I paid $22 USD plus a little extra for shipping to Canada from Strings By Mail.
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Dunlop String Lab Dual Dynamic hybrid nickel/steel strings
- Thread starter NKBassman
- Start date
I paid $22 USD plus a little extra for shipping to Canada from Strings By Mail.
Matt at SBM has always been good to deal with as he's always willing to give me price concessions. I just ordered two sets of Fender 9050L flats for $75 USD with shipping to Canada. That works out to be a saving of $25 CAD over L&M.
I'm not a regular customer of SBM so I didn't ask for any special considerations, but he did email me directly when these new Dunlops came into stock which I really appreciated. 10/10 would buy from them again in the future.
You can email Matt next time and let him know "Michael T from Winnipeg" sent you there. He'll know who I am. Whether or not that's going to result in any extra saving for you remains to be seen. No guarantee.
lol I did drop your name when I asked for the update on the Dunlop Dual Dynamics... didn't get me blacklisted immediately so we're off to a fine start.You can email Matt next time and let him know "Michael T from Winnipeg" sent you there. He'll know who I am. Whether or not that's going to result in any extra saving for you remains to be seen. No guarantee.
I only ordered one set of Dual Dynamics and I think they're going to go on my main passive 4-string Fender P bass. I've had a set of TI flats on that bass for a few years now, which I love, but I want to remind myself of what I'm (potentially) missing with rounds on that bass.
All this excitement also reminded me that I bought a set of Rotosound Ultra-Mag that I still need to try as well. Maybe I'll put those on my Attitude Bass... that one is LONG over due for a string change.
Ok, strings are installed and while anything would be better than those Olinto flats I tried out, I think Jon Moody was right that these are not special or unique. They just sound and feel like most new nickel wound sets I’ve installed in the past.
My go-to are D’addario balanced, which I think feel slightly less coarse under my fingers than these “dual dynamic” Dunlops. These are also a typical 105-45 set where the D is overly taut compared to the E. I didn’t expect balanced tension, and I didn’t get it, so this is a neutral finding, but slightly disappointing that they didn’t do anything to balance tension better than traditional sets IMO.
Don’t get me wrong, they aren’t bad at all. They’re fine. But they’re only fine, or normal, or average, and definitely not a new revelation in string design. If anything, I’d say they remind me of Slinky’s.
I mean maybe they’re a little brighter than the D’addario sets I usually use? But I’d honestly chalk that up to placebo effect and wanting to hear a difference.
I think Super Bright nickels are way better than these if you want a different nickel string. I don’t think these are worth paying more for than any other nickel but aren’t overpriced either. Again, just average.
I’ll play them til they’re dead, but the nickel round journey will continue. I’m not really trying to replace my usual D’addarios, just going through an experimentation phase and seeing what else is out there.
My go-to are D’addario balanced, which I think feel slightly less coarse under my fingers than these “dual dynamic” Dunlops. These are also a typical 105-45 set where the D is overly taut compared to the E. I didn’t expect balanced tension, and I didn’t get it, so this is a neutral finding, but slightly disappointing that they didn’t do anything to balance tension better than traditional sets IMO.
Don’t get me wrong, they aren’t bad at all. They’re fine. But they’re only fine, or normal, or average, and definitely not a new revelation in string design. If anything, I’d say they remind me of Slinky’s.
I mean maybe they’re a little brighter than the D’addario sets I usually use? But I’d honestly chalk that up to placebo effect and wanting to hear a difference.
I think Super Bright nickels are way better than these if you want a different nickel string. I don’t think these are worth paying more for than any other nickel but aren’t overpriced either. Again, just average.
I’ll play them til they’re dead, but the nickel round journey will continue. I’m not really trying to replace my usual D’addarios, just going through an experimentation phase and seeing what else is out there.
Would be curious what the tension or perceived tension between Super Brights and these new Hybrids.
I liked Dunlops when they were new and cost like $12...
I also use the D'A balanced tension sets (45-60-80-107+130) and should receive my strings Monday afternoon. Going to try to keep an open mind but at this point I feel like I may be a victim of marketing hype...lol. Maybe they will stay "bright" a little longer than the D'As? I'm due for a string change anyway so no harm done.
I put them on my Moollon P Bass and playing through Aguilar TH700 and Sinobas 410 with the Arkham pre as the most notable always on "effect" in the chain. Using them for heavy blues & rock. (Always think context helps)
Had these on for a 4-5 days now and I really dig them at this point. Definitely have some SS brightness without being too zingy or metallic and still retaining much of what I like about nickel. Very musical and even tonality across the entire spectrum. Respond to EQ nicely. Sit in the mix really well. Brighter than the Super Brights and a bit stiffer going off memory but definitely not stiff or high tension. I think if you like Super Brights playability you'll find these very comfortable.
Personally they are what I've been looking for in a round as regular nickels just weren't doing in for me and SS just wasn't it when I tried them. Are they miles different than other strings? For most..Probably not. For me... yes... Simply because the subtle differences hit the sweet spot I've been looking for. I think they are quite a bit brighter than other Nickels I've used and there's a "sweetness" on the top end and throughout the spectrum that is really nice without being scooped or lacking in the bottom. Would like to try a set of the Rotosound RS45s to compare since it seems they have a similar construction. They are cheap so might run that experiment.
