Evah Pirazzi strings megathread part I

[Marcus Johnson]

I don't get any noticable roll on the Oblis on my bass.

If I have a complete set of Oblis on, they actually aren't bad. I remember liking them when I first had them on, years ago. But now, up against the Oliv D&G, their shortcomings really show up. They sound rather spindly and one-dimensional, and the feel is rather blah, like they don't resist me enough. The Olivs are equally flexible under the fingers, but in a better way; more resilient and alive. I can also push the Olivs much harder without having them sonically max out. Bit of a mismatch, I guess.

[dchan]

I've always liked the Obligato G-string. It had a very warm sound to it. And I remember the set sounded quite good when new.

But the main problem, besides the roll, was that it died very quickly. The reason I liked the G-string is because it was the only string that didn't die out completely. The E-string was the worst. The other two weren't much better.

Hopefully, the new Evah Pirazzi set will fix these shortcomings.

[Marcus Johnson]

And it has a funny way of dying, to my ears; instead of going flat and dead and out of tune, it seems to just get thinner and weaker, as opposed to, say, Spiros, which just get fatter as time goes on.

I'll be curious to see how these Evah Pirazzis work out for people.

[flint]

not to hijack-b/c I too am anxious to try the new pirazzi's, but obligatos just seem to be the best hybrid string I've found for my bass, although I've really wanted to try a good set of wrapped guts for comparison.

I truly do play a combination of styles on her, and until I can find a good deal on a second bass it just makes sense to play with the most flexible string I can find. i mean one day I'm doing 1's and 5's with a BG duo, the next is a symphonic rehearsal, followed by a jazz duo with my wife on piano. Flexocores sound the best bowed. Guts have the tone I want from piz. What's a guy to do?

[Marcus Johnson]

Originally Posted by flint

What's a guy to do?

They should put that on my gravestone, and scatter all my empty string envelopes all over the top.

[dchan]

Originally Posted by Marcus Johnson

And it has a funny way of dying, to my ears; instead of going flat and dead and out of tune, it seems to just get thinner and weaker, as opposed to, say, Spiros, which just get fatter as time goes on. ..........

I recently played a friend's bass on whim, and he had on a set of Obligatos. I doubt that he changed them for 4 years, though maybe he did.

It was an American Standard bass, and it was really punchy on the G and D strings, and far less punchy on the E and A strings. The difference was almost night and day. Those two lower strings just barely made any sound at all.

One thing was weird, though. I played them with the bow also, and they just felt slippery, much more slippery than Helicores. That was not how I remembered them to be, but it was a while since I played them before.

[Marcus Johnson]

Originally Posted by dchan

Those two lower strings just barely made any sound at all.

That's what I'm hearing too. I have to really work to get the Oblis on the low strings to match the Olivs on the high. Kind of schizoprenic. I'm goig to make some changes when I get back to this bass in a couple of weeks.

[Uncletoad]

Originally Posted by Marcus Johnson

I'm goig to make some changes when I get back to this bass in a couple of weeks.

Yea like get those training wheel strings off the bottom and put on some meat.

[Jeremy Allen]

OK gang, Pirastro delivered the goods and I have a full set of Evah Pirazzis right now. I'll write a full review of them after I've had them on for a little bit and played them in some different situations. I just put the G and D on about an hour ago, and my initial reaction is that there should be much rejoicing in Bassland. Much rejoicing. They seem to be kind of like what I had always wished Obligatos were, like Obligatos done right. Like a good mix of Olivs, Dominants, and Obligatos: extremely easy to bow, a pleasant sponginess under the right hand for pizz yet a very full and powerful pizz sound; the D and G fit perfectly with the Dominant A on my bass right now (which, on my bass, is the single most powerful and awesome sounding string I've ever played), somehow managing to match the power and depth of the A while making the Dominant seem stiff in comparison.

Anyway, I'll write more later after I've put the A on (I can't use the E, because I have an extension--I might put it on my other bass). But I think this is a very good thing for us.

[RShew]

Can you comment on the guage of the G and D? How big a round are those guys?

[Jeremy Allen]

Originally Posted by RShew

Can you comment on the guage of the G and D? How big a round are those guys?

I don't have a measurement, but they're pretty fat--a little bigger around than Dominants, biggert I think than Obligatos. They're clearly fatter than Flexocors or Permanents; they remind me of Olivs, in a good way.

