my report - newtone strings for a 24.75" bass

[pcake]

as some of you know, i bought a smallguitars.com MB2 only to discover that no known strings fit it. i tried to contact the owner of smallguitars.com to ask about the strings that come on the basses but no reply. besides, i don't like them that much.

it turns out that newtone strings will make you a custom set of roundwound strings for your bass or guitar, so i ordered mine here
Custom Bass String Configurator – Newtone Strings

they ask for a 14 day lead time to ship the strings, but also mentioned covid had slowed them down. i ordered mine on july 24, and they shipped from the UK on august 12th, arriving here about 10 days ago.

they come in a sealed mylar bag, and each string is nicely coiled and numbered.

and it turns out they do fit my MB2 perectly!

they sound better than the stock strings - no stretch, but also made it more obvious i'll be replacing the pickup soon. they're not the smoothest string i've played, but they're far from the roughest. i'll post an update in a comment in a week or two after the strings have had time to break in.

 

[CatchaCuda]

How is the tension?

 

[pcake]

How is the tension?

about like you'd expect for extra light round cores. you can, however, get hex cores and any gauge you like from newtone.

 

[claudel]

I wont use anything else anymore unless I somehow break one and can't wait the 3 weeks....

 

[HaphAsSard]

extra light

Gauges? You may have mentioned them in one of the sub-short threads back when you ordered them.

 

[pcake]

from their receipt that includes the price per string (keep in mind you can get any gauge you want, hex core and other wrap material and scale length)

Custom Bass String Configurator

• Style:
  Diamond
  
  
• Wrapping materrial:
  Nickel Plated Steel
  
  
• String length form ball end to nut:
  26 inches
  
  
• Core type:
  Round
  
  
• Taper at bridge:
  none
  
  
• 1st:
  .040 wound [+£5.00]
  
  
• 2nd:
  .060 wound [+£5.83]
  
  
• 3rd:
  .076 wound [+£6.25]
  
  
• 4th:
  .094 wound [+£7.08]

 

[steve_rolfeca]

I'm a two-mini guy again!

I traded my Ibanez in on the Guild, but the store had no luck with selling it on consignment, and then COVID set in...

I finally did the 2 1/2 hour round trip to Chatham to pick up the Ibanez, and it's been interesting having the two basses together for more quality time. I originally made the purchase decision on the Guild after a very rushed test into an unfamiliar amp.

I haven't plugged either one in or hung them off a strap in since I brought the AVN1BE home, so these impressions are strictly about playing them seated, on the couch:

• The twelve-fret body joint and the smaller lower bout makes the Ibanez more comfortable when seated. The Guild feels a bit awkward- that big lower bout gets in the way.
  
• The Ibanez sounds a bit honky and raw acoustically, compared to the smoother Guild.
• However, the Ibanez is louder and more resonant.
• I like the extra frets on the Guild, but don't use them as much as i would like, because the intonation is noticeably better on the Ibanez:
  • That body joint makes it a bit more work to get up over the 12th fret on the Ibby, but it sounds very sweet up there.
    
  • In comparison, the Guild is noticeably out of tune in the same range, and trying to push and pull it into pitch is particularly difficult on notes that ring sharp...

 

[Root 5]

I imagine La Bella and Pyramid would make custom sets for you too. Doesn’t hurt to ask.

 

[KohanMike]

I imagine La Bella and Pyramid would make custom sets for you too. Doesn’t hurt to ask.

I asked La Bella before COVID and they said it would be months before they could make a custom, maybe not at all. Tried asking again a few weeks later and never got a reply.

 

[OrvCraig]

Thanks, Pcake. I always enjoy your posts.

 

[pcake]

I imagine La Bella and Pyramid would make custom sets for you too. Doesn’t hurt to ask.

someone said on a recent thread that they ordered a custom set of i think tapewounds from pyramid.

Thanks, Pcake. I always enjoy your posts.

awwww - thank you

 

[steve_rolfeca]

I asked La Bella before COVID and they said it would be months before they could make a custom, maybe not at all. Tried asking again a few weeks later and never got a reply.

You might want to try talking to Jason, over at Fretnation.com...

I tried getting oddball custom sets from La Bella and D'Addario as a private individual in the past, and had no joy.

Commercial outfits like Fretnation are in better shape to negotiate this type of deal, simply because they can leverage group buys to meet minimum purchase requirements. The vendor is also more motivated because they're talking to someone who already has an existing commercial account with them.

I currently have a set of extra-extra long, fanned-fret 37"-34" La Bella black nylon tapes on my Dingwall, and some of the catalog numbers stamped on the packets don't show up in online catalogs...

 

[shoulderpet]

as some of you know, i bought a smallguitars.com MB2 only to discover that no known strings fit it. i tried to contact the owner of smallguitars.com to ask about the strings that come on the basses but no reply. besides, i don't like them that much.

it turns out that newtone strings will make you a custom set of roundwound strings for your bass or guitar, so i ordered mine here
Custom Bass String Configurator – Newtone Strings

they ask for a 14 day lead time to ship the strings, but also mentioned covid had slowed them down. i ordered mine on july 24, and they shipped from the UK on august 12th, arriving here about 10 days ago.

they come in a sealed mylar bag, and each string is nicely coiled and numbered.

View attachment 3961224 View attachment 3961225

and it turns out they do fit my MB2 perectly!

they sound better than the stock strings - no stretch, but also made it more obvious i'll be replacing the pickup soon. they're not the smoothest string i've played, but they're far from the roughest. i'll post an update in a comment in a week or two after the strings have had time to break in.

Newtone strings are brilliant, they can wind pretty much any gauge to any scale length and they do tapered as well, the set I have is on its 2nd month and still sounds good which may not sound all that impressive until you consider that I can kill most brands of rounds in 1-2 weeks , I have a set on order at the moment for a short scale Jaguar bass gauged 116-56 for D standard tuning

 

[David Jayne]

Weight?