Dlugolecki G String

[JeffKissell]

Originally Posted by Matt Weiner

And, Jeff, please report on your Chorda experience.

Matt

The Chorda E and A are on and they are big! They sound huge too. Very similar to the Dlugolecki wound E and the Evah regular E in terms of volume. So far I really like the tension but I'll report back in more depth after this week's gigs.

I'm definitely heeding your advice regarding the nut & bridge slots - the A slots are good 'cause I've had a plain gut A on this bass but I'm filing the E slots this evening.

Originally Posted by DoubleMIDI

Hi Jeff,

if you want something similar to Evah Pirazzi but with less tension try Innovation 140B (Braided). The lower strings may need some playing until they open up. Much closer to a typical gut tension than Evahs.
If you order them in the UK they are rather cheap, you only have to wait a bit longer and pay customs and VAT.

Thanks for the suggestion, I almost tried these instead of the Evahs but they were unavailable at that time. For me the trade off is with bowing and slapping.

The Evahs bow beautifully but are much too tense for slap.

Nothing, NOTHING, sounds like gut when slapping and I'm doing a lot more old classic country/early jazz/blues these days.

-Jeff

[DoubleMIDI]

Jeff, I don't slap (very seldom I try it at home) but play mostly pizz and some arco. The 140B are nice on my 109cm scale. Most other strings I tried had either too much tension or have a very thin high C. I haven't tried these strings, but Kolstein Heritage might be similar to the 140B (but no high C for me) and easier to get in the USA. Innovation needs a new supplier for some materials, that might be the reason you cannot get the 140B yet.
I think the stretching of the core under tension has a lot of influence on the fell of the string. So gut might be very different from other core materials. Nice you found something working for your needs.

[JeffKissell]

Back to the Evah's for the time being...

The Chorda E & A were just not my deal. They are beautifully made and sound very resonant but the size and overtones weren't working for me. They definitely mixed with the Dlugolecki's well in terms of tension and size.

They'll be for sale in the classifieds at some point soon.

-Jeff

[Matt Weiner]

Originally Posted by JeffKissell

Back to the Evah's for the time being...

The Chorda E & A were just not my deal. They are beautifully made and sound very resonant but the size and overtones weren't working for me. They definitely mixed with the Dlugolecki's well in terms of tension and size.

They'll be for sale in the classifieds at some point soon.

-Jeff

By "Size" you mean too thick?
By "overtones" you mean to many?

Please elaborate.

[JeffKissell]

Originally Posted by Matt Weiner

By "Size" you mean too thick?
By "overtones" you mean to many?

Please elaborate.

Yes and yes...

The E string has been reported 'round these forums at about .140" but the string I have is definitely on the larger side of that number.

They're tending to play "diffused" and "pitchy." It seems like the whole bass is not staying in tune. For whatever reason these strings feel "clumsy" and it's a little disconcerting and cumbersome. I'm not sure I'm willing to spend the time to break these in. If I had two basses I would definitely leave them on longer but I'm not comfortable enough with 'em to work through it on the gigs I'm playing, especially this weekend. When I first had Damian's wound stings they had the same overtones for a while but they eventually settled in.

That said, these strings are beautiful and well made. The A string especially is great. I think it might be the nicest wound gut A string I've ever had.

Ultimately I don't think they're versatile enough for my current projects without a long getting acquainted / break in period. I just don't have the time or inclination currently to follow it through. I might hang on to them for a little while and try again unless a great deal/trade comes up.

-Jeff

[JeffKissell]

Originally Posted by JeffKissell

...That said, these strings are beautiful and well made. The A string especially is great. I think it might be the nicest wound gut A string I've ever had.

Ultimately I don't think they're versatile enough for my current projects without a long getting acquainted / break in period. I just don't have the time or inclination currently to follow it through. I might hang on to them for a little while and try again unless a great deal/trade comes up.

-Jeff

I'm going to try again... I busked on a loud street corner over the weekend and missed the big volume of that E string. We'll see how long they actually take to break in and how long it takes for me to figure out how to play them. I've had them hanging up for a few days to relax and hopefully that will help with the pitch definition. They'll go back on the bass tonight.

I'm not sure how Nathan is doing with these but I hopeful they'll settle down for me, they're really powerful. Now I just have to figure out how to bow them consistently...

I'll report back soon.

BTW- Dlugolecki's plain gut are great strings!!

-Jeff

[VegasGutPlucker]

Originally Posted by JeffKissell

BTW- Dlugolecki's plain gut are great strings!!

-Jeff

Yes indeed they are. I had the chance to compare them to a Gamut Lyon G and I found Damian's to be a nearly completely transparent, smooth, flawless work of art. The Lyon G is more flexible and has a bit more rubber band snap to the sound but the hairs, the HAIRS! were driving me crazy. I think the stiffness of the Damian G fits my hand and my bass better. Just gorgeous.

[Nathan Parker]

Originally Posted by JeffKissell

I'm going to try again... I busked on a loud street corner over the weekend and missed the big volume of that E string. We'll see how long they actually take to break in and how long it takes for me to figure out how to play them. I've had them hanging up for a few days to relax and hopefully that will help with the pitch definition. They'll go back on the bass tonight.

I'm not sure how Nathan is doing with these but I hopeful they'll settle down for me, they're really powerful. Now I just have to figure out how to bow them consistently...

I'll report back soon.

BTW- Dlugolecki's plain gut are great strings!!

