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Double Bass Evah / Dominant question

T

TheOldFlatwound

Supporting Member
Jan 26, 2005
946
355
Nashville, TN
Disclosures
Endorsing Artist: D'Addario
#1
i've been researching on here because this just happened to me today--I was having the bridge adjusted and the Dominant D broke while tuning it back up. they've been on the bass for 4 years with no issues--i love the way they feel and sound...i see from reading on here that this is not uncommon....

should i just buy a D string (about $50), or try a set of these Evah's i've been reading about??

thanks for the help
 
#2
Nobody can really answer that question for you.

What I'll say is that if you like Doms and you got 4 years from a set I'd buy a whole new set and keep what isn't broke as spares for when your new ones break.
 
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#3
good point--i'm just bummed--tune down the string and back a few times while adjusting the setup and it breaks?? what a joke. kind of hesitant to shell out another $200 if that's what i'm setting myself up for.

i know it's a personal preference for strings, but you guys seem to have been thru all the sets on here. i've gotten lots of good gut string info from you, uncletoad, but i think i need to stick with a low maintenance string for now, which is why the dominant and evah seems to make sense
 
#5
hi bobby--good to hear from ya. yeah, i know, and my bass has not been adjusted since i got it restored 4 years ago. one adjustment and BAM......so whole new set of dominants or just a D?? people seem to like these Evah's too--any opinion?? thx
 
#6
timmarks said:
good point--i'm just bummed--tune down the string and back a few times while adjusting the setup and it breaks?? what a joke. kind of hesitant to shell out another $200 if that's what i'm setting myself up for.

i know it's a personal preference for strings, but you guys seem to have been thru all the sets on here. i've gotten lots of good gut string info from you, uncletoad, but i think i need to stick with a low maintenance string for now, which is why the dominant and evah seems to make sense
Click to expand...
By my reckoning you got 4 years from a $200 set. At $50 a year that's half of what many of us spend on a single gut string that we hate after 10 minutes.

You're getting off easy. You want low maintainence use all steel strings. If you like the tone you get with Doms stick with them. You may like the tone you get with Evahs or you may not. If you don't then you've wasted half the money for a fresh set of Doms.

Slippery slope....open the wallet.
 
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#9
You got FOUR years out of a set of Doms! That's amazing. Don't complain; just replace them. That's like complaining because your clutch needed replacing after "only" 300,000 miles. You could replace just the D but it will take months for it not to be incredibly bright compared to the other strings. I'd do as Uncle T suggests and replace the set and use the old ones as backups. Or if you don't want to drop $200 buy a G and a D and keep your old A and E on.

I personally prefer Doms to Evahs. I tried Evahs on both of my basses. On one bass they sounded great acoustically but I couldn't get a decent amplified tone. On the other bass, they didn't sound very good at all either way. The Doms sounded great on both basses acoustically and amplified.

I love Dominants. They are the greatest sounding string. The only problem is they are notorious for breaking. I've had 2 Ds almost break and 2 Gs that were bad out of the box. I've gone back to Spiro Mittels because of it.

mark
 
#10
thanks for the suggestion--a D and G could be a good plan. yeah, i got four years out of them, but i play more electric than upright, so i don't wear em out like a full time upright player would. I was hoping for a good lifespan, and a far as tone goes, the deader the better. years ago i had Dominants on a bass and the E string broke while it was in it's case one day--other than that i've had no issues. i'm sure this one wouldn't have broken if we weren't setting up the bass.
 
#11
calivox said:
You got FOUR years out of a set of Doms! That's amazing. Don't complain; just replace them. That's like complaining because your clutch needed replacing after "only" 300,000 miles. You could replace just the D but it will take months for it not to be incredibly bright compared to the other strings. I'd do as Uncle T suggests and replace the set and use the old ones as backups. Or if you don't want to drop $200 buy a G and a D and keep your old A and E on.

I personally prefer Doms to Evahs. I tried Evahs on both of my basses. On one bass they sounded great acoustically but I couldn't get a decent amplified tone. On the other bass, they didn't sound very good at all either way. The Doms sounded great on both basses acoustically and amplified.

I love Dominants. They are the greatest sounding string. The only problem is they are notorious for breaking. I've had 2 Ds almost break and 2 Gs that were bad out of the box. I've gone back to Spiro Mittels because of it.

mark
Click to expand...

+1 on everything except that, on my current bass, Evahs actually sound better amplified than the Doms did. That really surprised me but there are so many individual variables involved. I gotta echo what others have said-- FOUR YEARS?! That's fantastic! Here's my $0.02. If you're gonna stick with Doms (and I do love Doms), then buy a whole new set and be happy. I've posted and linked to my Dominant breakage stories here a number of times. It just got to be too much for me and I switched to the Evahs. Although arco is a tiny minority of what I play, the Evahs bow WAY better than the Doms.

I've gotten used to the Evahs over the past few months. They feel much better than when they were new. That could be the strings settling in, me getting used to them, or both. This seems to jibe with the experience of others as well. For me, the Evahs have a HUGE old-school sound, which is what I prefer. Uncletoad is right on. No one can tell you if you'd like them on your bass.

By the way, if you buy new Doms, install them carefully, and any break, the importer will cheerfully replace them. I wouldn't ask them to replace one that's four years old. That would surely be pushin' it. :)
 
#12
drurb said:
+1 on everything except that, on my current bass, Evahs actually sound better amplified than the Doms did. That really surprised me but there are so many individual variables involved.
Click to expand...

