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Double Bass GUTS ARE SO MUCH FUN!!!

#941
hey guys, thought i might revive this one

i have a question:

thinking in Garbos Lights on the E and A, and plain gut on D/G, preferably Gamuts....considering the 23 kg tension the Velvets have, what would you think it would be a nice match, tension wise, for the Gamuts, so i can match them or approximate?

also, varnished or unvarnished?.....really want to work on my bow and altissimo stuff, and gig regularly playing dynamic jazz, where I'm expected to solo a lot, and do enjoy thumb position across all the strings.....

anyhows, any advice out there will be very much appreciated

thanks!
 
#942
I use Garbo regulars E/A and Gamut Med D/Med+ G. I love them for pizz and I get comments all the time about how they speak all the way up the neck. My only caveat is the Garbos don't bow real well. The guts are cool but the Garbos are slow to speak. Some say you can't bow Garbos and I don't agree with that but if speed and agility are important I'd try Animas. You'll lose a little bit of the really meaty low end you get from Garbos but they are better under the bow.
 
#944
Mine are both Lyons. I wanted a more old school gut sound and I heard Lyons are better for that. They are also a little bit easier on the wallet.

Garbo or Anima regulars match well. I've used both and they are fine. They are meant to be gut-like. I've never used the lights so I really don't know.

It's expensive but you really just need to experiment. Numbers in a catalog really can't tell you.
 
#945
yeah, im going for pistoys, really want to use as much range as i can on my playing these days and i've heard they are easier to bow (im ordering varnished as well)

only thing i still have to figure out is the tension...might as well shoot an email to dan larsson, eh?

man, bassists around here are completely oblivious to strings, setup, amps.....they all sound the same!!!!....
yesterday i played this kid's bass on a jam session......horrible conditions, and when i asked him about it he seemed to not know which strings he had on (i think belcantos and a helicore pizz on the E)......

glad there is TB to enlighten us all!
 
#946
Manu,

I have used both Pistoy and Lyon, and I found the Pistoy to be much easier to bow. I think you will enjoy them!

You mention the lack of general knowledge regarding equipment amongst your peers- that can be both a curse and a blessing!

When you aren't wondering what piece of gear to try next, be it a string set, pick up, amp or what have you- it may be easier to focus on what is really important- which is making the best with what you have presently at your disposal! :)

Sure, inferior gear can make learning harder, so knowing that there might be a better product out there can be very helpful...but sometimes we mistakenly think that our musical growth can be purchased rather than earned through mindful practice and hard work.

So maybe NOT knowing what's out there aint always so bad! ;)

I wish I could shut out the temptations and just get to work! :)

Yet, here I am on talkbass rather than practicing! lol! :D

Best wishes my friend!

Joe
 
#947
thanks Joe for the kind advice...i agree in everything you state, including the part about being hooked to TB instead of my bass....sigh

anywhos, i did mention something quite particular about bassists around here:

THEY ALL SOUND THE SAME (to a certain degree)

good, bad, or ok technique....musicians around them....music surrounding them...you name it.....they all sound like toasted spiros, bad setup, and EB amps

I come back home sporadically (work on cruise ships most of the year) and attend the jam sessions.....so please dont pay real attention to what im saying....hehe

are your Pistoys varnished or unvarnished?.....what tension?

thanks for the insight once again!!
peace out
 
#950
Well, I finally drank the Kool-Aid. Finally got around to installing a Pistoy medium G and Pistoy medium D that I bought a couple of months ago. Played a gig two days after installing, and obviously had to tweek the tuning after each song, but it was pretty good by the end of the second set. I was amazed how clear the G was on my Pollmann. Sounded great all the way up to C above octave G. The D sounded good, but I think it will need some time to sound its best. All-in-all, I'm really thrilled with them. Haven't played guts since the sixties. I kept the Anima E and A on, and they seem like a good pairing.
 
#951
61pollmann said:
Well, I finally drank the Kool-Aid. Finally got around to installing a Pistoy medium G and Pistoy medium D that I bought a couple of months ago. Played a gig two days after installing, and obviously had to tweek the tuning after each song, but it was pretty good by the end of the second set. I was amazed how clear the G was on my Pollmann. Sounded great all the way up to C above octave G. The D sounded good, but I think it will need some time to sound its best. All-in-all, I'm really thrilled with them. Haven't played guts since the sixties. I kept the Anima E and A on, and they seem like a good pairing.
Click to expand...

i got the medium G and the light D. i think this mix is a better match than 2 mediums. i cant imagine how 2 mediums would be since the light D is so much larger than the meduim G. from what i understand, this is the premise behind the carlos chorda guts from pirastro.
 
#954
Eudoxas are flatwound on gut, and have tension similar to Spirocore Mittels. I'm not a big fan of them for lots of reasons. Do a search.

Most 'typical' wound gut lowers are round wound. Like Lenzer, Clef, Gamut, DD, Chorda.

You can order Gamuts in various diameters and that will affect the the tension.

Just this morning I pulled my Clef lowers off and put on a pair of Pirastro Pizzicato lowers. These are flatwound, but feel more similar to the regular wound lowers I've gotten used to.

Once you put wound lowers on, you wont want to play on anything else.
 
#958
For years I was pretty stuck on Pirastro Oliv E&A with a Goetz D&G. Recently got a new Oliv E&A and the E is pretty dead sounding. At those prices you'd think they'd be more consistent! Searching again for the right wrapped E&A. Slightly lower tension than the Oliv's would be nice :)
 
#959
would say a wrapped A and E gamut have a quick enough response to play some faster stuff? in order to quantify that id say that i have no problem getting out the stuff i want on the D and G, so id consider them "quick" enough. they seem perfect match with evah weich on the low strings. ive always had the impression, perhaps wrongly, that its like trying to play in molasses with the low strings being gut. anyone have any video or recording of someone playing wrapped E and A gut?
 

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