it. These are some of the most un-hyped strings around and they just kill.

DR Lo-Riders, of course, are fantastic. They don't last as long, though.

[Meatrus]

Originally Posted by Iron Rose

How about the nickel Swing Bass?
How close to the sound of Roto"s do some of these others come?

I like the Rotos a lot too, but admittedly I havent tried them on a G&L. I would certainly try them on it before looking for others, rather than not trying them because somebody else doesent like them. The Rotos are unique in sound, and I doubt you will get the same sound from anything else. I havent tried the Labellas, so they may get close, but everybody always talks about how unique the Rotos are, and I have never tried anything else like them.

The Nickel swing bass (blue silk for the guy who asked ) are nice strings, but they arent really like the SS in sound or feel. They are quite bright when new, and have a really lovely sound, which unfortunately doesent last long, after that they sound a bit like most other Nickels out there. So arent really an alternative to the steel version imo.

[tornadobass]

I've been using Black Diamond nickel rounds on my L-2500. They're easily long enough.

I was wondering about the .125 B string, but it's been fine. The strings play easily and have even tone string-to-string.

[optikhog]

It's been tossed around in other G&L threads but this bass seems to LOVE the Dean Markley SR2000 strings. I've tried many types of strings on mine and think the L-2500 with SR2000's is a match made in heaven.

[Joe Smithberger]

Not quite the same, but my 34" scale P5 works amazingly well with the Balanced .136 set from Circle K Strings. I string the B and E through the bridge (because of the taper at the ball end) and the rest thru the body. The string to string balance is very good and the tone of the B on the P5 is almost as good as my Dingwall.

http://circlekstrings.com/store/Before_You_Buy.html

[rappa29]

Originally Posted by ljazz

l The D'Addario XL's actually work nicely. While I haven't tried, I bet the DR Nickel Loriders or even Sunbeams would sound great.

+1.

I started with the stock D'Ad's that came on my Trib L2500 and they sound fine.
Switched to DR Sunbeams 125-45 and they sound even better!

I've shied away from SS strings for my L2500 just based on suggestions here regarding the MFD pups. I have no desire to try them either after hearing my L2500 on recordings with the Sunbeams.

[air_leech]

when I was a beginning bass player I had a single MFD G&L which sounded very harsh and metallic with SS strings.
at the end I got rid of it because the #7 neck profile (jazz style) gave me hand cramps and I couldn't coax a good sound with SS strings and didn't know there was anything else out there (mind you it's still hard to find nickels around here and when you do don't expect much variety).

today I have a Stingray which when strung with stainless steels sounds exactly like the G&L I had which means a thin, ugly, metallic clicking fest.
however, it sounds wonderful with nickels, especially with hexcore nickels like the Roto 66N.
since the two basses share some things in common, tone-wise, (at least when the active switch was on) I would recommend you try them.
a close second would be the Dunlop nickels which I put on my second fretted Stingray earlier this week as a replacement to the aged DR Lo-Rider Nickels which I hoped would sound like the Rotos (nickel plated with hexcore plus - lots of people hail them as a RS66 boutique clone). the Dunlops are very much in the ballpark of the Rotos, the DRs I didn't like.

[pickles]

My favorite strings on the L2500 are Carvin Nickels (which are $11 a set). Their more expensive siblings Pedulla Nickels and LaBella Slappers would also be a great call. They all have a B string you can slap, pick, and dig in getting a great deep growly sound.

[Hugh Jass]

Ime, steels = overtone city! Not good.

Dunlops are my fave though I am not sure if you can find em long enough for the 2500. They are like XL's but with more zing and growl.

Dunlops + treble boost gives all the high end zing you could ever need.

[DavePlaysBass]

Originally Posted by pickles

My favorite strings on the L2500 are Carvin Nickels (which are $11 a set). Their more expensive siblings Pedulla Nickels and LaBella Slappers would also be a great call. They all have a B string you can slap, pick, and dig in getting a great deep growly sound.

And these should be long enough to go thru body.

I love the La Bella steels but make sure they are long enough to go thru body. Ken Smith steel will go thru body.

My faves years ago on a L2500 were D'Addario nickel XL170s super long. After the initial break in they had lots of pop, definition, and punch on a L-2500. Moving up to the XL165s was a bit boomy.

[sal4bass]

I played DR HiBeams on my L-2500 when i had it (ebony board). I use TI Jazz Rounds on both of my L-2000s (maple boards).