Ernie Ball Cobalt strings....rattle?

[kcducttaper]

I just put on a set of Ernie Ball Cobalts on my SR 505 (5-string 34") about 10 min ago and they definitely rattle (just finger plucking without being plugged into an amp). It's definitely not fret buzz because that sounds different and I can induce that when I want to - this rattles all the time. I've listened all the way up to the headstock and down to the bridge, trying to mute anything that might rattle (tuner, bridge, nut, etc) by putting a finger on it as I'm plucking, but it simply sounds like it's coming from within the string itself. I even A/B'ed the old string and it's definitely not there with my old string (~9 month old DR Hi-Beam) back on.

The A string is the worst and it comes through my amp clearly with every open A. It also does it on every fret up to the 5th fret. The E string is pretty bad, but not quite as bad as the A string. It's easily noticeable on the B string if I listen for it, but could fly under the radar if I wasn't specifically looking for it. The D and G string don't 'rattle', but just sound rather 'sharp', which I guess is probably just the cobalt sound.

Soooo.... I'm definitely junking/returning these strings because that's just not acceptable. I'm just wondering if that's normal for cobalt strings or if I just got a bad set and should give them another try from a different store (different batch maybe...?) before swearing them off?

 

[Tommyc]

What strings were you coming from? Your relief may have changed.

 

[Yahboy]

Email to EB customer service. They will handle your issue well.

 

[GIBrat51]

I just put on a set of Ernie Ball Cobalts on my SR 505 (5-string 34") about 10 min ago and they definitely rattle (just finger plucking without being plugged into an amp). It's definitely not fret buzz because that sounds different and I can induce that when I want to - this rattles all the time. I've listened all the way up to the headstock and down to the bridge, trying to mute anything that might rattle (tuner, bridge, nut, etc) by putting a finger on it as I'm plucking, but it simply sounds like it's coming from within the string itself. I even A/B'ed the old string and it's definitely not there with my old string (~9 month old DR Hi-Beam) back on.

The A string is the worst and it comes through my amp clearly with every open A. It also does it on every fret up to the 5th fret. The E string is pretty bad, but not quite as bad as the A string. It's easily noticeable on the B string if I listen for it, but could fly under the radar if I wasn't specifically looking for it. The D and G string don't 'rattle', but just sound rather 'sharp', which I guess is probably just the cobalt sound.

Soooo.... I'm definitely junking/returning these strings because that's just not acceptable. I'm just wondering if that's normal for cobalt strings or if I just got a bad set and should give them another try from a different store (different batch maybe...?) before swearing them off?

What strings were you coming from? Your relief may have changed.

I'd have to go with ^this^. If the strings are actually tuned to pitch; stretched; and have the witness points set - so that they stay in tune (which would rule out a broken string, IME), you can't really pin this on the strings. It's pretty much standard operating procedure to at least CHECK your set up after changing strings. It's often not necessary to do anything during the set up check, if all you're doing is replacing an old set of X strings with a new set of X strings. However... if you're changing to a new type/brand/gauge of strings? Uh... no. Be prepared to adjust neck relief; string height; intonation... and chalk it up in your "Lessons Learned" notebook...