Life of Dean Markley Blue Steels ?

Modern Growl · #1 10-21-2005, 11:55 AM

I'm interested in these strings, but I've tried the before years ago... 3-4 years ago if I'm not mistaken. Back then, they sounded awesome, but died within a couple hours of playing.

Anyone try these strings latley? Did Dean Markely fix that problem or do they still die within a day?

Godhead'sLament · #2 10-22-2005, 05:59 AM

i tried a set not too long ago.. as far as im cosened they were the worst set of strings i tried.. they did indeed die imeadiatley..

WarPig · #3 10-22-2005, 06:38 AM

2¢

I bought a reg gauge set 6 months ago. When they were new they were hyperresonant, lots of passive resonance and my amp was feeding back really badly. After 2 months of daily playing.......and maybe me getting used to them too......the excess shine was off, and they still sound great: bright punchy smooth singing highs and growly barking lows.

Has anyone ever taken strings off for a while, then put them back on.......do they still sound okay, or do they go flat?

d.g

carl-anton · #4 10-23-2005, 04:18 PM

I've used Blue Steels for a over a year now. They have a very prominent new-string high end, almost more than DR Hi-Beams, that rubs off pretty fast (a matter of days). Then the strings keeps their tone just as long as any other good string. The thing with Blue Steels is that they have a very thick and warm midrange, that gets more prominent when the highs settles down a bit. I think that's what other people calls mud. I like it. Very growly and warm to me.

Nkisi_Nkondi · #5 10-24-2005, 05:39 PM

I like the sound of Dead Blue steels

carl-anton · #6 10-25-2005, 02:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WarPig

2¢

Has anyone ever taken strings off for a while, then put them back on.......do they still sound okay, or do they go flat?

d.g

Yes, I take of my strings from time to time, soaking them in alcohol overnight. Works fine. Blue Steels behaves like all other strings in that maner.

MikeyFingers · #7 10-25-2005, 05:43 AM

I bought a set of Blue Steels about a year ago, and I never bought another set. They sound GREAT for about 3 days, then sound like semi-decent for about 2 months, then crap. IMO, I'd rather spend $15 less on Ernie Ball strings, they sound good and last longer.

protoz · #8 10-25-2005, 08:05 AM

Dead blue steels are all I used until I made the switch to flats. The complex mids were just too great sounding to stop using them.

carl-anton · #9 10-25-2005, 08:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by protoz

Dead blue steels are all I used until I made the switch to flats. The complex mids were just too great sounding to stop using them.

What kind of flats do you use now? Are they as "rich" sounding?

protoz · #10 10-25-2005, 08:57 AM

Rotosound 77's. Nice chunky strings if you dig in, definately not bright which is fine by me. I don't think I'm going to switch back to Blue steels on my main bass but I'll have blue steels on my backup just for a different tone.

carl-anton · #11 10-25-2005, 09:23 AM

Thanks

Halftooth · #12 10-25-2005, 11:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Godhead'sLament

i tried a set not too long ago.. as far as im cosened they were the worst set of strings i tried.. they did indeed die imeadiatley..

I can't say that any better than how you described it...they seemed to die almost immediately from initial usage, but they sounded good while they had life which was very short. All in all, they're certainly one of the worst strings that I've ever played dollar for dollar, all things being considerred.

pickles · #13 10-26-2005, 07:43 AM

We've had this conversation before about DR high beams. Blue steels especially sound so bright and ringy when brand new that they are unusable for me. Give them a day to break in and they start to sound pretty good. The true sound of a string is what it sounds like after 48 hours IMO. If you like that ultra bright, first day roundwound sound, the only solution is to get a string endorsement.

Funny story on this topic from the king of bright tone: Marcus Miller.

http://www.marcusmiller.com/faq.html...id=40&color=20

carl-anton · #14 10-26-2005, 08:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pickles

We've had this conversation before about DR high beams. Blue steels especially sound so bright and ringy when brand new that they are unusable for me. Give them a day to break in and they start to sound pretty good. The true sound of a string is what it sounds like after 48 hours IMO. If you like that ultra bright, first day roundwound sound, the only solution is to get a string endorsement.

Funny story on this topic from the king of bright tone: Marcus Miller.

http://www.marcusmiller.com/faq.html...id=40&color=20

I think you're dead on, pickles... and funny story from Miller

And really, - after I discovered the alcohol soaking thing, I don't worry that much how long my strings last. It's only when the strings are too damaged by the frets I discard them. I like my strings fairly bright, and go through 3-4 sets a year.