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Hi beam consistency

D

Drop1

Mar 28, 2019
1,601
1,796
#1
I didn't touch my bass for about 3 years. I had elixir nanos on it and when I started playing it again, it sounded exactly like I remembered.
The strings were at least 4 years old so i got some hi beams to try out. They were good. I liked them, but my 4 year old elixirs sounded brighter to my ears which I wasn't expecting considering the new strings name is literally hi beams.

I had been playing on the hi beams for about a month and noticed the d and g were starting to sound very dull. I've been playing a lot so that didn't surprise me. What did surprise me was when I put a new set of hi beams on today. Super bright and zingy. Far brighter (and imo better) than the first set of high beams I picked up a month ago.
This leads me to question how much variance between sets the hi beams have?
Every string from the new pack is super clicky with tons of zing.
I had run my original set of hi beams though a spectrum analyzer when new as well as the new set toady and the newer set has remarkably more top end. (The original set had a slight mid scoop with sharp peak around 1khz or so but rolled off pretty quickly above that.)
Maybe I got a super old set off the shelf? Is that a thing? I figured strings would stay fresh indefinitely in the pack though they aren't technically "sealed". I suppose I possibly just got a bad set the first time, but I wouldn't expect it to affect every string the way it did.
Thoughts?
 
#5
Drop1 said:
I didn't touch my bass for about 3 years. I had elixir nanos on it and when I started playing it again, it sounded exactly like I remembered.
The strings were at least 4 years old so i got some hi beams to try out. They were good. I liked them, but my 4 year old elixirs sounded brighter to my ears which I wasn't expecting considering the new strings name is literally hi beams.

I had been playing on the hi beams for about a month and noticed the d and g were starting to sound very dull. I've been playing a lot so that didn't surprise me. What did surprise me was when I put a new set of hi beams on today. Super bright and zingy. Far brighter (and imo better) than the first set of high beams I picked up a month ago.
This leads me to question how much variance between sets the hi beams have?
Every string from the new pack is super clicky with tons of zing.
I had run my original set of hi beams though a spectrum analyzer when new as well as the new set toady and the newer set has remarkably more top end. (The original set had a slight mid scoop with sharp peak around 1khz or so but rolled off pretty quickly above that.)
Maybe I got a super old set off the shelf? Is that a thing? I figured strings would stay fresh indefinitely in the pack though they aren't technically "sealed". I suppose I possibly just got a bad set the first time, but I wouldn't expect it to affect every string the way it did.
Thoughts?
Click to expand...
When you put the first set of Hi Beams on, did you bend the end of the string to a right angle before cutting?
 
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#6
hasbeen said:
When you put the first set of Hi Beams on, did you bend the end of the string to a right angle before cutting?
Click to expand...
Always. And I leave about an inch past the bend to slot into the peg. I also wind my strings (no peg wrapping) then after they are almost to tension I lossen them just enough to let the ball rotate freely then tighten back up to make darn sure the strings aren't twisted.
I use square edged needle nose pliers to create a sharp bend and clip the strings.
 
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#7
Drop1 said:
Always. And I leave about an inch past the bend to slot into the peg. I also wind my strings (no peg wrapping) then after they are almost to tension I lossen them just enough to let the ball rotate freely then tighten back up to make darn sure the strings aren't twisted.
I use square edged needle nose pliers to create a sharp bend and clip the strings.
Click to expand...
Good man. It was worth asking.
 
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#10
hasbeen said:
When you put the first set of Hi Beams on, did you bend the end of the string to a right angle before cutting?
Click to expand...

I've been doing this but had not thought about why for years. Now I've adopted some headless basses, and I've found some issues with just cutting right past where I'm supposed to clamp at the headstock end. Any advice on how to deal with that?
 
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#11
Drop1 said:
I didn't touch my bass for about 3 years. I had elixir nanos on it and when I started playing it again, it sounded exactly like I remembered.
The strings were at least 4 years old so i got some hi beams to try out. They were good. I liked them, but my 4 year old elixirs sounded brighter to my ears which I wasn't expecting considering the new strings name is literally hi beams.

I had been playing on the hi beams for about a month and noticed the d and g were starting to sound very dull. I've been playing a lot so that didn't surprise me. What did surprise me was when I put a new set of hi beams on today. Super bright and zingy. Far brighter (and imo better) than the first set of high beams I picked up a month ago.
This leads me to question how much variance between sets the hi beams have?
Every string from the new pack is super clicky with tons of zing.
I had run my original set of hi beams though a spectrum analyzer when new as well as the new set toady and the newer set has remarkably more top end. (The original set had a slight mid scoop with sharp peak around 1khz or so but rolled off pretty quickly above that.)
Maybe I got a super old set off the shelf? Is that a thing? I figured strings would stay fresh indefinitely in the pack though they aren't technically "sealed". I suppose I possibly just got a bad set the first time, but I wouldn't expect it to affect every string the way it did.
Thoughts?
Click to expand...

I typically change my strings at 75 to 100 hours of play time. Needles to say over the last 20 years, I’ve gone through a fair amount of strings, and 90% of them were DR Lo Riders. I’ll have to say that there is some inconsistency, however nothing that a slight adjustment to my EQ couldn’t mitigate.

Side Bar: back in the early aughts, I was part of a program with Elixer stings field testing their guitar strings (got the golf shirt to prove it) and they would send me strings and I’d play them and report back my experience. In 2006 I put a set of nano webs on my Taylor 510. They still sound awesome. Absolutely incredible.
 
#12
dbsfgyd1 said:
I typically change my strings at 75 to 100 hours of play time. Needles to say over the last 20 years, I’ve gone through a fair amount of strings, and 90% of them were DR Lo Riders. I’ll have to say that there is some inconsistency, however nothing that a slight adjustment to my EQ couldn’t mitigate.

Side Bar: back in the early aughts, I was part of a program with Elixer stings field testing their guitar strings (got the golf shirt to prove it) and they would send me strings and I’d play them and report back my experience. In 2006 I put a set of nano webs on my Taylor 510. They still sound awesome. Absolutely incredible.
Click to expand...
Those nanos just seem to last forever. It's crazy.
 
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#13
RavenousPoe said:
I personally abandoned Hi Beams for Black Beauties on my Warwicks for this reason. No idea why, but I've noticed much better consistency across the Black Beauties in the 3 packs I've tried.
Click to expand...
I tried some black beauties a while back. They had a sound I really liked, for specific types of music. There weren't a string I'd want to play all the time.
Kinda like a Warwick. LOVE the sound , just not for everything.
 
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#16
lamarjones said:
I've been doing this but had not thought about why for years. Now I've adopted some headless basses, and I've found some issues with just cutting right past where I'm supposed to clamp at the headstock end. Any advice on how to deal with that?
Click to expand...
If your bass has the "standard" type clamp at the nut, you shouldn't have to worry about bending the string before you cut it.

Since you'll tighten the hex nut down on the string to secure it, once this is done, that will ensure the windings won't loosen when you cut the end.
 
Last edited:
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