Any thoughts from all my appreciated fellow players who recently changed from Zyex Lights to Spiricore weich's? I have been playing the Zyex's for over two years on my 20 year old Carved German Franz Werner Virtuoso bass using a Finale carbon bow with pops rosin and getting what I consider good bowing results. Now I have the itch for change and I'm gravitating back to metal core (for now), as I'm looking for a bit more clarity pizzicato, knowing that I'm also getting good pizz clarity from the Zyex's especially with equally concentrated left hand control along with a strong right hand plucking technique. I'm hoping I won't lose the benefits experienced bowing the Zyex's but consensus among this string forum suggests that Spiro's are indeed highly bowable and can deliver a good arco sound. My feeling is that I have to at least dedicate some quality time to the Spiro's to really know how well they work for me on this bass. I appreciate all your thoughts and feedback knowing that this is partly subjective based on the variable factors such as individual bass, string height, technique and personal preference.
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Double Bass Considering going from Zyex to Spirocore Weich's
- Thread starter Krantz
- Start date
Spiro weichs will probably be a bit brighter, particularly fresh out of the pack, and a little more friendly under the bow (especially once they've settled in).
More sustain and clearer sound. Better balance across all 4 strings as I've found Zyex E strings to be almost useless. The Spiro G is pretty bright and can take a while to settle in. A lot of players sub it for something else.
*OPINION* As much as I like D'Addario I would say, in most cases, the Spirocore's are a better choice. *OPINION*
More sustain and clearer sound. Better balance across all 4 strings as I've found Zyex E strings to be almost useless. The Spiro G is pretty bright and can take a while to settle in. A lot of players sub it for something else.
*OPINION* As much as I like D'Addario I would say, in most cases, the Spirocore's are a better choice. *OPINION*
Looking forward to trying the spirocore weich's. Thanks for your feedback!
I think the Spiros will be a breath of fresh air for you. Expect a brighter string, longer sustain, and thinner diameter. These will take longer to break in than the Zyex, so have some patience in the beginning if you get a new set. Bowing tends to get better as the strings age.
With all that said i think Zyex are still great strings. I tend to like them for their thicker string diameter, and medium sustain. Nice hand feel. More old school thump.
With all that said i think Zyex are still great strings. I tend to like them for their thicker string diameter, and medium sustain. Nice hand feel. More old school thump.
Despite the synthetic core of the Zyex, I did not find them to be all that terribly different from the Spiros from a brightness perspective. Zyex are easily the brightest and most metallic sounding synthetics I have tried (Comparing to Oblis, EP weich/medium and Does). Zyex to me were 80% of the Spiro zing with a dash of the gut-like flavor found in synthetic strings. I do think the Spiros will give you even more of that metallic brightness if that's what you're looking for.
I could not get the lower Zyex strings to bow cleanly on my bass (the A was particularly awful, both pizz and arco), so I definitely prefer the Spiros as a full set. The Zyex D and G were quite nice and IMO would make a nice mixed set over Spiro E and A. That said, I have heard that the Zyex get darker as they break in but that this takes a long time. The bowing problems for me on the low strings were so pronounced that didn't have them on for more than a month, so I may not have been able to experience this break in effect.
I could not get the lower Zyex strings to bow cleanly on my bass (the A was particularly awful, both pizz and arco), so I definitely prefer the Spiros as a full set. The Zyex D and G were quite nice and IMO would make a nice mixed set over Spiro E and A. That said, I have heard that the Zyex get darker as they break in but that this takes a long time. The bowing problems for me on the low strings were so pronounced that didn't have them on for more than a month, so I may not have been able to experience this break in effect.
There's also a fairly substantial difference (imo) between .3885 weichs and s42 weichs. I've had one set of s42s and 4 sets of 3885s, if that tells you which I like better. The s42s were NOS and very old though, so that may have been a factor.
Agreed that Zyex is brighter than other synthetics and not totally out of the ballpark of the Spiro sound. A Zyex light G is likely a good match with Spiros under it.
I agree with @unbrokenchain. The 3885 Spiro Weichs are my favorite of the Spirocore variants. In between the S42 Weich and Mittels in terms of feel and not as harsh sounding as the S42 Weichs.
I've got some spiro weichs on all 3 basses. My classical bass has spiro weich E and G and Original flexocore AD. With 42 string length they bow pretty well and the spiro G is really good in middle register and thumb position. It sings. I use one of those felt rings on the G to mute the higher overtones and still bright.
You basically said everything I was planning to say about these strings. I had Zyex lights on my bass for over a year and though they do get darker they seem to last a long time. I was basically satisfied with the pizzicato sound but I too found the lower strings to be a chore under the bow.
- Steve
I started on the DB less than a month ago, so my opinion is not worth much, but anyway. I have Spirocore Weichs on my bass. E, A and D do well under the bow, G is a bit thin, but that may be my own fault somehow. With pizz however, it is E that is unsatisfactory. It has a lot of thump and little tonal clarity, and light/sharp picking hardly helps. A, D and G however are clear, but not too bright.
I had a Luthier do a UB setup and put a set of Zyex strings on my plywood bass several years ago. When the bass came home I felt that the Zyex E was a muddy and lifeless. The prior set of strings were D'Addario Helicore Mediums. After a few days I couldn't take it any more with the Zyex E, so I put the D'Addario E back on and it was like night and day.
Other posters had mentioned that the Zyex A and E were tough to bow, my A has the same issue - but I'm working on that, got to dig in just right. G D & E on the bow are good and I'm happy with the bass now.
Kevin
Other posters had mentioned that the Zyex A and E were tough to bow, my A has the same issue - but I'm working on that, got to dig in just right. G D & E on the bow are good and I'm happy with the bass now.
Kevin
