How often do you change strings?

[Peter Squire]

i clean my strings with DA350 before every show, makes em sound nice and bright. I know I shouldn't but I disagree with James Jamerson about the gunk being the funk.

I like the bright, piano sound of new strings. I play about 25 hours a week and change strings about every 3 months. I use Boomers and they sound great as long as I keep em clean.

 

[Bassossorus]

ive been playing about 14-20 hours a week lately and i need to change every 3-4 weeks....i feel your pain.

 

[Brad Johnson]

I'm rotating several basses so not very often. On the basses that I use most frequently, because my hands stay very dry, I can get away with months of use, even slapping.

Longest lasting string so far for me has been Dean Markley Blue Steels. Surprised the heck out of me. I'm also using SIT Nickel rounds, DR Fat Beam and Sunbeams and Ken Smith Burners. Have one fretless strung with LaBella Black Tapewounds.

 

[Sammy Camden]

I play out 3, sometimes 4 times a month. We practice as a band once a month. I practive at home at least 30min a day, ofter more. I change my strings when they no longer intonate, start to develop a warble, or become uneven in their response as a set. The last time I broke a string was during the summer of 1965, and that was on another guy's bass (felt a little bad about it). I typically get anywhere from two to three years out of a set, sometimes as much as five years. Now all of this is for my 4-string basses. And, I must confess that I use flats on all of them, except my fretless, which has Fender 7120s on it.

For 5-string basses, I'm in a little of dilema. I played a Fender Jazz-V, followed by an RB-5, a few years ago. That 5-string episode (my first) lasted about 3 years. I went through "B" strings quite a lot (every couple of months). It seemed that they would not last, while the remaining strings in the set were still going strong. I didn't buy new sets, I simply bought single "B" strings from juststrings.com.

I bought a new 5-string a couple of weeks ago. I'm figuring that I'll probably end up in the same boat again. It came with the typical round wounds on it, which I replaced last night with a set of D'Addario Halfrounds (I absolutely HATE roundwound strings).

Anyone have any recommendations, if it's possible, on how to make the "B" strings last as long as the rest? Or am I just being a little to sensitive and this is something that everyone simply puts up with.

 

[Son of Bovril]

I used to only change strings if I broke one, but now I have a string budget from the band every month (awsome!) I choose to rather buy 2 packs of cheaper strings than one more expensive set - Than way I can have a spare set/use the second set if I go into studio, which is quite often nowadays. To me, expensive strings lose their tone pretty much at the same rate (maybe slightly lower) as cheaper ones, so I'd rather have that new sound twice a month than only once...

 

[xshawnxearthx]

i change elixirs once a month. if im doing a lot of gigging through out the month, i will change the top two strings changed more often.

 

[Walcustomdude]

8 basses? wow!!!!
Thanks. Someone else mentioned D'Addario Cromes. I think I'll give em a try.
Generally My Wal has a 'nutty' (?!!) middly sound when I pan around 80% to the bridge pick-up anyway. I don't want bright clank yet I don't just want a wooly rumble.ooooo!
I believe Andy Fraser of Free used flats with his EB3 set to the bridge pick up.
I'll let you know how I get on.

 

[Sandman1278]

I usualy change my string every 3-5 months, when one of them breaks, I usualy use Ernie Ball Strings, but I'm goin to be trying out D'addarios, If had the factory preset strings on my carvin for about 10 months, string broke now, will be changing once i get aroudn to leaving my house to buy some

 

[pdanko]

I tent to sweat quite a bit through my hands. Result... horrible string life. I've switched to Elixer strings which have helped tremendously. Having a cloth on hand to wipe the strings down, even between songs, is a must for me also.

 

[HMZ]

I change my strings about once a month. I rehears with my band once a week and gig twice a month. I try to practice an hour or more a day. I use DR SS low riders or high beams and my sweaty hand seems to kill strings fast.

 

[Jazzin']

This may sound rediculous, but I haven't changed my strings in 7 months. But, I'm buying new strings tomorrow (Friday) so it's all good. My strings started to sound less dead after I got my BadAssII, so I didn't change them.

 

[Brendan]

When they break. I've a set on my Ibanez going on 4 years.

And since they were replaced as they broke, I think a couple of them are around 5-6 years.

Dub city.

 

[Peter Squire]

Waldude, don't worry about describing your sound in ways that may seem unusual - when u said "nutty" i heard the sound in my head exactly, and yes, Wal's do have that sound.

I clean my strings very often, I find that it saves on new sets, which are terribly expensive in Oz (ie: start at $60AUD)

Depending on what you are looking for, boiling strings does actually work for brightness and to clean gunk out. Otherwise, the DR350 wipedown after each gig works too to keep the strings nice and bright.

 

[Fealach]

No set frequency to my string changing, just when I notice they sound bad. Noticed the other day my Alembic sounded worse than my backup bass, I was disgruntled until I remembered the strings, now it has new ones and it sounds great again.