Upright Strings

[Kevinlee]

I am trying to find a set of upright steel strings with a good deep growl!!! I Guess I'm Sort of looking for a gut sound with a steel string. I have installed a magnetic P.U. on my upright cause I wanted a little more controled volume and I run a K&K Bass Max on the Bridge as well. I also have a piezo mounted under the fingerboard that I use sometimes for the slap. So because of the magnetic P.U., the strings need to be steel. Any suggestions?
Thanks
Kevinlee

[Monte]

Maybe we have 2 different ideas of growl, but to me, growl and gutlike are mutually exclusive and completely different. I used to use Thomastik Spirocore Weichs, which have a great deal of growl and are used by any multitude of jazz bassists, but I wanted a more gut like sound so I switched to Velvet 360's. They have a growl, but not the artificially (IMHO) long sustain that gives basses that mwaahhh sound that makes me think of bass guitars. I love the 360's, but they are a different kind of string, so try them first because they are much $$$. The Obligatos have a rep for being more gut like, probably because they are low tension.

Monte

[Don Higdon]

Obligatos are a synthetic gut, made of perlon (sp. ?)
I think you're mistaken if you expect a particular string to growl. It's the bass that growls.

[Rob W]

Originally posted by Monte
The Obligatos have a rep for being more gut like, probably because they are low tension.

Monte

Are Obligatos really low tension. I haven't actually played on them but I understand they are Pirastro's answer to Thomastik Dominants which are also perlon core (and I used to use them for years). Dominants are anything but low tension, so I expect the Obligatos are likely simlilar. Does anyone have any real tension specs on these?

[olivier]

According to the string tension measurement "à la Dr G Johnson from 2Xbasslist", Obligato are NOT particularly lower tension than yer regular steel string, but maybe the data are questionable. I play Obligato G,D,A and Dominant E. Dominant is stiffer and provides a more responsive E string, but I would not replace the other three Obligati. I enjoy their pleasant arco tone and pizz sound. I don't think that trying Dominant gives you much idea of what Obligato are like...
I have to confess one thing here: English is not my first language and I do not know what the word "growl" designates... Am I a Mr Jourdain of the growl ?

[Don Higdon]

Kevin: No need to start a second thread.
For the playing you described on the other thread, I suggest Tomastik Spirocores. They've been the choice of pizz players for years. The recent inroads by other strings are for qualities you don't need. They're steel, which you said you wanted, they have the most sustain, and they'll last longer than the Obligatos. There is a pizz Helicore string (identifiable by red tailpiece ends) which is just as good if you can't find Spirocores. This is based on my use of all these strings for years.

Olivier: I stopped looking at the 2xbasslist the moment I saw the guy signing his posts as "Dr." That is just too pompous for me. It's an internet forum, for God's sake. And I don't need him or his scientific measuring devices to know that an Obligato offers less resistance to the bow and /or the fingers. I just switched to Helicore arco for the summer. When I go back to Obligato, maybe I'll try the Dominant E, if it,too, is perlon.