Yeah. You let someone play your bass with SS strings. Then you watch them bend a note up about 1” several times. Later you notice the grooves in the fret they caused. Nickel for me.
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Steel or Nickel strings?
- Thread starter Green Lantern
- Start date
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
In the 1980s, steel, replaced as often as I could afford. Now, nickel, replaced when I hear a noticeable difference. This is for a variety of rock. Flats for jazz and bluegrass.
Rotosound and Ernie Ball stainless steel strings go dead on me very quickly. Must be some sort of body chemistry thing. I don't have the same problem with NPS strings.
My favorites by far have been nickel strings. My preferred set are DR Pure Blues 40-100.
Bacchus 45-105 strings are pretty nice, too, that’s the set on my Fernandes RB-80. I have a set of DRs I’ll be putting on it when those die.
The DRs especially are very nice to play with their round cores. Smooth-playing and easy to bend.
I’ve used Rotosound 66 steels on one of my basses in the past and they were just okay. I wasn’t a fan of how quickly they dulled out, and they didn’t play as nicely as the DRs. I got them because Geddy Lee and other guys I like used them.
Bacchus 45-105 strings are pretty nice, too, that’s the set on my Fernandes RB-80. I have a set of DRs I’ll be putting on it when those die.
The DRs especially are very nice to play with their round cores. Smooth-playing and easy to bend.
I’ve used Rotosound 66 steels on one of my basses in the past and they were just okay. I wasn’t a fan of how quickly they dulled out, and they didn’t play as nicely as the DRs. I got them because Geddy Lee and other guys I like used them.
Steel for me. My skin doesn't tolerate nickel but it's the tone that I really think makes steel stomp all over nickel. They have some plush steels now so the old excuse of eating frets doesn't hold water anymore. Dunlop, DR, Dean Markley all make great strings that I've used for years and never had an issue with damaging my basses. I play more rock and heavy music but I feel like I can get a great tone for anything.
Stainless steel for me, but not 100%.
I used to play Rotosound 66s, which are pure stainless steel. But they felt like cheese graters on my fingers. Now I play D'Addario NYXLs, which are technically nickel plated steel. But the nickel plating must be really light because they sound like stainless steel strings but feel like nickel strings. I play D'Addario Chromes for flats and those are pure stainless steel.
I play hard rock, traditional heavy metal, and thrash metal - genres where brightness reigns supreme.
Depends on the bass IMO. I have like 7 basses now lol (thanks TalkBass!) and each one is an inherently different monster. I’ve found that looking at an instrument as deriving its tone from the sum of its parts, strings included, helps narrow down or even pinpoint what type / brand & gauge works best for each one.
For instance, I have a Travis Bean that sounds alright with stainless strings installed, but after putting on a set of DR Nickel Lo-Riders— I am smitten. Perfect tension and a great deep, middy tone.
But just recently I put a set of 45-105 Dunlop Stainless Super Brights on my EBMM Bongo as a placeholder (it came with a set of very dead DR Tapewounds installed) but truth be told, they sound and feel perfect. The Bongo’s 4 band EQ pairs so well with the zing of the stainless strings, it’s unreal!
But yeah, right now I’m pondering what to restring my Stingray and L2000 with lol. Probably nickel-something for both.
For instance, I have a Travis Bean that sounds alright with stainless strings installed, but after putting on a set of DR Nickel Lo-Riders— I am smitten. Perfect tension and a great deep, middy tone.
But just recently I put a set of 45-105 Dunlop Stainless Super Brights on my EBMM Bongo as a placeholder (it came with a set of very dead DR Tapewounds installed) but truth be told, they sound and feel perfect. The Bongo’s 4 band EQ pairs so well with the zing of the stainless strings, it’s unreal!
But yeah, right now I’m pondering what to restring my Stingray and L2000 with lol. Probably nickel-something for both.
My subjective ears find the sound of nickels more balanced. Allegedly, they are also easier on the frets.
For the last few years I’ve been a SS guy. I’m a big fan of Rotosound Swing Bass 66 steels and D’Addario ProSteels. My current set of Rotos on my #1 bass are about ready to be changed, and I’ve gone a different direction. I have a set of Ernie Ball Hybrid Slinky nickel rounds for it. I’m looking forward to installing them.
