Lakland 55-02 & Dr Hi Beams

phillm47 · #1 06-25-2008, 06:18 AM

Slapped a set of DR Hi Beams on my Lakland 55-02 last night, gages 45-65-85-105-125. IMO, The tone and playability are improved to my ear over the stock strings. It's like a whole new bass.

In regards to the B string: The B is certainly "adequate", but could be better IMO. Lakland owners that use (have used) Hi Beams, can you compare using the Hi Beam .130 vs .125 for the B string as far as playability, and how well it integrates with the other strings as far as tone?

Thanks

pickles · #2 06-25-2008, 08:40 AM

Ahhh yes, Hi Beams on a 5'er. Its tragic.

The A-G are perfect, way better than any other string ever made. The B sounds good in the first 3 frets, struggles by the 4th, and is not usable past the 5th. I have no idea why DR can't make a great B along the lines of labella, sadowsky, lakland, dean markley ...

The options are to run a mixed set with a good low B (like the lakland .128) and 4 hi beams, or start trying the sets with Bs that actually work.

LaBella HRS or Slappers
Lakland lights (which are closer to the feel of hi beams than the mediums are)
Dean Markely Blue Steel

mattygbass · #3 06-25-2008, 08:51 AM

thanks for that little bit of info, i put hi-beams on my 44-02 and i thought they were completely amazing. i was going to put a set on my 55-01 but thanks to this thread i wont bother wasting my money.

billbern · #4 06-26-2008, 08:22 AM

Subscribed

I tried hi-beams on my 55-01, but went back to Lakland strings because of the lackluster B.

I'm interested to hear if a heavier gauge hi-beam helps.

Lorenzini · #5 06-27-2008, 07:09 AM

Dude, I've even found that the Sunbeam B string is alright.

But here is your ultimate solution: Get a 4 string Hi Beam set and use a Lo Rider B string.

EDIT: Option #2 - Get Dean Markley Blue Steels. GREAT B STRING!

KJung · #6 06-27-2008, 07:18 AM

a .130 Hi Beam B will probably fix your issue. I actually very much like the feel and tone of the .125 Hi Beam, and use the 45-125 set on all my basses. I find the B string sounds and feels like a logical extension of the E string, versus the 'big B' of some strings. Pure personal taste there, and I rarely play the B string above the 7th fret (so that might make a difference).

I've really moved away from the 'he's going to the B string...whoohoo' tone, and mostly use my B string for emphasis in certain song passages, or easier fingering in 'drop D' type tunes.

IME there. I'm lucky enough to have a couple basses with very good neck rigidity, and also 34" scale, which while not a huge impact, tends to my ear to reinforce that 'B as just lower notes on the E string' versus the 'monster grand piano B string tone' that some go for.

Just depends what you want! Try the .130 to start... if you dig it, it will be much simpler to deal with than mixing sets.

JTE · #7 06-27-2008, 11:03 AM

I've got the DR Hi-Beams 4 set (45/65/85/105/130) with the NON-tapered B string on my 55-01. It sounds great. The non-tapered B helps that string to sound like it's on the same instrument as the rest of the strings. I'd used Lakland's stainless 5-string set for a few years before I tried the DR. I'm sticking with the DR's.

jte

hgrind · #8 06-29-2008, 06:09 AM

I use Hi-Beams 45-65-80-100-125 on my Lakland Skyline JO 5-string, and think those are fantastic strings. A great improvement over the stock strings, which I thought had a really bad B-string. Muddy and undefined. The Hi-Beam B really brings out some clear, thight and defined tones.

**DougD** · #9 06-29-2008, 06:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KJung

a .130 Hi Beam B will probably fix your issue. I actually very much like the feel and tone of the .125 Hi Beam, and use the 45-125 set on all my basses. I find the B string sounds and feels like a logical extension of the E string, versus the 'big B' of some strings. Pure personal taste there, and I rarely play the B string above the 7th fret (so that might make a difference).

I've really moved away from the 'he's going to the B string...whoohoo' tone, and mostly use my B string for emphasis in certain song passages, or easier fingering in 'drop D' type tunes.

IME there. I'm lucky enough to have a couple basses with very good neck rigidity, and also 34" scale, which while not a huge impact, tends to my ear to reinforce that 'B as just lower notes on the E string' versus the 'monster grand piano B string tone' that some go for.

Just depends what you want! Try the .130 to start... if you dig it, it will be much simpler to deal with than mixing sets.

+1
I love me some Dr's. I like the 130 better than the 125 (feels tighter). Lakland use to sell a special set of Dr's that I would buy from the site. But they don't sell them anymore. The 125. is Dr's standard for high beams I keep trying different brands and somehow always wind up playing Dr High beams. They just do it for me. Now if could just find a good source for the 130 ill be alright

JEDI BASS · #10 06-29-2008, 07:21 AM

The local GC doesn't stock Hi-beams, and I'm so smitten with Longnecks on my 55-94 that, I see no need to order any. I occasionally play the low B (.125 gauge) up to the 8th fret, no complaints here. And, I AM picky about my B strings, very picky.

**DougD** · #11 06-29-2008, 07:42 AM

Aren't Longnecks and HiBeams basically the same, except for the taper?

phillm47 · #12 06-29-2008, 07:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JEDI BASS

The local GC doesn't stock Hi-beams, and I'm so smitten with Longnecks on my 55-94 that, I see no need to order any. I occasionally play the low B (.125 gauge) up to the 8th fret, no complaints here. And, I AM picky about my B strings, very picky.

They don't carry Hi Beams? That's surprising.......

I may give the .130 a try next time around. The .125 is good, but could be better. The DR Hi Beams, as a whole, play and sound much better on the 55-02 than the factory strings, IMO.

I was going to try Hi Beams on my Fender MIA jazz 4 string bass, but ended up putting my first set of DR Fat Beams instead. Used the jazz bass last night on a gig, and all I can say is "wow". Different basses, so it's hard to say which DR's I like better. The jazz bass was smoking last night.

phillm47 · #13 06-29-2008, 07:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DougD

Aren't Longnecks and HiBeams basically the same, except for the taper?

According to DR's web site, Hi Beams are wound on a round core, Long necks are wound on a hex core. I've never played Long Necks, so I can't comment on the differences in tone, tension...etc

JEDI BASS · #14 06-29-2008, 09:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phillm47

According to DR's web site, Hi Beams are wound on a round core, Long necks are wound on a hex core. I've never played Long Necks, so I can't comment on the differences in tone, tension...etc

All I know is that there IS a tension "feel" difference between the 35" scale Longnecks and the 34" scale Lo-riders. The Lo-riders feel tighter than the Longnecks at the same gauge (string rigidity). Tighter feel equals lower action (if you want), thus the name "Lo-riders". I don't think I'll ever put Lo-riders on any of my 35" basses, the tension would be too much. They're great for buzz-free 34" drop tunings, though.