Strings

[envy1400]

i see alot of talk about flat wounds and round wounds etc. i don't know a lot about strings. I currently play a peavey cirrus bxp and a geddy lee and have been using dr lo riders because my old teacher was. what sort of strings should i consider trying?

 

[RickenBoogie]

Totally personal preference.

 

[fivestringgecko]

Totally personal preference.

+1

It also depends on what style you want to play. I generally prefer nickel roundwounds because I prefer a more modern "zingy" tone, but I bought a Pbass V specifically so I could put flatwounds on it for a more old school thump funk sound.

Rounds tend to be brighter, flats have much less high end (think of rolling off your treble/tone control and you'll have a good idea). There are half-rounds, which are somewhere in between. Even beyond that, what the string is made out of will have an impact on tone.

The best thing to do is try different sets/manufacturers and see what you like. A website like [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] has pretty good prices. Also, companies will usually have info on their sites... for example, D'Addario has a "tone bar" that describes their sounds. Check it out at their bass strings page: .

Some starting info anyway.

5sg.

 

[darkstorm]

Try the roundwounds of various mfg as bet choice to find the one's you like best. Over the years I've come to classify Rotosounds as being one of the dullest sounding stainless steel strings made, yet thats good, their as bright as nickels, with more grind and harmonics and they dont need the extended break in time of stainless steel strings like Dean Markley Blue Steels which are esp bright sounding.

I also like GHS boomers. Ernie Balls if wanting a little more crunch emphasis. Daddario if wanting very smooth and/or a decrease in crunch.

I dont like flats myself, too dull and well, flat sounding to me.
I dont like DR or Elixer either, their sound just doesnt agree with me.

I kinda liked Ken Smith, but after getting too many pkgs with dead strings right out of the box, I decided to never use them again. Too unreliable qaulity wise. Out of 10 pkgs, 4 had dead E or A strings right out of the box.

 

[Bass-Adrenaline]

Try a bunch and see what you like. Sure thats not gonna be cheap or quick (unless you buy a ton of sets and try them all right away) but theres really no assurance that what someone tells you a string sounds like will be what it sounds like to you or what you prefer.

 

[M0ses]

what sort of strings should i consider trying?

Probably all of them.

 

[chipvibe]

I've formed the opinion that my sweat chemistry seems to have sometihng to do with my choice of strings.
I've tried everything over the years, but I swear to bog, Rotos last longer and keep a "gronk" longer than anything I've ever tried. They are all I use. Nickels die on me in a week. Blue Steels last a bit longer, but the last thing I usually need is a lot of "zing", which sounds to me as just being scratchy, too much in the way of high end noise. But everybody's different.

Rotos ARE harsh, they eat frets and your fingers, but I can't reccomend anything else for sheer power.

 

[JCooper]

FWIW, I have a Cirrus BXP too, STILL pulling nice, new sounds out of it using just the electronics on-board. I have a set of S.I.T. strings on it now, and I like them. I AM going to continue to explore the exciting world of "what do these sound like?".
Please post your experiences! thanks