There’s a reason basses used to have three strings.
martinc, I’ve been married so I’m used to things being my fault. It’s cool.
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Double Bass New! Pirastro Perpetual Double Bass strings
- Thread starter luisraulmunoz
- Start date
There’s a reason basses used to have three strings.
martinc, I’ve been married so I’m used to things being my fault. It’s cool.
Thought about trying a wrapped or evan a synthetic? I've heard evah weich E is nice, and once heard someone using an evah medium A tuned down...i'm sure you know all this though.
Hello from Norway!
Put the strings on on tuesday - due to long-lasting neck/shoulder issues both me and my bass are a bit rusty - but I really like the strings so far. They replaced Daddario Zyex medium(which I also like a lot); IMHO the Perpetuals have a more complex sound in comparison, more woody but still with enough growl and top end. Looking fwd to my first gig in a month or two.
Put the strings on on tuesday - due to long-lasting neck/shoulder issues both me and my bass are a bit rusty - but I really like the strings so far. They replaced Daddario Zyex medium(which I also like a lot); IMHO the Perpetuals have a more complex sound in comparison, more woody but still with enough growl and top end. Looking fwd to my first gig in a month or two.
I'm a believer and wish to join the club. Purchased the Perps used here on TB and received them Monday replacing my 7 month old Spiro Mitts on my New Standard Hybrid. On my bass they're just as loud as Spiros but more flexible making them easier on the hands. The tone is a little brighter but the big plus for me is the notes seems more focused and even making it easier to hear the pitch. I play mainly pizz and amplified when playing with people and really can't comment on how well they bow. Played with a quiet jazz guitar trio w/drums last night and my bass never sounded better. Beautiful tone and easy to dial in a sound. Now if I can get a year out of them.
‘Twas I. The plain set makes sense because the fingerboard is beautiful, original and in nearly perfect condition. If I wasn’t sensitive about damaging it I’d throw on the set of NOS Artones I just received.
I received my testset yesterday. Initial impressions very promising. Will report back later.
So I have decided to install these on my King Mortone. I have a gig tonight and typically use that bass with this group (too risky to bring my carved bass). I’m going to change them later today. My current Spiro/Gato set is pretty dead on that bass, although the Obligato Solo D and G still has a bit of life left. I normally start with the G string, but I’m going to start by replacing the Spiros on the E and A for a good comparison and will take some video. This will give me a little more time to test the Spiro/Flex Deluxe combo on my carved Kolstein Guarneri, but I have a feeling I will be getting some Perpetuals for that bass too.
They can rut the board if you play heavily and don’t maintain your instrument or strings.
Okay I put the Perpetuals on my King. More like Spiros than I thought. Gig soon!
The guys at Gage's shop all feel that guts are harder on fingerboards than steel. This is counterintuitive to me. Some speculate that even though the material is softer, the greater excursion of the guts is what does it. If you love the sound and feel of guts it's worth it though.
I had a flatback from around 1880 that wore guts and probably hadn’t had the board planes since WW2. The low positions were heavily rutted.
As I said, take care of your tools and they’ll take care of you.
As I said, take care of your tools and they’ll take care of you.
Gig report with Perpetual strings:
I just got back from a gig with one of the trios I play in. It’s more of an Americana / Roots Rock group (although I’m mostly a jazz player). The Perpetuals are very easy to play. The sound like Spirocore, but they do seem to start better with the bow although I would need to do more tests on my carved bass playing some classical rep. They are indeed thinner than the Spiro Weich / Obligato Solo mixed set I was using before. When I first put them on, they felt tighter than my old set, but I used a square to check my bridge and it turned out my bridge was leaning a little towards the fingerboard so after I adjusted that the action came down a bit. The strings felt easier to play. The E string is amazing...it’s very bright and growls even more than my Spiro did. The feel and flexibility of these strings is even better than the Spirocore—they feel like what I have been looking for, but would probably be a better fit for my carved bass. I think I might still prefer the Obligato Solo D and G for this plywood bass. I like the thinner strings for my arco playing on my carved bass. I may wind up using these on my Kolstein and going back to my Spiro-Gato mix on the King.
