Efrano Gut Strings

[CrazyZeke]

I have a question for you TBer's concerning your experiences with Efrano gut strings. I have read quite a bit about Gamut strings (the Lyon G and Pistoy D) but have not had the $250 to purchase the G and D. So, I bought the Efranos from Lemur Co. and have had them about three weeks. I've played two gigs so far and what I read about guts is right - you apprach the right hand a bit different. I just about got it figured out.

Anyway, I and my fellow musicians really like the pizz sound acoustically and thru the amp via Full Circle PUs. I'm playing a 2009 Shen SB180 with Spirocore mittles on the E and A. Overall the tension is OK and I only had to raise the string height a half turn after installing. I can still play reasonably low without buzzing. (Man! Those strings REALLY stretch the first few days!)

What's your history with these strings. I really do wanna know....

[johninmemphis]

I like them, but really have no other guts to compare against. Been playing with Efrano D/G and Spiro Weich E/A for 6 months now. The humidity and temps have been on a roller coaster in Memphis all winter. I keep a Snark II handy so I can tune the guts every 30 min or so. I took the guts off for one gig and the guitar player in a duo with me complained that he couldn't hear me - so, I put them back on. This is on a 55 Kay M-1.

[CrazyZeke]

Yeah, these are the first guts for me also. I've had fairly good results with the D and D staying in tune after the second week. I keep my "bass cave" at a steady 40% humidity. But after arriving at the gig I like to give my bass at least 30 minutes to settle before i start playing. Right now with the temps low, I have to tune up a couple of times at the start and then the G and D will settle down.

My two-year-old spiros (E/A) are rock solid. I think it would take blow torch to get those strings out of tune!

[moles]

I'm not using Efranos (probably will try a set next time I want to go all gut) but I'll add that Spiro Weichs on my bass are a GREAT match for the Lenzner D and G I have going on. I resisted trying that combo for quite awhile - not sure why now, since it's such an obvious knockout combo (hindsight: 20/20...look it up...)

The only thing I have to add is that I'm sure the break in time is the same with the Efranos as with any gut - I've got around a year on mine and they're nice and settled in, tuning and all. It just takes time.

[bluegrasscat]

i had efrano guts!! one day while watching tv.. the D string explodes... broke about the 4th fret or F#..... shocked.. but worse is!! a week later the A broke also, a lil farther down!! im on the west coast.. we had some humidity changes that week... wish i would of De-tuned.. but didnt...

any ways.. I (have a string ID question??)
i have a efrano silver wound gut string left.. but dont know which string it is???
it has a blue silk wrap on the tailpiece....

is it a E string or A string??? i thought.. i replaced the A string with a plain gut!! and have had Super Silver Slaps since... so is the blue silk a E string???

so im not sure what string it is?? do to bad memory.. lol any help would be appreciated...

[CrazyZeke]

Does anyone else have any experience with the Efrano gut strings? The G and D more particularly. I'm interested in knowing how long they last, more about breakage and any other issues.

[JeffKissell]

Efranos are not any different than other gut strings. If your bass is set up properly they should last for a long time. You do have to take care with them and there is maintenance required, but nothing too difficult. There is a ton of info on gut strings in general if you search for it.

FWIW I've had the same wound E & A on (and off) my bass over the last 2-3 years and they're in fine shape. I expect to get several more years of use out of them.

Red = A
Blue= E

-Jeff

[Monki]

Lemur music have the Efrano guts with black varnish listed. Does anyone use these, or know anything about them?

[kurt]

I'm also interested if anyone's tried the black varnished ones.

Also, does anyone have any specific comparisons with Clef guts? Especially the plain E and A?

[JeffKissell]

I know they use the black varnish on the cores under the silver wire on the wound E & A.

[CrazyZeke]

After several gigs and hours of practice I came to realize the following about the Efrano D and G strings:

1. OK for high string height. They tend to buzz more in the lower positions. (Yes, I know about gut string heights and set ups...)

2. The strings are not evenly shaped/ground. You can run your thumb and finger along the length of eac string and feel the imperfections in diameter. I think this very much contributed to the buzzing sound.

3. The tone after a month seemed to die on me. Very thuddy with a lot of the middle tones gone.

4. Replaced with Gamut Lyon Med G and Pistoy Med D. What a world of difference! Night and day. My experiment cost me some bucks, but you "old" guys could have told me that.