Pirastro solo tuned down

[Theobalmuis]

I am jus wondering if anybody has any experience tuning down the pirastro solo's. I have heard they are pretty rubbery, but am just wondering if still playable. If not , what are some other good tuned down solos that are still not too bright.

[Francois Blais]

Pirastro has several sets available in solo gauge!
Which ones are you talking about?

Regards,
François

[Theobalmuis]

Sorry, I meant Flexocor, I guess I just automatically think Flexocor when talking about Pirastro. How Do the different Pirastro solo's compare with each other. This has probably already been discussed, I'll go search for it.

[Francois Blais]

Depends on your needs.
Your profile doesn't say anything helpful on your setup, kind of music you play, arco, pizz, etc.
The bottom strings may feel quite floppy that way for pizz, but for arco it may not be that bad. (I'm not an arco player, sorry)

[Theobalmuis]

sorry once again, i mainly do orchestras and solo work so pizz isn't that much of a deal. Do you think these strings will have enough power for when I do play in orchestra? Thanks for the advice, I will take it into consideration.

[JoeyNaeger]

I while ago, I was using solo flexocores and tuned them down for orchestra. They are pretty rubbery tuned down, so you won't be able to dig in like you normally can. I think for a short period of time, that is okay. They're wonderful solo strings at solo pitch however.

[Francois Blais]

Ken Smith started a thread about Flexocors a couple of years ago:

Flexocor strings info from Ken Smith

Regards,
François

[KSB - Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by francois

Ken Smith started a thread about Flexocors a couple of years ago:

Flexocor strings info from Ken Smith

Regards,
François

True and it used to be a Sticky as well. My Thread however mainly addresses Reg and Stark gauge Flexocors with some mention of Original Flex, Permanents and some mixtures.

I don't have any experience with the Solo gauges but as far as the E string goes, the regular Flexocor 92 E is often too loose within the set on some Basses. I bet that can be tuned up for solo easily and tuned back for Solo. It would be like using Regular Flexs and a Stark E as I have explained in my Flex Thread linked above.

A Tailpiece adjustment and/or a Soundpost adjustment may also help in adjusting the tension of the Strings on your Bass to use the Solo Flexes Tuned down and maybe with a reg Flex E (.097").

By the way, after all that talk and work with testing Strings for Pirastro the changed nothing except to discontinue the Stark E/C String which I think is a step backwards. They did however come out with a new and completely different type of set called Evah Pirazzi. Still, I prefer Flexocors mainly although I have been known to experiment with new and other Strings on occasion.

[Theobalmuis]

thanls for all the advice, but I'll think i am set on getting a set of Belcantos from thomastik. I figured I could get by without solo strings or know and the bel cantos supposedly work great for solo playing.