I have the TI PowerBass on one of my J's. They have a bit of zing at first but break in to have excellent balance and clarity from top to bottom.
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Boomers, but Rotos seem to last longer than they used to.
I’m not gigging like I used to… when I was gigging, twice monthly, the Roto SS would go about 4mos… the NPS would give me 6mos.
Have you tried a set of stainless steel Rotosound Swing Bass 66’s? I absolutely love them on my Precision Bass. And reading that you like top end sparkle, they won’t disappoint you.
I’m personally not a fan of overly bright strings, and I was a little concerned that they’d be too bright. But not so. And I absolutely love their tone.
And their lifespan is very good IMO. Yes, you will notice they lose some of their top end within a week or so of steady playing time, but even without that top end, they still sound great IMO.
I’ve been playing my Spector, that I restrung yesterday, and with it’s active EMG pickups and EMG BTS onboard eq system, it IS bright! But like I posted earlier, stainless steel Swing Bass 66’s have a LOT more going on with their sound besides bright top end. They have a thick, but defined tone, from low to high. And their midrange…it’s absolutely brilliant.
BTW, this bass had a set of DR Pure Blues on it for the past year or so. And Pure Blues are excellent strings, but I personally prefer the stainless steel Rotosounds.
And, if a set of GHS Bass Boomers isn’t super expensive, please try a set. IMO they especially sound great on a P-Bass with a passive pickup and passive electronics. The slight amount of top end zing that they have fresh out of their package wears off in about a week, but IMHO the sound that they have beyond that time is fantastic.
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That is too bad about the pricing. Lo Riders run about $23 (US Dollars) and for a good round wound string, that is pretty reasonable here in the states.
Best Wishes.
This is true of stainless Rotosounds but this thread is about the nickel plated strings. Rotosound nickels sound and feel like a lot of other nickel strings. They're good but not all that different. I like Roto Bass sets because they're available in 35-95 sets. They're not as bright as D'Addario XLs but they sound good and last as long if not longer.
For something noticeably different try the DR Sunbeams. They're smooth and flexible, great intonation, with the same basic character as other nickels.
When I wanted a bright sounding set of nickel plated roundwounds, that didn’t empty my wallet, D’Addario XLs were my #1 set. Closely followed by Ernie Ball Hybrid Slinkys.
I will try a set of Boomers! They're not expensive and have heard only good things about them. There's also the round core variant, which looks interesting. The stainless steel Rotosound Swing Bass 66’s I am somewhat hesitant to try as I'm afraid they'll damage the frets, as I believe a set of Pro Steels did some time ago. But perhaps I'm over reacting.
I’m glad you brought that up!
I had been using D’Addario Prosteels on my Precision Bass for probably 10 years. IMHO Prosteels’ outer wrap definitely feels abrasive. But they didn’t chew up my frets at all. I think that’s because I have a fairly light touch with my fretting hand. (Totally opposite to my plucking hand. -I pluck fairly hard)
The current version of stainless steel Rotosound SB66’s has a very smooth, polished outer wrap, which is uniform along the length of the string. Unless you fret your strings with a heavy hand, your frets will be fine.
I’m an old guy, and I used SB66’s exclusively from the late 70’s up to the mid 80’s. The SB66’s of that era felt very rough to the touch. And the strings’ outer wrap was a dull gray, with a bumpy outer surface.
I recently tried a set of D’Addario xl170’s for the first time in a decade plus….I was pleasantly surprised how much I liked them, not to stiff or overly bright, more full range.
DR Hi BeamsGood question. I have the impression, they won't/don't last all that long. And also just to try out something similar but different and perhaps even better.
D’Addario XL
Boomers
Etc.
I find them basically equivalent but have been Leaning towards the XL’s
Lo Riders are much stiffer than anything else listed here. I pulled them off pretty quick. I like flex and flop for my hard pluck style and tone
D
I've never had problems with Roto 66 nickels not lasting long. The Roto 66 STEELS are a different story, they go "dead" VERY fast (I personally like them "dead" though). The 66 nickels last much longer in my experience.
The Roto 66 nickels aren't quite as unique sounding as the 66 steels but they still have a bit of the characteristic Rotosound mids. If you like them you won't find other strings with the same tone/feel. Not even the Rotobass nickel plated strings. Rotobass are very different sounding and much shorter life IMO (even though others seem to think they're the same as the Roto 66 nickels...). Rotobass strings are closer to D'Addario XLs but with shorter life IMO.
Some of suggestions in this thread are WAY off (at least if you want something close to the Roto tone/feel).
