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My strings seem to "tight"...???

B

BottomFeeder86

Oct 18, 2004
23
0
#1
Ok, i played a few G&L basses at a local music store, and really liked the feel of the steel or nickel or whatever the strings were, they were so easy to play. I got home and started playing on my Elixir Nanowebs, and i noticed how "tight" my strings seemed while in tune, it's was sso much harder to play? i beleive the inotation is set right, along with all the other adjustments on my Warwick corvette proline.

I'm thinking of getting some regular steel or nickel roundwounds again, because even though the Elixirs are brand new, they still sound different that steel or nickel roundwounds, and i beleive thats why they feel so "tight" to play...

I'm so lost, i really really would appreciate some advice...
I'm looking here

http://www.webstrings.com/electric_bass_strings_index.html

at buying maybe 4 or 5 sets of, what i believe are decent strings, that will probablly go dead like all the other non-coated strings, but since they're cheap on that site, and i can replace them with the sets i buy.

-I've also heard that FireWire strings are good for that new string sound, and keeping it for a long time.
-DR High beams (i think i used the low-beams a while ago, and they felt very tight)
-DR Black Beauties

PLEASE HELP ME! i just want my bass to play like it used to when i used to use non-coated round wounds, but keep that new string slapping sound as long as i can afford!!! :bawl: :bawl: :bawl:
 
#2
You haven't mentioned gauge (thickness or diameter of strings)- heavier gauge, or thicker strings will feel tighter due to higher tension. Lighter gauge or thinner strings will feel looser, or more flexible. I f you don't know the gauge , compare them against each other. The difference, if there is any, will be pretty subtle. Of course this is not the only thing that will make two sets of strings feel different.
 
#3
woops, sorry, i wasn't very specific... The Elixirs i used to swear to, and currently have on my bass are medium gauge, just the standard gauge. I guess i like a light, or medium gauge string. I love the lasting and consistant sound of of the elixirs, because i only buy them about every 2 months, but i just like the initial sound of steel, non-coated strings better. The only coated strings ive player are the Elixir nanoweb (thinner coating), maybe those D'Addario EXP coated strings might solve my "tension" and sound issue..I hope i'm making sense here :hmm:

Any info about FireWire strings, or any of the other ones im too lazy to re-type? i guess the only thing i love about the Elixirs is the lasting tone, but the intitial tone i dont like when compared to those steel non-coated, and so much easier to play strings i played on those G&L basses... :bawl:
 
#4
I'm a little tired & don't feel like reading your original question, but here goes: DR Black Beauties. Coated stainless steel. Got 'em on my fretless. They're holding up well, but I haven't been playing much since switching from BEADG tuning to EADGC. Yeah, I'm sure I'm no help at all... Oh, yeah: have you ever heard of/played Thomastik-Infelds? I had a set on 6 string- very light gauge(.119 B string), very flexible & low tension. So sorry. Need sleep...

OK, I just looked at your post & you mentioned Black Beauties. I like them- don't know what to say about tension.
 
#7
alritey, i thought the tension on the strings will always be the same if they're in tune, no matter what generally... would i want to bow the bass in, towards the pickups, our out, away from them?

yeah, i've heard of those Thomastik strings, maybe those might work...

I guess i've narrowed it down in my selection...

--FireWire strings

--DR LowRiders

--The cheap strings on the site i posted, and just get 4 or 5 sets at once to compensate for dead string syndrome

--Thomastik-Infeld

--Rotosound FunkMasters (i thinkthey might be too light, i think the G is .35 or .30?)


I hate to keep asking the same question, but i just want the best sounding, closest to a regular steel or nickel roundwound that keeps its new string sound as long as possible :hyper: :hyper: :hyper: because i dont like the initial sound of my Elixirs....

THANKS AGAIN EVERYONE, i really appreciate this help!! :ninja:
 
#8
I think i might try a big experiment and get one set DR High Beams (Steel, but Taper-core, on the site they said they are brighter than nickel) and get two of those cheap strings off the site i posted, on nickel, and one stainless steel, both medium gauge....

