Double Bass Spirocores... dammit

[Don Kasper]

They don‘t last forever but as long as the set of Spiros last.
And they are only intended to be used for the high(er) string until they had broken in to mellow the sound of a new string.
Therefor they are called tone filters.

I was referring to the thick felt washers that are installed at the ball end at the tailpiece. They DO last forever.
I now see that you all are referring to the rubber washer that was used as a timbre/tone filter.
Sorry for my error.
Carry on...
Thx.

 

[DoubleMIDI]

Always have a silk covered part of the string that in the peg hole.
Wind first away from the tuner handle with every winding touching their neighbors. Then about two to three windings before the string starts to be stretched out the string over the previous windings with a single turn to the other d side of the peg hole. Wind one to two windings close together and tune up.

If the string touches the pegbox cheek, turn it down and add a winding on the other side before the string crosses the windings.

If there is no more room to add windings, shorten the string a bit in the silk covered part, but leave at least 3 inches of the silk covered part of the string. Try again.

If it still doesn’t work, get a bass with a longer string scale … (or shorter strings …)

 

[DoubleMIDI]

I was referring to the thick felt washers that are installed at the ball end at the tailpiece. They DO last forever.
I now see that you all are referring to the rubber washer that was used as a timbre/tone filter.
Sorry for my error.
Carry on...
Thx.

Not neccessarily yours.
The description fits to the felt as well.

 

[Bruce Calin]

They don‘t last forever but as long as the set of Spiros last.
And they are only intended to be used for the high(er) string until they had broken in to mellow the sound of a new string.
Therefor they are called tone filters.

Tone filters, yeah. Do people still use them?

 

[AGCurry]

Always have a silk covered part of the string that in the peg hole.
Wind first away from the tuner handle with every winding touching their neighbors. Then about two to three windings before the string starts to be stretched out the string over the previous windings with a single turn to the other d side of the peg hole. Wind one to two windings close together and tune up.

If the string touches the pegbox cheek, turn it down and add a winding on the other side before the string crosses the windings.

If there is no more room to add windings, shorten the string a bit in the silk covered part, but leave at least 3 inches of the silk covered part of the string. Try again.

If it still doesn’t work, get a bass with a longer string scale … (or shorter strings …)

I agree about preventing the string from touching the cheek of the pegbox, but your method is way too fussy for me.

 

[Don Hergert]

... donut dampeners ...

Oh, you mean coffee or tea??

My S42 Mitt set didn't include these or anything similar.

 

[41 Hz]

Tone Filters? I've never come across those. So many gems of knowledge here! The doohickies I'm now wondering about are the felt washer and that red rubber tube I've seen on some spirocores. Can anyone comment on their function?

 

[Don Kasper]

the felt washer

Not sure of their intended function - I always use the felts to protect my tailpiece against wear and tear from the ball end.(This sounds "dirty", but isn't!)

red rubber tube I've seen on some spirocores

That was included on some Spiro "D" strings - it was meant to be installed where the string passes over the bridge slot to "darken" the Boingy Spiro D Syndrome. (I always just remove and dispose it.)
That is my understanding.

 

[foilracer]

Not sure of their intended function - I always use the felts to protect my tailpiece against wear and tear from the ball end.(This sounds "dirty", but isn't!)

That was included on some Spiro "D" strings - it was meant to be installed where the string passes over the bridge slot to "darken" the Boingy Spiro D Syndrome. (I always just remove and dispose it.)
That is my understanding.

I use a similar "rubbery plastic tube" on all my D strings at the pegbox to protect the D and other string(s) it my "rub" against and "fray" in the pegbox ... helping strings subject to frequent changes last longer. I understand this habit may fall into the "too fussy" category.

 

[Don Hergert]

So, I have a question about the notorious "new Spiro G" syndrome. I've read a number of folks describe their new Spiro G strings as being somewhat wild (my own wording) until they tone down with playing and time.

I have what I would describe as either a string buzz or a very intense natural growl with my new S42 Mitt G. I've been gently tweaking setup to solve it but it continues, and while everything checks out properly I'm at a point now of not knowing if it is a more serious problem with the nut, the fingerboard, the bridge, or just an interesting sound the G string makes when it is new.

I'd really appreciate a detailed description of the sound of these delinquent Spiro G strings, before I start digging into things that I'd really prefer not to change.

Thank you in advance for any shared wisdom about this.

 

[PBandJazzBass]

So, I have a question about the notorious "new Spiro G" syndrome. I've read a number of folks describe their new Spiro G strings as being somewhat wild (my own wording) until they tone down with playing and time.

I have what I would describe as either a string buzz or a very intense natural growl with my new S42 Mitt G. I've been gently tweaking setup to solve it but it continues, and while everything checks out properly I'm at a point now of not knowing if it is a more serious problem with the nut, the fingerboard, the bridge, or just an interesting sound the G string makes when it is new.

