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Strings for drop d on a short scale bass

M

mjs19780

Feb 2, 2021
6
1
#1
Hi, I've just bought a short scale fender mustang bass and love the ease of playing it gives me.

The only thing is that I play on drop d a lot and the strings that came on it are pretty loose - getting a lot of vibration in standard e but drop d is very loose!

I just measured the strings on it and ot looks like it's got a 103 as the E - what would be the best string set for me to get a bit of tension back in there- I measured the scale and it's 30". I generally play punk or rock stuff.

cheers, mike
 
#4
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#5
mjs19780 said:
Hi, I've just bought a short scale fender mustang bass and love the ease of playing it gives me.

The only thing is that I play on drop d a lot and the strings that came on it are pretty loose - getting a lot of vibration in standard e but drop d is very loose!

I just measured the strings on it and ot looks like it's got a 103 as the E - what would be the best string set for me to get a bit of tension back in there- I measured the scale and it's 30". I generally play punk or rock stuff.

cheers, mike
Click to expand...
Hi Mike, I think with a short scale if you are finding a 103 E is a bit loose I think you are always going to find drop D a bit loose unless you get a custom set with a 115 or so E(or D in your case) flatwounds b are generally stiffer feeling but may not be the best option for rock
 
#6
mjs19780 said:
It's a top load like this - see pic
Click to expand...

Thanks for the pic. I just wanted to make sure it's not a thru-body-only Mustang, which requires "medium scale" strings.

GHS Boomers (NPS roundwound) "short scale" (32.75" ball end to silk) come in 50-70-90-107, which might work okay in drop D due to their being stiffer-than-average.

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#8
I've used Rotosound 77s on my Mikro. They have pretty good tension and are fairly lively for a flat wound.

I am using DR High Beams on my short scale stingray and I think they would work fine for Drop D.
 
#9
Here's another one you might want to consider trying...

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Being pure nickel over a round core, they're warmer and smoother in tone than the Boomers I mentioned earlier. The 106 in the short-scale set (32.75" ball end to silk) should be okay for drop D as well.
 
#12
Try the D'Addario balanced tension .050"–.120" set. I use it to give me "normal" tension on a short scale tuned standard. In drop D, it would feel like a short scale at standard tuning. Don't worry about the strings not being made for short scale basses. It isn't an issue. In fact, the strings your bass came with are not short scale strings.

...and/or jack up the action on the strings.
 
#15
Pure nickel is more dense than stainless steel or nickel plated steel, and therefore has more tension for the given pitch and scale length. With that in mind, I have used GHS Balanced Pure Nickel short scale strings tuned down to Eb on a 30-inch bass with a plate bridge with good results. I have not tried them at D.

You are running into the physical limitations of strings. Something like the D'Addario makes an XL set in 50-105 in in short scale. GHS makes a Boomers set in 50-107. La Bella does make their 760FM-S, 49-109, in short scale, if flats appeal to you.
 
#16
Sazazie_Spring said:
If you don't mind groundwounds, maybe try the GHS Brite Flats...
Click to expand...

I was also going to suggest the Brite Flats as a third option along with the Boomers 50-107 and the Balanced Nickels (44-106).

The short-scale BFs come in 49-62-84-108, and being half-rounds, they tend to be stiffer than roundwounds of similar sizes, making them better-suited for down-tuning.

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#17
I've got two shorties I always play in drop D. The Mustang PJ has Labella Deep Talkin' with I think 105 on the low end, and does well with the tuning. Forget what rounds I have on the Squier Jaguar, but the low string is also a 105 and it also handles the D note fine. Put another way, I think the key is a heavy low string, not sure brand matters as much.
 
#19
My string tension caclulator (using Boomers as a middle of the road string) says you want a 120 for a short scale, tuned down to D, and about 35 lbs tension (that's low, but not ridiculously low tension).
 

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