Acoustic bass strings on Electro-acoustic bass

[adiian007]

Hi! I wanted to ask if I can put acoustic bass strings on electro-acoustic bass, because I bought an electro-acoustic bass, but I cannot find electro-acoustic bass strings, only electric bass strings and acoustic bass strings. I already know that I cannot put electric bass strings on electro-acoustic bass.

Can you help me?

Thanks! <3

 

[bholder]

Actually, you can put electric strings on an acoustic, you just might not get the sound you want.

Where to start? So many choices. Several of us here like the GHS Bronze Pressurewound strings, there's another big tapewound camp, some folks like flats, some like the regular bronze rounds. All sort of choices and opinions. And existing threads have tons of good discussion already.

• Acoustic bass fetish club Part 2

 

[bholder]

there's another thread or two with good discussion on ABG strings, I meant to post, but I haven't found them, they're out there somewhere.

 

[HaphAsSard]

Hi! I wanted to ask if I can put acoustic bass strings on electro-acoustic bass, because I bought an electro-acoustic bass, but I cannot find electro-acoustic bass strings, only electric bass strings and acoustic bass strings. I already know that I cannot put electric bass strings on electro-acoustic bass.

Can you help me?

Thanks! <3

Is the electro-acoustic bass you bought the one in your avatar? If so, it has a piezoelectric undersaddle bridge pickup, and you can put any type of string on it. See this recent post of mine (slightly edited):

- Bronze (or copper) roundwounds are louder than anything else acoustically (unplugged), but don't work so well on electric (magnetic-pickupped) instruments (only the steel core can be sensed by the pickups because bronze, used for the windings, is non-magnetic, as is pure copper);
"electric" strings (nickel- or steel-wound - the GHS Pressurewound Bronze are included, because only the outermost wrap is bronze, whereas the intermediate layers and core are steel) are less loud acoustically (not because their being magnetically-active, per se, makes them quieter unplugged: it's just that copper or bronze have been proven to be the loudest);

- yes you can use either, because electro-acoustic bass guitars have piezo pickups, which sense pressure (ferromagnetic content or lack thereof being irrelevant).
For example, the Thomastik-Infeld AB344 set - but also other similar, less expensive sets - have no steel nor nickel (core is nylon, wrap is bronze) but work great with piezos.
_____

Point #2 (use whatever you want)* having been established,

popular and strongly argued-for choices for ABGs are:
- bronze rounds (as comes stock) for a bright, downtuned-acoustic guitar tone; if you can find them, Elixir Nanoweb coated bass bronze strings are a little smoother than normal uncoated rounds
- nylon tapewounds (lower acoustic volume but a double-bassy tone)

People also use:
- their favourite "electric" rounds or, for less finger noise, processed rounds (pressurewounds, groundwounds aka semi-flats)
- flatwounds (similar to nylon tapes in that these are relatively quiet but reminiscent of upright bass in tone and feel)
- nyloncore rounds.

I've been using Savarez silverplated-copper nyloncores for some years, but am looking to try a new, nyloncore flatwound set by Galli.

_____
* [whatever you want, but within reason:
- very stiff strings would require some finagling of setup - a tighter truss-rod for a straighter neck, a lower bridge saddle - to achieve correct intonation (if at all possible);
- heavy-tension strings (which tend to also be stiff, see above) may cause behind-bridge top-bellying, bridge-lifting, or both.]

 

[bholder]

Actually, you can put electric strings on an acoustic, you just might not get the sound you want.

Where to start? So many choices. Several of us here like the GHS Bronze Pressurewound strings, there's another big tapewound camp, some folks like flats, some like the regular bronze rounds. All sort of choices and opinions. And existing threads have tons of good discussion already.

• Acoustic bass fetish club Part 2

Oh there's a vocal contingent for classical contrabass strings too. They do sound lovely and can give surprisingly good volume on the right bass (they get along better with thin flexible tops like the classical contrabass, but they'll work acoustically on any ABG).

So it's going to come down to the hardest of possible choices - what's your personal preference? It can be quite a journey to find "your" ABG strings...

 

[HaphAsSard]

Hi! I wanted to ask if I can put acoustic bass strings on electro-acoustic bass, because I bought an electro-acoustic bass, but I cannot find electro-acoustic bass strings, only electric bass strings and acoustic bass strings. I already know that I cannot put electric bass strings on electro-acoustic bass.

Can you help me?

Thanks! <3

An addendum on instrument types (I should have led with this, but it only occurred to me later).

