Elixir strings free trial

Ditto. Having a love/hate thing with them right now.

 

I've got a set right now, OOB245.

I use elixirs as my normal strings, and I tune down to DGCF on my 4-strings and ADGCF on my 5 strings. My impressions have been that they feel a little darker and less zingy than the normal elixirs, but it's not muted or dead sounding. I've been playing them for about two weeks now.

I'm not blown away by the sound but they're okay. They just don't have much personality, I guess - not really much growl, nothing really "special" about them. They seem to me like they may be nickel coated, as they don't have the sheen of a stainless steel string. I like the feel of them quite a bit - the slippery feel is great ( one of the reasons i play elixirs in the first place) and I like low tension feel in my strings, so they work for me in that aspect.

The strings are wearing out pretty quickly though. That's probably the biggest thing right now is that they don't seem to have the durability that elixirs should have. Two weeks in, and the E and A strings are fairly significantly worn, especially when compared to the top strings. Now, I play fairly hard and I do tend to sweat some, so I may go through them much quicker than some of you, but the main reason I play elixirs is because they last a long time, and these aren't quite as durable as they should be IMO.

So in summary, I think they're okay but not awesome. They don't seem durable enough for a coated string, and the sound is decent but not really spectacular. I'm not sure they're gonna be sounding good for another six weeks though - hopefully I can make it through the test period without them getting unplayably dull.

 

I got a set on my Squier jazz bass. OOB

Noticing an extreme amount of static if you move your fingers along the strings and don't pick them up due to the way the strings are coated. Anyone else have the same?

 

After two weeks I'm still not digging the tone. I love the coated feel but dislike the metallic sound they produce.

 

Mine are starting to mellow out... I am really digging them now. I am not having trouble with the coating, but I play more fingerstyle than with a pick (although I do use a pick). They really go from bright and defined to mellow and growly on my P Bass when you roll the tone.

Love the tension, as I am used to playing chromes.

I finally go around to clipping the ends off them, and they shot across the room.(crazy).

I might not send these back, because I don't want to get another pair and and spend the time for them to mellow. : )

 

oddly enough, I dig the strings. Mine feel like pretty low tension, but are still as bright as I like them. It's the best of both worlds for me because they feel broken in, yet don't sound dead. Time will tell how I continue to like them, but so far, I dig.

 

+1^

 

Got the HOB set on my Aerodyne, it's actually not too bad and this is the first time I've tried coated bass strings.

 

Same reaction here. OOB series. Going on 3 weeks now.

 

HOB449 Bright sounding. 21 hours, 2 weeks Still Bright. No wear on the coating and I use a pick 80% of the time. Coating still quite slick. Tension feels a little loose to me on my bass compared to other strings --but not annoyingly so.


I love the bright full tone and also let a few other musicians try my bass at the local jam I host. Without mentioning them, the first thing another (very experienced and traveled) bassist said is wow, I love the tone of your bass, what kind of strings are these?


This is my first experience with coated strings and if the current ones on the market are anything like these, I'll be a permanently converted fanboy. Still 6 more weeks to go, but any other set I've used in the past would be starting to lose tone by now.

I'm very curious about what they've done here.

 

Update:

I have found my set of strings! I don't know what is it about these strings but I like it!
The sound of 'em after 3 weeks is sooo nice! Not to bright, not to dark, not dead at all. They still have that slick feel to them which at first felt greasy or way too slick, but now that I kept playing it grew on me, and actually helped a little when plucking.

The E string does have some "peel"...mostly on the plucking zone...but the other ones as as good as new.

I would LOVE to try a B string with this technology.

3 weeks is to soon to say these are the most durable and perfect strings....but so far I haven't been dissapointed!

Pros:
These strings have the sound I want
So far DURABLE
Not to bright (totally personal)
Sound exactly like the first time I put them on...
They don't feel brittle like steel rounds
Nice tension to them (on the high side)
Set and Forget Tune...they barely stretched.

CONS:
I still think they are expensive
I thought the coating would last a little longer (only on E string)
I get to return these

 

I say these are:

OOB, medium bottom, punchy mids with a mellowy zing at the top

 

I agree with those who've hypothesized that there are two or more formulations making the rounds.

Keep in mind that you've been playing trial set, and it might sound significantly different than current Elixirs, or whatever new version(s) they decide to release in the future.

If Elixir is smart, then HOB and OOB are McGuffins (distractions) and the real value is in the numeric portion of the code. That way there's less chance of us swaying each others' opinions here on the interweb.

 

i have HOB and mine are right in the middle--not too bright, not too dark (right where I like it)

 

I agree with the McGuffin Theory. Can I use that name for my band?

 

My impressions after 2.5 weeks of irregular playing:

Tension seems higher and tone darker than usual Elixirs, however I did not do a direct A/B. Fact is, the strings I had on previously were Sadowsky Blue Label Steels, which are low tension and pretty darn bright. Still, my impression was that I was glad I had these Elixirs on my Sadowsky -- it's an active bass, and I can get the strings as bright as I like by boosting treble.

FWIW I have an OOB set... but I'm not sure any conclusions can be drawn from the code.

 

Alfred Hitchcock won't care.

Seriously, I like it... take it before someone else does!

 

No longer digging these strings. Far too piano string clean. It's very tough to roll off the highs. Doesn't work well at all for detuning or heavy music. Can't wait to put Blue Steels back on it.

 

HOB's here. I really like them. They're more zingy and bright than the DR Black Beauties I had on there before. I think I prefer the DRs, more though. The original tone has lasted through 20+ hours. The coating isn't flaking at all, and they're slick. The tension is slightly looser than the DRs.

 

Again, I have an OOB set. Tension is significantly higher than the Sadowsky Blue Labels that were on previously, and also the DR Neons I have on my other Sadowsky. I have to remember not to hit the strings so hard with my right hand... I've had tender fingertips by the third set of my gigs. My left hand enjoys the feel -- smooth glissandos are a piece of cake, easier than on uncoated rounds or flats.

After 22 hours there is no flaking/peeling, and tone hasn't faded a bit despite playing a few sweaty gigs.