A Little Help From Those Who've Gone Before

[BCAlbin]

I'm ready to try some new/different strings. My bass is a mid 19th cent. German Flatback (3/4) that, to my ears, is more pronounced in the mids but less so on the bottom end. I'm 7-10 mm G to E. So far, of what I've tried on this bass, the stings it seems to like best are Spiro Mittels (imagine THAT!). After mixing and matching different combinations of Helicore Orch. and Hybrids for years, I finally slapped on a set of the Spiros and the bass really opened up with a little more on the low end. Currently, even though the bass loves the full set of Spiros, I've replaced the Spiro D & G with a Golden Spiral D & G to get a bit more of the "vintage" or "traditional" sound for the show I'm playing. Enough "background" info hopefully.

I've been lurking (and drooling) as everyone has been trying, and writing about, the new Evahs. I haven't jumped yet because I'm cautious (and poor) but, after reading everyone's reviews, I'm really eager to give these strings try on my bass. The big fundamental and darkness of the Evahs sound like they would compliment my mid-range-y bass nicely. I'm really digging the sound of the gut D & G but the Golden Spirals are hell to get a decent arco sound from. What I'm considering is a mixed set of Evahs and Olivs. Definitely Evahs for the E & A and definitely Oliv for the G. The D is up for grabs until I get some opinions. Since I'm used to a little "growl" with the Spiros, I'm leaning toward the new Evah Weichs rather than the Orch. gauge.

My questions:
1.) Evah D or Oliv D? From what I've read, it sounds as though the Evahs have a more "traditional" sound on their own. Is the Evah D phenomenal? Does the Oliv D suck? (like many gut Ds) If you were mixing/matching this set, which would you choose? WWUTD? (What would Uncle Toad do?)
2.) Evah Orchestra or Weich for the E/A (and possibly D)? Like I said, using Spiro Mittels for the last year, I don't mind (even possibly like) a little bit of growl. But I also love the "warm thud" and lack of sustain from guts. I gather that the Evah Weichs, while having more sustain/growl than Evah Orch., probably don't have as much as Spiros. As I said, I'm leaning more toward Evah Weichs unless the consenus of opinions is that an Evah Orch. E & A (and possibly D) would be a better match for an Oliv G (and possibly D). I also Like the idea of the slightly lower tension of the Weich Evahs. My bass already feels "tight" with the Spiros and it seems, of the folks who've tried both Orch. and Weich Evahs, many seem to prefer the feel of the lower tension Weichs as opposed to the "tighter" Orch. set. (Not to mention that gut is typically, already, a little more "sloppy" than the E & A.)
3.) Lastly, If I really want to splurge, I'm considering a full set of Evahs PLUS the Oliv D & G...just so I can experiment and find what I like. This would, of course, give me an "absolute" answer to my questions but...it would also stretch my budget considerably. Waste of money or not? Based on what I've described as "what I'm looking for" above, am I just as likely to find it in a mixed Evah/Oliv set without spending the exorbitant amount for all 6 strings?

Please guys (and gals), some advice from folks like Phil and Bobby (i.e. those who've tried EVERYTHING!) would really be appreciated. I really can't afford a whole lot of experimentation and, with a little help, hope to hit a home run (or at least a triple) my first time up to bat! I think I've got a pretty good idea of what I'm looking for, I just need a few helpful opinions to firm things up for me. Thanks!!!

-BCA

[Bobby King]

Hi Brad! Long time. Are you doing "Always, Patsy Cline" at the Ryman?

I've been real happy recently with an Evah D (regular gauge) and and an Olive G on my top strings. They give a fatter, warmer sound on top than the Spiros, but aren't a pain like plain guts. They bow well, and are more stable. In the past I wasn't happy with Olive Ds, but I'm sure it depends on the bass. I'm using Spiro Weich on the E&A, which I like just fine. Sometimes I wish that the E&A were a little less "steel", but there's plently I like about them -- stable, comfortable tension, easy to play. I'm curious about the Evah Weichs too, but I don't have money to spend at the moment. But this setup I'm using seems to be working pretty well for everything I'm doing -- bluegrass with Donna Ulisse, occasional jazz gigs, the Elvis show, arco practice.

Anyway, I'd recommend the Evah D and Olive G for sure.

Hope you're doing well. BTW, who's in the current band for the Patsy show?

[BCAlbin]

Thanks for the info, Bobby. Yes it has been a long time. I think I may have run into you at Dustin's shop one day but it's been so long I wasn't sure it was you! (I should have said "Hi" anyway.) I am doing APC at the Ryman. Jeff Taylor - Pno/leader, Andy Reiss - Gtr, Matt Combs - Fid/Gtr, Stu Basore - Stl, Andy Peake - Drm, and me. Obviously, it's always a pleasure to share a stage with Mandy, she's amazing! Since I quit Joe Nichols in Dec. 07, I've been playing for her when she works. APC is going well but audience numbers are a little low. We've got 3 more weeks so hopefully it will pick up a bit.

Good intel on the strings! I knew everybody loves the Oliv G. "Which string to use for the D," is what's got me stumped. I'd like to go with two guts (like whats on the bass now), but with the Golden Spirals, the D is definitely the weaker string and I don't want to spend $100 on an Oliv D only to find it's not any better than the Golden Spiral D on my bass. But it is good to know that you're happy with the Evah D, that would seem like a good, safe (and less expensive!) choice. I guess the only way to know for sure would be to lay out the bucks for the Oliv D and find out for myself. Different strings, different basses...

Do you do any slap stuff in the Elvis show? The reason I ask is because, if you do, I'm wondering how the Oliv G is holding up to that! Years ago, I destroyed the windings on a pair of Eudoxas with a minimum of slapping. I'm absolutely afraid to "man-handle" the Olivs even in the slightest

I'm really looking forward to trying the Evah's. Hopefully I'll get a little more feedback with this thread, if not, I'll just have to peruse the Evah "Mega-threads" yet once again and try to figure out my game plan. Now that Pirastro has added the Evah Weichs to the mix, I'm more confused than ever!

Thanks and next time I see someone who I suspect might be you around town, I'll be sure to speak up and say "Hi"...

-Brad

[Bobby King]

Well hey, sorry I didn't notice you there!

Sounds like a great band for APC, I'm jealous!

Yes, I slap a little in the first few songs (the Sun Records era) and I try to be real easy on the Olive. So far it's been OK. If it dies then I'm going to try an Evah G. The Evah D is great to slap on. If you try the Evah Weichs, let me know what you think.

Be well!

Bobby

[drurb]

Recognizing the large interaction among basses, strings, and preferences, my advice would be to go with a full set of Evahs. Coming from Spiro Mittels, I'm guessing you would really like the Evah weichs. As I've commented, I really prefer the Evah weich G over the Evah regular G. As has been pointed out in the Evah weich thread, they have a balanced sound. My $0.02 is don't mess with mixing. Give the full set a chance-- at least a month of steady playing and then swap if you must. Just my opinion.

[BCAlbin]

Thanks so much for the valuable opinion, Drurb! I will certainly take it under consideration when making my choice. I've begun the slow task of rereading both EP (Original & Weich) threads to make a better informed decision. (No easy task, the original thread is up to something like 54 PAGES!) I agree that I think I will enjoy the EP Weichs coming from Spiro Mittels. I'm already playing a mixed set of Spiros/Golden Spirals, so foregoing the gut with the new set is a hard pill to swallow but giving a full set of new strings a chance is certainly prudent advice...Especially if those "new strings" are Evahs, or so it would seem. Thanks...

BCA