octave 8 string set opinions

[tjclem]

I am building an octave 8 string and would like to know what my options are for strings. What do those of you that play them use? Are there any flat sets made? Thanks ..Tom

[Mudfuzz]

What I do is get a piccolo set and a standard set; right now I'm using boomers for the octaves and Cromes for the bass strings.

[slugworth]

Rotosound RS-668. 8 string set.

Slug

[tjclem]

Cool are the rotosounds flats?

[slugworth]

Originally Posted by tjclem

Cool are the rotosounds flats?

>>>> Stainless steel roundwounds.
Slug

[tjclem]

bummer

[slugworth]

I've never seen an 8 string flatwound set. Most 8 string players I think IMHO, are looking for a bright, shimmery piano like tone that only roundwounds can deliver.

[tjclem]

I got a fretless 8 string neck from warmoth and am going to build a bass around it and I play mostly country with just a guy on guitar and a drum machine I am trying to thicken not brighten up the sound of us. t

[Mudfuzz]

Originally Posted by slugworth

Most 8 string players I think IMHO, are looking for a bright, shimmery piano like tone that only roundwounds can deliver.

Maybe so but not me, I'm usually after a big organy sound or the sound of a guitar and a bass playing at the same time; this why I use flats on the low strings: finger style it's kinda organy and pick style it's like a bass and a guitar double tracked. Also you can use you pinky as a mute at times so can "turn off" one of the octaves in the course you are playing, this works great on songs like Peter gun where be muting the bass string of the course you can play the riff as a guitar then have the bass kick in. 8s are a lot of fun.

[tjclem]

can you link me to the sets you are talking about thanks...t

[Mudfuzz]

Sure!
You see all a eight string set is is a set or standard strings and a set of Piccolo strings, so....

GHS [this is the one I'm using right now
D'Addario Electric Bass XL Nickel Wound Piccolo Bass Long
Ken Smith Piccolo Electric Bass Burners NPS Nickel Plated
La Bella Electric Bass Hard Rockin' Steel Piccolo Bass Sets Steel/Wound, .012 - .030, M10 I think next time I'm going to give these a try.
La Bella Electric Bass Hard Rockin' Steel Piccolo Bass Sets, .030 - .080 These seem little too heavy to me for standard tuning, a .018 g is pretty tight already .030

And
La Bella Acoustic Electric Piccolo Bass Brass Wound on Nylon Filaments Light, .022 - .050, ABN70BB
For piezos only
For the standard bass strings I use
Chromes which are my favorite strings in existence, but you can use any set of flats you want to.

I hope this helps.
Aaron N

[tjclem]

thanks so all the piccolo sets are round wound?

[slugworth]

Originally Posted by Aaron Noguer

Maybe so but not me, I'm usually after a big organy sound or the sound of a guitar and a bass playing at the same time; this why I use flats on the low strings: finger style it's kinda organy and pick style it's like a bass and a guitar double tracked. Also you can use you pinky as a mute at times so can "turn off" one of the octaves in the course you are playing, this works great on songs like Peter gun where be muting the bass string of the course you can play the riff as a guitar then have the bass kick in. 8s are a lot of fun.

>>>> That's an interesting take on the 8 string, I would think that mixing string types would cause some weird over/under tone clashes and amplitude problems between strings, but I guess if it works, it works....

Slug

[Mudfuzz]

Originally Posted by tjclem

thanks so all the piccolo sets are round wound?

As far as I know of; I guess you could use the first four strings of a bass VI flat set [Labella I think] if they are long enough but I have no Idea if they if they are [bass VIs have a 30" scale] so you’d be taking a chance there.

[Mudfuzz]

Originally Posted by slugworth

>>>> That's an interesting take on the 8 string, I would think that mixing string types would cause some weird over/under tone clashes and amplitude problems between strings, but I guess if it works, it works....

Slug

No over/under tone clashes that I can hear and that would be some thing that would drive me a little crazy if it was happening; I've had the bass strung up this way ever since I built it four years ago and no problems with strings yet; neck adjustments do to weather changes that's another story though.

[tjclem]

got a photo of the 8 string?

[Mudfuzz]

Best I can do right now.

[tjclem]

cool what woods. It almost looks like a piece of Spalted Koa I have on the back.....t

[CopperheadLXXIX]

I actually recently switched from nickel rounds to black tapewound on my fretless 8. Love the sound and the look, you might want to consider giving that a try because I've never had any luck finding piccolo flats myself. What I do is basterdize (Is that word?) two sets of La Bella tapewounds along with a La Bella tapewound high "c" and one plain unwound string. The unwound I use for the octave on g, the high c the octave for the d, the second g string for the octave a and the second d string for the octave e. Hope that made sense--Anyway, tension seems fine when I set it up like that.

[Mudfuzz]

Originally Posted by tjclem

cool what woods. It almost looks like a piece of Spalted Koa I have on the back.....t

Wood be: Myrtle body, padauk top, padauk neck with a ebony fretboard, pickups are Dimarzio and Schaller, I got the bridge, knobs and tuners from Warmoth.

Originally Posted by CopperheadLXXIX

I actually recently switched from nickel rounds to black tapewound on my fretless 8. Love the sound and the look, you might want to consider giving that a try because I've never had any luck finding piccolo flats myself. What I do is basterdize (Is that word?) two sets of La Bella tapewounds along with a La Bella tapewound high "c" and one plain unwound string. The unwound I use for the octave on g, the high c the octave for the d, the second g string for the octave a and the second d string for the octave e. Hope that made sense--Anyway, tension seems fine when I set it up like that.

Great Idea!