To sum up: they feel and sound similar to Spirocores, but the E is brighter, they are a bit more flexible, and seem to be a bit smoother with the bow (but more tests are needed on a carved bass). The are very nice strings indeed!
I just got back from a gig with one of the trios I play in. It’s more of an Americana / Roots Rock group (although I’m mostly a jazz player). The Perpetuals are very easy to play. The sound like Spirocore, but they do seem to start better with the bow although I would need to do more tests on my carved bass playing some classical rep. They are indeed thinner than the Spiro Weich / Obligato Solo mixed set I was using before. When I first put them on, they felt tighter than my old set, but I used a square to check my bridge and it turned out my bridge was leaning a little towards the fingerboard so after I adjusted that the action came down a bit. The strings felt easier to play. The E string is amazing...it’s very bright and growls even more than my Spiro did. The feel and flexibility of these strings is even better than the Spirocore—they feel like what I have been looking for, but would probably be a better fit for my carved bass. I think I might still prefer the Obligato Solo D and G for this plywood bass. I like the thinner strings for my arco playing on my carved bass. I may wind up using these on my Kolstein and going back to my Spiro-Gato mix on the King.
To sum up: they feel and sound similar to Spirocores, but the E is brighter, they are a bit more flexible, and seem to be a bit smoother with the bow (but more tests are needed on a carved bass). The are very nice strings indeed!
Thinner than Spirocore Weichs? I'd have to check the numbers, but that doesn't seem right to me. I'm confident the the Purp G is larger gauge than Spirocore weich G. If you're comparing those treble size strings to Obligatos (on gauge), then maybe. I can't look up the measurements right now, but my initial reaction.
Heres what Gollihur lists for the perpetual strings:
- G=.047
- D=.062
- A= .074
- E= .106
Weich S42W
G=.046
D=.063
A=.079
E=.107
Medium S42 (Mittel)
G=.051
D=.068
A=.082
E=.110
You guys are both right. The low strings are a tad thinner than the S42 Weichs. The high strings are barely thicker, but much thinner than the Obligato Solos I just removed. I keep thinking I might like these better on my carved bass....definitely want to test them on a fully carved instrument. I like them though!
Those numbers make sense to me. I replaced my Spiro Weichs with the Perpetuals on my Eberle ply....the difference in gauges is negligible.
The main difference is in the tension. The Perpetuals have a bit more tension but feel a bit looser. But they are very easy on the left hand.
Tension numbers (lbs) from a previous post about 4 years ago for Spiro S42 Weichs:
G 55-7 D 54.3 A 61.4 E 68.3
Perpetuals converted from kiloponds to kilogram force to lbs force:
G 57.9 D 58.1 A 63.1 E 62.9
The Perpetual tensions in metric came from Double Midi's charts. Kiloponds are almost identical to kilogram force.
The main difference is in the tension. The Perpetuals have a bit more tension but feel a bit looser. But they are very easy on the left hand.
Tension numbers (lbs) from a previous post about 4 years ago for Spiro S42 Weichs:
G 55-7 D 54.3 A 61.4 E 68.3
Perpetuals converted from kiloponds to kilogram force to lbs force:
G 57.9 D 58.1 A 63.1 E 62.9
The Perpetual tensions in metric came from Double Midi's charts. Kiloponds are almost identical to kilogram force.
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Kiloponds are a force, kilograms are a weight.
A kilopond is the force that a kilogram makes towards the ground on earths surface.
Using kilogram as a unit for string tension is wrong, but since most people have no idea what kilopond means, kilogram gives a better idea to those people than kilopond, even if this is a wrong unit for this purpose.
So kg as a description for string tension means kp with the same value.
A kilopond is the force that a kilogram makes towards the ground on earths surface.
Using kilogram as a unit for string tension is wrong, but since most people have no idea what kilopond means, kilogram gives a better idea to those people than kilopond, even if this is a wrong unit for this purpose.
So kg as a description for string tension means kp with the same value.
Greg Clinkingbeard
Commercial User
I’ve had a few gigs on them and all is well. The sound through the amp is clear, but warm. It has sufficient weight and cuts through well. The strings feel good and they are staying on.
