Poll: How many different brands/styles of strings do you use?

[Aloe]

all I use now is stainless rounds. I use one brand on my electrics and other on my semi-acoustic tho

I agree with 'every bass chooses strings', but both my electrics chose the same brand, but in different gauges

 

[fishdude101101]

Whatever I use, they go dead after 3 weeks. Damn. Makes me wonder whether my idea of "strings dying" is totally wrong if none seem to last as long as I thought they should or I am sweating some weird sort of acid from my skin which destroys them 10x faster than normal!

I'm the same really a rehearsal and one gig and the new string sound is long gone for me. Must be my sweat as opposed to others, and might be why I've never broken a string.

 

[onda'bass]

Flats =Chromes - the best, and I tried them all.
Rounds - currently DR DDT 120-40 very nice in standard tuning(not a metal player) but D'addario EXl was/are my go to since forever.

 

[sgiacomo]

I'm the same really a rehearsal and one gig and the new string sound is long gone for me. Must be my sweat as opposed to others, and might be why I've never broken a string.

All the same for me: D’Addario nickel round wound XL. They’re cheap, consistent, and are now a part of “my sound and feel” once they lose their initial zing or whatever you call it… I hate the sound of new strings, It’s not realistic (for me) to change strings every few weeks, nor economical, nor environmentally friendly IMHO.

 

[Ggaa]

Fatties on one Wick and Ibby fretless, likely Daddario XL nickels on the other Wick, still deciding that one.

 

[JC BASS 91]

LaBella Deep Talkin' Flats on my Precision
LaBella Low Tension Flats on my Ric 4001
SIT Nickel Power Wounds on my Carvin LB70
D'Addario XL on my two short scales
D'Addario NYXL on all the other 6 basses (and may switch to these on the Carvin when I run out of the SIT strings)

I have had RotoSound strings and Fender strings on various basses in the past and really don't like either. That is the limit of my string exposure in the last 32 years of playing (at least since I started paying attention to such things).

 

[Nashrakh]

I was a flats only guy for many years, but I've gotten hip to the versatility of rounds lately. My #1, Yamaha TRB 6, sports DR Hi-Beams, my backup carries Dogal Hellborg ropecores, and my trusty four string P bass wears La Bella DTFs.

 

[MoeTown1986]

TI Jazz Flats or Dunlop Super Bright Nickel Rounds.

 

[LAST_C]

I use whatever roundwounds are on sale. I don't give much thought to strings.

 

[InhumanResource]

I had a recent conversation with a well-known bass builder. We were discussing strings. I asked him if his brand of strings were perfect for his basses. His response surprised me... "Not really. The bass chooses the string."

Hmmm... that response was a little more hippie than I expected... lol.

I've typically used the same strings on all my basses because I like the consistency of feel. However, in recent years I'm using NYXL nickels on my Lull, Sandberg steels on my Sandberg and Pure Blues on my Bluesman Vintage jazz. It wasn't necessarily intentional. It just sort of happened since, with the exception of the Lull, those are the strings that came with each bass and I liked them. So now I have 3 brands of strings on 3 basses.

Do you use the same brand on all your basses? Or does each bass 'choose' the string? lol

I used to get a different set every time because frankly, what’s the difference. I have settled on DR sunbeams but a bass I recently bought has some kind of steels on them and I like them, so I might try something else next time. I’m also thinking of throwing flats on one of my backup basses but haven’t decided which ones to get.

 

[Bunk McNulty]

I was introduced to Curt Mangan nickel roundwounds about 10 years ago by Scott Beckwith, who sold me a cBass that was wearing them. I liked them so much I've used them ever since on every bass I've owned.

 

[Stewie]

GHS Precision flats 45-105 on the fretless Precisions (since the late 1980s). They don't make 'em for uprights, so I am using Jargars right now. I'd experiment with upright, but I still have to buy groceries and DB strings ain't cheap

 

[staurosjohn]

My current string selection

 

[nonohmic]

Every bass is different only cause DR Blues don't come in medium scale. If that weren't the case it would be DR Blue 100s across the board.

 

[neddyrow]

TI Jazz Flats - all three basses

 

[Dan_reeves]

I had a recent conversation with a well-known bass builder. We were discussing strings. I asked him if his brand of strings were perfect for his basses. His response surprised me... "Not really. The bass chooses the string."

Hmmm... that response was a little more hippie than I expected... lol.

I've typically used the same strings on all my basses because I like the consistency of feel. However, in recent years I'm using NYXL nickels on my Lull, Sandberg steels on my Sandberg and Pure Blues on my Bluesman Vintage jazz. It wasn't necessarily intentional. It just sort of happened since, with the exception of the Lull, those are the strings that came with each bass and I liked them. So now I have 3 brands of strings on 3 basses.

Do you use the same brand on all your basses? Or does each bass 'choose' the string? lol

Out of curiosity, did the builder say whether they experiment at all before sending it out? What I mean is did he try a few brands on it, decide which one sounded best, then sent to you? Or just slap whatever (his brand, I’d assume) and let you be the experimenter? I’d assume it’s the latter, but thought I’d ask.

 

[rtslinger]

I have mostly Dr round wounds on my basses, but I also have few with TI Jazz Flats and Fender Flats

 

[DwaynieAD]

Everything has Dr strings, but some have hi beams, some have drop down tunings, one has legends flats, one has fat beams.

 

[CallMeAl]

Generally feel trumps tone and I know which brands I like the feel of. I can nudge the tone where I want it with technique and EQ. My go to these days are DR for bass, Daddario for acoustic and Daddario or EB slinky for electric guitar.

 

[Eidolon0274]

1 brand and type for everything. Remove all the variables, know exactly what kind of feel and tone profile you can expect from an instrument and let the instruments tone qualities dictate the rest.