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Double Bass Evah Pirazzi strings megathread part I
- Thread starter Francois Blais
- Start date
- Status
- May 6, 2003
- 5,272
- 160
- 64
- Disclosures
- Proprietor Fifth Avenue Fret Shop. Technical Editor Bass Gear Magazine
Back on topic!!! 
Can anyone say with any authority (and a little jest) that these strings are brighter than Belcantos?
In fact, can anyone give a blow-by-blow comparison of the two? I dig Belcantos, but they just weren't quite right for me and my bass, so I'd really like to know.
Can anyone say with any authority (and a little jest) that these strings are brighter than Belcantos?
In fact, can anyone give a blow-by-blow comparison of the two? I dig Belcantos, but they just weren't quite right for me and my bass, so I'd really like to know.
This is my first time posting. I've tried both Belcantos and Evah's. I much prefer the Pirazzi's for my bass (old english instrument).
The Belcantos have a beautiful tone, but it is a softer sound. To me, they feel tighter under the left hand, yet they are lighter in tension under the bow.
The Evah Pirazzis feel about as thick from what I can remember, and a little tighter under the bow. Even though the strings are thick, they feel a little easier under the Left hand. On my bass, which likes higher tension strings, the Evahs produce a lot more sound with more punch and a lot more upper partials than the belcantos - they seem to project better.
So, I would say they are brighter than the belcantos, but not more edgy. I think both strings are great, actually, it just depends on your situation and your instrument.
The Belcantos have a beautiful tone, but it is a softer sound. To me, they feel tighter under the left hand, yet they are lighter in tension under the bow.
The Evah Pirazzis feel about as thick from what I can remember, and a little tighter under the bow. Even though the strings are thick, they feel a little easier under the Left hand. On my bass, which likes higher tension strings, the Evahs produce a lot more sound with more punch and a lot more upper partials than the belcantos - they seem to project better.
So, I would say they are brighter than the belcantos, but not more edgy. I think both strings are great, actually, it just depends on your situation and your instrument.
I have had the Evah's on for over a week now. The pitch is totally stable. I started out not liking the E but have now changed my tune. It has tightened up over the week and now even has a bit of growl. I really like these strings. As far as hybrid strings they are the best I have had on my bass. They bow well, have a strong attack, aren't too tight under the left hand, and have a thicker guage. I ended up swapping out the G for an Oliv G. This combo of Evah E, A and D and Oliv G is really fantastic for arco and pizz. I will most likely stick with this grouping for quite some time. Through amplification the string puts through a lot of fundamental. An old school sound. They also rise to meet you if you want to dig in harder (much like dominants). Some strings tend to top out but these keep going if you pull harder. No wear on the windings yet (I have been looking). So far my feelings are the same. This is a wonderful string for pizz and arco applications. I will keep posting. I am playing a jazz festival all weekend with miltiple venues and "house" amps so we will see how they fair under these conditions...
I'm getting pretty interested in these strings.
Could someone do me a huge favour and measure the length of the E string from the ball end to the begining of the pegbox silk (ie where the silk wrapping meets the metal wrap)
I need to know if the E will fit in my D extension.
Thanks
Thomas
Could someone do me a huge favour and measure the length of the E string from the ball end to the begining of the pegbox silk (ie where the silk wrapping meets the metal wrap)
I need to know if the E will fit in my D extension.
Thanks
Thomas
Ooooooo...I hope the loaners I have borrowed arrive today - I'd still like to find the perfect E&A to go with my Oliv D&G. It'll take a lot for the E to be better than my old Spiro mittel, but I'm hoping.
Andy
I have the string installed (on the A peg), and it looks like 55 1/2 inches (141cm).
well...
I like these strings,lots of fundamental & power,durability at the bridge is solid compared to Obli's(the strings where on and off at Traeger's twice) and the feel is a little stiffer than the Obli's.
On my axe they are darker than the Obli's.Chuck seemed to think they maybe a little too dark for me,but I'm going to leave them on for a month before I make a call.
Diggin' in yields more from the string and they are great with the bow.One gig over the weekend was at an outdoor festival in the rain,they stayed in tune,not bad...
