Looking for strings!!!!

[DougM]

I recently purchased an1977 E.R Schmidt upright.>> it has strings on it i believe to be SUPER SENSITIVE (all red winding on bottom). any way i have read 4 or 5 pages of threads on here and still don't understand alot of the terminology! like arco or pizz?? anyway i play bluegrass gospel music and i like a deep mello tone.. i have seen some people recommend obligato's, spiro. helicore and pirastro jazzer (is this a type string or a person that plays jazz?) anyway i like a string that plays easy and i will probably never bow it. the action is really low on my bass it also has a jazz neck. Any suggestions? thanks DOUG

[Chasarms]

First of all, welcome to talkbass.

Arco: With a bow.
Pizz: short for Pizzicato, or plucked with the fingers.

The red tail silks could also be Spirocores. What color are the tops?

Of the strings you mentioned, The Obligato sounds like the most likely meet your idea of the sound you want.
Spirocores are great pizz strings but may make the tone more out front than you want. They can be bright (especially at first) and have a great growl to them.

The jazzer is similar to the spiro. While I know some like them on Orchestra basses, I've never heard helicores on any bass that I thought sounded good. Especially if your ears are hearing "deep" and "mellow".

The Obligato is a nice soft string and plays very easily, but if your current low string height setup is coupled with a stiffer, higher tension string, (for example: if they really are spiro mitts) you may experience some buzzing as the Obligato can be flabby and needs a little room to work. You may have to raise the bridge you make your bass work with Obligatos. If you don't have wheels on your bridge, that may be a problem.

Plus they are relatively cheap and only give you a year or so anyway (depending on your playing habits) so it isn't really that risky of an experiment.

Also, if you make a significant change in overall tension, it can have quite an impact on the way the bass sounds. Some basses like a lot of tension, others like less. Either way, if you change strings, it will take a little time for the bass to acclimate to the change.

Lastly, no matter what strings you put on there, it'll take a while of playing them to figure out what they are really going to sound like, depending on the string. Obligatos settle in fairly quick, while some guys don't even like spirocores until they've been played several weeks (or months or years!!).

[DougM]

Thanks Chas,, the string colors are E yellow A blue D silver G green with red on the bottoms .. have you ever heard of this bass ER Schmidt?

[Jazzman]

Originally Posted by Chasarms

The jazzer is similar to the spiro.

I think the jazzers are much brighter than the spirocore. They also have more tension than the spirocore. But, if you play modern jazz, it is one string to consider.

[T-Bal]

Originally Posted by Jazzman

I think the jazzers are much brighter than the spirocore. They also have more tension than the spirocore.

I believe those statements would be true if you were referring to Spiro weichs, but not mittles.

[Basfidl]

Doug,
Buzz here. Bluegrass Gospel eh? Cool! Checkout our website.
www.trandtheboys.com
Drop me a line sometime if you get time. BASFIDL@EARTHLINK.net

[Jazzman]

Originally Posted by T-Bal

I believe those statements would be true if you were referring to Spiro weichs, but not mittles.

That may ver well be. My experience is only with the weich. I just assumed the others were higher tension, not really a different sound.

[Chasarms]

Originally Posted by DougM

Thanks Chas,, the string colors are E yellow A blue D silver G green with red on the bottoms .. have you ever heard of this bass ER Schmidt?

You are correct. Those are Super Sensitive. Those strings are a common student string. Certainly not the best for pizz only playing. In fact, they aren't very good strings in any sense.

They are very stiff, so my comments above about Obligatos and setup certainly may apply.

As for the bass, I have never heard of it. But that doesn't mean anything really. First of all, I am not very well versed in this anyway. There are plenty here at DB that may have ran across one of those at some point.

Labels don't mean much in DB land anyway. There many European and Asian factory basses imported and labeled with shop labels here in America. That same bass may exist under a dozen different labels in the states.

If it's put together well, sounds good and set up to play well, it's a good one. It doesn't really matter what the stamp says.