Double Bass Solostrings for orchestra tuning

[Bassalova]

I´m thinking of buying solo-strings for normal "orchestra"tuning. My purpouse is to get a warmer darker sound in my bass, and also make the bass easier to play. I´ve got a 1978 Grunert Gamba. I play both jazz/folk and Symphony Orchestra, so it should fit both styles. I am thinking of the Helicore Solos or maybe the Dominants.

Any ideas?

 

[Cyrus Pansch]

You might also be sacrificing volume - I have solo strings on my carved, tuned orchestral. I wish she was louder (although it could just be the bass...)

Cy-anara

 

[kurt muroki]

homer mensch used spirocore solos tuned down for years and he was the loudest bassist i'd ever heard.

 

[Bassalova]

I´ve got comments on my bass, that it´s quite loud. I also struggle a little to be quiet enought during pianissimo passages in the orchestra, so the volume sacrifice may not be a problem at all. Could actually become an advantage.....

 

[ADissen]

+1 on solo spiroscores

i have them on my bass and im really digging the set.
very low tension (think belcanto tension), but unlike the belcantos there is a strong core tone.
with the lower tension i raised the string height up a little bit to take care of the minimal volume loss. the raise MORE comfortable than the lower height with higher tension. It doesnt feel like the strings were raised at all really.
Solo Spiocores are the way to go my friend. no doubt about it.

all the best
andrew

 

[Dr Rod]

homer mensch used spirocore solos tuned down for years and he was the loudest bassist i'd ever heard.

not just the loudest bassist, but the loudest anything...

 

[ADissen]

homer mensch used spirocore solos tuned down for years and he was the loudest bassist i'd ever heard.

did he switch to something else?

 

[Bassalova]

Hey, Andrew.....I actually got Bel Cantos on my bass now. It could be a nice set if they just made the E-string a hole lot better (maybe they have recently). Bel Cantos are pretty nice for arco stuff, and has got kind of a charming pizzicato sound too. I miss the full sound of the Spiros. But the Spiro Mittels were too much "fretless-bass". Too much sustain.....

Have you got any arco experience with the Spiro Solos? The Spiro Mittels may sound a bit scratchy.....

And another thing: Do the Spiro Solos have about the same thickness as the Bel Cantos?

 

[ADissen]

Hey, Andrew.....I actually got Bel Cantos on my bass now. It could be a nice set if they just made the E-string a hole lot better (maybe they have recently). Bel Cantos are pretty nice for arco stuff, and has got kind of a charming pizzicato sound too. I miss the full sound of the Spiros. But the Spiro Mittels were too much "fretless-bass". Too much sustain.....

Have you got any arco experience with the Spiro Solos? The Spiro Mittels may sound a bit scratchy.....

And another thing: Do the Spiro Solos have about the same thickness as the Bel Cantos?

well, tuned up to their "normal pitches" (A,E,B,F#), there is a hint of the spiro scratch there. but tuned down to orchestra, the spiro scratch is pretty much gone. If you are listening for the scratch real hard and throw away any bowing technique you can hear it a little but under the players ear theres no scratch. and for the listener theres not even a hint. ill tell you that the pizz wont be quite as similar to Belcantos i think, but as for the fretless bass sound, its the same with the tuning. for the tuning to which this thread is dedicated to, the pizz will sustain more than Belcantos but not to the point to where it cant be controlled. As for thickness, ill play my pals bass that has Belcantos (who of which said he was gonna get of spiro solos after he played mine.) but from what i can remember, the thickness is maybe a tad less. but i can give a better review on that after this weekend.
hope this helps
AD

 

[MDEbass]

hey...i've never tried solo stings before. How do they sound for orchestral playing? Do they have as good of a fuller deeper sound that you would want for orchestral playing or not much of a difference. I'm sure they sound better for solo playing, but would you have to compromise the orchestral tone?

 

[ADissen]

hey...i've never tried solo stings before. How do they sound for orchestral playing? Do they have as good of a fuller deeper sound that you would want for orchestral playing or not much of a difference. I'm sure they sound better for solo playing, but would you have to compromise the orchestral tone?

The Berlin Phil used this practice with solo spiros in the 80's, here it says Homer Mensch used them. Im no Berlin Phil bassist (HA) and i use them. My teacher at Peabody said hes gonna be getting a set soon after playing my bass (again, its not a Berlin Phil quality bass, but sufficient enough, HA) I had Dominants on my bass before the Spiro Solos and have no complaints about loss of tone and am really loving the low tension. My bass is a very new 2008 Kolstein and its digging to low tension too. and the added option of being able to tune them up to play solos is good for the broke student (and spiros last forever)
i didnt find any loss in tone. a change, yes, but thats expected with any change in string.