The only thing i dont get, is there's tite-fit HighBeams, and just HighBeams...???

heres a link to the regular DR HighBeams
Link Removed

heres a link to the DR HighBeams with "tite-fit" next to them
Link Removed



I figure this way its still cheap, as the DRs are abuot $23 and i've read that they're very flexible and bright, more than low-riders, and the other sets are $20 for both of them. So for around 40 bucks, almost what Elixirs go for, i can get a bunch of strings, and hopefully find some that keep that new string sound that i wish i couldn't live without...
Any more comments will be appreciated of course, suggestions... :hiding: :bassist: :eyebrow:
 
#9
geoffkhan said:
You need to get your action and truss rod adjusted. On your bass, that is. So if you lower your action and let a little tension off your truss rod, you're strings will be looser. Remember: a little goes a long way!
Click to expand...

Geoff, this is patently false and you should refrain from repeating this wives tale to anyone else. Sorry for the bluntness but this topic has been discussed on these boards for years.. It isn't open to argument - the facts are these:

There are only 3 things that have an effect on string tension:
1. String gauge - heavier gauge strings require more tension to come up to pitch when tuned. I will include in this category string composition.

2. Pitch - At the given proper tuning, a given string will have only ONE tension figure. Raise the tension of the string and you raise the pitch. Lower the pitch and the tension of the string goes down too.

3. Scale length - A given string, at a given pitch and scale length, will have a higher tension than the same string, tuned to the same pitch but having a shorter scale. This phenomenon seems to remain true for all scale lengths - even up to 36".

These are the facts and there's no way around them...however, there is another phenomenon that is often mistaken for "tension" but is rather a lack of flexibility. This is called "perceived tension"
and is how the strings "feel" to the player. This tactile evidence is unrelated to the actual tension of the string. It is more a product of strings that are stiffer. This isn't tension which is measured linearly. For instance flatwound strings have a flat wire outer wrap. When these strings bend, the square shoulders of the wraps jam against each other and limit the amount of deflection from a straight line they can accomplish when plucked. That feels like they are "tight". Roundwound strings, on the other hand, have the round wire outer wrap. The shoulders of these wires roll against each other without hanging up on the adjacent wrap and this keeps them flexible. That flexibility gives the string a looser feel (and certainly looser than the flatwounds) and gives the impression of less tension.

For more on this subject and discussion with lots of technical evidence - more than enough to make my head spin, do a search for "string tension" and read the discussions. Pay particular attention to responses by PilotJones. He is well versed in the physics of string vibration and has a better vocabulary than I to explain this.
 
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#10
Wow, thanks for the info. I was always curious if adjusting the truss in conjunction with saddle, inotation, and bridge/nut adjustments will make them feel looser. I believe the "tightness" i feel is my lame Elixirs, i also figured out that DR's tite-fit strings, is just a process, its not that they fit tightly.

So now, i ordered a set of...
-Nickel roundwounds (.40-.95)
-a set of Steel roundwounds (.45-.105)
-a set of med-light DR High Beams (.45-.100)

The first two i ordered off that site with the cheap, but i guess very nice, lasting sound, strings for $21, and the DRs were $26 with shipping.

$47 for 3 sets of strings, hopefully this whole thing will end up in me finding the strings i love. I'm going to record each set of strings 3 or 4 time periodically when i replace them with the next, to see closely how they sound....

I guess this is one way of finding the string i dream of, i'll post back when i get them and give my response on whichever i put on first... Thanks again for the great info!!
 
#13
I think you've just discovered the difference between hex core and round core strings. Hex core strings (the Elixers) are (all other things being equal) stiffer than the round core (probably D'Addario) strings you played at the store. Stiffness is not the same thing as tension - but it does feel the same. If you really, really like the Elixers, about the only way to lower the stiffness is to switch to a lighter gauge. And, unfortunately for the hordes of bass players - like yourself - who love that new-string zinginess that comes with a new set of rounds? There really is no way to keep that zinginess for very long - except by putting on new strings. Over and over and over... Sorry, but Life's like that, sometimes...:cool:
 
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#14
GIBrat51 said:
I think you've just discovered the difference between hex core and round core strings. Hex core strings (the Elixers) are (all other things being equal) stiffer than the round core (probably D'Addario) strings you played at the store. Stiffness is not the same thing as tension - but it does feel the same. If you really, really like the Elixers, about the only way to lower the stiffness is to switch to a lighter gauge. Sorry, but Life's like that, sometimes...:cool:
Click to expand...

Yep. If you like the strings but not the tension get a lighter guage first.
 
#17
hogan_facepalm.jpg
Well, poopies... Zombie thread got me... AGAIN...:bawl:
 
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