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Double Bass New! Pirastro Perpetual Double Bass strings

#1,681
I'm really liking the Perpetuals because of the lower tension, but I think it might be at the cost of my sound/tone. There's a certain "oomph" or "punch" I seem to get with stiffer and/or higher tension strings, like Spiro Mitts and Evah's, that I'm just not getting with the Perps. I might post something in one of the Evah Pirazzi threads, but I'm actually considering the route of Evah Weichs over a regular Evah E string. (After a very brief daydream of trying the Evah Gold/Slaps again.)
 
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#1,684
Ok, I’m not a string junkie. I spent a long time on Spiros, in the last 5-6 years I’ve used Evah Weichs (which I like a lot). Yesterday I put a set of Perpetuals with a Stark G on my 1977 Wilfer. The bass itself always has a ton (often too much) growl and a lot of mids. I had Evah weich G and D over Spiro E and A (mittel) on this bass for a few years. They sounded ok as a set for a while, but as the Evahs mellowed the difference became more noticeable.

Anyway, the Stark G sounded great right away. Maybe the holy grail G string… the open E and A sound like metallic new strings, nothing strange and I think they’ll settle in nicely. The open D string is completely obnoxious, like a new Spiro on meth… it’s loud and ridiculous… Has anyone had this experience? I’m considering trying the Stark D. It looks like some of you have tried this?
 
#1,685
I didn't like either the G or D stark version. To me on my bass they had more of what I disliked about Spiros and less of what I liked about Perps. It's all so bass and player dependant. Last week I heard my pianist cousin play a trio gig and the bassist had Perps on a older Juzek with medium easy to play action and played unamplified. I heard every note clear as a bell. You just gotta spend your money and take your chances. I think that's why Spiros are so popular. They might not be ideal but you know they'll work and you can forget about them for a long time and pay attention to other stuff.
 
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#1,686
ejnachtrab said:
Ok, I’m not a string junkie. I spent a long time on Spiros, in the last 5-6 years I’ve used Evah Weichs (which I like a lot). Yesterday I put a set of Perpetuals with a Stark G on my 1977 Wilfer. The bass itself always has a ton (often too much) growl and a lot of mids. I had Evah weich G and D over Spiro E and A (mittel) on this bass for a few years. They sounded ok as a set for a while, but as the Evahs mellowed the difference became more noticeable.

Anyway, the Stark G sounded great right away. Maybe the holy grail G string… the open E and A sound like metallic new strings, nothing strange and I think they’ll settle in nicely. The open D string is completely obnoxious, like a new Spiro on meth… it’s loud and ridiculous… Has anyone had this experience? I’m considering trying the Stark D. It looks like some of you have tried this?
Click to expand...

I love the stark D and G. I also didn’t have an issue with the regular set but noticed a bump in low end with the new strings. The E A Will take more time then you want to settle in but it’s worth it.
 
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#1,687
Sam Dingle said:
I love the stark D and G. I also didn’t have an issue with the regular set but noticed a bump in low end with the new strings. The E A Will take more time then you want to settle in but it’s worth it.
Click to expand...

I think I’m gonna go for it. I really like this Stark G. The Perpetuals feel great and the sound is nice and even across the bass, except the friggin’ open D which will hopefully mellow out. I think they actually sound pretty good under the bow too. I honestly can’t see myself going back to Spiros (besides, I have a drawer full of old ones and I honestly think I’ve only ever really killed one set.). It’s these or Evah Weichs… for now.
 
#1,688
Just thought I'd post some of my thoughts based on recent experiences.

I first tried the Perps about 4 years ago and liked them initially, mostly due to the playability. After about 9 months, I felt as though they'd lost something so I changed them out.

Flash forward to last October (see earlier in this thread) I tried them again in a mixed set. Regular Perpetual G, D & A over Spiro Weich (S42) E string. This was coming from a set of Spirocore Mediums (S42). The main reason I changed was because I got a regular gig with a Big Band that plays once a week on top of other gigs (weddings, festivals, special functions, etc.) and wanted something lighter but without the brutal break in Period of Spiro Weichs.

The Perps sounded good on my bass I I definitely liked them, but it took me a while to realize they lacked a certain "punch" both acoustically and through my amps. So about a week and a half ago I put on a set of 3/4 Spirocore Weichs, hoping they'd be somewhere in between the S42 Mediums and Weichs (which, to be fair, they are).

On my bass and the way I play I noticed these things. The Spirocores have more "punch"/"oomph" and more depth, especially in the low end. I know every player and every bass is different, but these are just some of my observations. I do really enjoy going back and reading my old posts to see how my opinions and ideas have changed over the years.
 
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#1,689
PBandJazzBass said:
Just thought I'd post some of my thoughts based on recent experiences.

