Dunlop "black box" vs Superbrights

[Dincrest]

Another inquiry for the fine folks at TalkBass.

For those of you who've tried both the Dunlop SuperBrights and their standard "black box" strings, what are your impressions of each (for comparison's sake)?

I ask because I want to give Dunlop "black box" steels a try, but would like some impressions from TalkBassers about them. Did they have a little more grit to their sound than the SuperBrights? Were they a little stiffer? Did you get more longevity out of them?

I once tried SuperBright steels but did not like them at all. They were too spongy feeling, too polite sounding, and went dead on me too quickly. But a part of me wants to give Dunlop another shot, next time with the "black box" steels.

Steel strings I'm very familiar with include: DR Lo-Riders, DR Hi-Beams, D'Addario ProSteels, LaBella Rx, so if Dunlop "black box" steels compare to those in any way, I'll appreciate the insight.

I tried doing a search, but any bits and pieces of information I could find were all over the place and it was taking too long to cobble anything together. Plus, most of the Dunlop conversations pertain to the SuperBrights and there isn't much on their "black box" sets. Even searching on YouTube gives more about the SuperBrights than the "black box" sets. So this might be helpful to others as well.

 

[Steve Slate]

I'm loving loriders right now. Before that I was using Dunlop SB Marcus Miller set. There not quite as stiff as Loriders but would be my choice if I couldn't get them. They have a little more definition on the lower end which I love. Marcus Millers are a good string!!

 

[Dincrest]

I heard from somewhere on TalkBass that one of the string designers at Dunlop is an ex-DR person, which (whether it's true or not) piqued my curiosity in the first place. Hi-Beams and steel Lo-Riders are both fantastic strings. Even after a year, those things still sound pretty dang fresh. Fat Beams are nice too, but I like Hi-Beams and Lo-Riders more.

Sadly, as mentioned earlier, I did not like the Dunlop SuperBrights at all. Maybe I'd like the "black box" Dunlops, but I can't seem to find anything about them. The majority of Dunlop content out there and the majority of Dunlop users here on Talk Bass are SuperBrights, and I'm curious about the "black box" sets.

I know a common snarky answer will be "Just buy a set, try 'em, and see for yourself." And I very likely will do that. But I think it's still worthwhile to start a conversation about Dunlop "black box" strings. I'm sure someone on TalkBass has used them and has something to say.

 

[Stan_da_man]

Black Label Dunlops, to me, feel like their take on Sunbeams. The Dunlops have a little more tension, feel a little more coarse and die a little more quickly. But - they are great strings for that broken in roundwound sound. They are not bright to begin with but reach their broken in sound very quickly. These strings are fine - not much more to really say about them.

 

[Dincrest]

Black Label Dunlops, to me, feel like their take on Sunbeams. The Dunlops have a little more tension, feel a little more coarse and die a little more quickly. But - they are great strings for that broken in roundwound sound. They are not bright to begin with but reach their broken in sound very quickly. These strings are fine - not much more to really say about them.

I assume you're referring to the black box/label nickel Dunlops? The way you describe them kinda sound like GHS Boomers. To me, those strings break in quickly and hold their great broken-in tone for a decent while. Last time I used Boomers, it was around the 6 or 7 month mark that they started sounding truly dead- like when slapping the E-string sounds more like the plop sound when I pat my belly.

I'm more of a stainless steels person. Those generally last longer for me.

 

[GTHintz]

I use the steel black box dunlops. Ive had good tone and feel with them and they hold tune well the few sets ive tried. Id definitely recommend them. They sound more like themselves than anything else which is a good thing i think. They seem a bit closer to lo riders than super brights would be. Enough mids that im happy and on the bass i have them on it works great with the vibe. Im dialing in good stuff on them.

 

[Dincrest]

Kinda like Lo-Riders but with their own thing going, their own personality sounds good.

I feel like some basses respond better to strings with their own kinda baked-in sound than strings that are more neutral.

 

[ElectricBass72]

I use Dunlop black box Steels on my Ibanez SR 6-string, because they don't make the Super Bright stainless steel or nickels in 6-string sets. Black box sound and feel very similar to the Super Brights, IMO.

 

[Zooberwerx]

I use Dunlop black box Steels on my Ibanez SR 6-string, because they don't make the Super Bright stainless steel or nickels in 6-string sets. Black box sound and feel very similar to the Super Brights, IMO.

Strange…they used to offer the 6 string sets. I bought them just to get a 130 B and pitched the C….but that was a few years back.

Riis

 

[ElectricBass72]

Strange…they used to offer the 6 string sets. I bought them just to get a 130 B and pitched the C….but that was a few years back.

Riis

For the 6-string, I get the Black box Nickel .030 - .130. If I ever see the Super Brights in Nickel or Stainless, I'll order them. Dunlop may have offered the Super Brights in a set of 6 before. I didn't start using Super Brights until 2020.

 

[Zooberwerx]

For the 6-string, I get the Black box Nickel .030 - .130. If I ever see the Super Brights in Nickel or Stainless, I'll order them. Dunlop may have offered the Super Brights in a set of 6 before. I didn't start using Super Brights until 2020.

I have an unopened set on my bench and found these:

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Riis

 

[Dincrest]

Yep, Dunlop offers 6-string SuperBrights, black box, and flats.

Products - Strings - Bass - Dunlop

And you can order strings directly from Dunlop's site.

 

[ElectricBass72]

I have an unopened set on my bench and found these:

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Riis

Thanks... just bookmarked these links. When I buy strings.... it's usually from only 3 places: Juststrings.com, Amazon and Sweetwater who have a wide variety of 4&5 string sets to choose from, but not so much with 6-string.

