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Sunbeams vs. Nickel LoRiders for fretless

Sunbeams vs. Nickel LoRiders

  • Sunbeams

    Votes: 34 64.2%

  • Nickel LoRiders

    Votes: 11 20.8%

  • skip those, move straight to TI Jazz flats

    Votes: 8 15.1%
  • Total voters
    53
OldogNewTrick

OldogNewTrick

Dec 28, 2004
1,816
1,236
Germany, EU
#1
still looking for the "perfect" string for my fretless...

bass: 34" 5 string walnut/maple/walnut body, NT maple neck, ebony fingerboard, Delano Xtender pickup

tried so far: DAddario XL & Half Rounds, Elixir Nano - greatly prefer tapered B strings

which string should I try next? Sunbeams or Nickel LoRiders? Is the B-string tapered ?

thx all :cool:
 
#2
I voted for Sunbeams. If you prefer higher tension, you might want to consider D'addario chrome flats though. Still bright, and the ability to do totally noiseless unison octave/fifth slides up or down the fretboard without any noise at all is kinda' cool. The TI jazz flats on fretless were extremely boring sounding to me.
 
#4
I like all three of the choices and would have to say it depends on the particular instrument and your personal tastes.

Some strings just get along better with a particular bass. There's no real way to figure otu which one is the "right" string without trying them. This is one of the reasons I tend to hang on to old strings.

Oh, and don't forget about tapewounds.
 
#9
interesting.... thanks for taking the time to respond.

at this point the poll stands at
4 - Sunbeams
2 - NLoRiders
1 - TI Jazz flats

opinions expressed by posters
5 - Sunbeams
0 - NLoRiders
0 - TI Jazz flats
3 - D'Ad Chrome flats


Questions:
- do Sunbeams have a taperwound B-string ?
- has anybody played both the Nickel LoRiders and the Sunbeams, what is their tonal difference ?
- Is the tension of the hexcore LoRiders significantly higher than the roundcore Sunbeams ?

The TI flats option was an afterthought, as I wanted to explore DR's next... there are umpteen threads where they receive lots of love for fretless, yet here 3 posters rave about the Chromes.... I am intrigued - any sound sample, player reference, maybe a youtube clip you can point me to ?

More opinions please !

:D
 
#11
Didn't try the LoRiders, but Sunbeams for me all the way!
(to answer - they do not have taper on the B)

TI flats did not do it for me on fretless - not enough mwah.

Give Sunbeams a try, for couple of bucks you might find your favourites.
If by any chance you don't like them on fretless, they are great for jazz bass as well.
 
#13
After having tried several different sets of strings on my fretless, I finally settled on GHS Pressure Wounds, and it sounds outstanding.

Chromes were pretty good on it, but they were a little too thumpy for what I wanted on that bass. I tried several different sets of rounds, but they were all too zingy and bright. The Pressure Wounds sit right in between, tonally.

FWIW, the next ones I was going to try were Sunbeams, but once I put the Pressure Wounds on it, I stopped fiddling with it, smiled, and played the heck out of it.

The bass in question is a fretless P-clone with a Duncan Quarter Pounder (SPB-3) in it.
 
#14
pseudocat said:
After having tried several different sets of strings on my fretless, I finally settled on GHS Pressure Wounds, and it sounds outstanding.

Chromes were pretty good on it, but they were a little too thumpy for what I wanted on that bass. I tried several different sets of rounds, but they were all too zingy and bright. The Pressure Wounds sit right in between, tonally.

FWIW, the next ones I was going to try were Sunbeams, but once I put the Pressure Wounds on it, I stopped fiddling with it, smiled, and played the heck out of it.

The bass in question is a fretless P-clone with a Duncan Quarter Pounder (SPB-3) in it.
Click to expand...

THIS^^^^ I actually think that GHS Pressurewounds are just as zingy and give me just as much mwah on my SR5 fretless as Sunbeams did, but they are considerably kinder to my fingerboard.
 
#18
I like Sunbeams on most of my fretless.
They do not have a tapered B.

On one of my fretless, I use Ken Smith Compressors (also great strings). The DO have a low B, but it's .125.

The non-tapered .130 on the Sunbeams kills the .125 tapered Ken Smith.
I'd love to find a tapered .130 nickel string to try with the KS's, but have not yet found one.
 
#20
thank you for the useful advise.

at this point the poll stands at
8 - Sunbeams
4 - NLoRiders
3 - TI Jazz flats

opinions expressed by posters
9 - Sunbeams
0 - NLoRiders
1 - TI Jazz flats
3 - D'Ad Chrome flats
2 - GHS Pressure wounds
1 - DR Coated


Questions:
GHS Pressurewounds - AFAIK they are only available as 4-string set, that that would rule them out....
Nobody has any 1st hand experience with the the Nickel LoRiders ?

How do you find the B string of the Sunbeams?
Do you prefer 40-60-80-100-120 or 45-65-85-105-125 or should I use the 130 and why?

Of the sets I've tried, the D'Addario ENR Nickel Half Round 45-65-80-100-130(T) had the best B-string note definition, intonation and clarity - outstanding. The other strings were pretty okay, but I didn't like the grabby feeling on my left hand and the were a pain to tune as the windings were grabby in the nut. But the B-string was the best I played on fretted and fretless, remarkable.

The timber choices of my bass, with the NT neck make it very different from a Fender(ish) Bolt-on. Also the Delano Xtender pickup is much more in your face than your average soapbar. Plenty of mids with strong bass and extended treble. My Human Base Daily Invalid Link Removed, Invalid Link Removed and Invalid Link Removed.

My current favourite fretless tone is Kai Eckhardt with McLaughlin and Gurtu on Live at the Royal Festival Hall.

Your advise is appreciated - keep them coming.

:help:
 

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