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NYXL vs. Fat Beams

scubaduba

scubaduba

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Dec 23, 2003
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#1
I've been a die hard stainless guy for years. Recently, I've been dabbling with nickel strings a bit more having strung basses with Dunlop Super Bright Nickels, Pure Blues, Pedulla Nickel, and recently acquiring another Sire which come with D'Addario XL's. I really like the Pure Blues and the Super Brights are OK. My stainless of choice has been Fat Beams (or Hi Beams) but I strung a bass with Fat Beams last night... and well... didn't have the same feeling I normally get. Maybe my tastes are in fact changing a bit.

So I'm wondering about the D'Addario NYXL's. Seems people love them or hate them. Anybody compare them to DR Fat Beams or Hi Beams in terms of feel and tone?
 
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#2
not so much on hatred I think... at least not on their feel and tone. Major issue is that they are priced too much for the kind of strings that sound just the same as their cheaper XL Nickels, with looser feel (or lower tension or whatever you would call it) due to the usage of smaller hex core.
 
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#4
I like stainless strings. My fave tone were the Dean Markley Helix, but they have been discontinued. Nowadays for stainless tone, I go to Dunlop Super Brights stainless or DR Low-Rider stainless. Neither is as big and punchy as the Helix were, but they do have the interesting midrange and upper mid presence I expect from stainless.

Pure Blues have some of the bigness and punchyness I was used to with the Helix strings. But the overall tone isn't the same. Which is to be expected, because Pure Blues aren't a stainless string. But Pure Blues are my overall fave string right now for any bass which doesn't need stainless. I still put only stainless on my Fender Jaguar with Lollar Thunderbird pickups. Right now it was DR Low-Rider stainless on it.

I wouldn't bother with the Marcus Miller Super Brights, as they lack everything which makes the Stainless Super Brights great. Similarly, I never liked Fat Beams, his old string.

You could also try Fodera's Stainless strings. They do not look or sound like typical stainless. They have more of a nickel sound. But they aren't as punchy as some other strings. However, they setup extremely well, have a balanced feel, and the way they vibrate is somehow more controlled.

However, I like Pure Blues so much for many reasons. So I have a hard time recommending anything else, unless someone really wants stainless.
 
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#5
scubaduba said:
I've been a die hard stainless guy for years. Recently, I've been dabbling with nickel strings a bit more having strung basses with Dunlop Super Bright Nickels, Pure Blues, Pedulla Nickel, and recently acquiring another Sire which come with D'Addario XL's. I really like the Pure Blues and the Super Brights are OK. My stainless of choice has been Fat Beams (or Hi Beams) but I strung a bass with Fat Beams last night... and well... didn't have the same feeling I normally get. Maybe my tastes are in fact changing a bit.

So I'm wondering about the D'Addario NYXL's. Seems people love them or hate them. Anybody compare them to DR Fat Beams or Hi Beams in terms of feel and tone?
Click to expand...

I'm a big fan of the NYXL's. I've had 2 sets on my Moollon J5 and they've both been great. I had been using regular XLs for a few years and I like the NYXL's better. Tension is a bit looser and they have more of what I like about stainless steel strings (much broader range of tone IME) without being stainless. Before I used XLs I was more of DR Sunbeam guy but found they were just a bit too loose for me. I've since come around to DR Pure Blues and use those on a couple of basses. I recently put a set of Fat Beams on a 74 Jazz cause that seemed like the perfect string for that bass and so far it has been. They feel, not surprisingly, like a stainless steel Sun Beam.

So to your question, if you like the Pure Blues and Fat Beams, I think you'll like the XLNYs. They just feel really nice and at least when new have a much broader tonal range (ie. many more options available when you adjust volume and tone controls). And like everyone else, just wish they were cheaper. FWIW, not a fan at all on any Dunlop strings I've tried.
 
#6
I love the NYXL strings. They seem to last much longer than any other strings i have tried. They resonate well with tons of harmonics and undertones, almost piano like.
I also like DR Lo-rider's, I do prefer the lower tension on the NYXLs. I have never tried the Fatbeams, but they are on the list. The Hi beams always seemed too zingy to me and the finger sliding noises drive me crazy, by the time i turn the treble down to compensate I have lost all the tone in them.
Try each one, some sound better on different basses. Right now I'm hooked on the NYXLs.
 
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#7
jnslprd,
Although I wouldn't want to persuade you not to try the Fat Beams (which I love), if you didn't enjoy the Hi-Beams you may not appreciate the Fats which retain Hi-Beam like zingyness. Similar in feel and, as I understand it, the Fats are the same string only wound slower at manufacturing so you get more bass and mids to the string but will likely keep your finger sliding noises. BTW, I'm also a fan of the Lo-riders.
 
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#8
eriky4003 said:
jnslprd,
Although I wouldn't want to persuade you not to try the Fat Beams (which I love), if you didn't enjoy the Hi-Beams you may not appreciate the Fats which retain Hi-Beam like zingyness. Similar in feel and, as I understand it, the Fats are the same string only wound slower at manufacturing so you get more bass and mids to the string but will likely keep your finger sliding noises. BTW, I'm also a fan of the Lo-riders.
Click to expand...

I am waiting on a new bass this week and the Pure clues have caught my eye, so not sure which way I want to go yet. I'm still loving the NYXLs though, just not sure how the will sound on a jazz bass.
 
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#11
scubaduba said:
Just put a set of the NYXL'S on my Sire P7 replacing regular XL'S and I'm underwhelmed. Fat Beams and Pure Blues feel better and sound better. These NYXL'S just seem neutral and flat which maybe a good thing for some. Too polite for my taste.
Click to expand...

The top two strings I have tried recently are Kalium Hybrids and DAddario NYXLs (both with tapered Low B's).

IMO DR Strings are really good if you play 4 string, but their B string are seriously lacking, and can't even come close to NYXL or Kalium.
I rely heavily on my B string and always try it first out of the pack, and if its not sounding perfect then the strings are pretty much useless to me, and that sums up DR (and many other brands) for me unfortunately.
 
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#13
scubaduba said:
So interesting how different our perceptions can be. I'm going to give these NYXLs more time and see how they break in. For now they aren't wowing me.
Click to expand...

Can you please tell me what exact set you got?

The reason I am asking is because my very first NYXL set I tried had a 80-100 (and maybe because of the thinner core) I thought they were absolutely terrible and thin sounding. So to be sure I tried a heavier set with the 85-105 and then I realized how good these strings are. Also with the 5 string set that goes 80-100-130, the 130 untapered did not sound very good at all to my ears. It wasn't until I got the tapered 130 that I became happy with the B string.
 
#16
scubaduba said:
Just put a set of the NYXL'S on my Sire P7 replacing regular XL'S and I'm underwhelmed. Fat Beams and Pure Blues feel better and sound better. These NYXL'S just seem neutral and flat which maybe a good thing for some. Too polite for my taste.
Click to expand...

Interesting. I currently have all those strings on a few different basses and like em all for different reasons. NYXls are on a J5. To me they have elements of all of the other 4. Polite wouldn’t be the way I’d describe them - maybe a little more refined? They’re my favorite of that group if I had to pick and use them on more basses were it not for the price. Give them some time to break in a bit.
 

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