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Double Bass Gut Strings: Are They Worth It To Try? (part I)

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#901
Marcus Johnson said:
Are you snufflin' around in your string drawer? :D
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Ahh I dunno. It's the same s--t. At home I practice and hate spirocores, I get out on the gig and it's like tonight with 99% humidity at 80 deg and I couldn't make it through the gig sticking to those guts.

I put on arco strings and think I sound amazing, I take them on the gig and can't wait to get them off cause they aren't loud enough or I can't play in time.

It's the same routine over and over and over.

Something new comes out, I try it, I love it, I hate it...I'm back to Spiros. Everyone talks about Guts here, I try them again, I love them, I hate them, I end up back with Spiros. I wish I could practice with Belcantos, play jazz gigs with guts, and rock gigs with spiros.
 
#902
I hear you. But I've come to the conclusion that it's the bass that gets all stuffy and congested more than the strings. It's always 80 degrees and humid here.

Or maybe that's why guts work for me here.. The bass and strings don't go through those wild climatic mood swings you get back there. The daily weather extremes at my wife's old stomping grounds in upstate NY are just astounding sometimes.
 
#903
I feel your pain. It took me a long time and tremendous amount of practice to make the switch to gut. The only reason I made it is I REALLY wanted to make the switch and I, as well as my various bandmates, put up with a lot of lousy solos at first. Eventually, it all worked out and now I can't play on Spiros anymore...

mark
 
#905
I havn't tried to the Lyon's so I can't compare, but the Pistoy's are the best all around string I've ever tried. They are the easiest to bow string I've ever used. The only strings that came close for arco IMO were the Eudoxa's. Arco always makes are breaks a string for me. I pizz maybe 70% of the time but have found few strings limit my pizz abilities, the way a lot of jazz strings limit my arco abilities. I can't believe I spend so many years bowing spiro starks. I think I would have saved my self a lot of grief (and some stress related injuries) If I had gone gut earlier.
 
#906
Marcus Johnson said:
I hear you. But I've come to the conclusion that it's the bass that gets all stuffy and congested more than the strings. It's always 80 degrees and humid here.

Or maybe that's why guts work for me here.. The bass and strings don't go through those wild climatic mood swings you get back there. The daily weather extremes at my wife's old stomping grounds in upstate NY are just astounding sometimes.
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Yea I don't know. The brief time I was there that 80deg and super humid felt great. Here, the same numbers and it's oppressive. Makes me want to hide in the basement. You don't even have basements out there.

Must be the ****ing aloha.
 
#907
Marcus Johnson said:
I think that the "ping" is my favorite part of the whole Lyon deal. That front of the note. The Evahs are pretty good at it. But that sublime little split second right at the front of the note are the really boneriffic :eyebrow: part of the Gamuts. What comes afterwards is fantastic as well.

IMHO.
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If I had sent you Pistoys instead of Lyons, you'd be saying the same thing. The difference between them is pretty subtle in the overall scheme of things. It's only when you get into a direct comparison that the differences get illuminated.

mark
 
#908
Hi guys - I'm getting mixed messages. I've heard that guts can last for years and others have said only 6 months. I have scrounged up some free plain guts :hyper: . I now have gut G, D and A and a Spiro M for the E. The G is plain and the D and A have worn varnish. I've been putting almond oil on every week or so. What happens to the string over time that warrents a gut string change? I don't have a point of reference since I've never owned new gut strings. Thanks!
 
#909
hi goodgig

i've had my Gamut Lyon set on for a year now and they never sounded better and these are not showing the wear and tear you'd expect. Dan Larson told me they can last years. So far, he's been right about that.

others have said guts have a short life, which may have been on another string. so far, i could not confirm that. the Pizzicato Bass and Lezners i've had in the past all held up, too.

btw, oil every week? do they really need that? i oil mine about twice a year, usually in the winter months if they look dry.
 
#910
Everyone is different in their relationship with strings. Different people's playing can erode a string at different rates. Plus what one considers dead another may think is in the sweet spot.

For me the Gamut Gut plain strings lasted about 6 months before I want a new pair. For someone else they could last 6 years.
 
#911
I haven't really used gut strings long enough to come to any conclusions. I used to change Spiros out every 6-8 months. I've been running two basses with gut since about March but I keep switching things around and trying new things so I haven't really had a set on long enough. I did give my original Lyon G to Marcus but it still had plenty of life left in it as he'll attest. It had been on and off the bass a number of times and then had about 6 months of heavy use before I sent it to him.

I'm curious myself as to how long they last. I know Ben Wolfe uses them until they break. The last time I talked to him, his had been on for more than 3 years.

mark
 
#912
calivox said:
I did give my original Lyon G to Marcus but it still had plenty of life left in it as he'll attest.
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Yup. I'm looking forward to seeing how it evolves. It feels better than any gut I've played, and aside from some darkening from the graphite, doesn't appear to be worn at all. The D string is even better, pretty much like new. These are the first varnished guts I've played, and I really dig that.... beautiful finish.

Mark, I'm probably somewhere between you and Ben Wolfe in the replacement schedule. I like to try to get at least a year out of any string. Spiros ..... many moons.
 
#913
My friend's bass is currently strung with a full set DD's I bought nearly 3 years ago. They are showing virtually no wear.
My bass has had a full set since the beginning of this year. I don't expect I will change them any time soon.
-J
 
#915
Marcus Johnson said:
That's cool... takes some of the sting out of the price of entry.
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My Garbos seem to be wearing out pretty quickly though, bought a new pair of E and A after 7 months or so. the A string started buzzing quite a bit and the winding coming undone.

on another note, i'm beginning to get curious how my bass would sound with some Weichs on them. I've been in a weird mood recently, so iono.
 
#917
That's unfortunate. Someone else just told me their Animas wore out in something like 4 months. I may have to rethink the Velvet experiment. A little over a month in though my Garbo E and A are smokin'. We'll see how long they last.

I have no curiosity about how Weichs would sound on my bass. I know exactly how Mittels sound and it's a great sound but not the one I'm going for right now.

mark
 
#920
I thought maybe it was my bass, not a real high end instrument. I own several high end guitars and have noticed the better ones still sound good on fairly dead strings, where as lower end instruments need fresh strings to sound their best. One thing is clear, the spiro weichs are about a year old and sound good.
 
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