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Silly-fun question time: Anyone choose their strings purely based on silk color?

Dincrest

Dincrest

Sep 27, 2004
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#1
I'm mostly asking this question purely for fun. But it is inspired by my own basses and my notorious "gotta try 'em all" (like Pokemon) string GAS.

One of my basses is named Hepzibah (after a Marvel comics character) and I want to try GHS SuperSteels on it because the grey silks kinda rep Hepzibah's fur color (and go with the color scheme on that bass).
My other bass is named Millicent (after a character in a book series I like) and I want to try GHS Balanced Nickels on it because they green silks kinda rep the protective trees on Millicent and her sisters' property in the books.

I figure I've tried all kinds of strings for all kinds of reasons, so why not this seemingly superficial one? Maybe they'll feel and sound good too, who knows?

So, yeah, anyone here ever try or use a set of strings simply because the silk colors complement your bass in some way?
(Again, I'm asking this purely for fun, so let's have a little goofy fun with it!)
 
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#2
yes, sort of: i have a P-bass that i was going to try a round wound string set with purple silks if i could find them in the gauges i like. shown here with TI jazz rounds:

front and back copy.png

but then i learned about dogal-hellborg stranded core strings, saw that they had blue and purple silks, ordered a set (pricey, like TIs), and put them on my active ax where i thought they'd be more useful. they're the bomb on that ax, and the colors are nice and complimentary:

BLUE PJ.png pic of the ax, but with different strings.

i have another set of dogal-hellborg strings, but i'm not sure i want to put those on the P-bass --- i may just put the green-silked TI jazz rounds back on that ax and call it a day. not sure. both the TIs and Dogals are 'floppy'/compliant (just the way i like them!)

so, i was motivated to goof around with colors and i ended up 'discovering' a nice string set for a different ax. does that count? 😂
 
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#3
Dincrest said:
I'm mostly asking this question purely for fun. But it is inspired by my own basses and my notorious "gotta try 'em all" (like Pokemon) string GAS.

One of my basses is named Hepzibah (after a Marvel comics character) and I want to try GHS SuperSteels on it because the grey silks kinda rep Hepzibah's fur color (and go with the color scheme on that bass).
My other bass is named Millicent (after a character in a book series I like) and I want to try GHS Balanced Nickels on it because they green silks kinda rep the protective trees on Millicent and her sisters' property in the books.

I figure I've tried all kinds of strings for all kinds of reasons, so why not this seemingly superficial one? Maybe they'll feel and sound good too, who knows?

So, yeah, anyone here ever try or use a set of strings simply because the silk colors complement your bass in some way?
(Again, I'm asking this purely for fun, so let's have a little goofy fun with it!)
Click to expand...
Not really, I’m more concerned about the brass at the other end…..
 
#7
I mean I am tempted to go with Gold White Tapes over White Tapes on my fretless to match the gold hardware on the bass. I love how the golden yellow silks of my current strings look on it, but the strings (presumably Roto 88s) are just too dark.
 
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#11
Dincrest said:
I'm mostly asking this question purely for fun. But it is inspired by my own basses and my notorious "gotta try 'em all" (like Pokemon) string GAS.

One of my basses is named Hepzibah (after a Marvel comics character) and I want to try GHS SuperSteels on it because the grey silks kinda rep Hepzibah's fur color (and go with the color scheme on that bass).
My other bass is named Millicent (after a character in a book series I like) and I want to try GHS Balanced Nickels on it because they green silks kinda rep the protective trees on Millicent and her sisters' property in the books.

I figure I've tried all kinds of strings for all kinds of reasons, so why not this seemingly superficial one? Maybe they'll feel and sound good too, who knows?

