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Rotosound Ultramag

#84
trothwell said:
Pretty much. But honestly, I am enjoying the Round Core Boomers so much on the bass that I previously had Progressives on that I'm really not in a hurry to switch at all.

Nevertheless, I expect that eventually I will try both Progressives 2.0 and these new Rotosound strings.
Click to expand...

I just took a set of round core Boomers off of my Yamaha 605 in favor of the ultramags. The low B is much more to my taste on the ultramags, much firmer and allowing me to really dig in without lots of fret slap or pickup brushing. The ultras also have a nicer string to string timbre progression to my ear. So far, (10 days in with them) I’m well pleased by the ultramags and consider them a nice forward advance on my string safari.
 
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#85
Fudleysmith said:
I just took a set of round core Boomers off of my Yamaha 605 in favor of the ultramags. The low B is much more to my taste on the ultramags, much firmer and allowing me to really dig in without lots of fret slap or pickup brushing.
Click to expand...

I once had a set of RC Boomer 45-126 on my Yamaha TRBX505, and while I was happy with E-G, the 126B somehow left me uninspired. That's when I decided to try the GHS Pressurewound 128B (hex-core Alloy 52 rollerwound) to see how it would match up with the rest of the RCBs and found it more to my liking for punch and definition. It even sounded better balanced with RCBs E-G.

I've also used the GHS Progressive 130B (hex-core Alloy 52 roundwound with exposed core) on that same bass with good success.

Alloy 52 for the win! ;):thumbsup:
 
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#86
I just put a set of ultramags on my Fender Roscoe Beck V. Previously, I had a set of DR Pure Blues. I decided to try alloy 52 strings on this bass because it has much lower output than my other basses. My initial impress after a couple of hours of play:
  1. very high quality as one would expect from Rotosound
  2. smooth feeling
  3. medium to high stiffness
  4. nice even, balanced response
  5. tight, polite sound
  6. Definitely darker than the Pure Blues
  7. More neutral sounding
  8. Not louder than the Pure Blues it replaced
Overall, a good string, just more tight and polite than I wanted for this bass. They sound and feel more like NYXLs than Swing Bass 66. I won't be going back the Pure Blues either. I want some zing in the highs, but I found the Pure Blues too crunchy up top. I prefer the Dunlop Super Brite crunch. I hear it as less bite, more overall brightness than the PBs. I may also like EB Cobalts. They definitely add volume and have a nice low mid crunch. But the next string set to try will be GHS Pressurewounds. Sure, not zingy, but I am hoping I will like the low-mids and volume boost enough to like them. It will be my first time with Pressurewounds. I should be interesting.
 
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#87
monkeyfinger said:
Previously, I had a set of DR Pure Blues. .....My initial impress after a couple of hours of play:
  1. very high quality as one would expect from Rotosound
  2. smooth feeling
  3. medium to high stiffness
  4. nice even, balanced response
  5. tight, polite sound
  6. Definitely darker than the Pure Blues
  7. More neutral sounding
  8. Not louder than the Pure Blues it replaced
............. but I found the Pure Blues too crunchy up top.
Click to expand...
+1 in the comparison between the Ultramags and the Pure Blues. Pretty much my experience too, but on a Yamaha 605 in a CCM worship team.
 
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#88
I installed a set of these on my Fender Precision bass. Very impressed. The sound is clear and bright, with a tight and punchy low end. I haven't A/B compared to every string I've used on this bass, but those I did A/B compare, these Rotosound Ultramags sound markedly better to me.

When I had the Ultramags on my Jazz bass last year, I slowly warmed up to them, but was disappointed to a degree, I think, because perhaps I was expected some miraculous combination of the best aspects of Rotosound 66 melded with the best aspects of GHS Progressives. Might be more fair to evaluate these strings just on their own. To that end, and especially now that I am so pleased with these on my Precision bass, I think it's worth another go on the Jazz bass too.
 
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#89
J Wilson said:
For the better-educated-than-me: Isn't stainless steel non-magnetic ?
Click to expand...
Once upon a time, I took some welding courses and the teacher told us this was a myth. It depends on the stainless steel "recipe" being used. Some grades of stainless steel will have some nickel and iron levels that will make the stainless steel material be magnetic nonetheless.
 
#90
trothwell said:
I installed a set of these on my Fender Precision bass. Very impressed. The sound is clear and bright, with a tight and punchy low end. I haven't A/B compared to every string I've used on this bass, but those I did A/B compare, these Rotosound Ultramags sound markedly better to me.

When I had the Ultramags on my Jazz bass last year, I slowly warmed up to them, but was disappointed to a degree, I think, because perhaps I was expected some miraculous combination of the best aspects of Rotosound 66 melded with the best aspects of GHS Progressives. Might be more fair to evaluate these strings just on their own. To that end, and especially now that I am so pleased with these on my Precision bass, I think it's worth another go on the Jazz bass too.
Click to expand...

Just curious...

What color is the silk on them, if any? Any pics you can share?
 
