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Apex Strings

Greg Waldon

Greg Waldon

Aug 22, 2017
807
885
Mississippi
Disclosures
None
#1
I saw a post on social media and Jeff Pilson (Dokken, Lynch /Pilson, Foreigner) was talking about how much he likes these strings. I saw him with Foreigner and his basses sounded really, really good and he is a helluva player and preformer. I looked at their website and they are very reasonable in price. Has anyone ever used these strings? What's the good, bad or ugly on these. Thanks in advance for any info on these strings.
 
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#2
Something you should know...

Apex Strings was started up by people who used to work for Dean Markley before their own factory was shut down a while ago. You can still get "Dean Markley" brand strings today but they're not the same as the previous ones. Some say they're not nearly as good.

Some people claim Apex strings are actually closer to the old Dean Markley in quality, which is not surprising.
 
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#3
Thanks for the info, michael_t. I have used the Dean Markley Blue Steels before. May try some Apex strings in the near future. I just found a few more post on these strings. For some reason my search didn't find anything. Googles them and found a few here on TB.
Thanks again!
 
#7
tindrum said:
I suppose I could yeah. Just find it very strange there’s no 45-100. Dunlop is the same with the Super Brights. Totally a mystery to me. If that gauge wasn’t common or popular I’d get it but…..
Click to expand...

45-100 is popular because that's D'Addario's "regular light" set (EXL170), which is ubiquitous. I'm not a fan because I find them uneven with a tight D and a loose E. I personally prefer either 45-105 or 40-100.
 
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#8
I've been using Apex for the last year or so and I love them. Feel great, sound great.
I typically use DR Sunbeams or Lo-Riders. And feel like the Apex compare very favorably to them. I've been using their NPS cryos.

I have no intention of buying other strings in the near future unless I'm forced to get something local in a pinch.

Edit: it might be relevant to include some of my string history.

My first go-to string back in high school(03-07) were the Dean Markely misfits skullbusters, which I think we're just blue steels in a custom gauge. I didn't know about the misfits, but I loved the bright snappy sound, and the green silks were cooool.

I used them until GC stopped carrying them, and that's when I switched to DR.

Reading into the history of Apex made me want to give them a shot. I can't say for sure they sound like the old skullbusters because it's been so long, but they're definitely bright and snappy!

They've been the first string I've used that did leave me wanting to immediately switch back to DR.
 
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#9
I'm not currently using APEX strings but hold them in high regard. Tried bass, acoustic and electric in a variety of guises. Well-made, pretty bright sounding IMO, good longevity.

Why don't I have them on any of my instruments, you may ask, and rightfully so. All of them seemed to have way more tension than other strings of the same gauge. I don't have any real numbers to share, but that was my overall impression about every single set I've ever installed. Obviously, YMMV.

My $0.02 only...
 
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#10
ajkula66 said:
I'm not currently using APEX strings but hold them in high regard. Tried bass, acoustic and electric in a variety of guises. Well-made, pretty bright sounding IMO, good longevity.

Why don't I have them on any of my instruments, you may ask, and rightfully so. All of them seemed to have way more tension than other strings of the same gauge. I don't have any real numbers to share, but that was my overall impression about every single set I've ever installed. Obviously, YMMV.

My $0.02 only...
Click to expand...

I can sort of co-sign this. I don't really feel them as high tension like i do with Rotos or flats, but they feel like a solid string even when I dig in despite me using lighter gauges.
 
#12
Interesting stuff re Dean Markley. I remember really liking the Blue Steels when I first started playing and don't remember why I switched away from them. Maybe something to do with QC? I dunno. When did that factory get sold?
 
#14
michael_t said:
45-100 is popular because that's D'Addario's "regular light" set (EXL170), which is ubiquitous. I'm not a fan because I find them uneven with a tight D and a loose E. I personally prefer either 45-105 or 40-100.
Click to expand...

I agree 100%. 45-100 is far too unbalanced for my taste.
 
#15
michael_t said:
Something you should know...

Apex Strings was started up by people who used to work for Dean Markley before their own factory was shut down a while ago. You can still get "Dean Markley" brand strings today but they're not the same as the previous ones. Some say they're not nearly as good.

Some people claim Apex strings are actually closer to the old Dean Markley in quality, which is not surprising.
Click to expand...
I tried them on my old fender dimension 5
They were pretty stiff and Idek how to explain

but … dry sounding
 
#16
Comically bad, virtually non-functional website.

They clearly don’t want my business, and I’m more than OK with buying DR more conveniently at or near the same price. Or Webstrings for much less.

“… these strings make take advantage our years of string making …”. [sic]
 
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