I first tried the Perps about 4 years ago and liked them initially, mostly due to the playability. After about 9 months, I felt as though they'd lost something so I changed them out.

Flash forward to last October (see earlier in this thread) I tried them again in a mixed set. Regular Perpetual G, D & A over Spiro Weich (S42) E string. This was coming from a set of Spirocore Mediums (S42). The main reason I changed was because I got a regular gig with a Big Band that plays once a week on top of other gigs (weddings, festivals, special functions, etc.) and wanted something lighter but without the brutal break in Period of Spiro Weichs.

The Perps sounded good on my bass I I definitely liked them, but it took me a while to realize they lacked a certain "punch" both acoustically and through my amps. So about a week and a half ago I put on a set of 3/4 Spirocore Weichs, hoping they'd be somewhere in between the S42 Mediums and Weichs (which, to be fair, they are).

On my bass and the way I play I noticed these things. The Spirocores have more "punch"/"oomph" and more depth, especially in the low end. I know every player and every bass is different, but these are just some of my observations. I do really enjoy going back and reading my old posts to see how my opinions and ideas have changed over the years.
Click to expand...

I switched from Spirocores to Perpetual and I agree with your assessment that the former have more "punch", but I'm willing to accept less of that quality for the easier playability and smoother arco response of the Perpetuals. It's a fair trade off for my needs.

- Steve
 
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#1,690
One thing to consider when changing strings and feeling like a new set lacks “punch and oomph” is that the new set might benefit from a sound post adjustment. I recently took my bass in to Max Morgan in Cleveland to have the fingerboard planed. While there, he had me play and after seeing how the bass sounded from a distance pizz and arco, he had me play some long notes on each string under the bow. After watching the vibration of the strings under the bow, he made a modest adjustment to the sound post that brought back a lot of punch and balance across the strings that I didn’t even realize I was missing. The guys at practice event noticed the next week. (We practice unamplified—fiddle/mando, banjo, accordion, guitar, drums.) Three years on, I’m still digging the regular Perpetuals. The sound and playability after Max’s recent adjustments to my instrument further cemented them as the right choice for me.
 
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#1,691
Just to add to some of the recent posts, I tried a full set of Perps on my basses when they came out, coming from many years of Spirocores. Indeed, I noticed all of the qualities that everyone had mentioned they liked and disliked about them. They are very flexible, and bow a little easier than Spirocores—but that’s a generalization. After some time, I went back to Spirocores, and what I realized is that the Spiro E&A have a warmer tone than Perpetuals, and are more punchy but don’t have the same amount of “growl”. The Perpetual E in particular has a very clear growl that seems to be built into the string, whereas the Spiro growl is a little more dependent on setup. That said, the Spiro E has more punch with the bow. My impressions on Spiro is that the D and G are quite “whiny” sounding, and there is a long break in period until it goes away. The heavier the gauge, the less obvious it is. So, I did some experimenting mixing and matching strings. I have tried the 3/4 Weich E&A with Obligato, Belcanto, and Perpetual D&G. I have tried other strings too. The Obligatos work great on my Kolstein but not as good on my La Scala Hybrid. The best pairing has been the 3/4 Weich E&A with Perpetual Stark D&G. The Perpetual Stark is nearly the same tension as the regular Perpetuals, but they are a little bit thicker and it looks to me like they have a layer of fiber/filament under the wrap between the wrap and the core. This tames the brightness a little bit an makes them a little easier to start with the bow. Hence, my recommendation is this setup or if you prefer a 4/4 Mittel E&A on the bottom. I went off of the tension charts published by DoubleMIDI to determine what pairing would give the most even tensions. I personally like a little higher tension on the low strings, but not much. Equal tension is just as good for me. Good luck on your string journey and finding what works for you and your bass!
 
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#1,695
BTW. I have put this on late last year and totally happy with them. Somehow the E has settled in. It was a bit buzzy at first. I think I was just not managing the humidity during the beginning of the season. My bass is an early Lemur Catalina with a rather wide bout. I think I am not picky anymore at this point and stopped getting obsessed. Don't know how long these would last but I prefer them to Spiro in all counts. The Flexocore Deluxe is also the other one I love and I might put in the Flexocore E one of these days. After decades I would say, I found something that may have taken me away from Spirocores.

It was fun to experiment with other strings. For what I do these just work.
 
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#1,697
A friendly note mentioning that I have a like new set of Perpetuals for sale here on TB. Bought them new from String Emporium and were on my bass for maybe an hour tops and off they went. Obviously I was not a fan but they deserve a good home.

Happy to take offers.
Adam
 
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#1,699
I've had Perpetuals on my bass for a couple of years now and play mostly arco. I'm in love with them. I have always wanted my bass to sound like a cello in cello register - think the G and D strings - and these strings do that for me. Juzek, Metropolitan carbon bow with white hair.

-S-
 
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