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Double Bass Evah Pirazzi strings megathread part III
- Thread starter Chris Fitzgerald
- Start date
I find Evahs and Obligatos last about a year, two hours a day, arco and pizz Spiros much, much longer.
hi guys, anyone could tell about the volume of the EP Slap strings compared to a set of Spirocore or Oliv? I play country and rockabilly amplified and bluegrass unplugged, I'm looking for a set of strings that would get though when playing bluegrass in the classic horseshoe formation around one single microphone. The Spirocore did the job but they are hard on the fingers when slapping through a rockabilly gig
Slappin': Evah Slaps. Preferably with the gut G option.
Seriously.You are comparing apples to oranges when you look for any comparison between steel and gut strings. Steel strings respond quicker but gut has more of a full sound. Using Oliv's for slapping could be a problem. They have steel windings which you want to get away from....and they are very, very expensive. I love the sound of Oliv's but in the winter when basements and building are dry, the steel winding often comes loose. especially the G and D.
Slapping is tough on any wound string. That pretty well leaves you with plain gut..at least on the G and D. Lenzners and Efrano's are quite affordable and would work well for you. Gamut, DD's are better but much more expensive.
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Here's my opinion on the synthetic EP slaps, played in non slapping contexts, for what it's worth. In an unamplified traditional jazz setting, I like these strings, but the E & A are definitely quieter than the D & G. When amplified, I find the string balance is very good. Again, just my opinion.
Thanks a lot @martinc - I was thinking about the Evah Pirazzi Slap set with metal wound D-G compared to the Pirastro Oliv. They should be similar apart from the core of the Oliv being gut. I was asking because I use the Oliv on one of my urbs and I'm used to the sound and feel of them. I love the sound of the Oliv D-G but the A and E sound a bit too dark and "dead" to me. As for the Spirocore, I used them a few years back (mittel gauge) but they were too hard for my small fingers and I eventually toke them off again. These are my reference strings, as well as a few mainstream gut strings like Lenzner (never liked the wound E-A so I used the plain set) Efrano, Goetz and Damian Dlugolecky . I have three urbs at the moment, my plan is to go down to a single one with some sort of strings that I can use for different styles ... and I know it has to be a compromise, I just hope to find the best one for me. I also sent a mail to @Mark Gollihur who kindly toke the time to compose a long and detailed answer recommending a set of Thomastik Superflexible Solo. Never considered the Superflexibles but Mark's arguments make sense, so I might go for them.
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I have quite a bit of experience with both Olivs and Evah Slap Synthetics and can say that the Olivs are a much heavier tension, the evah slaps are more like plain gut (which they were designed to emulate duh!) while Olivs (especially the G) are not too light to pair with say Spiro Mittels. You also might wanna check out Spiro Weichs, noticeably lighter than Olivs but not too much IMHO and after a few months the spiros break in and get noticeably darker, blending well with the Olivs. Plus they're easy on wimpy hands like mine. 
also thanks to @bassmanbrent
I guess I should also add that I find the synthetic EP slap D & G to be quite loud, but obviously different than spiros.
Slappin". OK...that helps. If you are still good with steel strings the 4/4( not 3/4) Spiro Weichs would be good for slapping. I would agree with Mark Gollihur too re the SF Solo's. The Spiro Solo's might also work but they are very low tension. Keep trying stuff (used) until you find something that fits your style and playing pressure. In my expensive experience with strings, finding the "right" ones usually ends up being a compromise. Cheers.
I'm sure this is been addressed somewhere in this thread but I can't seem to find it...
Anyway I bought a new (to me)!bass last year around this time. Put a used set of EP regulars on it. All good. Couple weeks ago I decided to put a new set on. They sound great, but they are really hard to play. I'm pretty sure the old set was regulars, not Weichs. did I read somewhere that the tension actually lowers on these strings over time? I sure hope so. I tried lowering the action; the bass just doesn't sound as good -but it's kind of killing me where it is.
Anyway I bought a new (to me)!bass last year around this time. Put a used set of EP regulars on it. All good. Couple weeks ago I decided to put a new set on. They sound great, but they are really hard to play. I'm pretty sure the old set was regulars, not Weichs. did I read somewhere that the tension actually lowers on these strings over time? I sure hope so. I tried lowering the action; the bass just doesn't sound as good -but it's kind of killing me where it is.
If you still have the old set, check if there's a pink silk ring at the top of the metal part of string, where the top silk begins.
If so, they're weiches.