So, yeah, anyone here ever try or use a set of strings simply because the silk colors complement your bass in some way?
(Again, I'm asking this purely for fun, so let's have a little goofy fun with it!)
Click to expand...
Well...
No, I've never chosen strings for the silk color. I have chosen strings for the string color, though. I've also chosen to keep strings on the bass because of the silk color. I've also chosen not to use some strings, because of their silk's color. So...
1. String color. I bought a set of La Bella 760FGS Gold Flats to put on a Black w/ Gold hardware project bass - which I'm ashamed to say, is still a work in progress. But, when Epiphone finally decided to make left handed Jack Casady basses, I bought one. The Gold body and very dark fretboard made it seem like a natural for those Gold Flats; so, that's where they are now. They do look good - and sound as good as they look.
2. Keeping the strings. I tried for 12 years to find strings - any strings - that would make my '93 Gretsch Broadkaster Bass actually sound like a bass - and not like a baritone guitar, or a hippo fart in deep mud. finally, out of desperation more than anything else, I put a set of TIJR324 Jazz Rounds (that I'd bought by mistake) on it. Although they hurt my nerve-damaged, frostbitten fingers, they do make "Big Orange" sound like a bass guitar. And, those Grass Green silks? I think they give a decidedly "Carrott-y" look to it, so... there they will stay.
3. "No" to those silks. I'm a GI brat who spent more than half his childhood living in the UK. And watching - passionately - FA football (known to the unwashed as "soccer"). MY team? West Bromwich Albion; their color's are Blue and White. The strings with silks I won't have on my bass? Rotosound's SH77 Steve Harris Custom flats. The silks are Blue and Red; the color's of his favorite team - West Ham United. Sorry; I'm not about to put a rival team's color's on one of my basses.... :whistle:
 
#12
Dincrest said:
I'm mostly asking this question purely for fun. But it is inspired by my own basses and my notorious "gotta try 'em all" (like Pokemon) string GAS.

One of my basses is named Hepzibah (after a Marvel comics character) and I want to try GHS SuperSteels on it because the grey silks kinda rep Hepzibah's fur color (and go with the color scheme on that bass).
My other bass is named Millicent (after a character in a book series I like) and I want to try GHS Balanced Nickels on it because they green silks kinda rep the protective trees on Millicent and her sisters' property in the books.

I figure I've tried all kinds of strings for all kinds of reasons, so why not this seemingly superficial one? Maybe they'll feel and sound good too, who knows?

So, yeah, anyone here ever try or use a set of strings simply because the silk colors complement your bass in some way?
(Again, I'm asking this purely for fun, so let's have a little goofy fun with it!)
Click to expand...
For me, picking strings is about finding the right combinations with my basses. It's like a food and wine/beer/beverage pairing. The silk color is like getting excellent service throughout your meal - an added bonus.

For example, I switched to D'Addario Chromes at the beginning of 2024 to tame one of my Ric 4003s. It has Nordstrand pickups that are really hot. I tried D'Addario XLs, but they were not the right fit for that bass. So I tried the Chromes and they balanced out the sound on that bass perfectly. The dark blue silks are beautiful, but they're really an added bonus for me.
 
#13
I first tried GHS Precision Flats on my Jazz because I thought the purple silks would look sick with the tidepool finish of the bass. And they do! But more importantly, of course, I love the way the strings sound on the instrument. It's a total John Paul Jones vibe.
 
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#14
@Kyle_S

Dig it! Fingers crossed that my forthcoming experiment with GHS SuperSteels on one bass and Balanced Nickels on the other yields similar results.

And as others said, yes, it's all about the total package and everything (feel, texture, tone, whether or not your bass likes the strings because oftentimes the bass really chooses the strings), but if aesthetics can play a part in our bass GAS why can't string aesthetics potentially play a part in my string GAS?

Glad people are having fun with this thread.
 
#15
No, but the only reason is that silk color isn't indicated on any string package, so it's a surprise every time; I'm sure I'd take that into consideration in my string choice otherwise.
And I don't like strings with no silk, so when I opened my last pack (Elixir), I was very disappointed that they bore no silk at all; I know it doesn't affect the sound or playability in any way, shape or form, but I can't get over the fact that they look cheap to me. Not proud to admit that I'm vain enough not to purchase those again just because of that.
 
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