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.110 round-core NPS: Does it still exist?

rzero

rzero

Apr 21, 2014
279
224
AZ
#1
Recently I put on the original strings that came with my 2006 Jazz, the Fender 8250 round core NPS .045-.110 with the tapered E. I've been really digging them and they don't have a lot of miles on them but I managed to break the .110 at the taper core. Luckily I have two old .110 DR Sunbeam and I put one on. But both are totally dead, much more than the 15 year old 8250s.

So I'm basically looking for a new .110. Problem is the 8250 are hex core now, and DR doesn't seem to make the heavy Sunbeams anymore with the .110. Round core boomers only come in .105 and .115.

Is there anything out there?
 
#2
Man.

Dean Markley doesn't make round core anymore.
Optima doesn't carry a .110 NPS.
Fodera used to but doesn't list one now. Could possibly special order some.
Pyramid has a .110 NPS but I'm assuming it's hex core until I see hard proof otherwise.

The Sunbeam .110 was through our boy Jason in the BSO days. It had the gauges stamped on the box so I'm assuming it was a special made item. Kind of surprising DR carries a .110 in so many of their other strings, but not Sunbeams. I could probably special order order some at quantity.

Let me know if I'm missing any options.
 
#4
Hmm. I looked up GHS Round Core Boomers, and it appears they may make a 105 and a 115, but not a 110. You might contact Jon Moody - GHS rep who posts to the forum - to see if this is just an oversight.
 
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#5
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#6
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#7
rzero said:
DR doesn't seem to make the heavy Sunbeams anymore with the .110. Round core boomers only come in .105 and .115.
Click to expand...

iiipopes said:
Remember: the GHS formula generally has a slightly larger core than other manufacturers, which means more mass, which means greater tension for the same overall diameter, so the round core Boomer in a 105 might actually coordinate well.
Click to expand...

I've used both the DR Sunbeams 45-105 and the RCB 45-105, and I can confirm the RCBs are noticeably firmer in feel.

If @rzero is mainly concerned about the overall feel (= stiffness/flexibility) of the E, the RCB 105 will be fairly close to both the SB 110 and the Fender 8250 110.
 
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#8
iiipopes said:
Yeah, that's where I looked. Remember: the GHS formula generally has a slightly larger core than other manufacturers, which means more mass, which means greater tension for the same overall diameter, so the round core Boomer in a 105 might actually coordinate well.
Click to expand...
You might be right, but I'm liking the gauge difference between the .110 and the .085, and .105 rattles in the nut slot. I may try a custom gauge set of Pure Blues at some point, as they have a .110, but I've heard mixed reviews of them. I might be open to a pure nickel round core .110, but that probably doesn't exist either.

Who knew I just broke a string so rare it doesn't exist any more? I may contact Jason at some point to see if I can special order some Sunbeams.
 
#9
rzero said:
You might be right, but I'm liking the gauge difference between the .110 and the .085, and .105 rattles in the nut slot. I may try a custom gauge set of Pure Blues at some point, as they have a .110, but I've heard mixed reviews of them. I might be open to a pure nickel round core .110, but that probably doesn't exist either.

Who knew I just broke a string so rare it doesn't exist any more? I may contact Jason at some point to see if I can special order some Sunbeams.
Click to expand...
Which 105 rattles the nut slot? If the nut slot has a proper witness point and the slot slopes back properly to the tuner, and if the string is wound with consistent turns around the tuner post down to the ferrule, it should not rattle. You may have a nut problem. I had a P-bass in the 90's with the set of strings you are talking about, and I never had a rattle when I changed from the 45-110 Fender set to other sets with a 105 E string.

GHS makes a pure nickel 106, which because pure nickel is denser than NPS, has more tension, so yes, may feel like a 110 NPS. Pure nickel has a big, round tone, but might be a little dark compared to NPS. OTOH, the set, 44-60-80-106 has about as much tension as a 45-65-85-105 set of NPS. So if you like big, round, consistent tone, that may be the set for you. It is also a round core. I have the short scale version on my travel bass because it is exactly that: balanced all the way around.
 
