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Double Bass LaBella developing new hybrid and gut offerings for Upright
- Thread starter littlebun
- Start date
No idea. Gut string manufacture, in these crazy financial times, especially at the quality La Bella will now be offering can't be as affordable as we would like. Fortunately, any one of their new sets will easily last a couple of years or more with proper installation and care.
@littlebun Any news regarding the new strings?
Brad, La Bella has been tweaking the gauging of the metal E & A strings so that they match well with the wrapped gut D & G. One of the staff was in the hospital so that has slowed things down. Can't say when these will appear for sale.
I received word today that La Bella is bringing five Upright Bass string sets to NAMM 2024. Three new Hybrid metal with gut sets, the newest 980 set made with the finest material available, and the venerable 2001 Goldentone hybrid set made with the same high quality material as the 980 set. The names of the new sets will be revealed at NAMM. I don't know when these will be available for sale, but I will post when they are.
Can someone explain the difference between the 7720 sets and the 7780? (I'm a little interested in the 7720 Solo or Light for a backup bass, but the 7780 seem to be the same material) Thanks
7780 has a brighter sound with a pronounced sustain quality, and sounds different than the 7720. 7720L is one of my favorite strings because of the good sustain and the warm, organic tone that develops. 7780 is a quick playing string with great clarity--you really know where you're at pitch-wise. You can call La Bella and ask for a custom 7780L set.
I was told that the 7780 set was designed more for classical and the 7720 sets more for jazz.
I had a set of 7780 years ago, and they were very bright.
Not something I'd suppose a classical player would want for orchestral use.
Not something I'd suppose a classical player would want for orchestral use.
There’s a demo of someone using the 7720L’s (presumably fresh out of the pack) on YouTube and you can find a few examples of him using them in a recording session.
I thought they sounded intensely bright and metallic, possibly more so than fresh Spiros. Kind of reminded me a little of the Ron Carter tapewounds.
I thought they sounded intensely bright and metallic, possibly more so than fresh Spiros. Kind of reminded me a little of the Ron Carter tapewounds.
You took that here?: https://www.talkbass.com/threads/ovidiu-badila.558603/
It was just a guess on my part, not a fact.
It was just a guess on my part, not a fact.
Now that the La Bella Jazz Hybrid line has come together, and the packaging is under way (I have no idea when they will be for sale) I'm excited about some new nylon D and G offerings paired again with metal E and A strings that Richard at La Bella has me testing. Nothing sounds like gut, but La Bella's newly developed test nylon D and G strings are really nice. The initial testers are clear sounding with an organic tone, and the flat nylon wrap feels great and has a nice edge to the tone that adds presence. I'll keep everyone posted. These are very new and being tweaked as I write.
The new nylon tester D and G isn't driving the top as hard as a typical large diameter gut. Because of this it balances really well volume-wise with the metal d&g. I'm using 7720L with these testers. There are two possibly three variants to test. The first testers play with a light and great playing tension.
The good folks at Labella (Richard!) are sending me a d and g to test, as well! I just put a new set of Zyex lights on, and I love the e, a and d on my bass, but the g sounds much darker. I wish it had the same amount of body the others do. I am considering a Xyex medium g, but am very excited to see if the LaBella d and g are the "ones" my bass is asking for!
I just had carpal tunnel and ulnar nerve surgery 3 weeks ago, and I HAD to move to a much, much softer set than the 3885s I had on. Richard assured me that the prototypes he is sending me will definitely feel lower tension, so I assume it is the lighter gauges. I'm very satisfied with how much easier they are on my hands, and they sound great, too!
Feedback to follow once the new d and g arrive and settle in!
I just had carpal tunnel and ulnar nerve surgery 3 weeks ago, and I HAD to move to a much, much softer set than the 3885s I had on. Richard assured me that the prototypes he is sending me will definitely feel lower tension, so I assume it is the lighter gauges. I'm very satisfied with how much easier they are on my hands, and they sound great, too!
Feedback to follow once the new d and g arrive and settle in!
I just tested the newly developed black flatwound nylon on nylon core D and G strings for La Bella. The black version is a completely different sounding and feeling string when compared with the new white version test set. The black is slightly higher tension, and has a tad darker tone with a more blunt attack than the white. Tested with the newly developed light gauge nickel E and A strings from the La Bella Jazz Hybrid series the black nylon sounds pretty close to the new La Bella Jazz Hybrid Tuxedo Black set that has black nylon covered gut for the D and G. The black nylon paired with the light gauge nickel comes off as an elegant and pro-sounding bass string set. As tested it plays with a firm yet flexible feel, with clear intonation. These new offerings are not re-fashioned Supernil; they are great new design from Richard Cocco and crew. I think the white version easily lends itself to Bluegrass and Rockabilly because of the bright and very flexible vibe that inspires slapping and pulling. Color me impressed.