I'd really appreciate a detailed description of the sound of these delinquent Spiro G strings, before I start digging into things that I'd really prefer not to change.

Thank you in advance for any shared wisdom about this.

This is something I’ve encountered as well and, in my experience, is just a part of the process of breaking in a new set of Spiros. But it does drive many to try a different G.

 

[Don Kasper]

any shared wisdom

Well, first try raising the action (adj. bridge??) at the bridge, and at the nut slot (try adding a layer or 2 of "business card" stock), as an experiment. See if there is ANY improvement with these 2 changes.
NOTE: With any new Spiro G, there will be a lot of metallic, high-end information (buzz?). If possible give it a month or 2 before moving on.
I've learned to give the G a few months and it usually improves. I am currently satisfied with the Spiro Mittel G, but the first couple of weeks are not pleasant.
Also, too - stay away from the Weich G...far away!
I feel (and hear) your pain.
IMFE, of course.

 

[Don Hergert]

Ahhh, thank you both, this is good news. I did test raising the nut, and I did raise the action a bit, mostly because I need to get under the strings a little bit more. But the tone of the G continues -- I've read others describing it as a "twang" and that's probably a better description of what I'm experiencing.

Soooo, I will consider this not to be a problem and will continue playing the daylights out of these strings -- moderated by my new callus progress.

Thanks again, I'm really happy there is a good answer.

 

[PBandJazzBass]

Playing lots of arco helps. And not wiping down the strings between practice sessions. Let some of the finger funk work its magic. I’ll even let rosin build up as long as it doesn’t hurt my arco tone or build up on the area where I pizz. Can’t stand the feeling of rosin dust on my fingers.

Contrary to many others, I actually quite like the arco tone of the Spiro Mittel G, at least on my bass. It can be tricky to get started but it has a very “singing” sort of quality and I can play very expressively.

 

[Don Hergert]

Two things have surprised me and are very apparent about these S42 Mitts having played the fat SBW Deluxe Dirty Guts I've been using for 2 years::

Spiros sound nearly as organic as plain-gut-like strings, something which I didn't expect.

Spiros are extremely stable in temperature changes, staying in tune for long periods. The Deluxe Dirty Guts needed to be tuned every time I played them; I was blaming that on the metal contraction/expansion of my Alcoa, but it's clear that was actually the strings.

Tension feels only slightly higher with the Spiros than with the fattest Deluxe Dirty Guts, and action with the Spiros is lower so playability is nearly an even trade.

Having fun!

 

[Selim]

I need to stop reading this thread, it’s got me remembering them and thinking about putting them back on!

I actually almost did that this past weekend, but then I played some on my Tempera hybrids and said no, don’t fix what ain’t broken.

I definitely do miss the “centeredness” of the pitches (among other things). And they are the most dependable string I know, always there for you.

 

[Don Hergert]

Well, today was interesting... I learned the difference between twang and rattle...

I had tested the nut height under the G string with a fragment of a business card, and it didn't stop what I was thinking was the G string "twang" we had been talking about.

However, I still wasn't convinced about it. Today I figured raising the whole nut a little bit wouldn't be a bad idea just to rule out rattle. So with some difficulty I removed the nut, which had been securely glued into place on top of a sacrificial wooden base which was equally securely glued against the aluminum spot for the nut just south of the pegbox. After gluing the fragments of the sacrificial wooden base back together and gluing them back against the bottom of the nut, I lightly glued a 1/2mm shim against that, and put everything back in place on the aluminum spot for the nut.

It was worth the struggle. While the G string does have its own twang personality, it was also rattling pretty badly. My previous nut setup -- going on 9 years now -- was for fat lower tension synthetic strings, which without rattle typically prefer to sit in a widened nut slot, but also just touching or just almost touching the fingerboard. Evidently a new S42 Mitt G string doesn't like that kind of nut setup...

Raising the whole nut 1/2mm dramatically stopped the G string rattling and also really cleaned up the sound of the whole set of strings.

So, the S42 Mitt G string does still have its twang personality, and to be fair, the D string has its own little boomy personality, but all the strings are clearly above the fingerboard, they all are sounding much better, and rattle of the G string is a thing of the past. I can live with G string twang and D string boom as long as necessary. I'm a very happy camper.

 

[PBandJazzBass]

I played another gig with the Spiros earlier this evening but just wasn’t digging my tone. I think I’m searching for a string that has a similar pizzicato attack/articulation, but is darker and less metallic. This is probably a quest echoed by many. Feel free to chime in with suggestions and feed my neurosis.

 

[Chris Fitzgerald]

Dominants.