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DR Black Beauties

winndaddy

winndaddy

Feb 9, 2011
329
2
#1
I know some of you have discussed this already many of times, but I wanted to give my take on these strings. I have been playing for about 20 years so strings are nothing new to me. I desided to install a brand new set of medium Black Beauties with the K3 coating on my Squier 77 jazz to match the all black concept im going with(I usually play with DR Sunbeam Nickels). The first thing I noticed was the strings sounded some what bright(Not mellow or dead at all like some post have claimed). The texture of the strings seems to be easy on the fingers and very comfortable. After 2 months of playing 5-8 hours a week they have not lost they're tone. I Bought these strings simply for they're looks, thinking that I was going to have to sacrifice some tone, but ended up have the best of both worlds. I know that there a little pricey, but to me at this point, Im extremely happy with them.

Hope this helps somebody out.
P.S be sure to bend before cutting!
 
#2
I use the Neons, same coating. I find the brightness just right, like I usually EQ rounds anyway (without any zing but still lots of presence), and I like the way they stay that way, easy to dial in when the tone doesn't change with playing time.

I do find they are a little less bright than when new, but they have stayed the same after that initial wear-in. I love the feel, like regular strings with some talc on them.
 
#3
I just ordered on ebay the black beauties for my recently purchased Ibanez RB960 Roadstar II (japan 1985)

Could someone tell me why that part of the strings are red and curly? (I am a new bassplayer)
 

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#4
The Red and Curly part is silk wrapping... It helps keep the strings from scratching your hardware.

It also helps point out you have a string that is way to short for that instrument :(

In some cases, you could cut the silk off, but it looks that the outer winding ends far before the nut so that would not work in your case.

Black Beauties do not have silk on them however...
 
#5
Fangofdoom said:
I just ordered on ebay the black beauties for my recently purchased Ibanez RB960 Roadstar II (japan 1985)

Could someone tell me why that part of the strings are red and curly? (I am a new bassplayer)
Click to expand...

1) Those are not Black Beauties. If you paid for DR Black Beauties and got those, you got ripped off. Being NOT BLACK should have tipped you off.

2) Whatever strings you have look way too short. The red silks should be on the other side of the nut.

I think you've been shafted.
 
#6
mmbongo said:
1) Those are not Black Beauties. If you paid for DR Black Beauties and got those, you got ripped off. Being NOT BLACK should have tipped you off.

2) Whatever strings you have look way too short. The red silks should be on the other side of the nut.

I think you've been shafted.
Click to expand...

He just ordered them. I assume the picture depicts his current strings.
 
#9
One Drop said:
He just ordered them. I assume the picture depicts his current strings.
Click to expand...

One Drop is right; that strings came with the bass. Maybe I wasn't clear because my english is not perfect. I'm from Perú and I naturally speak spanish.

Well, thanks to everyone for the interest

By the way, what do you think about the bass that I bought? Something that I should know about it
 
#10
SLaPiNFuNK said:
The Red and Curly part is silk wrapping... It helps keep the strings from scratching your hardware.

It also helps point out you have a string that is way to short for that instrument :(

In some cases, you could cut the silk off, but it looks that the outer winding ends far before the nut so that would not work in your case.

Black Beauties do not have silk on them however...
Click to expand...

Got it; thank you for that
 
#13
I have used BB on a spector i recently sold. They sounded great, looked awesome but even though they were not harsh on my fingers they felt kind of sticky.

@Fangofdoom: I'm from Peru, too. Good to know you purchased DR strings. It's almost impossible to buy good strings here.
 
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#14
I have BB's currently on my Spector with EMG DC's in it. They are what came on it... then I removed them and put them in a denatured alcohol bath. While off I put Stainless strings on it, and now the BB's have been back on for a couple days to compare again.

The BB's have a similar vibe to them, but obviously lack the snappy super high end that pure SS strings have. They're a tad smoother or mellower sounding, but still very clear and precise sounding. You do lose a good amount of any clack from frets, but you still can get some zip sounds from moving your hands if you're a fingertip dragger.

This is my first exposure to them, and I'm intrigued. However, before I buy a new set I'll compare them to Ernie Ball Coated strings which I've used in the past and know I like.

(For the recent past I've been keeping Stainless strings on my main basses to push me to become more precise and aware of my technique... and it's helped a lot. When I swap back to something else my technique is notice-ably better IMHO.)
 
#15
stflbn said:
I have BB's currently on my Spector with EMG DC's in it. They are what came on it... then I removed them and put them in a denatured alcohol bath. While off I put Stainless strings on it, and now the BB's have been back on for a couple days to compare again.

The BB's have a similar vibe to them, but obviously lack the snappy super high end that pure SS strings have. They're a tad smoother or mellower sounding, but still very clear and precise sounding. You do lose a good amount of any clack from frets, but you still can get some zip sounds from moving your hands if you're a fingertip dragger.

This is my first exposure to them, and I'm intrigued. However, before I buy a new set I'll compare them to Ernie Ball Coated strings which I've used in the past and know I like.

(For the recent past I've been keeping Stainless strings on my main basses to push me to become more precise and aware of my technique... and it's helped a lot. When I swap back to something else my technique is notice-ably better IMHO.)
Click to expand...

This is kind of off topic, but I was wondering how you like you TC Helicon Voicelive?
 
#18
After having mine on for about a month, I must say, I like these strings alot. They are very full and deep sounding, and they smooth out much of the super high frequencies. The end result is a fat and warm tone that, unlike other strings, still maintains a strong and precise attack so that every note is distinct.

Not to mention, they feel great on the fingers. I'd order more of them, but I can't find any (6 string sets) for less than 50 bucks anywhere at the moment. Anybody got any leads? Why DR discontinued these, I have no idea, they are fantastic. The least they could do is offer their Neons in black...
 
#19
IconBasser said:
Not to mention, they feel great on the fingers. I'd order more of them, but I can't find any (6 string sets) for less than 50 bucks anywhere at the moment. Anybody got any leads? Why DR discontinued these, I have no idea, they are fantastic. The least they could do is offer their Neons in black...
Click to expand...

Have you tried Welcome to Bass Strings Online - Lay it down...

Anyway, I haven't heard that DR is discontinuing anything, especially not their BBs. Which strings are you talking about? The new BBs come with the new K3 coating, same as the neons.
 

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