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#93
trothwell said:
I installed a set of these on my Fender Precision bass. Very impressed. The sound is clear and bright, with a tight and punchy low end.
Click to expand...

Did you get them in the same gauges as the GHS Progressives you tried before? How would you compare the two in terms of both stiffness and surface texture?

Now that Rotosound started publishing tension info, here's how the two compare in terms of tension...

Ultramag vs. Progressives (old version):

Progressives M8000:

G 045 - 45.2 (lbs.)
D 065 - 47.4
A 085 - 49.1
E 105 - 38.0 (Total 180.7)

Ultramag UM45:

G 045 - 48.27 (lbs.)
D 065 - 51.30
A 085 - 47.06
E 105 - 38.60 (Total 185.23)


Progressives L8000:

G 040 - 33.2 (lbs.)
D 060 - 41.8
A 080 - 41.0
E 100 - 37.3 (Total 153.3)

Ultramag UM40:

G 040 - 39.50 (lbs.)
D 060 - 38.68
A 080 - 43.80
E 100 - 33.40 (Total 155.38)
 
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#94
michael_t said:
Did you get them in the same gauges as the GHS Progressives you tried before? How would you compare the two in terms of both stiffness and surface texture?

Now that Rotosound started publishing tension info, here's how the two compare in terms of tension...

Ultramag vs. Progressives (old version):

Progressives M8000:

G 045 - 45.2 (lbs.)
D 065 - 47.4
A 085 - 49.1
E 105 - 38.0 (Total 180.7)

Ultramag UM45:

G 045 - 48.27 (lbs.)
D 065 - 51.30
A 085 - 47.06
E 105 - 38.60 (Total 185.23)


Progressives L8000:

G 040 - 33.2 (lbs.)
D 060 - 41.8
A 080 - 41.0
E 100 - 37.3 (Total 153.3)

Ultramag UM40:

G 040 - 39.50 (lbs.)
D 060 - 38.68
A 080 - 43.80
E 100 - 33.40 (Total 155.38)
Click to expand...

Interesting to see the tensions for comparable sets so close to each other! At least overall tension.

I had only ever used the 45-105 Progressives; I currently have the 40-100 Ultramags installed. These definitely feel more flexible than the 45-105 Progressives, but that would be pretty obviously expected. I might guess that the Ultramags feel a tiny bit smoother, but now we're really pushing the limits of the detail I recall about Progressives. :-)
 
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#95
So I now have these on three basses, and just did an A/B comparison between a broken-in (but not dead) set of Rotosound 66 and Rotosound UltraMag on a Fender Jazz Bass.

Maybe I was just utterly wrong when I tried these last year, or I almost wonder if I got a bad set somehow the first time. In any case, what I am hearing now, on closer inspection, is that the Ultramag set sounds a lot like the Rotosound 66, but punchier and tighter.

The brand new Ultramags still don't really have that cool chimey sound like brand new Rotosound 66, but since I never changed 66 sets frequently enough to try to retain that brand-new tone, I'm more interested in the broken-in tone. And it sounds like Ultramags offer a (in my opinion) very similar, but improved, broken-in tone over Rotosound 66.

I have a feeling that I will try out the GHS Progressives v2 when they are released, but at least for now, Rotosound Ultramags are my new favorite for roundwound strings.
 
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#97
trothwell said:
So I now have these on three basses, and just did an A/B comparison between a broken-in (but not dead) set of Rotosound 66 and Rotosound UltraMag on a Fender Jazz Bass.

Maybe I was just utterly wrong when I tried these last year, or I almost wonder if I got a bad set somehow the first time. In any case, what I am hearing now, on closer inspection, is that the Ultramag set sounds a lot like the Rotosound 66, but punchier and tighter.

The brand new Ultramags still don't really have that cool chimey sound like brand new Rotosound 66, but since I never changed 66 sets frequently enough to try to retain that brand-new tone, I'm more interested in the broken-in tone. And it sounds like Ultramags offer a (in my opinion) very similar, but improved, broken-in tone over Rotosound 66.

I have a feeling that I will try out the GHS Progressives v2 when they are released, but at least for now, Rotosound Ultramags are my new favorite for roundwound strings.
Click to expand...

I almost pulled the trigger on ordering a set of the Ultramags just to see how they would compare to the Progressives, only to change my mind at the last minute and order another set of GHS Pressurewounds instead. Rotosound is a totally unfamiliar territory for me.

I think I'll just follow your reviews. ;)
 
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#98
Hmmmmm, these recent reports are sounding good. It's been a long time since I broke my addiction to RS66 strings. I was chasing that fresh pack zing of Rotos for a couple of years and spent a good chunk of my student loans doing so. I can't imagine a world where I'd want to go back to those at this point, but maybe I want to try the Ultramags on my Yamaha Attitude bass. Or perhaps it's time to dig my old Fender P Lyte Deluxe out of the closet and get that thing playable again.

My passive Fender P is currently loving life with TI Flats, but it's not always the best choice when a little bit more articulation is needed. I love GHS Pressurewounds, but also still curious to try these out too.
 
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