-Jeff

I am pretty well sold on the Chorda E and A. They are very durable, sound powerful up close and project very well. My only beef is when winding the E string on the post. I imagine it's similar to wrestling a python (settle down, perverts). It has a mind of it's own and is very difficult to coerce into going where I want it to go (even I laughed at that one). After that part is over, I'm very happy with it.

I recently had a flirtation with some other gut strings, and while they sounded nice when I was practicing, they just don't cut enough to work for me on the job. The Chorda's have a bit of an unfair bad rap around here, which is surprising when you think about the guys that actually use them. I think they're the best around.

Sorry for the side rant. Back to talking about Damien's strings.

[Phil Rowan]

I used Chorda E and A for a while many years back and I loved that combo.. Huge sound.

[Matt Weiner]

Originally Posted by VegasGutPlucker

but the hairs, the HAIRS! were driving me crazy.

A bass player from the east coast plucked on my bass last night and remarked on the hairlessness of the Dluglocki guts.

Like bassist, like bass.

I think ill-fitting notches in the nut and bridge contribute to hairiness on the strings. I keep saying that.

[JeffKissell]

Right before I started playing a little coffee house gig on Wednesday, I noticed a hair on the G string and whipped out a lighter and burned it off. The fiddle player saw it and was astounded. When I told her what the deal was she asked if we could start all of our gigs with the "pyrotechnics."

[JeffKissell]

2 things...

There are two sets of Dlugolecki D/G strings for sale in the classifieds... I personally think these are best boutique plain gut strings for the money in the US. I have about 4 years or so on my current set and they're still in great shape.

The Chorda wound E & A are a great match for the Dlugolecki D & G on my bass!! I'm really glad I put them back on. I had them well fitted by my luthier and the bass is sounds huge right now. The strings are loud but also very rich and brilliant. They sound great with the bow too, though they are still a little tricky for me to start sometimes... definitely operator error.

-Jeff

[Matt Weiner]

I just did a gig on my Meisel plywood that has the Dlugolecki NiAgs on them. Sound amazing, but very unstable. You guys don't have tuning issues on the Chorda wound strings beyond normal gut wonkiness? That's cool. I might have to try them finally...

[DC Bass]

Originally Posted by Matt Weiner

I just did a gig on my Meisel plywood that has the Dlugolecki NiAgs on them. Sound amazing, but very unstable. You guys don't have tuning issues on the Chorda wound strings beyond normal gut wonkiness? That's cool. I might have to try them finally...

"Normal gut wonkiness" (technical term! ) is exacerbated this time of year in the Mid-Atlantic climate zone!

Sorry to hear you're having trouble with the NiAgs.

Joe

[JeffKissell]

Originally Posted by Matt Weiner

...You guys don't have tuning issues on the Chorda wound strings beyond normal gut wonkiness?...

Matt, they're not any better or worse staying at in tune than any other wound guts I've ever tried.

Yesterday I played on the street for about 3 hours and they stabilized in 20~30 minutes. Opened the bag at home to practice and they stabilized in 5~10 minutes. Had a rehearsal in the evening at someone else's place and they were pretty much in tune the whole time.

The plain gut Dlugolecki's were more stable throughout, however they would go slightly sharp when the bass sat for more than a few minutes.

I feel pretty confident about anticipating where they're going but I don't really to understand what's actually happening beyond the fact that they're absorbing or releasing moisture (humidity) based on the relative humidity in the air.
-Jeff

[Matt Weiner]

Anyway you slice it, I'm not going to have wrapped guts on a gig. I don't have the patience for that.

[Nathan Levine]

Though they are stupid expensive, the Gennsler wrapped seem to not have the tuning issues of the wrapped Dlugoleckis, or any other wrapped gut string for that matter. Not sure what magic trick he does when he makes them, but it seems to work whatever it is.

Before getting the Gennsler strings I was using a combo of either Compas 180's or Animas on the bottom and DD or Gamuts on the top. Sounded truly great on my bass and covered my needs quite nicely.

[labravajazz]

Originally Posted by Nathan Levine

Though they are stupid expensive, the Gennsler wrapped seem to not have the tuning issues of the wrapped Dlugoleckis, or any other wrapped gut string for that matter. Not sure what magic trick he does when he makes them, but it seems to work whatever it is.

Before getting the Gennsler strings I was using a combo of either Compas 180's or Animas on the bottom and DD or Gamuts on the top. Sounded truly great on my bass and covered my needs quite nicely.

Which Genssler set did you get?
He has so many!
I have used Chorda for years and most happy with Carlos set, also liked DD and gamut as well, but recently put on an old set of TWINE by Genssler (metal flat wound on thin gut) which I bought used on TB - these are exceptionally good strings, but I want to get a new set set and not sure whether to get Jazz set or new set 2012 universal string. Gerold is very helpful and has sent me all kinds of info and links with sound clips etc of all kinds of players using his strings including awesome player Bozo, and Rabbath etc
Yes very expensive but balance that against amazing quality and customer service including 2 year guarantee .... well not so stupid, I think
Any high quality string like DD Gamut Chorda are expensive too, but IMO worth it for the sound and playabilty

[Nathan Levine]

I have the Jazz Quint set. Gut wrapped with some kind of plastic wrapping from what I can tell. They bow great but still have a nice thumpy gut sound that retains a very precise and wonderful clarity up and down the string. They are truly fantastic gut strings. I will probably go with the universal set next time around though. One of Joel Q's exercises consists of a lot of glissing up and down each string and the wrapping starts to physically get hot to the touch, lending a whole new meaning to the idea of "flesh burning" exercises.