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Nickle alternative to dr hi beams

D

Drop1

Mar 28, 2019
1,601
1,796
#1
I am trying so hard to get along with Dr hi beams.

They sound amazing. Truly. They are the best sounding strings I've ever found for this bass and I've tried about 40 different sets now.

The problem I'm having is the texture.

It's going on 2 months since I switched to hi beams and they don't seem to get along with my fingers.

They aren't painful to play, they just stick to my darn fingers. This makes playing fast (as fast as I could otherwise play) seem impossible without a substantial loss in volume.

I dont want to go back to elixirs due to tension. Thr hi beams have helped ease my tendinitis a good bit.

The elixirs would build some gnarly , HARD calluses. That coupled with the elixirs coating is a recipe for blazing fast speed. The hi beams seem to sand off a lot if ehere my calluses would usually be. This leaves fingers in a softer state which in turn let's the raw steel stick to my fingers even more.

Im.going to give the hi beams another month but I want to start thinking about alternatives now just in case. I'd say I'm up yo about 3/4ths of my usual speed now on the hi beams but that last bit of speed seems almost impossible to get without playing very light.

I have no problem playing most lines with the hi beams. It's the quick fills giving me all the problems.
Maybe i will have to accept the trade off of speed for sound if I want to keep this sound. Idk.
Are there any nickle strings out their that have a similar bendy feel (round core) that can get into hi beam brightness territory?
 
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#2
DR Sunbeams are basically the nickel-plated steel version of the Hi Beams (stainless steel). The same round core makes them flexible, plus the nickel-plated steel would feel smoother under your fingers.

DR Pure Blues may be an option as well. They're made of nickel-steel alloy on a round core. I would put them somewhere between the Hi Beams and the Sunbeams in term of both tone and feel.
 
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#3
Keep in mind that gnarlyness as well as the stainless steel wrapping of strings contributed to the tone quite a lot. Sunbeams are neither stainless nor as gnarly and not going to be the same. Elixirs Stainless is what you need I think or you can try Dunlop Stainless bright, but these might be as grippy. Tone probably not going to be the same, but might be close enough. Although maybe Sunbeams is going to be a good balance between the tone and tendonitis.
 
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#4
Elixir steel nanos are what I came from. Great strings. They get very bright and last darn near forever. My problem with them is the tension. It sends my tendinitis into fits. My index fingers tendon starts sticking in its sleeve.

I saw pure blues mentioned. I really liked those. I ran them for about a year. Super bendy, but not quite as bright as I'd like.
 
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#10
I think the new Dunlop Dual Design Hybrid Nickels (in the red package) might be worth a try. Their texture feels smooth under the fingers and I like their flexibility. They're supple without being spongy and my bass is effortless to play. My fingers/hands love the way these strings feel.

I've only had those Dunlop Hybrid Nickel strings on my bass for about a month, so I can't speak to their longevity. My experience with DR Hi-Beams is that even a year later they still sounded pretty darn good; like when other strings are breaking down, Hi-Beams are breaking in.

A lot of people like Dunlop SuperBrights. I've never tried the nickels, but I tried the SuperBright steels. I didn't like them. They died on me too quickly and were quite spongy feeling.
 
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#12
It really is “nickel.” I checked before I posted to see if “nickle” was an alternative spelling, but nope. In fact my phone autocorrected it twice and then underlined it in red when I insisted. Just makes me wonder is all.

Good luck with the string search.
 
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#13
Dincrest said:
I think the new Dunlop Dual Design Hybrid Nickels (in the red package) might be worth a try. Their texture feels smooth under the fingers and I like their flexibility. They're supple without being spongy and my bass is effortless to play. My fingers/hands love the way these strings feel.

I've only had those Dunlop Hybrid Nickel strings on my bass for about a month, so I can't speak to their longevity. My experience with DR Hi-Beams is that even a year later they still sounded pretty darn good; like when other strings are breaking down, Hi-Beams are breaking in.

A lot of people like Dunlop SuperBrights. I've never tried the nickels, but I tried the SuperBright steels. I didn't like them. They died on me too quickly and were quite spongy feeling.
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I haven't had a set of hi beams on for more than a couple weeks yet..they lose the new string zing fairly quickly. They sound good for finger style after and I have no idea how long they hold that sound. I just keep replaong them cause that new strimg zing from the beams sounds absolutely AMAZING for slap. These are the only strings I find myself rolling off treble for finger style.
 
#14
Altitude said:
It really is “nickel.” I checked before I posted to see if “nickle” was an alternative spelling, but nope. In fact my phone autocorrected it twice and then underlined it in red when I insisted. Just makes me wonder is all.

Good luck with the string search.
Click to expand...
I'm aware. I have dyslexic fingers (typing faster than I should). You'll find my post have a lot of misspelling. I try to correct most of it, but sometimes it slips by.
I had to fix at least 4 things in this reponse alone...
 
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#18
Gizmot said:
I’ve used Pure Blues and they were fantastic. As far as the feel goes, you’ll have to decide that for yourself. I usually only worry about gauge and I had no issues with either the sound or feel of Pure Blues
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I’ve got a set of Pure Blues on my Classic Vibe 70s Jazz and it sounds great with them on it. Sunbeams are awesome too, though. A bit smoother, more silky to the touch and mellower sounding than Pure Blues, but in the ballpark IMO
 
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#19
michael_t said:
DR Sunbeams are basically the nickel-plated steel version of the Hi Beams (stainless steel). The same round core makes them flexible, plus the nickel-plated steel would feel smoother under your fingers.

DR Pure Blues may be an option as well. They're made of nickel-steel alloy on a round core. I would put them somewhere between the Hi Beams and the Sunbeams in term of both tone and feel.
Click to expand...

I think this might be flipped, the Sunbeams are the round core and the Pure Blues are the hex core if I'm not mistaken.
 
#20
Elmstreet said:
I think this might be flipped, the Sunbeams are the round core and the Pure Blues are the hex core if I'm not mistaken.
Click to expand...

Both Sunbeams and Pure Blues are round core. The difference is nickel-plated steel (Sunbeams) and nickel-steel alloy ("Quantum Nickel").

Lo-Riders, both stainless steel and nickel-plated steel, are hex core.
 
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