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Double Bass Changing strings before a gig? Spiro mitts to Eurosonic D,G

JerBo

JerBo

Jul 25, 2009
129
53
ATL
#1
Is this a terrible idea to try to do on the day of a gig? Obviously I'd prefer at least a day or 2 for them to settle, but that's why I ask, surely someone has tried similar setups day of, perhaps just switching from steel to guts or similar and rolling with it... but if anyone has particular experience with the Euros I'd love to hear it! Or more likely, switching to D,G guts/synthetics from spiros.

Engelhardt bass, currently with Spiro mitts. K&K Bass Max>Radial PZ-Pre>GK800>Shroeder 2x12L
Keeping the Spiro E and A, trying Eurosonic Lights D and G to get a warmer D,G and more gut-like qualities and tension.
Will be raising my bridge height for the Euros (something I'd like to do with the spiros but the tension is just too much as it is) and filing the nut, etc. My fretboard is good, so no planing needed.

I'm really torn on if I should do this or not. If I had the strings right now there would be no question, but I will have them Friday, before gigs that night and on Sat with 2 different bands, both of which I have been trying my damnedest to get more of a gut-like tone from. VERY minimal slap. Not rockabilly click-clack, but I do try to get some percussive stuff and the spiro D and G are just too shrill/sharp/pingy... you know the sound. I find myself trying to get rid of the harshness of the spiros that the bass max seems to enhance as well and I'm hoping these Euros are more in the ballpark of what I'm trying to hear.
Also, a lower tension would be great.
OTOH I don't know what to expect from these Euros... I know the D and G will likely be brighter than the spiro at first, and will most likely sound much better by the Sat gig.

I will have the Spiro E and A to even things out, so it's not like a brand new set- that, I wouldn't even consider TBH.

The music is a female fronted dark country spacey kinda thing- Guitars/Mando/Fiddle/Banjo/Pedal Steel/ Drums, and the other is classic country/bluegrass style trio of acoustic gtrs and bass.
Both bands I have really tried to get a gut kinda sound with, mainly the decay that spiros just don't have.
I have made them work, I've had the same spiros for like 7 years now or more and have done all I feel I can with my hands to pull the sounds I'm going for (amplified)
The spiros are almost TOO precise for me if that makes sense and the G is just too sharp/thin sounding. My intonation is ok, I don't mean that by "sharp" I'm not really sure how best to describe what it is.... I'm sure it's the thing all spiro players deal with before trying new strings (and ultimately switching back to the reds)

Sorry if this is a long rambling post. I guess I'm just wondering if anyone has switched strings like this and played gigs right after.
And if anyone has an opinion on whether I should just do it or not. I could certainly use the higher action on the D,G, hell even the spiro E and A, and the lesser tension will be awesome.
I am prepared for the G to maybe not sound quite as good even for some of the first gig, although it may be just what I'm looking for right off the rip, tonewise.

Any help/opinions are appreciated. Thanks
 
#3
ctxbass said:
My own preference would be to wait until after the gigs. You know what you are dealing with now, but many things can change when you change strings.
Not only the response and sound of the strings, but rattles and buzzes you never had before can appear. It might be better to wait for some down time.
Click to expand...

Yeah I hear ya. Although I'm not really concerned about rattles. I have had other lighter tension strings on before and they were fine, just didn't care for them at the time. It's a gamble for sure.
 
#6
Sam Dingle said:
I would wait till after. If you don't like them (I'm gonna make a guess and say they will be too light) you should try innovation super silvers. I would try the full set actually
Click to expand...
Really? You think the Eurosonics will be too light? Everything I was reading made it sound as if they had a little more tension than many of the others.
These are the lights I'm talking about, not the ultralights.

For some reason I was thinking the super silvers were REALLY light, like weedwackers or something
 
#8
I've never had the eurosonics on my bass but knew a bassist who used them. He had the lights jacked up super high and they felt like they had normal tension. I couldn't imagine them at a lower hight. The super silvers on my bass were able to get about 8mm on the G and felt good and I had them lower sounding fine. If ya don't like these think about it.
 
#10
The problem with changing strings and time for the bass to adapt to is the tension of the strings or better the pressure on the top. If that changes, the bass might need one or two weeks to adapt.

Of course there are other potential problems like groove width etc. but this could be changed quickly.

Spiro Mittel are rather high tension, even the 4/4 set (S42) which has less tension than the 3/4 set. Eurosonic Light as well as Silver Slaps D and G have much less tension than the Spiro Mittel D and G. So that will change pressure distribution and amount on the top. So the bass might not sound as it might sound one or two weeks later. Even the complete Super Silver set has a different pressure and pressure distribution on the top than the Spiro Mittel.

So better try that after the gig if you are able to play the gig with your current strings.
 
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#11
I agree with all of the above. I have a Eurosonic E that I ran with plain gut on my old bass, and it sounded fine. On my new bass, it sounded like the bass was rattling at the seams. There wasn't anything wrong with the bass or the string - they just didn't play nice together with the current setup.

Strange things can happen when changing string types, especially mixing sets. I always had to make string height adjustments over a period of time when I was finding my way to what I eventually settled on.
 
#16
I have an Englehardt, and I use Eurosonics (EADG) and love the tone/feel, I play mostly bluegrass/folk/irish.
Having said that, there is no way I would change strings, even of same type, on the day of a gig.
Asking for trouble, and there are enough was to get into trouble as is.
 
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#17
Holdsg said:
I have a
n Englehardt, and I use Eurosonics (EADG) and love the tone/feel, I play mostly bluegrass/folk/irish.
Having said that, there is no way I would change strings, even of same type, on the day of a gig.
Asking for trouble, and there are enough was to get into trouble as is.
Click to expand...

Ah that's encouraging to hear... I really went in blind with these Eurosonics based on the VERY little info I could find on them. Some of the posts here have me doubting even putting them on! Definitely waiting til after the gigs tho. Way too many changes going on. Bridge height, nut slots, etc.
Then the tuning issues and general brightness of brand new strings along with the top not being settled to a different tension like that.

I think when I try them out I will tune up the Eurosonics and tune down the spiros and let the bass settle like that for a week maybe. Just to kinda keep similar tension across strings while that stuff adjusts. Any idea on that? A nylon Gtr player I play with does this with his nylon strings and he says it helps him a lot with tuning/stretching.

thanks everyone for the feedback. It could have turned out to work very well but way too many variables and I'm sure there will be a slight learning curve.
 

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