If so, they're weiches.
thanks, Francois. Nope, no pink ring on the old set. wondering if it's the change in weather contributing to the stiff response
The stiffness of new strings comes from the windings laying very close near each other, so if you try to bend the string, on the outer side the windings separate a little bit, but on the inner side they press against their neighbors and that makes the string stiff. Evahs stretch a lot over time, specially at the beginning, so leave them on the bass, play with the bow too and loud and retune when the pitch of the open strings has dropped.
If it doesn't get better over the first month, then you can bend the string, but evenly, in any direction and over the whole length. I did that with Innovation Braided and the tone opened up and the sustain got longer. My method was running the string over my thumb to avoid hard kinks and to feel changes the bending elasticity, but it took me about one hour per string (did only E and A, the others were fine) and there was not much I would like to do with this thumb for the rest of the day. And only one string per day for me.
If you have a wheel with a groove that you can fix, you can run the string over it bend. Should go faster, but the string might rotate to an easier bending and that doesn't help to make the string's stiffness equal in any direction of the string.
Maybe start with very little bending and constantly rotate the string on the same part, then enhance the bending and continue to rotate the string. I haven't tried the wheel method myself yet.
With the stretching of the core the windings get some microspace between it and this leads to an easier bending the more the string has stretched.
Using the bending method the windings might get deformed for an easier bending, so use some extra fine sandpaper or extra fine steel wool to clean up the surface of the string after the bending and before you try to play it.
If it doesn't get better over the first month, then you can bend the string, but evenly, in any direction and over the whole length. I did that with Innovation Braided and the tone opened up and the sustain got longer. My method was running the string over my thumb to avoid hard kinks and to feel changes the bending elasticity, but it took me about one hour per string (did only E and A, the others were fine) and there was not much I would like to do with this thumb for the rest of the day. And only one string per day for me.
If you have a wheel with a groove that you can fix, you can run the string over it bend. Should go faster, but the string might rotate to an easier bending and that doesn't help to make the string's stiffness equal in any direction of the string.
Maybe start with very little bending and constantly rotate the string on the same part, then enhance the bending and continue to rotate the string. I haven't tried the wheel method myself yet.
With the stretching of the core the windings get some microspace between it and this leads to an easier bending the more the string has stretched.
Using the bending method the windings might get deformed for an easier bending, so use some extra fine sandpaper or extra fine steel wool to clean up the surface of the string after the bending and before you try to play it.
Double: ....or save your thumb and buy some Zyex, Obligato's or Sensicores instead if you like synthetic core nylon or perlon strings.
I haven't tried Zyex yet, but I have had an Obligato and Sensicore high C.Double: ....or save your thumb and buy some Zyex, Obligato's or Sensicores instead if you like synthetic core nylon or perlon strings.
The aluminum wound Sensicore was much too weak for me, the Obligato was OK, but rather thick and stretches a lot and I often read about rolling A and E.
I did my treatment yet with three strings, two Braided (A and E) and one Innovation prototype (E only,the A was too weak). Since I have to do this once or twice every few years, that's OK for me. YMMV.
I think (some) violinists do things like that regularly with (some) strings.
I don't want you all to do that with your strings, but it might help, specially with stretchier core strings, if you do that with less flexible strings. Maybe not if it's the core that is stiff like with Dominants.
If someone doesn't want to do this, that's OK. But if that one tells us the set is bad because the string is too stiff, that's not OK, if that person knows that there are some ways to change that.
I think my way to handle these strings is valuable information even if you don't want to do that.
It's up to you if you want to do it or not.
I was very happy with the strings after my treatment and still play them (replacing the Braided E with the prototype E because I like it a bit better). Still have the Braided E in my replacement set.
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I recently switched back to Evah Weichs from Spiros a few months ago. While I have been very happy with the G D and A this time around, the E has come up a little light volume wise and I'd like to throw something a little heavier on the E.
My bass is a maple Shen Rogeri. I gig mostly jazz but practice all the time with the bow, so I'm looking for a hybrid type of string. I have a Spiro E but it is just too much of a PITA to bow. My top two choices are a Permanent E or Heli Hybrid Medium E.
Anyone here using Evah Weich G D and A with a different E? Any recommendations?
My bass is a maple Shen Rogeri. I gig mostly jazz but practice all the time with the bow, so I'm looking for a hybrid type of string. I have a Spiro E but it is just too much of a PITA to bow. My top two choices are a Permanent E or Heli Hybrid Medium E.
Anyone here using Evah Weich G D and A with a different E? Any recommendations?