Evahs sounded "plastic-y" amplified on my older bass ('28 Juzek) although they sounded great acoustically. It seemed like whatever character that made them great acoustically didn't make it into the amp. I didn't have that trouble with Doms. On my newer bass ('74 Juzek), they just sounded thumpy acoustically and not in the good, gut-like, kind of way-I had real guts on this bass before the Doms which came before the Evahs and I now have Weichs on there but probably not for long. The bass just didn't speak very well with Evahs. Doms on the other hand were the strings of the gods on both basses both amplified and acoustically. If only I could trust them...

mark
 
#13
calivox said:
Evahs sounded "plastic-y" amplified on my older bass ('28 Juzek) although they sounded great acoustically. It seemed like whatever character that made them great acoustically didn't make it into the amp. I didn't have that trouble with Doms. On my newer bass ('74 Juzek), they just sounded thumpy acoustically and not in the good, gut-like, kind of way-I had real guts on this bass before the Doms which came before the Evahs and I now have Weichs on there but probably not for long. The bass just didn't speak very well with Evahs. Doms on the other hand were the strings of the gods on both basses both amplified and acoustically. If only I could trust them...

mark
Click to expand...


Well, as I've said before:
drurb said:
I'm beginning to believe that only very broad generalizations can be made about strings and experiences with them. This makes sense when you think about it. Personal preferences aside, different basses "like" different tensions, etc. in terms of making them speak. With several basses, I've found that the Doms or Evahs (synthetic cores), yield a fundamental (especially on the E) that is much more intense and room-shaking than a Spirocore could provide.
Click to expand...

On my bass, the Dominants were heaven. The Evahs have a more powerful, stronger, darker sound acoustically. I wondered if they would just be too "muddy" when amplified. For some reason, they seem to cut through the mix better than the Doms ever did. So, I end up with an amplified sound that's somewhat better with the Evahs. Go figure. The whole situation might be different with a different pickup. You just gotta go with what works.
 
#14
okay--going with Dom's--the tech will install them as he finishes the setup. they should break in and be good for a long time. in the very unfortunate event i get a bad set, i'll try the Evah's next. thanks for all your help.
 
#17
I had a Dom D string break in the pegbox. Besides that gripe, I found them stiff. The one thing I liked was they can take as much as you can give and never fail to respond. The sound, though, to my ear is a little obvious and vulgar.
 
#19
As vulgar as Evah weichs? The EP weich were difficult to play softly, were strident (harsh) in the upper register, and the harmonics where finicky.

My bass is long 42-3/8" and I am 80% arco orchestral/solo player with 20% forays into bluegrass and jazz.

I have a new brighter sounding bass and I've been auditioning strings from my box-o-strings. Everything is used multiple times over, but clean and refreshed. Here's reverse chronological string history since January:
  • Current setup: Permanent G/D/A with Evah P weich E: These are a bit stiff in the right hand. Soundwise are assertive, yet can be very sweet, and have a big dynamic response with seemingly unlimited headroom. Pizz, they are a bit boingy. Both arco/pizz, I'd like to get more bass EQ response, but I like these strings for some reason.
  • Jargar med G/D/A with Evah P weich E: Again were stiff in the right hand. I think they were too dark even on my bright bass, and they seemed a bit narrow dynamically. Pizz, the G was OK, D passable, and A sounded thumpy, tubby and cheap if you know what I mean.
  • Innovation Polychrome G/D/A: The first strings on this bass that made me feel good, but lacked power. And the A-string sounded cheap. Harmonics were nice and the tension felt good. I thought I could play orchestral and solo rep well with these if they had more ooomph.
  • Evah P weich full set: overall well balanced, and I liked the way the felt in right hand, but they seemed slow to respond with the bow. Harmonics and softer dynamics were difficult, and as I mentioned earlier the upper solo register was strident. These were "raucous" on my bass.
  • BelCanto G/D, S42 Spiro mitt A/E: this was a great hybrid combo, but as others report, the BC's were boring on my bass, but super easy to play.
  • S42 Superflexible, S42 Spiro mitt A/E: a great hybrid combo, but the SF's are a bit unrefined.
  • Passione med full set: bowed like a dream, but were soft and spongy feeling. I wished for Passione Starks after the first 20 minutes playing on the meds.
  • 3885 Spiro weich full set: easy to play in both hands, but sounded a bit thin, with the classic whiney G string.
Untried so far in my box-o-strings:
  • Kaplan med G/D, heavy E no A.
  • Zyex med G/D, Helicore Hybrid med A/E
  • Olive G
  • Dominant D
  • Flexocore 92 med G/D/A
So I don't know where to go next in my quest for something smoother, bassier yet sweet, but still powerful and dynamic like the Permanents for my orchestral/chamber/solo work? And a little less stiffness feeling on my long bass.
  • Dominant or detuned solo Dominants?
  • Innovation 140 braided?
  • Jargar dolce?
  • Spiro S42 mitt full set, or E/A/D with Olive G?
  • Flexocore 92 med with flex92 stark E, or S42 spiro mitt E?
  • Flexocore 92 stark G/D with Spiro S42 stark A/E?
  • Spiro S42 stark set?
  • Kaplan?
  • Helicore Orchestra light, med, or heavy?
Any ideas appreciated.
 

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