Double Bass Flexocors

[SAlcott]

Anyone have experience with Flexocors? Not Deluxe or Original but with ruby silk at tailpiece. I got bored with bel Cantos after a concert and put on a light gauge set I had in the stash with a Permanent long E. Big 1890ish German bass. They're considerably louder, but quite a bit on the brash side. I'm hoping they'll calm down in the month I have before next rehearsal.

 

[Francois Blais]

Ruby Silk is "regular" Flexocor aka Flexocor '92.

 

[Stuart.C]

Yes
I use the full set med, on my bass the G string starts really bright, and the E really dead after about a week or two they evened out nicely.

 

[foilracer]

Anyone have experience with Flexocors? Not Deluxe or Original with ruby silk at tailpiece. I got bored with bel Cantos after a concert and put on a light gauge set I had in the stash with a Permanent long E. Big 1890ish German bass. They're considerably louder, but quite a bit on the brash side. I'm hoping they'll calm down in the month I have before next rehearsal.

ARCO...I just installed a full set of Original Flexocore and must not change them for 6 weeks?....GAS....is to choose the Flexocore 92 in the exact tension I want as Pirastro offers weich, mittel and stark in the 92s. GLAD to hear the 92s are brash...the E I tried was too mellow...I often go back to Helicore Arco Heavy for orchestra playing. Also not feeling guilty about frequently changing strings as there often seems to be a trade off no matter which Arco strings are installed. Keep us posted salcott.

 

[Phil Rowan]

IME, the Flex 92 G never lost its bark even after it mellowed out, and the D eventually went dead in a "dumb" kind of way (tough to explain.. just lost all life and became a bit of a drag). The Flex 92 A was way too loose so I only had in on very briefly. My setup at that time and for a good number of months was Flex 92 D and G, Original Flex A, and Permanent low C. I did very briefly try the Stark 92 D and G but felt they were a bit much. I've been happily back to Belcantos (with the A string installed with the ball end facing out in the tailpiece), this time with a Spiro Weich low C, for some time now. I just find them the most even and best sounding within the section in terms of blend (even if it means certain compromises or giving up certain things Pirastro strings might offer). YMMV, IMHO, etc.

 

[KUNGfuSHERIFF]

Flexocor 92 aren’t as complex as Flexocor (the ones they made decades ago, not the imposters marketed as Original Flexocor) but they’re a damn sight more interesting than Belcantos and have a more luxurious feel to boot. They should calm down shortly.

 

[SAlcott]

Back to Bel Cantos. I decided life is too short and I'm too old to be fighting with a set of strings while they break in. BCs may not be super exciting, but I can play them, both basses like them, and my big bag o'strings is now in a storage bench with 4 cases of wine on it to provide inaccessibility.

 

[abaguer]

I had orig flexocore A and D with spiro weich E and G for a while on the classical bass which had 42in mensure and it was a good setup for volume although i wasn't crazy about the match of the top 2 strings. Have since replaced the top 2 with kaplan mediums and liking the mix. Good compromise volume/tone

 

[Freud_Chicken]

I had orig flexocore A and D with spiro weich E and G for a while on the classical bass which had 42in mensure and it was a good setup for volume although i wasn't crazy about the match of the top 2 strings. Have since replaced the top 2 with kaplan mediums and liking the mix. Good compromise volume/tone

How even is the tension between the spiro E and the flex orig A? Is it an extension E?

Also, how well do you find the spiro starts with the bow compared to the OF?

Cheers

 

[abaguer]

The weich E starts better and feels better tension-wise than the Spiro Mittel and Evah Pirazzi Medium Es I had prior. Starts a little slower than OF A but not a dealbreaker. On this bass those two lower strings pair well

 

[Freud_Chicken]

The weich E starts better and feels better tension-wise than the Spiro Mittel and Evah Pirazzi Medium Es I had prior. Starts a little slower than OF A but not a dealbreaker. On this bass those two lower strings pair well

Great thanks. Did you ever try the flex original E/C?

 

[Freud_Chicken]

The weich E starts better and feels better tension-wise than the Spiro Mittel and Evah Pirazzi Medium Es I had prior. Starts a little slower than OF A but not a dealbreaker. On this bass those two lower strings pair well

Would love to also hear more of your thoughts on the evah E/C, that's another one that sounds great on some basses.

 

[abaguer]

Didn't try OF E/C but did try Evah E/C for a short bit. It sounded good but too dark on my bass with OF A. The weich E is much better match

 

[Freud_Chicken]

Interesting, thanks. I would have actually assumed the evah was brighter than the OF A so that's good to know.

Got a spiro weich on the way, we'll see how that goes against belcanto g & d, OF a

 

[Mark_T]

Interesting, thanks. I would have actually assumed the evah was brighter than the OF A so that's good to know.

Got a spiro weich on the way, we'll see how that goes against belcanto g & d, OF a

I’ll be curious to hear, I have an OF A sitting around but wasn’t sure how it would blend.

 

[Freud_Chicken]

I’ll be curious to hear, I have an OF A sitting around but wasn’t sure how it would blend.

I would really recommend trying it, honestly with any string combination - just as a string on its own. But it blends surprisingly well with BCs; ever so slightly louder and more 'open' sounding. The volume and tone are balancing more and more as the string ages (i'm only about a month in). Starts unbelievably easily (arco) and matches the tension of the BCs far better than the BC A does on my bass which is comparatively flabby and dull, making heavy spiccato much more even going between the d and a (i.e. beethoven trio), in which the BC A would always just bend under the bow for me and not speak well.

I'm a huge fan of the top 2 BC strings, i think they're fantastic, but i'm considering trying the OF D just because of how good the A is.

 

[Mark_T]

I have an Orig Flat Chrome D and G waiting for me at home. I may swap the BCs for those temporarily and throw the OF A on while I'm at it. And we're doing Pines of Rome later, so I might throw my hipshot and a Perm E on because I don't want to trim the silks on my Spiro Weich E/C.

 

[Freud_Chicken]

Those are funny strings, they sound crap on my main bass but they make a laminate bass i use for teaching sound fantastic.

But yea the perm E and original A are a popular combo, i'm not a huge fan honestly but i see what people like about it, very bright and powerful, very clear extension notes

 

[KUNGfuSHERIFF]

Original Flexocor is the only set I can think of off the top of my head that doesn’t at least try to have a uniform character across the set. Each string has its’ own personality.

So your bass may like Original Flex A, which is kind of like the Spiro Stark-ish workhorse of true orchestral strings, while hating the Original Flex D. Spend the money and try it out.

 

[Selim]

I have an Orig Flat Chrome D and G waiting for me at home. I may swap the BCs for those temporarily and throw the OF A on while I'm at it. And we're doing Pines of Rome later, so I might throw my hipshot and a Perm E on because I don't want to trim the silks on my Spiro Weich E/C.

That’s what an orchestra buddy has in his bass, but with a Flatchrome E I believe.