Lots of different gigs this week,I'll post more later.
robert
I like these strings,lots of fundamental & power,durability at the bridge is solid compared to Obli's(the strings where on and off at Traeger's twice) and the feel is a little stiffer than the Obli's.
On my axe they are darker than the Obli's.Chuck seemed to think they maybe a little too dark for me,but I'm going to leave them on for a month before I make a call.
Diggin' in yields more from the string and they are great with the bow.One gig over the weekend was at an outdoor festival in the rain,they stayed in tune,not bad...
Lots of different gigs this week,I'll post more later.
robert
I can see why on some basses these may be too dark. My bass is very live/bright and I am always leaning towards darker sounding strings. On my bass they sound really nice and take off the mid-edge. I don't know if you feel this Robert, but mine started out loose and seem to be getting tighter by the day. This is not necessarily a bad thing as it has brought the E to life.
I've been trying for months to ignore string threads and just keep playing the spiro wiechs that on my bass, sound really good and play easy.
"Just when I thought I'd gotten out, they pull me back in!"
"Just when I thought I'd gotten out, they pull me back in!"
Yup - that was me three months ago
I owe Francois big-time - the strings arrived heavily packaged, and I could see from the postage that my 'free' strings cost him a lot. (Thank you Francois...and I will pass them along as soon as I have given them a full trial).
My bass is still at the studio, so I'll fit them first thing tomorrow. So far so good though - the most important thing is...the black and green of the Evah Pirazzi strings is going to match great with the white/green of the Olivs
Andy
I swapped out the A this morning.
Initial impression is good - the feel (thickness, tension, flexibility) matches the Oliv D very well. It's thicker than either the Spiro or Domonant A, which is good. Tuning is reasonably stable after a couple of hours.
It also matches well with the Olivs for volume. The sound is a little different, not quite as complex as the Olivs, or as agressive as the Dominant that it replaced. I expect the sound to change as it plays in, so I'll save that critique for a little while.
It's not as smooth to bow as the Olivs, or as quick to start as the Dominant. The response reminds me of the Spiro mittels, but with a sweeter tone, not the ripsaw of the Spiros. All this may change as they break in - the Olivs got much better under the bow after the first few weeks.
I'll put the E on later, or tomorrow morning, once the tuning is fully stabilized on the A - I wanted to have at least one tuning-stable string on there, and the Spiro E is great for that.
Andy
Initial impression is good - the feel (thickness, tension, flexibility) matches the Oliv D very well. It's thicker than either the Spiro or Domonant A, which is good. Tuning is reasonably stable after a couple of hours.
It also matches well with the Olivs for volume. The sound is a little different, not quite as complex as the Olivs, or as agressive as the Dominant that it replaced. I expect the sound to change as it plays in, so I'll save that critique for a little while.
It's not as smooth to bow as the Olivs, or as quick to start as the Dominant. The response reminds me of the Spiro mittels, but with a sweeter tone, not the ripsaw of the Spiros. All this may change as they break in - the Olivs got much better under the bow after the first few weeks.
I'll put the E on later, or tomorrow morning, once the tuning is fully stabilized on the A - I wanted to have at least one tuning-stable string on there, and the Spiro E is great for that.
Andy
..very interesting topic!
I see these should be very gut-like strings..this let me think that they maybe are more for old school pizz playing..am I right?
As I am a bow-player, has anyone a more detalied report about their bowability and everything concerned with Orchestra/Solo playing...?
Any bow-player with some specific comments?
thank you very much..!
I' m really interested in that "duel" Belcanto-EvahPirazzi..
I do know Belcanto as I have one set..
I see these should be very gut-like strings..this let me think that they maybe are more for old school pizz playing..am I right?
As I am a bow-player, has anyone a more detalied report about their bowability and everything concerned with Orchestra/Solo playing...?
Any bow-player with some specific comments?
thank you very much..!
I' m really interested in that "duel" Belcanto-EvahPirazzi..
I do know Belcanto as I have one set..
I find the arco excellent. They are easy to start and have a very mellow sound. I am coming from a brief stint with Anima's and by comparison they are a dream! The closest arco sound I have experienced is with Oliv's. In a section I think they would blend very well. They are probably not aggressive enough for a lot of solo arco playing but as far as an all around string they are performing wonderfully for me.
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