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Double Bass Pirastro: Permanent

H

HoodBass12

Jul 27, 2009
23
0
#1
I'm a jazz player and I currently use Helicore Hybrid D'addario. I like them a lot but I want to explore other strings for the future. I play a decent amount of acro as well... so how are the Pirastro Permanents for Jazz/classical... and any other string recommendations? I have a set of Evah Pirazzi and Spirocore (reg and weich) already.

thanks
 
#3
I'm in the same boat. I've got D'addario helicore hybrids on my bass as well. I play more classical than jazz though. So I got a set of permanents that I will probably put on my bass in a couple weeks. I have heard of permanents being used as a hybrid string, even though its main purpose is arco. It's apparently supposed to be 80% arco and 20% pizz use, which seems like a good fit for me since i do more arco than pizz.

When I do put on the permanents, I'll post on this thread again to note the differences I notice with the switch from the hybrids to the permanents. I am also very curious if others can note their experience with permanents, especially if they have also tried helicore hybrids as well. I'm looking forward to trying the permanents.
 
#4
I like the permanent D and G, I've been playing them for about two months now, they took a while to break in and were super bright out of the package. They project amazingly well and are great in the high register. They are pretty thin, but very solid feeling under the fingers. I had the E and A on and ended up taking them off, because they sounded dead on my bass. I have Evah Pirazzis on now that are working surprisingly well with the Permanents. The Pizz tone is very thumpy and powerful. It reminds me of Mingus on my bass, its not as smooth of a tone as something like obligatos, but its great for walking. I've liked them so far.
 
#5
Eli_Upright12 said:
I like the permanent D and G, I've been playing them for about two months now, they took a while to break in and were super bright out of the package. They project amazingly well and are great in the high register. They are pretty thin, but very solid feeling under the fingers. I had the E and A on and ended up taking them off, because they sounded dead on my bass. I have Evah Pirazzis on now that are working surprisingly well with the Permanents. The Pizz tone is very thumpy and powerful. It reminds me of Mingus on my bass, its not as smooth of a tone as something like obligatos, but its great for walking. I've liked them so far.
Click to expand...

How's the clarity on them? Do they sound rough or muffled? I think I may try them as my next string
 
#6
I got a permanent G the other day to try out with a spirocore extended E, Mittel A and D.

Amazing! It's bright, loud and very clear like the spiros, except it sounds better under the bow and starts easier.

The pizz sustains nicely, but the attack of the note is a little different. I used it on a jazz gig and both nights it was fantastic. Sustains even toward the end of the fingerboard.

Tension is a little lower than spirocores. Just adding the G made the whole bass seem easier to play.

I might order a Perm. D this week. Great String!

If you're into dark and thumpy, this might not be your cup of tea.
 
#8
I used these strings for a few years for 99% jazz and 2% (yeah I know) arco practice. Liked them rather a lot. I've posted my feelings on them before when they were fresher in my mind, you might do a search and see what I said.

I actually preferred the E and A string from that set to the D and G, however. One gripe I had was that they sounded amazing, but maybe a tad too growly out of the pack, settled into perfect pretty quickly, then were dead and lifeless in the not-good way within about 6 months. The D seemed to last a few months longer for some reason or maybe I just like the D string deader back then. I always had a guest G on, but in fairness, I was going through a phase with Gs back then. FCS G worked well with them, as did the OLIV, then again, that string works well with everything, until it suddenly unwinds on you.
 
#12
I'm rocking the edgar meyer, or as I prefer the David Murray/old school jazz, Permanents on top and Mittels on the bottom. It is an excellent set. The D and G can get really bright under the bow, but if you have good bow control it doesn't really matter, kind of like the spiros. They are well rounded strings and super powerful, they are fairly stiff strings but that works for me.
 
#13
Could we say gold w/blue winding? Just want to make sure I'm talking about the same string...

These strings came used on a Shen Hybrid I bought, been on there a long time. I'm a jazz player who likes an older-school gutty sound, and I'm really liking the D&G of this set. The E&A are way-dead and way-quiet in comparison, unusable to me. (This is the first time I've ever played permanents btw).

I replaced the E&A with some old Thomastik Weichs and they sound thin and too growly compared to the Permanents, the E in particular.

I'm considering a full new permanent set but am concerned because the E&A I had were really not even close to what I like.

Thoughts?
 
#15
i think they're a great string for both pizz and arco. they project like crazy but what i love about them the most is the bow response. you can get so many different colors by changing your bow placement. for jazz, they took a lot of getting used to, but after you figure out how they work i think they're a really good pizz string. the key for me was adjusting the bridge just right. too high and they're crazy loud but too stiff, too low and they lose their projection. i would recommend them to anyone.
 
#17
i use the whole set, because i love them for arco, which is what i mostly play. you're right about the E and A being fussy. i've been able to get them to work by getting the string height just right. of course, that's always changing (especially here in new england), so i have to move my adjusters quite a bit. also, i have slightly different tension set up on my bass - slightly tall saddle/pegs switched all around. it sounds confusing, but basically the tension is a little looser on the lower strings and tighter on the upper strings. this seems to have a big effect on stiff strings like permanents. i can explain in further detail if you want.
 
#18
Francois Blais said:
You won't like them more with a new set I'm afraid.
Click to expand...

It depends on how old they were, in my experience. When they go dead, which for me was 6-8 months of heavy use, they are devoid of character and utterly unlike a newer set. I went through this for a few years, I decided that I had grown to hate them, but not having a better idea or time to experiment, I replaced them with new Perms and realized that they were just toast, then new ones (on E and A anyway) made me happy every time....until I moved on.
 
#19
Do you play a lot of pizzicato Troy?


The older E&A I have are reasonable for arco but for pizz they're about the worst string I've ever played...

I'm willing to believe a new set could be totally different, but these old ones are so bad for pizz that I wouldn't be surprised if a new set wasn't happening either...
 

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