Noisiest Strings for Practice

[mellroc]

So I've only been playing for a few months now, and I'm actually having a lot of fun concentrating on my smoothness/muting/playing cleanly technique.

When I practice, I crank up the treble all the way, use the bridge pickup, and make things as bright and noisy as possible to highlight my flaws. This gives me plenty to work on.

What strings do you consider best for highlighting all the flaws in my playing? I read lots of complaints on here about certain strings making lots of noise as you slide up and down the neck. For my purposes, that's not a bug, that's a feature!

This is all on a Yamaha TRBX604, FWIW.

 

[michael_t]

What strings do you consider best for highlighting all the flaws in my playing? I read lots of complaints on here about certain strings making lots of noise as you slide up and down the neck. For my purposes, that's not a bug, that's a feature!

Rotosound Swingbass 66 Stainless Steel Roundwound wound be a good place to start.

 

[micguy]

If you want noisy and screechy, you don't necessarily need a bright set of strings. A set of in ears with a bad seal will do the trick.

You are a bit unusual. Most folks 'round here are looking for gear that makes them sound awesome, even with sloppy technique. Your approach will, over time, win, though.

 

[mellroc]

You are a bit unusual.

LOl. This is not the 1st time I've been called unusual, and definitely won't be the last.

 

[ddnidd1]

Stainless Steel strings

 

[michael_t]

Stainless Steel strings

You should specify "roundwound"; stainless steel flats won't do anything for the OP.

 

[bolophonic]

When I put Chromes on my bass, all I could hear was the strings clacking against the frets the whole time. So if you want noisy, that’s what I recommend.

 

[michael_t]

When I practice, I crank up the treble all the way, use the bridge pickup, and make things as bright and noisy as possible to highlight my flaws.

You want bright and noisy? What you really need is an acoustic bass with bronze roundwound strings on it for practice.

 

[GTHintz]

I don't think there's a particular string that will make exceptionally more finger noise than the rest but I would recommend some good roundwounds and try to incorporate your style into what you play. I typically go for more focused and bridge favoring tone and I realize that with clarity comes responsibility. I play out front and it means that I can't hide as easily as others. My favorite strings are Blue Steel and Ken Smith Rockmasters. They both have clarity especially the Ken Smith strings and if you're going to try to play out front and cut through either would do that for you. Mids will be a good thing in your eq as well. I like a gentle mid boost. Hopefully I've been helpful.

 

[Gorn]

Get an acoustic with phosphor bronze strings and you’ll learn what noisy really means.

 

[MisterUbu]

to add, make sure the acoustic bass has a piezo pickup+preamp, you'll have all the HF content to make your dogs sick!

 

[Ggaa]

IME LaBella Super Steps.

 

[SixtyCycleHum]

Rotosound Swingbass 66 Stainless Steel Roundwound wound be a good place to start.

Man, if only I could afford to keep putting those on my bass fresh. I'd definitely use them. They die way too fast.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

So I've only been playing for a few months now, and I'm actually having a lot of fun concentrating on my smoothness/muting/playing cleanly technique.

When I practice, I crank up the treble all the way, use the bridge pickup, and make things as bright and noisy as possible to highlight my flaws. This gives me plenty to work on.

What strings do you consider best for highlighting all the flaws in my playing? I read lots of complaints on here about certain strings making lots of noise as you slide up and down the neck. For my purposes, that's not a bug, that's a feature!

This is all on a Yamaha TRBX604, FWIW.

Any good round wound sting will do. That said, a digital recorder and listening to yourself might be more useful as it is almost impossible to remember every not you play. Congrats on your choice of instrument.

 

[SixtyCycleHum]

YES!

All of this! This approach is not silly at all. By doing this, you are going to do a few things.

- Annoy the living crud out of yourself and anyone unfortunate enough to be nearby
- Explore a wide range of tones
- Over time, develop incredibly smooth technique. You will make these settings work somehow.

I'm all for this.

 

[mrjim123]

Personally, I think you're overthinking it.

When you're playing live, 99% of what you are currently hearing when you play by yourself (tone-wise) will never be heard - it will be be lost in the mix. When you're practicing by yourself, crank the highs WAY back, and don't worry about the minor imperfections that creep in - that comes later. Concentrate on the fundamental tone that you hear.

 

[Lenny JG]

Anybody know what strings offer the thickest outer wraps in steel? I'd imagine that would be the answer.

 

[skycruiser]

So I've only been playing for a few months now, and I'm actually having a lot of fun concentrating on my smoothness/muting/playing cleanly technique.

When I practice, I crank up the treble all the way, use the bridge pickup, and make things as bright and noisy as possible to highlight my flaws. This gives me plenty to work on.

What strings do you consider best for highlighting all the flaws in my playing? I read lots of complaints on here about certain strings making lots of noise as you slide up and down the neck. For my purposes, that's not a bug, that's a feature!

This is all on a Yamaha TRBX604, FWIW.

I can't answer your question, but that's a really nice choice for a beginner bass!

 

[Iristone]

Man, if only I could afford to keep putting those on my bass fresh. I'd definitely use them. They die way too fast.

Try DR Bootzillas. Basically coated Swing Basses

 

[Killing Floor]

They all highlight my flaws!