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Double Bass Evah Pirazzi strings megathread part II

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I put a set on last night. I'll have to wait a few days to see how they settle. I really liked the obligatos but wanted something a bit better under the bow. The Helicore Hybrids weren't doing it for me on the new bass.

So far I really like the G,D,A strings. Nice and fat sound and clear fundamental ping that everyone has been talking about. G is a bit twangy/metallic sounding but I hope that calms down over the next few days. Tension and feel are right on for me.
 
Thanks guys, so much, for your input. I guess the question would be then, do you think the tension of the tuned-down solo strings would be comparable to say Spiro Weich or D'addario light gauge? Or lower than that? I have a definite impression that Evah Weich are sort of more comparable to a medium or mittel string from other manufacturers. My bass seems to do better, given my setup, with light gauge strings than mediums......
 
I put a set on last night. I'll have to wait a few days to see how they settle. I really liked the obligatos but wanted something a bit better under the bow. The Helicore Hybrids weren't doing it for me on the new bass.

So far I really like the G,D,A strings. Nice and fat sound and clear fundamental ping that everyone has been talking about. G is a bit twangy/metallic sounding but I hope that calms down over the next few days. Tension and feel are right on for me.

They mature really nicely.
 
I can tell you that I changed out a set of spiro mitts for evah weichs, and the weichs are less fatiguing at the same string height. I guess that means less tension...

I think a lot of the perceived tension issue is built into the bass and not related to the strings themselves...

Yeah, I get that. Ultimately I just have to pick up a set and see what I think, then try the other gauge if I need to (and like the sound of the string enough). Same as everybody else. Just trying to get as close to the mark on what I might be happy with from the start. Thanks to everyone for their input and help.
 
Of course, given different basses, string heights, styles of play, etc., YMMV. Still, while the Evahs may seem more supple than Spiros overall, that front-end stiffness can get to you after hours of play. It did for me. I guess you just have to try 'em out and see what happens. Check my earlier post in this thread. I think my bass is gonna wear Spiros for a long, long time. :)
 
hey gents,

I tried searching this section of the megathread (part 3) and i couldn't find any reference to the Evah low B. I've got 3/4 of a set of evahs on my 5ths bass, but i'm dissatisfied with the C I have (passione. it's just too warm, not enough definition). how is the Evah B?
 
They mature really nicely.

About two weeks now with them on and I really like them. They sound really good under the bow and just as nice pizz. The pizz is much more focused compared to the obligatos and Helicore Hybrids I had on before.

I think I may be lucky b/c the E speaks really well on my bass. I realized the G with arco has to do more with my technique than the string.
 
From what i read around here Evahs don't last quite for a long time, but more specifically I was wondering about the Evah Weichs, in your experience how long do they last?
In what amount of time would you say they go dead and also wondering who has had the set on for the longest?

I'm just asking this because I'm thinking of getting a set but they're really expensive and they do seem to be most of everything I would be looking for in a string right now but I'm just not sure about their durability.


In case it matters I'm quite new to the double bass, I've been playing for barely a year and I'm just starting to get the hang of it. On my bass right now I've got a pair of no name strings, so I've been wanting to change them for quite a bit, and from everything I've read some Evah Weichs would be most suited to my needs. Because nothing makes practice more fun than hearing a nice sounding bass.
Thank you for having the patience to read this and for your help.

Mihai
 
For the past 2 weeks I have been playing a set of Evah weichs on my Shen hybrid. As others have noticed, they are easy to play arco and you get a bit more resonance from the instrument than with the regular set. This translates into a slightly better ring to the high notes. Pizz is also very solid, with good sustain and 'mwah' on the lower strings. However the fundamental is a bit plasticy . All in all, I'd say Pirastro's description is spot on. These are certainly superior strings!

For fun, I switched back to the regular gauge strings tonight. WOW. I forgot how powerful these are! The high notes with arco are thicker, and they have the potential to cut like crazy. The E string is also tighter, and when you dig in you get this tremendous swell of power. Pizz is more difficult, but the increase in attack and extra volume I think are worth it if you can handle them.

Besides these strings, I've tried Helicore Hybrids and Belcantos. I thought that either would be a better string than my EPs, but I was wrong. The Helicores didn't do much of anything well, and while Belcantos had very nice arco, their pizz left much to be desired. Evah regulars are certainly the best I've tried. And although their main limitation is higher tension compared to other strings, they have huge volume and spread. My teacher is always telling me how we must try to get as big a sound from the bass as possible....well, these strings certainly do just that!!

So I think I will be ending my string quest for now (until someone thoroughly reviews the Passione starks! :))...
 
^^^^^ Just curious-- ever tried the venerable Spiro mitts?


I haven't, but from what I've read they're not quite great for arco which I would really like to sound good, in my mind, my string should be 60% arco and 40% pizz.
I mostly play arco at home practicing (I'd like to be as proficient as possible at arco because I do believe it's a large part of the instrument and I feel much more "in tune" with it when I do) and I intend to bring my double bass to my blues band soon enough so I'd like a "gutsy" pizz sound.
So that's why I was drawn to Evah Pirazzi, and Weich because at least now as I'm starting out I'd prefer some lighter strings on my hands.

Mihai
 
Thanks-- actually the Evah weichs are comparable to most other types of mittels. BTW, many players feel that Spiros have an undeserved bad reputation when it comes to arco.

In my hands, the Evahs were, indeed, much better for arco than are the Spiros.
 
I tried both spiro mittels and weichs on new basses in the shop, and I remember the mittels being quite loud. Pizz was very clear, but arco was scratchy as hell. However if they warm up as much as people say, I'm interested. It would be nice to play on a a set of steel strings with a long lifespan. I'll keep my eye out for a used set, but I think I'm done spending time and money in string hell ... that is unless the Passione starks turn out to be better than the EPs! :)
 
I probably posted this already, but to save searching back through the thread:

There was a time when I was playing around with combinations of Spiro and Evah Mittel sets and Oliv D & G, in just about any combination.

I found the Spiros and Evahs to be very close in tension, with the Evahs being a little softer in flexibility. The Olives were thicker, with higher tension. The Evahs were smoother under the bow, and very loud and punchy acoustically.

The Evahs were on and off my main bass a bunch of times over about two years and have now been on my spare bass for almost the same amount of time. They still sound great, although they don't get quite as much use as my main bass, and I haven't noticed them stiffening with age as some others have noted.

So there you go...one more data point to confuse you! :help:
 
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