String Journal

[Stewie]

Been using the same strings for close to forty years. I’ve tried others, but never found a set I liked as much. If they stop selling them, I’m screwed. I do have a set or two stashed, so I’ll probably be okay, they last for years

 

[mcnach]

Anyone ever keep one?

I think strings are a completely personal thing, and while there might be some definitives one can say about certain strings, our playing style, action, gear, and sound preferences are what I always believed to be more important than anything.

I play lots of basses and jump back and forth between lots of strings. Its only recently that it occurred to me that I fall in and out of love with basses without realizing that it might have LOTS to do with the strings I put on them - and then forget I put on them.

I loved my Fender American Performer Mustang until it one day seemed to lose all its life and personality. Realized only recently it had to do with my putting some DR strings on it that me thinks I don't like.

Anyhow...

Keeping an accurate string journal I believe to be the solution. Started 6 months ago. I list the brand, the gauges, whether they're steels or nickels, and how things go while I'm beating the heck out of them.

I confess... I've been doing that for at least 10 years. I keep an Excel sheet with that info

 

[31HZ]

I keep notes about what strings go on what bass, and when they went on (I also keep a small square of gaff tape on the rear of the headstock or control plate to indicate string/battery change date), but it's only recently that I've realized just how much string selection influences how well a bass works "in a mix" for me, and I'm broadening my string selections as part of my tonequest. Way cheaper than buying basses, too.

Wish I had discovered HiBeams years ago, for example -- they are just what the doctor ordered for my '00 55-94 and my '98 FNA, for starters.

The back of my Zon L.E.S.:

 

[bassgrackle]

Anyone ever keep one?

I think strings are a completely personal thing, and while there might be some definitives one can say about certain strings, our playing style, action, gear, and sound preferences are what I always believed to be more important than anything.

I play lots of basses and jump back and forth between lots of strings. Its only recently that it occurred to me that I fall in and out of love with basses without realizing that it might have LOTS to do with the strings I put on them - and then forget I put on them.

I loved my Fender American Performer Mustang until it one day seemed to lose all its life and personality. Realized only recently it had to do with my putting some DR strings on it that me thinks I don't like.

Anyhow...

Keeping an accurate string journal I believe to be the solution. Started 6 months ago. I list the brand, the gauges, whether they're steels or nickels, and how things go while I'm beating the heck out of them.

started a few years ago. I keep a small moleskin book, each bass has its own page.

 

[31HZ]

By the way, this is a great thread that I never would have had the ingenuity to start. Thanks, @Joe Nerve !

 

[AndyPanda]

From my journal:
This compelling, fragrant nickle string offers stunning hints of woodland berry, new leather, pipe tobacco, pressed rose and the barest whiff of tar. Under the fingers you feel a finesse and complexity, delivering juicy cranberry, red cherry, licorice and baking spice framed in tightly wound, elegant tannins. It's still youthfully austere, with vibrant acidity that promises decades of aging potential

 

[DesolationBlvd]

^I wish my strings smelled as good. The strings on my Precision reek of garlic and armpit. But they still sound fresh, and that's all that matters.

On my 1974 Rickenbacker 4001:

Rotosound 66: Yeah! The grinding rock tone I bought a Rick for! Too bad I'm getting fret wear. I do not want to pay for a refret.
DR Hi-Beams: I still get most of that grind, but I'm still worried about fret wear.
D'Addario Half Rounds: Let's try these to help alleviate fret wear concerns. Hmm, a bit stiff and a bit dead sounding.
Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats: Whoa, are these really flats? They feel like what I wanted out of the Half Rounds. Too bad they broke when I unstrung and restrung to put the pickup cover on, so it's back to the Half Rounds.
Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Flats: I've heard so much about these strings, and the light tension should be good for a 4001. The feel is second to none, as light as the Cobalt Flats and a little smoother, and it's changed the 4001 from hard rock grind to rich vintage bubblegum.

 

[Marko 1]

My string journal:
Put TI flats on all my basses and never change them for the rest of my life.
The end.

I've been looking for an opportunity to sneak this probably-dumb question in somewhere...

I got my first set of flats, E.B. Cobalts; do they have the same longevity as other flatwounds? Will they last me years and years?

 

[Marko 1]

as for the thread topic, no organized note-keeping for me, but I ended up preferring hex-core nickel rounds, then narrowed it down to D.R. nickel lowriders, which are on all my basses except for the one I just put flats on.

Now I guess I can note when installed, how much played, etc... but I probably won't.

 

[GregT]

I've been looking for an opportunity to sneak this probably-dumb question in somewhere...

I got my first set of flats, E.B. Cobalts; do they have the same longevity as other flatwounds? Will they last me years and years?

Hopefully, someone who has Cobalts can jump in. I've only used the TIs.

 

[Wood and Wire]

Anyone ever keep one?

Not exactly, but I record a lot, and string info goes into the session notes.

I'd definitely recommend you add 3 recordings of each string type / brand to your diary :

1) fresh out of the packet.

2) broken in.

3) worn out.


Broken in is usually the most useful, but sometimes nothing beats that fresh zing, and sometimes dead stainless steel roundwounds are the best flatwounds.