Acoustic guitars (or, really, any sort of acoustic instrument) has enough volume to be heard ...until it has not (depending on concomitant sound - other instruments in the ensemble - as well as room size and audience size), and this is why, in most live situations, they get microphoned, or amplified thanks to the internal preamplification system they often come with.
Now, for acoustic bass guitars it's the same, but their threshold of audibility is even lower, because bass frequencies are more difficult to amplify through purely acoustic means (body size, efficiency of the body top "air pump"), and because bass is typically played in single notes (as opposed to the "orchestral mass" of the guitar chord).
For the above reasons, the ratio of instruments that have no onboard pickups vs. those that do, which may be around 65/35 for 6-string acoustic guitars, is closer to 1/999 with acoustic bass guitars: totally acoustic ones are very rare, because manufacturers know that most players are going to need to plug in at least once. It only makes sense to install a pickup, even if it may never be used, rather than not to, and leave the musician who suddenly needs one to their own devices.
^
In other words, there is no separate commercial category of "acoustic bass guitar" as opposed to "electro-acoustic bass guitar": the former is, in practice, shorthand for the latter.

Finally, "acoustic bass guitar strings" are really "bronze bass guitar strings" (pure copper-wound strings are another option, but they are uncommon because of their shorter lifespan: they oxydise fast, particularly through direct skin contact; they are still standard in pianos, where there's no such contact).
^
Regarding bronze strings vs. other types, see my post above (and the quoted post inside it).

 

[Killing Floor]

String choice is a personal preference except for the bronze phosphor strings that probably came with it when you bought it. It is scientifically shown that nobody likes those. But the good news is any string you like will work on an acoustic bass guitar.

 

[bholder]

String choice is a personal preference except for the bronze phosphor strings that probably came with it when you bought it. It is scientifically shown that nobody likes those. But the good news is any string you like will work on an acoustic bass guitar.

I dunno, we do have one guy on here with ninja level fingering skills who loves bronze rounds and says if you have problems with string noise you just need to practice more. There's always one in the crowd! lolz

 

[Killing Floor]

I dunno, we do have one guy on here with ninja level fingering skills who loves bronze rounds and says if you have problems with string noise you just need to practice more. There's always one in the crowd! lolz

That's valid but they make my hands smell like cilantro. I like cilantro but not in that way.

 

[bholder]

That's valid but they make my hands smell like cilantro. I like cilantro but not in that way.

I hate cilantro. Tastes like Irish Spring soap.

 

[BadSanta1281]

I hate cilantro. Tastes like Irish Spring soap.

You wouldn't know that if you didn't eat soap.

Don't eat soap.

 

[aprod]

I believe phosphor/ bronze strings don't interact with pickups very well. Electric bass strings would be the answer.

 

[bholder]

I believe phosphor/ bronze strings don't interact with pickups very well. Electric bass strings would be the answer.

True for magnetic pickups. Phosphor / bronze work fine with piezo pickups, though.

 

[KenD]

It depends on the pickup system on your acoustic-electric bass. If it has a magnetic pickup you want strings with enough nickel/steel to excite the magnet. If you have a piezo system, you can use whatever you like to deliver the sound and feel you're after.

I have a Kinal acoustic-electric which has only a piezo system. I use Newtone phosphor-bronze on it and love the range of tones I can dial in with the onboard EQ.

 

[bolophonic]

I hated my acoustic bass until I swapped out the strings for a set of totally dead Labella flats that were headed for the trash can. Now it sounds unexpectedly great.

 

[Kenan]

Oh there's a vocal contingent for classical contrabass strings too. They do sound lovely and can give surprisingly good volume on the right bass (they get along better with thin flexible tops like the classical contrabass, but they'll work acoustically on any ABG).

So it's going to come down to the hardest of possible choices - what's your personal preference? It can be quite a journey to find "your" ABG strings...

I had wondered about that. Isn't the big difference in scale length a problem? Wouldn't a string designed to be at pitch on a 42" scale be mega floppy when at the same pitch on a 34" scale?

 

[bholder]

I had wondered about that. Isn't the big difference in scale length a problem? Wouldn't a string designed to be at pitch on a 42" scale be mega floppy when at the same pitch on a 34" scale?

I didn't mean upright strings, which can be done but are indeed tougher to make work. I meant classical contrabass guitar, nylon strings, like this:

 

[Element Zero]

I hate cilantro. Tastes like Irish Spring soap.

I've known other people that say cilantro smells like soap… y'all are crazy

 

[Kenan]

I didn't mean upright strings, which can be done but are indeed tougher to make work. I meant classical contrabass guitar, nylon strings, like this:

Ohhhh.... thanks for clarifying. On upright, I've used a lot of gut and gut-like strings over the years. I always wondered what it might be like to put them on a piezo equipped electric bass.

 

[bholder]

I've known other people that say cilantro smells like soap… y'all are crazy

Nope it's genetic.