AD

 

[Bassalova]

No stress, Andrew. Thanks for the help.

And yes......the Spiros last forever! When they get all muddy and full of sweat and dirt; all you have to do is to put them in a pot, and boil them with some dishwashing detergent for like 10 minutes. 150 dollars saved

 

[Bassalova]

I'll tell you that the pizz wont be quite as similar to Belcantos i think, but as for the fretless bass sound, its the same with the tuning. for the tuning to which this thread is dedicated to, the pizz will sustain more than Belcantos but not to the point to where it cant be controlled.
AD

How does the Solos work on pizzicato (classical)? I actually find my Bel Cantos lacking a bit of the "bump"-sound that is so particular for classical pizzicato playing. But that might also be the setup on my bass........

 

[Bassalova]

and another thing.......... how would you compare the solos to the Weichs? better/worse? fuller/thinner sound? thinner strings?

 

[Eric Swanson]

did he switch to something else?

Mr. Mensch died in 2005. If you are unfamiliar with his work, here are some links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homer_Mensch

Invalid Link Removed

and his bass:

http://www.smithbassforums.com/showthread.php?t=524

I chose another teacher when I was at Manhattan, but every student of his I ever met spoke admiringly, warmly, and appreciatively of him.

Perhaps one of his former students could add more...

 

[ADissen]

im sorry, i shouldve reworded my question as i knew he had passed away, i didnt mean to sound ignorant. I shouldve asked if Mr. Mensch used the Solo Spiros exclusively during most of his career?

 

[ADissen]

and another thing.......... how would you compare the solos to the Weichs? better/worse? fuller/thinner sound? thinner strings?

for arco the solos are definitely better than the weichs i think. the solos have a warmer sound to them, so i would put them ahead of the weichs for orchestra for sure. as for the pizz, while the solos do have more sustain than the Belcantos, i dont feel that it is anything that a little fooling around with in he practice room couldnt fix.

 

[kurt muroki]

homer switched to solo spirocores later in his career (and stayed with them till the end of his life) for various reasons which included the lower tension on the top and the feel of the strings. He really had a huge sound... he had a normal level of sound standing next to him which got louder the farther away you were. He sounded fantastic on solo spirocores tuned down.

A few things he always said to me... 1)there are no perfect strings 2) its very rare that a bass sounds good both in pizz and arco 3) its much harder to find good G and E strings (especially the G string). I believe that he meant how the bass sounds in a hall.

I always feel that the tenion of the strings has to be relative to the amount of arching as well as the thickness of the bass bar. The more arching, the heavier the strings tolerated by the instrument.

 

[anonymous12251111]

homer switched to solo spirocores later in his career (and stayed with them till the end of his life) for various reasons which included the lower tension on the top and the feel of the strings. He really had a huge sound... he had a normal level of sound standing next to him which got louder the farther away you were. He sounded fantastic on solo spirocores tuned down.

A few things he always said to me... 1)there are no perfect strings 2) its very rare that a bass sounds good both in pizz and arco 3) its much harder to find good G and E strings (especially the G string). I believe that he meant how the bass sounds in a hall.

I always feel that the tenion of the strings has to be relative to the amount of arching as well as the thickness of the bass bar. The more arching, the heavier the strings tolerated by the instrument.

Is it a good idea to bring your instrument into a luthier so he can suggest to you the best possible strings for your instrument? My instrument is only a few months old, and it's very heavily built, so for a very sturdy instrument, would it better to have higher tension strings?

 

[MDEbass]

The Berlin Phil used this practice with solo spiros in the 80's, here it says Homer Mensch used them. Im no Berlin Phil bassist (HA) and i use them. My teacher at Peabody said hes gonna be getting a set soon after playing my bass (again, its not a Berlin Phil quality bass, but sufficient enough, HA) I had Dominants on my bass before the Spiro Solos and have no complaints about loss of tone and am really loving the low tension. My bass is a very new 2008 Kolstein and its digging to low tension too. and the added option of being able to tune them up to play solos is good for the broke student (and spiros last forever)
i didnt find any loss in tone. a change, yes, but thats expected with any change in string.

AD

thanks. maybe I'll try them out. The lower string tension sounds good right now