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Double Bass New! Pirastro Perpetual Double Bass strings

#841
Hey all,

Late to the PPP (Pirastro Perpetuals Party) but the set arrived yesterday and I’ll be posting my initial reaction and, hopefully, a track with video as well. Practice room vibe isn’t like being on a gig, but from the many pages of reviews on TB I’ve read so far, I’m very excited to hear what these strings can do.

Also, it’ll give me the opportunity to figure out how (if possible) I can sync a video I’ve taken with my phone to a track I’ve recorded on GarageBand. (Feel free to weigh in on that by the way ).

Stay well out there!
 
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#845
Hey folks,

Raining cats & dogs here in Los Angeles. Makes it a little easier to be sequestered at home.

Anyway, put the Perpetuals on this afternoon and have some very preliminary observations based on all of about 15min of playing.
I’m using for comparison the set of Helicore Hybrid Lights I had on previously to putting on the Perpetuals.
• Tension-wise very similar to the Helicores, which is fine as I was comfortable with that part.
• String appearance was very polished and smooth under the fingers. They are also slightly thicker even though the tension was about the same.
• Tone was noticeably darker and warmer. A big contrast to the brightness and high-end cut of the Helicores. Although I haven’t tried them under the bow yet, I suspect that will translate to a more favorable arco sound.

I’m going to put together a little demo video and post it here in the near future along with some more detailed observations.

So far, I’m happy with the choice and look forward to more playing on these very comfortable strings.
 
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#846
BassiklyAC said:
Hey folks,

Raining cats & dogs here in Los Angeles. Makes it a little easier to be sequestered at home.

Anyway, put the Perpetuals on this afternoon and have some very preliminary observations based on all of about 15min of playing.
I’m using for comparison the set of Helicore Hybrid Lights I had on previously to putting on the Perpetuals.
• Tension-wise very similar to the Helicores, which is fine as I was comfortable with that part.
• String appearance was very polished and smooth under the fingers. They are also slightly thicker even though the tension was about the same.
• Tone was noticeably darker and warmer. A big contrast to the brightness and high-end cut of the Helicores. Although I haven’t tried them under the bow yet, I suspect that will translate to a more favorable arco sound.

I’m going to put together a little demo video and post it here in the near future along with some more detailed observations.

So far, I’m happy with the choice and look forward to more playing on these very comfortable strings.
Click to expand...
A string Wolf Update???
Better or Worse? Same?
Thanks.
 
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#847
BassiklyAC said:
Hey folks,

Raining cats & dogs here in Los Angeles. Makes it a little easier to be sequestered at home.

Anyway, put the Perpetuals on this afternoon and have some very preliminary observations based on all of about 15min of playing.
I’m using for comparison the set of Helicore Hybrid Lights I had on previously to putting on the Perpetuals.
• Tension-wise very similar to the Helicores, which is fine as I was comfortable with that part.
• String appearance was very polished and smooth under the fingers. They are also slightly thicker even though the tension was about the same.
• Tone was noticeably darker and warmer. A big contrast to the brightness and high-end cut of the Helicores. Although I haven’t tried them under the bow yet, I suspect that will translate to a more favorable arco sound.

I’m going to put together a little demo video and post it here in the near future along with some more detailed observations.

So far, I’m happy with the choice and look forward to more playing on these very comfortable strings.
Click to expand...

I also had a set of Helicore Hybrid Lights on my bass before switching to the Perpetuals and my observations were very similar to yours. In general I feel like the Perpetuals also have a cleaner and more defined pitch center than the Helicores.
 
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#851
Tomorrow going to post a video of me playing on the Perpetuals and then on an old set of Zyex.
I feel like the owner of a baseball team that’s spent a ridiculous amount of money on a free agent who’s batting .180 at the All-Star break. Could turn it around in the second half but I’m thinking about cutting my losses.

I’m also an hour into a couple of Vicodin, so there’s that...(see back pain thread).
 
#852
BassiklyAC said:
Tomorrow going to post a video of me playing on the Perpetuals and then on an old set of Zyex.
I feel like the owner of a baseball team that’s spent a ridiculous amount of money on a free agent who’s batting .180 at the All-Star break. Could turn it around in the second half but I’m thinking about cutting my losses.

I’m also an hour into a couple of Vicodin, so there’s that...(see back pain thread).
Click to expand...

What do you think of the Zyex E string?
 
#853
BassiklyAC said:
Tomorrow going to post a video of me playing on the Perpetuals and then on an old set of Zyex.
I feel like the owner of a baseball team that’s spent a ridiculous amount of money on a free agent who’s batting .180 at the All-Star break. Could turn it around in the second half but I’m thinking about cutting my losses.

I’m also an hour into a couple of Vicodin, so there’s that...(see back pain thread).
Click to expand...
BassiklyAC said:
Tomorrow going to post a video of me playing on the Perpetuals and then on an old set of Zyex.
Click to expand...

Perpetuals - pizz:


Perpetuals - arco
 
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#855
So my takeaway from my brief at-home experience with the Pirastro Perpetuals is that I found them somewhat underwhelming. Granted, I would prefer to have taken them for a spin on a few gigs, but my general feeling is that they will not be staying on my instrument.

Strangely enough, and after reading the description on the Pirastro website, I found them to be rather lifeless. Comfortable to play but - and I know this is kind of vague - missing a vibe/character. Perhaps this transparency is a desirable trait whereby the player shines through without any coloration from the string. I get it.

Will likely be posting in the classifieds if anyone’s interested in an extremely lightly used set of strings to experiment with at a modest price.

Cheers!
 
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#856
BassiklyAC said:
A little timid compared to the others but seemed to open up a bit after some playing time. It was something I was willing to concede in light of the overall vibe of the set and I’m not a mix & match kind of guy.
Click to expand...

I don't mix and match myself. I've thought about giving the Zyex's another try. I had a set on my main bass about 5 years ago and a recording from around that time does sound good. The Perpetuals sound good on my bass but I don't know if I'm going to put another set of them on when it comes time to change. Maybe Helicores, or Spiros or Evah's. I guess we'll just see what kind of mood I'm in at the time.
 
#858
I'm still happy with the Perpetuals except that the nine month old set on my Wundelrich bass now sounds too lifeless for jazz pizzicato. This may have been hastened but the fact that I rented this bass out a couple of times. The four month old set on my E.H.Roth bass sounds more lively, but longevity is a concern. I don't want to spend $500 on bass strings every year and I know that the three year old set of Spircores currently in my string drawer still sounded good before I made the switch.

- Steve
 
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