Because they are different than the other round offerings from Dunlop they slot into their stable nicely. I've always enjoyed Dunlop Strings(flats and rounds) so for me it's not surprising that I like these. If Dunlop strings haven't been your cup of tea these may not change that. Easiest way to break it down IMO...This is a brighter string for nickel players and a warmer string for SS players without fully sacrificing things you love from the side you are approaching from. If you don't feel like you've been missing anything from current nickel or SS options then this likely doesn't add any value for you.
In terms of marketing...Dunlop is literally just stating what they've done with this string and gave it a name. Educational with some flare. Not sure why people seem vexed about that. That's what marketing is. And the string does what they say it does IMO. Nowhere have they stated that I've seen that they've reinvented the wheel or are the first to do this. Not like they jacked up the price and said there's unobtanium in the strings. It's new to them and new to their stable. Are they not supposed to talk about it? All companies either have marketing departments or outsource them. People have to know it's there and what it is.
In the end; this will be like every other string... People will love them...people will hate them...and some will think they are ok. LOL...Taste is subjective and it's nice that we have so much to choose from. What remains to be seen is how long they last like this and what the fully broken in sound will be.
Had these on for a 4-5 days now and I really dig them at this point. Definitely have some SS brightness without being too zingy or metallic and still retaining much of what I like about nickel. Very musical and even tonality across the entire spectrum. Respond to EQ nicely. Sit in the mix really well. Brighter than the Super Brights and a bit stiffer going off memory but definitely not stiff or high tension. I think if you like Super Brights playability you'll find these very comfortable.
Personally they are what I've been looking for in a round as regular nickels just weren't doing in for me and SS just wasn't it when I tried them. Are they miles different than other strings? For most..Probably not. For me... yes... Simply because the subtle differences hit the sweet spot I've been looking for. I think they are quite a bit brighter than other Nickels I've used and there's a "sweetness" on the top end and throughout the spectrum that is really nice without being scooped or lacking in the bottom. Would like to try a set of the Rotosound RS45s to compare since it seems they have a similar construction. They are cheap so might run that experiment.
Because they are different than the other round offerings from Dunlop they slot into their stable nicely. I've always enjoyed Dunlop Strings(flats and rounds) so for me it's not surprising that I like these. If Dunlop strings haven't been your cup of tea these may not change that. Easiest way to break it down IMO...This is a brighter string for nickel players and a warmer string for SS players without fully sacrificing things you love from the side you are approaching from. If you don't feel like you've been missing anything from current nickel or SS options then this likely doesn't add any value for you.
In terms of marketing...Dunlop is literally just stating what they've done with this string and gave it a name. Educational with some flare. Not sure why people seem vexed about that. That's what marketing is. And the string does what they say it does IMO. Nowhere have they stated that I've seen that they've reinvented the wheel or are the first to do this. Not like they jacked up the price and said there's unobtanium in the strings. It's new to them and new to their stable. Are they not supposed to talk about it? All companies either have marketing departments or outsource them. People have to know it's there and what it is.
In the end; this will be like every other string... People will love them...people will hate them...and some will think they are ok. LOL...Taste is subjective and it's nice that we have so much to choose from. What remains to be seen is how long they last like this and what the fully broken in sound will be.
Sorry, I wasn't trying to suggest any trickery on Dunlop's part. Clearly, they're just marketing their latest line of strings.
I never noticed a difference in playability/tension/flexibility between Super Bright nickels and other nickel strings in the same gauges, and I would say the Hybrid set is the same. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Not having another bass with new nickel rounds to compare against may be clouding my judgment of these. But I do notice the outer texture of the strings. Maybe it's my placement on the spectrum that I'm big on textures (especially with food), but I do notice a subtle bit of extra coarseness in these compared some of the rounds on my other basses.
I never noticed a difference in playability/tension/flexibility between Super Bright nickels and other nickel strings in the same gauges, and I would say the Hybrid set is the same. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Not having another bass with new nickel rounds to compare against may be clouding my judgment of these. But I do notice the outer texture of the strings. Maybe it's my placement on the spectrum that I'm big on textures (especially with food), but I do notice a subtle bit of extra coarseness in these compared some of the rounds on my other basses.
Thanks for this assessment. I'm one of those who are very picky about the "texture", ie how a set of string feel in terms of smoothness/roughness. If these are coarser in texture than typical rounds, then it's a deal breaker for me.
If you've tried Stringjoy nickel, I think they're similar. Nowhere near as coarse as steels, but I can feel the difference between these and my usual D'addarios.
On a scale from 1 to 10 where 1 is smooth and 10 is super coarse, steel rounds are a 10 and EB Cobalt flats are a 1, D'addario nickels are a 5 and these Dunlops and Stringjoy nickel are a 6. Elixirs would be a 3. Ernie Ball Slinky would probably also be a 5 for me, but I've only played them on my Bass VI and not my "normal" basses.
Based on my personal experience, D'A XL Nickels are one of the roughest in feel. I once tried DR Sunbeams, DR Nickel Lo-Riders and D'A XL Nickels back-to-back-to-back on my Jazz bass. The XL Nickels felt like a cheese grater compared to the other two.
If these new Dunlops are rougher in texture than the D'A, then no thanks.
I haven't tried DRs since the early 2000s, but it sounds like I should.
