Innovation

Norre · #1 07-15-2010, 02:00 AM

How about an Innovation thread? It seems they are not really *that* popular here on TB, or am I wrong? I wonder why? After all they are really affordable. Probably because they are designed for the slappin', rockabilly-ing or blue-grassin' bassists. But it seems they are also for bassists who are looking for a gut-like tone without the hassle of tuning instability. Their 140H, 140B and Ultra Black are jazz or orchestral sets. The SuperSilvers are more for bluegrass (according to their website) but I assume they are also fine for traditional jazz.
So anyone have any experience with them?
What did you like/not like about them?
How do they sound (acoustic and amplified) and feel? How long do they last? How do they compare to other pizz strings from other manufacturers?
If you have any pics or soundsamples please post them here.

Thanks,

KN

kwd · #2 07-15-2010, 07:41 AM

I've had 140Bs on my bass more than once. I really like them for both jazz and arco playing. They're similar to Obligatos but don't have the 'mwaaahhh' on the E and A strings and have a longer usable life. Their shortfall in my experience was when I would dig in, they would go sharp.

I purchased a set and had some problems with one of the strings buzzing. I sent an email to their contact address and they shipped me a brand new set, free of charge.

oliebrice · #3 07-15-2010, 07:57 AM

I've been using 140h's for a few years now, with the occasional experiment with other brands. I keep coming back to them, though.
I find them a good compromise - cheap, nice warm pizz sound, good to bow, loud, reliable. I prefer other strings for some things (i.e. love velvets for jazz pizz, but find them too slow and sticky for free improv, love evah pirazzis for arco, but not pizz) but the innovations work best for me over all.
Everything on here is with them:
www.myspace.com/oliebrice

Jake deVilliers · #4 07-15-2010, 09:25 AM

You're right, I sell a lot of the Super Silvers, Silver Slaps and Golden Slaps to slappers and roots music players but the 140H works in all DB contexts.

Its like a fat Spiro with less mass - good articulation but a blunter, thicker note. I have them on my 1850's Bohemian and it sounds wonderful.

kmanley_29649 · #5 07-15-2010, 09:39 AM

I played the Silver Slaps for a while, and they are still my favorite sounding sting of the ones that I've tried, but they are not very good for arco, and I need a good arco tone for the stuff I'm playing now. I really want to try the orchestral solos (sorry, don't remember the number), as they are supposed to be a lot like the Slaps, but with a metal winding that makes them better for bowing (obviously, as they are "orchestral").

oliebrice · #6 07-23-2010, 05:35 AM

The last couple of sets of 140hs I've used have been slightly different, and I just got confirmation from Innovation that they have in fact changed the core as they can no longer get the old material.
The new ones are orange (used to be a kind of transparent beige), and slightly thinner. To my ear they are a bit less warm and with more string noise, I much preferred the old ones. oh well... Innovation say they sell far more of the new ones!