 

[Dincrest]

I'm now trying the new Dunlop Dual Dynamic Hybrid Nickel strings 45-105 on one of my basses, and first impressions are good. I love the strings' smooth texture and their flexibility pleases my fingers. My bass plays effortlessly and my fingers don't get ravaged. Okay, part of that may be that it got one of the best setups ever (by Larry at Woodstown Music in south Jersey) but man those strings feel good. Right now they're still in that brand new stage of too zingy/bright, but that's a good thing because then they have time to mellow out. I want to see how they mellow out and how long they last. Nickels don't last as long as steels do with me, and I hope these Dunlop hybrids give me nickel feel with steel life.

I'll admit, I'm curious to try out Black Box and SuperBright nickels. I've never tried any Black Box Dunlops and had an awful experience with steel SuperBrights (though I hear the nickel SuperBrights are much better).

 

[smeet]

I like the nickel SuperBrights much more than the steels. I also like nickel LoRiders a lot. How do they compare to the steel LoRiders?

 

[Dincrest]

It's been decades since I've used nickel Lo-Riders. However, I have recently used steel Lo-Riders on a bass I used to have. The steel Lo-Riders were texturally smoother than most steel strings but felt stiff (in terms of flexibility). They also gave the particular bass I used them on the most aggressive, nasty (in a good way) metal tone (which was great, but I could never quite tame them for more mellow stuff). They also lasted forever; 6 months later and they still sounded pretty new. Not surprising, since in past experience I've found that DR Hi-Beams still sound amazing a year later.

Bringing it back to topic, I'm kinda glad I'm giving Dunlop strings a second chance (after my disappointment with SuperBright steels). The Hybrid Nickels, so far, are really great.

 

[Dincrest]

I think I might be done with Dunlop strings.

I've had these Dunlop Dual Design Hybrid Nickel "red box" strings on my main bass for about a month and I have mixed feelings.

What I like:
I LOVE how these strings feel. Their texture is deliciously smooth and their flexibility is great for nimble, light-touch jazz playing.

What I don' t like:
When I click into drop-D, it feels like flop-D. I've not had this problem with other 105 and even some 100 strings.
I also find the strings too polite sounding for my tastes. They also have less output than other nickel rounds I've used (e.g. D'Addario XLs). I'm surprised that a string marketed as a "modern metal" string (at least in the promo videos with Jacob Umansky) doesn't get loud and aggressive enough for a classic rock tune I played a one-off gig with a one-night-only teacher-band at the school's talent show last week. (My bandleader was always asking me to turn the bass up louder and more obnoxious. My gigging amp got me there, but I like when the strings give me "the" sound unplugged so I don't have to do much with my amp).

And after that show... the strings went from fresh to dull seemingly overnight. It's like they didn't have a break-in period. They were fresh and now they're in decline. On the other hand, GHS Boomers break in quickly, but hold that broken-in tone for 5-7 months before going ploppy dead on me. I've had this issue with Dunlops before. A set of SuperBright steels I tried went dead on me in less than a month. Dunlops do not seem to play well with my body chemistry. This is too bad, because the Hybrid Nickels were some of the best feeling strings I've used.

 

[eriky4003]

Oh, well. At least you tried and won't have to wonder anymore. I often wondered about those Dunlop strings but never got around to trying them and have lots of love for LoRiders and the Marcus Miller Dunlop Super Brights.

 

[GTHintz]

I think I might be done with Dunlop strings.

I've had these Dunlop Dual Design Hybrid Nickel "red box" strings on my main bass for about a month and I have mixed feelings.

What I like:
I LOVE how these strings feel. Their texture is deliciously smooth and their flexibility is great for nimble, light-touch jazz playing.

What I don' t like:
When I click into drop-D, it feels like flop-D. I've not had this problem with other 105 and even some 100 strings.
I also find the strings too polite sounding for my tastes. They also have less output than other nickel rounds I've used (e.g. D'Addario XLs). I'm surprised that a string marketed as a "modern metal" string (at least in the promo videos with Jacob Umansky) doesn't get loud and aggressive enough for a classic rock tune I played a one-off gig with a one-night-only teacher-band at the school's talent show last week. (My bandleader was always asking me to turn the bass up louder and more obnoxious. My gigging amp got me there, but I like when the strings give me "the" sound unplugged so I don't have to do much with my amp).

And after that show... the strings went from fresh to dull seemingly overnight. It's like they didn't have a break-in period. They were fresh and now they're in decline. On the other hand, GHS Boomers break in quickly, but hold that broken-in tone for 5-7 months before going ploppy dead on me. I've had this issue with Dunlops before. A set of SuperBright steels I tried went dead on me in less than a month. Dunlops do not seem to play well with my body chemistry. This is too bad, because the Hybrid Nickels were some of the best feeling strings I've used.

Well if you want try some Dean Markley Blue Steel. They are close to Dunlop but have their own thing going on. They have nickel steel as well as all stainless. Labella RX are a nice string too. You'd probably like those considering they are not stiff either.

 

[Dincrest]

I used to like Blue Steels back in the old days, but they were pretty rough feeling. Plus, Dean Markley isn't what it used to be.

That being said, I would try Apex strings, since they're made by ex-Dean Markley people.

And for me, I'm like Pokemon when it comes to strings. You know, "Gotta try 'em all." And I'm glad I am. And it is very interesting how body chemistry plays such a large role. Like, I seem to kill Dunlops pretty quick (and I'm meticulous about washing my hands before playing and wiping my strings down with a FastFret type thing after each play session) but for others they last forever.