what is the best string for sustain?

[ddsjjlannom]

i`m looking for a string that has great sustain. i`m leaning towards either the helicore pizz. or the correlli 370. which set of strings would you advise. thanks!

[Francois Blais]

TI Spirocores, Pirastro Jazzers.
(of course the Helicore Pizz too)

[ddsjjlannom]

thanks for the reply, i looked at the T.I spiros but $162.00 is a little too much for me right now. i`m trying to stay around the $100.00 range. (i sould have mentioned that to begin with.)

[Francois Blais]

They may cost more, but since they could last you a decade, it's really a good investment.

[ddsjjlannom]

i did`nt know they would last so long. will it make a big difference in the sustain from the medium to the light guage?

[JmJ]

A

[Marc Piane]

Weich and Mittel seems to have the same amount of sustain IME.

If you are looking for cheaper you could try the D'Addario Hybrid or Pizz strings. The Pizz ones sustain for days. They are pretty light though. The Hybrids are fine too. I never could really get into either though. They have a much shorter lifespan than Spiros and when they go dead they are DEAD. Spiros mature way differently. Some guys don't like them until they are at least 1 year old. D'Addarios are trash by then.

[damonsmith]

I love Spiros. They are worth the extra $$.

[Eric Swanson]

+1 on the Spiro Weichs for sustain. I, personally, didn't love the Helicore hybrids. Much more effort (for me), with much less sustain than the Weich.

Also prefer the Weichs to the Corelli's both for pizz and arco. More sustain and a warmer sound, with the Weichs, for me, than the Corelli's. Better under the bow for me, too.

My (humbly offered and admittedly personal) attitude towards strings is that considering the amount of time we spend using them, the extra $ for something that works well is insignificant. I would rather eat less expensively or have fewer clothes than have strings that don't work well...but that's just me. That was my attitude when I was penniless, too...

Finally, if you go with the Spiros, they will last longer than most human relationships do, and certainly as long as most cars. So, there's some savings, over time...

Your setup can also affect sustain. A good luthier can help with this, IMHO.

[Uncletoad]

Originally Posted by ddsjjlannom

i`m looking for a string that has great sustain. i`m leaning towards either the helicore pizz. or the correlli 370. which set of strings would you advise. thanks!

If you are looking for maximum note length pizz those strings don't have it.

Spirocore Mittel. Spend the dough, or find a used set on here. They last forever.

Really. There are reports of more than a decade.

[dchan]

I've only played Spiro Mittel's once for maybe three minutes. I've also only played mostly orchestral strings besides that, so my experience with Spiros isn't much compared with others. But when I played them, they were definitely the longest sustaining string I have ever played, bar none.

Go to the String Matrix on Herve Jeanne's page, and listen to all the strings. Then tell me which string sustains the longest.

[Greg Clinkingbeard]

To complicate things just a bit, tension may play a part in this. Last night I put Superflexibles on the bass in place of a Spirocore stark E, Mittel A and D. The SF G was already on.

The bass opened up quite a bit, got louder and actually has more sustain, especially the E and A. Granted, the Spiros are several months old, but the SF set is used as well.

I think this bass was choking a bit under all that tension.

But yes, as a rule of thumb I think Spirocores have the longest sustain.

[greitzer]

Spiros have the longest sustain of the strings I've tried. I've only used the Mittels.

Other strings with good sustain are the Flat Chromesteels by Pirastro, and the Superflexibles by Thomastik. The Superflexible "E" in particular had more sustain on my bass than any other E string, including Spiros.

Of the two strings mentioned in the original post, I only have experience with the Corellis (370F). I liked them, but they didn't have much sustain in my experience. They are a good bowing string and easy on the fingers.

[Don Higdon]

By coincidence, I just finished putting a set of Spiros on my New Standard hybrid.
This always seems to happen. I drift around, have my flings with Anima, Obligato, etc. Then I come back home to Spiros, and I wonder what the hell I was thinking.
No string has the sustain or the balls that Spiro mittels have. They not only last years, they sound better as they age.
$154 at International Violin

[Marcus Johnson]

Yup. What Don said.

Still the best deal in town. It's hard to think of a better investment than a set of Spiros.

[Barcza]

The Weich is = Thomastik Spirocore?

[Marcus Johnson]

Yes. The lightest gauge. Weich, in German, means soft (among other things). Next up is Mittel, and then Stark.

I got a kick outta this link. Most definitions do NOT apply to Thomastik Weichs, which are a terrific string....

http://www.dict.cc/german-englich/weich.html

[jayarroz]

SPIRO MITTELLS, It seems we all use them. I even feel that the newer ones have a darker sound then the older ones they made. Pull out an old set from ten years ago and they are brighter than a new set of spiro's

[Gearhead43]

Might I ask why you want so much sustain? Does your band play alot of slow ballads at half-tempo or something?

[Don Higdon]

If you're asking me,
1. The thread stared with

Originally Posted by ddsjjlannom

i`m looking for a string that has great sustain.

I'm answering the poster.
2. "So much sustain" gives the player the ability to play whole notes that sound like whole notes, rather than quarters followed by long silences.