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Bright strings that retain brightness!

Used to have DR drop tune strings then switched to eb nickel regular slinkies. Really love that crisp brightness of the slinky strings but they went dead within a week. Want something with a similar sound but retains that brightness for a lot longer. Can't afford slinkies every week. Any suggestions? I was told to check out dr sunbeams... How long do they last? For now something in standard gauge, but will probs get higher gauge next time I get my bass serviced as I play drop d a lot. Cheers
 
Buy two sets of your favorite strings. When one set dies, soak it in denatured alcohol and string up the second set. When that set dies, swap them out for the good as new first set that has been soaking in the alcohol.

Do this and you will always have the fresh strings you want, and only have to replace strings about once a year.

You will save hundreds.
 
Sunbeams are rather dark sounding out of the box. Id suggest dr neons for good brightness without loss of low end. Neons will also outlast sunbeams to. If you donjt use a pick, the Rotosound nexus coated strings could also be excellent choice imo. But they do show wear with pick use. Dr neons however hold up very well to pick use, no wear off even after five months when I was using them.
 
Want something with a similar sound but retains that brightness for a lot longer.

Look in to Stainless strings.


Dean Markley Blue Steels:bassist: are a little more expensive and a little brighter. My personal favorite, but tone is subjective.

GHS super steels are cheap, bright and retained their sound for a long time when I tried them.

D'addario pro steels are bright and cheap
SIT Power steels are bright and cheap

D'addario nickels are very similar to the EB nickels, but lasted longer and were a tad bit brighter IME. They also come in 2 for $20 packs if you find you don't care for the Stainless route
 
bassbombs84 said:
Buy two sets of your favorite strings. When one set dies, soak it in denatured alcohol and string up the second set. When that set dies, swap them out for the good as new first set that has been soaking in the alcohol.

Do this and you will always have the fresh strings you want, and only have to replace strings about once a year.

You will save hundreds.

+1

And DR hi beams or blue steels both are zingy and last a long time.
 
Look in to Stainless strings.

^^^This.

One of the reasons I switched to Ken Smith Rockmaster stainless steel roundwounds over 25 years ago was because they retained their brightness much longer than the dozens of other string brands I'd used previously.

Note: They don't retain their initial brightness very long; the Smiths have a very zingy/sparkly twang right out of the package, but within 2 or 3 days that tends to disappear...so if you're used to, say, the bright twang of Rotosounds, after a week you might find the Smiths disappointing. However, after 3 or 4 weeks the Rotosounds will be relatively dead, whereas the Smiths retain their 2-day-old sparkle for a good ~6 months.
 
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LaBella Stainless Steel rounds . They used to be called Hard Rocking Steels but now are called Stainless Steels . These are my string of choice and retain their 1 day break in on brightness for 3 to 6 months depending on how much I play . I also wipe them down every time I am done playing .