nylons, what should I expect?

basstoven · #1 04-13-2011, 12:56 PM

I am think about putting nylons on my Ibanez ae10 acoustic.
what sound should i expect and is it worth it?
I hear Paul used nylons on Abbey Road, but he was also playing an electric. I'm talking about a natural, unamplified, no electronic pick up sound.

AmadeusXeno · #2 04-13-2011, 01:09 PM

I've never tried them on an acustic, but when I put them on my fretless they had an awsome tone. They are very light tension, super smooth to the touch, and brighter then flats. I'm sure there will be similarities on an acustic. They will probably be a lot quieter though since the nylon outter wrap isn't going to transfer as much vibration to the body. Hope this helps.

FunkMetalBass · #3 04-13-2011, 02:16 PM

The bass should have much more "upright"-esque properties to it.

Here's a video on fretless:
YouTube - Yairi Fretless Acoustic Bass

I haven't found a fretted video yet, but it should give you a decent foundation of tone.

fretlessguy · #4 04-14-2011, 06:41 PM

I have used tapes on ABGs before. They do, as some have said, have a sort of "upright" vibe to them. Percussive sound with quick decay. If your AB 10 has the big pins you pull out of the bridge to install the strings, you shouldn't have any trouble installing then.You may have to widen the openings on the nut to accomodate the really thick gauge strings. If your bridge is the kind you have to feed the string through the bridge and pull it through the top, then you need to get the lightest gauge tapes you can get to insure they will go through the bridge. I'd recommend the GHS and D'Addario tapes (.50-.105) on those.