Rotosounds or D'Addario's

patrickroberts · #1 01-13-2002, 09:34 AM

I am thinking of getting a 60s Jazz Bass, but i mean i hear Rotosounds cut up the fretboard a lot, and if i am planning on keeping this bass for a long time i dint wanna wreck the fretboard in the first 6 months, catch my drift? So i was wondering about D'Addario's r they as good as Rotosunds, and how quickly do they mess up the fretboard?

thrash_jazz · #2 01-14-2002, 02:03 PM

Speaking of Rotosounds... has anyone out there tried their Superwound 606 (exposed-core at the bridge) strings? What are they like?

mecha hooch · #3 01-15-2002, 12:43 PM

rotosounds are by far the best strings i've used...i use the swing bass 66 long scale .45-.105 ...

Michael Jewels · #4 01-25-2002, 04:24 PM

I haven't used Rotosounds (66s) in about 15 years. From what I remember, they're very bright and have an aggressive tone. D'Addario makes a whole array of stings. The ones I have on my Ibanez right now are the slowounds. These stings are very nice and balanced; smooth, deep lows, stong mids and highs that are just right. If you want a string that's one step mellower, try Dean Markley Blue Steels. They're very similar too the slowounds, but a bit softer all around. As far as how abrasive they'll be on the fingerboard, I don't know, but, I'd use the axiom; as your fingers feel so goes the board. If you want really non-abrasive strings, try Rotosound 77s. They're flatwounds, but, are pretty lively for flats. Then, there are those Elixir strings with that coating on them. I've never tried them myself, but, I've heard some people here say that they're good.

Also, is this a fretted bass? If so, abrasive strings don't really ruin the fingerboard so much as the frets. One idea, if I may throw this out to you; if you're going to buy a vintage or near vitage bass, and want to play it a lot, but don't want to worry about messing up the original neck, why not get an aftermarket neck from Warmoth, or one of the other manufacturers? Fender necks are easily changeable, and if you ever wanted to sell it just put the original neck back on. Just a thought.

Mike J.

CrawlingEye · #5 01-27-2002, 06:09 AM

I just put the Swing 66's on my Sterling, and like them quite a bit. They're nice and bright (which is what I'm going for). Very punchy, also.

I wouldn't try the Elixirs, though.
My friend (guitarist) had a set, and he said they were REALLY nice, but once the coating started wearing off, they were almost unusable.

They would also be unbalanced, and become difficult to tune, because certain parts of the coating would wear off quicker than others.

I used to use Blue Steels, and they were pretty nice, I thought. Not very punchy, but good strings, none the less. They're kind of bland for me, but then again, I like a bright tone.

Raymondn1 · #6 02-10-2002, 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by patrickroberts
I am thinking of getting a 60s Jazz Bass, but i mean i hear Rotosounds cut up the fretboard a lot, and if i am planning on keeping this bass for a long time i dint wanna wreck the fretboard in the first 6 months, catch my drift? So i was wondering about D'Addario's r they as good as Rotosunds, and how quickly do they mess up the fretboard?

- I haven't noticed that Rotosounds kill my fretboard, and they sound better, and last longer than D'Addarios... Anyway, a 60's Jazz Bass probably already have quite a messed-up fretboard, so what the hell?

When it gets too bad, you just take out the frets, fill up the spaces with liquid tree and coat the board with epoxy, then you have a Jaco bass, which is worth 10 times as much as when you bought it... -Jaco used Rotosound, John Entwistle as well. -Even Mark King of Level 42.
Fender strings sounds good, are kind to fretboards, and doesn't cost too much...

Raymondn1 · #7 02-10-2002, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by thrash_jazz
Speaking of Rotosounds... has anyone out there tried their Superwound 606 (exposed-core at the bridge) strings? What are they like?

-They're GRRrrrrreat !! They keep their brightness and tone for ages, and they NEVER break !! -Only trouble is that you may need to adjust the bridge to get the right action, and if you like to play very close to the bridge, that could be troublesome... Remember they come in different editions, for different basses/bridges....

fleetwood · #8 02-17-2002, 04:01 AM

I have an Aria TAB60 Semi-acoustic bass and have a problem in as much that I require strings with a wrap at the bridge of no more than 3/8 inch or it will rest on the bridge pieces. Its one of those strange 3 legged bridges. I had a set of flats made for me by Picato and they are very, very smooth. Much smoother than my normal Rotosound 77's