Looking for the right string combo (not a slap player but the gig calls for it)

[stephenra]

Hello fellow db players ; ) Ive been looking to find a combination of strings that seem to be quite ambiguous. I have been very fond of my spirocore's for the past ten years playing jazz and more recently country on my 70's englehart. I had previously prided myself on staying away from "slapping" and going for a dig in sound with relatively high action but now have a gig with a touring act that needs it all (slap, pitz, and arco) . Its a bluegrass/country/"rock"/country band and I want to push for an authentic country sound and like the idea of guts but dont think i would like the supper low tension, especially on the a and e strings. Ive been told that a plain gut g and d with innovation super slaps a and e is a good setup sonically but worry about tension for the few arco passages and overall speed I may loose. Im not afraid of a challenge and look forward to having a great sound (pitch included). Im also concerned about my bridge collapsing during cartage without the normal tension. Also, will my realist pickup give a satisfactory sound with the gut/inno strings?? A lotta ?'s I know. Thanks for any help you can give

[Jason Sypher]

I think gut will be too drastic a switch. I don't see why you can't just use the spiros for all of it. A lot of top players in Nashville use Spiros. If you want more thud than I would go with the Innovation 140B. They're soft, stable, bow and have a warm thud.

[Francois Blais]

You may also consider Jargar strings, which are metal, but have a very dark tone and short sustain, and are available in three gauges.
The thinnest, Dolce, is used by Lee Rocker. (he uses other strings as well)
They'd surely bow much better than gut+Innos.

[MaxJohnson]

I'm partial to the Evahs for those 3 things. They pizz and bow great, and don't have that annoying metal twang for slapping.

[Jason Sypher]

I don't know those strings but I've heard that before. My experience with the Innovations is that they are forgiving arco strings. They don't have a lot of bite or color but they give the less-than-virtuosic arco player a bit of cushion....

[ERIC A]

Keep the Spiro E and A strings, replace the D and G with Gut.

[kane612]

Originally Posted by ERIC A

Keep the Spiro E and A strings, replace the D and G with Gut.

as someone who does half and half, can you comment on weichs vs. mittels E/A when paired with gut d/g's?

i'm assuming the weichs better match the tension of guts, but i was wondering if mittels, perhaps, match the tone better.

[ERIC A]

I use the Thomastik Spirocore weichs with Lenzner Gut D and G strings. I have tried using the Mediums, but the tension between the gut and medium Spirocore's just never felt right. Also the weichs are far easier to slap with higher action.

[BeowulfKingsley]

I've been using the Evah Pirazzi Solos for all 3 applications and they work really well. Low enough tension for slapping and a good slap sound, really nice pizz tone and they bow well too. I'd consider checking them out.