Even though spec's as "mahogany," the body of this bass is most probably agathis or another of the mystery-wood bodies that is more like Spanish Cedar, or a cross between Spanish cedar and Honduran mahogany. Remember that there are hundreds of species of trees that are all called generically, "mahogany." That's not a bad thing; it just isn't ash or alder. Because of this, the body will have its own midrange resonance. The issue is that many strings designed for growl, which include Ernie Ball, GHS Boomers, and others, including most of the stainless steel rounds, will have their own resonances that may not be compatible with the body, and cause the bass to sound nasal or pinched, even though Ernie Ball in particular do sound great, especially on an ash-bodied Ernie Ball bass. But not on this one.
D'Addario's have a drop in the low mids in their response and compliment this bass. They are also the OEM strings for the bass. XL nickel rounds do start bright, but settle in well. Just roll off the tone knob for awhile until they settle in. All rounds will start brighter than flats. But if you really like the flats, D'Addario does make a 5-string Chromes set which also work well on this bass.
Higher gauge strings don't necessarily sound darker, but because there is more mass over the magnetic field of the pickup, they can produce a "bigger" tone. The lighter gauge strings may sound marginally brighter, because with a smaller diameter, they are more flexible at pitch and produce marginally more overtones. Depending on the tension and flexibility of any particular string, it may have its own string excursion when picked or plucked, and the setup always needs to be adjusted accordingly, even if only a quarter turn of the bridge saddle height adjustment screw.
La Bella strings generally have a more neutral character and work well on this bass also.
I have the predecessor to this bass, a 2011 SRA305, with the same body wood, and I have tried all the rest of the strings listed above, including Ernie Ball, as well as Fender flats, GHS steels, and others. Right now I have La Bella regular gauge black nylon tape wounds. They are a perfect match: big, round, still articulate. Carvin has them as OEM on their mahogany bodied AEB, and have the best price on them separately.