[Uncletoad]

Originally Posted by Jeremy Allen

I don't have a measurement, but they're pretty fat--a little bigger around than Dominants, biggert I think than Obligatos. They're clearly fatter than Flexocors or Permanents; they remind me of Olivs, in a good way.

You are supposed to say they suck.

[RShew]

So I sent the earlier post, went outside and there was my test set as well! I just put all 4 on. I must say, my initial response is YES! I don't want to jinx it, but at home I am digging these strings. The tension is great. A little tighter then obligatos on my bass. Similiar to Oliv tension. The guages are thicker than Obligatos too (at least the D and G are...not quite sure about the E and A). I have been a hybrid/gut user for years. I started with Doms and used them for quite some time. Moved to Oliv's, tried Obligatos for a while (I kept breaking them- due to heavy use). I have always kept steel on E and A (thomastik mittel or helicore hybrid medium). Recently I have also used Anima on G and D with a great deal of success minus the arco issues. My longest love affair was with Olivs and I keep returning to those wonderful strings. If you are an Oliv user...you need to check these out. A very similiar wrap and tone. The guage is a little smaller but not enough to trip you up. I do notice that they have been turning my fingers black. I am used to this as the Anima's did this for a while as well. Hopefully this will go away. My least favorite is the E. It seems to not have the punch/clarity I need. My favorite string is the D. The D has always been the hardest to get the tension sound I want on my bass. The Evah D settled right in.
They don't roll like Obligatos. Arco is fantastic. I am coming from a few months of Anima's so many strings would be much easier to start with the bow. I really like the arco sound thus far. Warm and full.
These strings don't buzz or have a hint of nasal quality. They seem like well worn in steel strings with the tension of Oliv's. I have a feeling that if you have a dark bass they may sound very dead or old. On my bass, whcih has a lot of mids and clarity, the tend to take the bright edge off.
I will keep posting but my initial impressions are that if you have tried any hybrid string in the past and liked but not loved the results...you owe it to yourself to try these. BTW, I am using a 1963 Pollman with standard string length. I don't have an amplified gig till Thursday so I will wait till then to post on the live situation.
I think these strings are going to be a hit with many bassists. They seem to fill that empty middle ground between gut and steel that only Oliv's could fill in the past IMO. May not be the end of the road...but we are getting there.
Peace,
Roger

[ctxbass]

I received a set today as well.
More bad news for you Unc. I just put the Evah Pirazzi E&A (replacing Perms.) on my Kay with the D&G Gamuts. So far I like it. The Pirazzis have a gut-like response and the sound matches well with plain gut. They give a lively quality to the low end on this bass that was either lacking or overdone in the past. Of course this is only my initial reaction, and I have lost my infatuation with strings before (Obligatos, Velvets).
I find them much improved over the Obligatos. There is no excessive rolling under the fingers or bow, none of the "springy" tone, and they are holding pitch pretty well already after only a couple of hours.
My arco is horrid, but in comparison to other strings, these have quite a rich tone and I can hear the "accentuated low frequency spectrum" Pirastro claims.
When my son gets up, I'll be able to hear him play from a distance and have a better idea of the projected sound.
I'll give 'em a go on the gig tomorrow and see how they do in the real world.

[Uncletoad]

Somebody measure these guys and post it please.

[ctxbass]

Estimated with my "toy" plastic gauge:

E 2.4mm
A 1.9
D 1.6
G 1.1

E&A as installed, D&G in envelope.

disclaimer:
These measurements may be totally inaccurate, and should be used for purposes of comparison only.

[Uncletoad]

Originally Posted by ctxbass

Estimated with my "toy" plastic gauge:

E 2.4mm
A 1.9
D 1.6
G 1.1

E&A as installed, D&G in envelope.

disclaimer:
These measurements may be totally inaccurate, and should be used for purposes of comparison only.

Thats

.094
.074
.062
.043

Pretty darn small.

Maybe not quite right?

[ctxbass]

Probably not quite right.
As a comparison, they're really close in gauge to Superflexibles. A bit larger.

[Uncletoad]

Originally Posted by ctxbass

Probably not quite right.
As a comparison, they're really close in gauge to Superflexibles. A bit larger.

From the string gage sticky:

Thomastik Superflexible
Orchestra .052 .074 .079 .107


Pirastro Obligato
Solo .058 .063 .080 .106
Orchestra .060 .069 .088 .111

[Uncletoad]

You'd think they'd send me a set what with all the BS I sling around on strings...

Or maybe not. Keeps me honest when I pay for them all.