hi, i was using a full set of La Bella guts for over a year... i like the set quite a bit, it was well balanced and sounded and felt great if you want an old school thing. i used the wrapped A and E, plain G and D set... got tons of compliments on the sound i was getting with that set up. it can be frustrating at times b/c there are drawbacks to the old school thing, meaning quicker note decay and less pitch clarity, but that's part of the whole trip, right? i developed a fondness for the arco sound and feel, it wouldn't work in every situation but when you start to get the hang of it (needs much less bow pressure) it can feel really cool... i would've liked to try the plain A b/c bowing was easier on the plain G and D than on the wrapped A and E.... overall i like the La Bella set much better than the Pirastro Chorda set, which is not as well balanced, though the Chorda G is really great.....
i eventually swapped out the E and A for Pirastro Pizzicato which were easier to play and sounded more clear and focused, in doing so i felt i lost some of the pizz power of the low strings...
then my Pizzicato E broke so i went to a beat up old Spiro med. which i didn't like the tension of, or the tone, then i tried a Velvet Blue A and E, which felt better but not quite thick enough sounding or feeling for my taste, finally i put some used Compas 180s on across all 4 b/c i wanted to have a better arco response for a while. they are higher tension than the La Bella guts which i don't like but not as bad as typical arco strings...
but as for La Bella guts, i had the G/D on for almost 2 years, they still sound great, bow well (after some time to get used to on my part) but they do get "hairy" b/c i play them once a week outdoors and subject them to humidity... i have had them off just for a couple days and i miss that feel already. what else can i tell you, moonshiner?