Boomers have a COMPLETELY different tone with a strong lower mid focus. The Rotos have more of an upper mid presence (although not as high/zingy as D'Addario XLs). Boomers also have a VERY short life time (if you want them to stay bright) so if that's one of your concerns you should definitely avoid Boomers.
Dunlop Super Brights have a COMPETELY different "feel" than Rotos. A lot more flexible/supple. They feel more like round core strings (even though they are hex core).
Various DR stainless steel strings... I can only assume that anyone suggesting these must think we're discussing the Roto steels rather than nickels (but even then the DRs are compelety lacking the characteristic Roto steel mids).
TI Superalloys have a completely different midrange character than nickel plated strings. These TIs are Alloy 52 strings (or something similar) and they have that type of midrange presence. Very different to Roto 66s. I can only assume the same would apply for the Roto UltraMags (also Alloy 52) but I've never tested those. I could never find them anywhere. Rotosound describe them as "mid pronounced" which is exacly what I would expect from Alloy 52.
If you like the Rotos you won't find anything exactly like them. They are good strings. But trying other strings can be fun and you might even discover that you like other strings BETTER.
The Roto 66 nickels aren't quite as unique sounding as the 66 steels but they still have a bit of the characteristic Rotosound mids. If you like them you won't find other strings with the same tone/feel. Not even the Rotobass nickel plated strings. Rotobass are very different sounding and much shorter life IMO (even though others seem to think they're the same as the Roto 66 nickels...). Rotobass strings are closer to D'Addario XLs but with shorter life IMO.
Some of suggestions in this thread are WAY off (at least if you want something close to the Roto tone/feel).
Boomers have a COMPLETELY different tone with a strong lower mid focus. The Rotos have more of an upper mid presence (although not as high/zingy as D'Addario XLs). Boomers also have a VERY short life time (if you want them to stay bright) so if that's one of your concerns you should definitely avoid Boomers.
Dunlop Super Brights have a COMPETELY different "feel" than Rotos. A lot more flexible/supple. They feel more like round core strings (even though they are hex core).
Various DR stainless steel strings... I can only assume that anyone suggesting these must think we're discussing the Roto steels rather than nickels (but even then the DRs are compelety lacking the characteristic Roto steel mids).
TI Superalloys have a completely different midrange character than nickel plated strings. These TIs are Alloy 52 strings (or something similar) and they have that type of midrange presence. Very different to Roto 66s. I can only assume the same would apply for the Roto UltraMags (also Alloy 52) but I've never tested those. I could never find them anywhere. Rotosound describe them as "mid pronounced" which is exacly what I would expect from Alloy 52.
If you like the Rotos you won't find anything exactly like them. They are good strings. But trying other strings can be fun and you might even discover that you like other strings BETTER.
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Rotos do their own thing, nothing is quite like them. Other nickel plated strings I liked were Daddario XL, Warwick Red, and especially EB Slinky. I've heard great things about Dunlop Nickel Super Bright, maybe give them a try first.
I've mostly used SM66N (and sometimes RB35s) for rounds most of the last 20+ years*, and I've never had much of an issue with the tone over time. But then I find them too twangy initially, so perhaps I am the ideal customer for these strings.
* Occasional forays into other strings, e.g. JR344 on fretless, and the flats always JF344 apart from a set of EB Cobalts still on one bass that have gone rusty. I did have a set of TruBass on an acoustic with a duff E string I was less impressed by. The Labella tapewounds I got turned out to be rounds with clear plastic on top and not the same thing at all, but at least worked OK.
* Occasional forays into other strings, e.g. JR344 on fretless, and the flats always JF344 apart from a set of EB Cobalts still on one bass that have gone rusty. I did have a set of TruBass on an acoustic with a duff E string I was less impressed by. The Labella tapewounds I got turned out to be rounds with clear plastic on top and not the same thing at all, but at least worked OK.
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I also have issues with “stiff” strings, just to hard on my aging hands…I like nickel lo-rider as well, but need to get the med-lights, or use them on a bass I keep tuned down a half step. This is why I’ve been hesitant about trying roto66’s, I’ve read they are stiff?
I played SB’s for a while…switching from Sunbeams. I loved the feel and flexibility, very easy to play. However imo they lacked warmth and lows somewhat, so I switched back to Sunbeams.
Aging hands? Join the club! Mine are also battle-scarred after four trigger release surgeries (two on each hand). That's why I've switched to lighter gauges in recent years. I've tried Boomers 40-55-75-95 and Nickel Lo-Riders 40-60-75-95, and found them quite manageable in terms of stiffness.
If you want to try the Roto 66, go with 40-100.
Have you tried Roundcore Boomers, they are really nice and a lot more flexible. I think they last longer and not as “dark” as regular boomers.
