Strings like roto without the fret-eating ?

BrandonBass · #1 11-06-2010, 04:25 AM

Ive tried hi beams, I think theyre good for slapping but abit too scooped for my liking. Ive tried the coated drs(pink 1, if it matters), it sounded abit dull to me.

I play rock music mainly, and my ideal sound would be those of the roto swing 66s. Nothing comes close to their tight and focued mids and btm even after they lose the zing. Its a shame that after just 2months of stringing them I can see some wear on the frets.

Is there any strings that comes close to the roto sound? I dont mind the high tension, rough feel etc. I just cant deal w changing the frets which is not exactly cheap

BrandonBass · #2 11-06-2010, 04:26 AM

Also, Ive tried bluesteels DM, and they dont sound that good to me either...

**BullHorn** · #3 11-06-2010, 10:31 AM

Afaik, the claim that rotosound strings cause fret-wear is a myth started in the early 70's when they were first introduced and strapped on Fender basses that had frets made of material not fit for such strings.

Every string wears out your frets but it will take like 10 years for it to happen. Don't worry about it.

James Simonson · #4 11-06-2010, 10:34 AM

I say Roto on!

DylanB · #5 11-06-2010, 10:44 AM

I used Roto 66s for years with no fret wear. Maybe it's your frets? Either way I wouldn't worry about it, it's probably not something specific to the Rotos.

Zitch · #6 11-06-2010, 10:49 AM

I really like SIT Rock Brights, great well balanced string, i prefer them over DR if that helps.

BrandonBass · #7 11-06-2010, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BullHorn

Afaik, the claim that rotosound strings cause fret-wear is a myth started in the early 70's when they were first introduced and strapped on Fender basses that had frets made of material not fit for such strings.

Every string wears out your frets but it will take like 10 years for it to happen. Don't worry about it.

I read that myth before. But my case, the yamaha rbx Ive owned for less than 2 months u see some wear on the frets(Im not talking abt, scalloped frets.... but i do notice some minute wear). Maybe its because I use vibratos alot??? I can imagine the frets lasting longer if you just fret and slide with no vibratos....no?

Im in such a dilema, is it the price to pay for the ideal tone?

dmusic148 · #8 11-06-2010, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrandonBass

Im in such a dilema, is it the price to pay for the ideal tone?

Yes. Just like rounds will eventually eat a fretless fingerboard, so too go the frets. But really, it'll take years and then you just get them dressed. When they eventually need replacement, get stainless steel frets which resist wear better than ordinary frets.

Modulus1906 · #9 11-09-2010, 04:36 PM

I just spent over $300 trying various strings to get a general direction of differences. Among those I've sampled on four different basses are the following:

RotoSound Swing 66 Steels
RotoSound Swing 66 Nickels
Dunlop Nickels
Dunlop Steels
Thomastic Infeld Jazz Rounds
GHS Bass Boomers
GHS Super Steels

While my "evaluation" is still in progress, I'd have to say that my jaw dropped when I put the GHS Super Steels on my 6 string Ken Smith. Before I tried the Super Steels, my jaw dropped when I tried the Swing 66 Steels on the Smith. The Thomastik Jass Rounds are superb if you like low tension (and $70 for a 6 string set!!!) and will likely be my go to string for my Modulus Quantum 6, but the Super Steels had that Swing 66 Steel vibe with a bit more brilliance from what I can hear. However, the Roto and Super Steels are very close such that I'm going to put the Swing 66 Steels back on tonight now that I've heard the Super Steels. The Super Steels feel better than the Rotos. By the way, all of these strings above are great, so I think whichever string I ultimately settle on will be a "best value" proposition based on string life over time, cost, etc. P.S., don't sleep on the Dunlop Nickels...you'd be surprised by those as well.

s_mcsleazy · #10 11-09-2010, 04:39 PM

rotos dont eat frets

BigOldHarry · #11 11-09-2010, 04:46 PM

Rotosound fret eating : wife's tale.

The only string better than Rotos, for my money, is DRs. If I can't find DRs, I use Rotos and have done so for... ick - 25 years at least!

JTE · #12 11-09-2010, 05:02 PM

Well, they do use a more coarse outer wrap than most other strings, and it's a hard alloy. Yeah, they do eat the frets- at least compared to most nickle wound strings, and even some stainless. But most fret wear is MUCH more a result of a heavy fretting hand, wide vibrato, and an aggressive attack. Just like the idea that rounds chew up fretless fingerboards. My answer is "So?"

Use what sounds good and deal with the results. Having said all that, try DR Hi-Beams, and the GHS Pro Steels are another good sounding stainless round that gets a lot of that characteristic Roto sound. Me, I never liked RS-66 strings because they do go dead incredibly fast. Once during a gig the guitarist asked why I kept rolling off the top end on my bass- it was the brand new Rotos losing the edge that fast.

But that's got nothing to do with fret wear, so if you like the sound, use 'em.

John

darkstorm · #13 11-09-2010, 06:27 PM

Been useing rotos for the better part of the last 30 plus yrs. Unless you got soft frets and very heavy handed fretting, Id agree with the others that the fretwear rotos cause takes many many yrs to become an issue of any kind.

Try rotosound nexus strings. Kinda surprised you didnt like the Dr neons. Theyre the only other strings Ive tried that I liked every but as well as rotosound swing 66. Slightly birghter then them and slightly more focuused low freq's.

SGD Lutherie · #14 11-09-2010, 07:25 PM

They eat Rickenbacker frets! But then those frets are low and soft. I used Rotos for years and finally refretted my Rick with big fretwire, and then I had no issues.

But stainless steel strings are tougher on frets than nickel plated strings. Most fretwire is nickel silver, which is a form of white brass. It's all the same hardness, which is not very hard. I've seen a lot of worn frets from Rotos over the years on all kinds of basses.

If you want minimum fret ware, use stainless steel frets.

Marton · #15 11-09-2010, 07:33 PM

Dean Markley SR2000 are an awesome stainless steel string !

They remind me of the Rotos, but a little bit "fuller" sounding to me, and they last much longer IME. I used the 47-107 and they were not too high tension for such a big set, about the same as a standard 45-105.

By the way, they're all tapered (except the G) if that matters to you.