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#11
iiipopes said:
Which 105 rattles the nut slot? If the nut slot has a proper witness point and the slot slopes back properly to the tuner, and if the string is wound with consistent turns around the tuner post down to the ferrule, it should not rattle. You may have a nut problem. I had a P-bass in the 90's with the set of strings you are talking about, and I never had a rattle when I changed from the 45-110 Fender set to other sets with a 105 E string.

GHS makes a pure nickel 106, which because pure nickel is denser than NPS, has more tension, so yes, may feel like a 110 NPS. Pure nickel has a big, round tone, but might be a little dark compared to NPS. OTOH, the set, 44-60-80-106 has about as much tension as a 45-65-85-105 set of NPS. So if you like big, round, consistent tone, that may be the set for you. It is also a round core. I have the short scale version on my travel bass because it is exactly that: balanced all the way around.
Click to expand...
I've had the problem often if a string is .005 smaller than the slot and there is not enough tension on the strings. This bass is tuned to D standard. My previous strings were Slinkys custom gauge 105, 80, 60, 45. None of the strings were cut so there was 4 wraps around the post on the 4th string. There was a rattle on the 2nd-4th strings when unplugged. Couldn't really hear it plugged in, and it was almost gone by the time the strings were in near dead territory.

I had actually had the same Slinkys on this bass with a different nut that was filed for low B tuning and I had no rattle. I've never had a problem with nut slots that were significantly too big, because there is enough room for the string to vibrate without brushing the sides of the slots. This is the original nut that I just recently put back on because it had equal distance between the edge of the strings, as opposed to the equal distance from center like the one I filed for the low B. I bet a .105 wouldn't rattle If I was tuned to standard.
 
#12
rzero said:
This bass is tuned to D standard.
Click to expand...
The best set of strings I have found to tune to D standard is the D'Addario XL 160BT 50-120. When you tune down the whole step, the set still retains about the same tension as a standard 45-105 set. And the inherent slight scoop of XL strings keeps the clarity for the down tune.
 
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#13
rzero said:
This bass is tuned to D standard...
Click to expand...

I use my Fender Jazz for D-standard tuning with GHS Pressurewound M7200 (44-62-84-106). Their natural hex-core stiffness and high tension keep them from getting too loose and floppy even when down-tuned despite their relatively "normal" gauges. No issue with rattling or buzzing. And no need for nut modification.

Round Core Boomer .115 tuned to E = 45.5 lbs.
Pressurewound .106 tuned to E = 48.0 lbs.

Round Core Boomer .115 tuned to D = 36.1 lbs.
Pressurewound .106 tuned to D = 38.1 lbs.
 
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#14
Interesting development. I have been interested in "dead" rounds the last year or two, as they really have a different vibe than either flats or newer rounds. It's often talked about how rounds lose overtones as they age, but less often mentioned is how they actually gain fundamental.

Anyway, I've noticed that stainless and NPS hex-core rounds seem to get more floppy as they age, and a gauge that seemed okay when new can feel and sound too light after several months of break-in.

With these Sunbeams, however, I'm noticing the opposite. This old .110 tuned to D is now truly dead and has become a little too stiff (mind you I use heavy picks and pick near the bridge p/u). I may go back down to a 105. The good news is this would open up all the round-core choices mentioned in this thread.

I wonder if there is some sort of wrap wire wear that occurs with old hex-cores that doesn't occur with old round-cores, and contributes to that "floppy" feel that I'm not getting with the Sunbeams.
 
#15
Wow. I just put on a 105-80-60-45 set from 2 different sets of Pure Blues. These are now my favorite rounds. I'm not sensing any of the unmusical overtones that have been bugging me with new NPS strings. They seem both brand new and perfectly broken in at the same time. The feel and the timbre seem so solid and musical.

At least for now, I'm not interested in hex core rounds or NPS. Two others I may try again on different basses are Balanced Nickels and Hi-Beams, to see how they compare to the Pure Blues and to see how they all age.
 
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