Double Bass Survey: How do you break in your new strings after installation???

[Don Hergert]

Folks, the "DB" prefix on all threads in the Double Bass forum stands for Double Bass. Please check the thread title of the thread you are replying to before typing a reply. We don't want to keep non double bassists from replying to threads in the DB forum, but when they do, we would like for them to be doing so intentionally.

There are areas like music theory where the topics need not be DB specific, but for things like strings, setup, basses, etc. the topics do actually relate to two very different instruments.

Thank you for that @Chris Fitzgerald ... Right after I created this thread I thought about modding the thread title to read "Survey: How do you break in your new double bass strings after installation???", but my edit window seemed to be past. If that mod is something you can do, I would welcome it.

 

[statsc]

String changing? I use Spiros! Seriously, using Nick Lloyd’s string cleaning method every few months keeps the Spiros sounding fresh without that annoying “new-string zing.”

 

[Martin Beer]

I think my bass is just dark, a brand new set of Spirocores isn't too much brightness for me, same with the Prestoflex set I have on currently. So I've just put them on and played them whenever string change time comes.

 

[SVT4001]

9) what are "new strings"?

What some folks ask for after they gather all of the dragon balls and nobody died in the process. =)

 

[lurk]

String changing? I use Spiros! Seriously, using Nick Lloyd’s string cleaning method every few months keeps the Spiros sounding fresh without that annoying “new-string zing.”

I haven't read every single post in this thread, so forgive me if this is redundant. What is Nick Lloyd's string cleaning method?

 

[pcake]

i stretch my stringsgently and thoroughly, retune, repeat several times. then i just play them. it's worked for me for 3 decades. i don't like new string sound, but it goes away.

 

[TroyK]

i stretch my stringsgently and thoroughly, retune, repeat several times. then i just play them. it's worked for me for 3 decades. i don't like new string sound, but it goes away.

On doublebass, this is what you do?

 

[statsc]

I haven't read every single post in this thread, so forgive me if this is redundant. What is Nick Lloyd's string cleaning method?

Click on the link in the post!

 

[Don Kasper]

Click on the link in the post!

That post and the link has vanished...
Wassupwitdat?
Are the Mods not Moderatin' today?

 

[TroyK]

My humor fell flat and Don was demanding an explanation, so I deleted. I don't know Nick Lloyd's string cleaning method, but ... you know wipe um. Use alcohol carefully if you must.

 

[Don Kasper]

You're Welcome...

 

[Dr. Love]

I put them on, give a gentle tug or two to make sure everything is settled in on both ends, tune, then re-tune as needed until the strings decide to behave.

 

[ThinCrappyTone2]

On a double bass?

I thought the whammy bar part would give it away that it was a joke

 

[Rip Van Dan]

While I'm a relative newbie, I've changed double bass strings quite a few times by now, including just recently... And I've read of more than one way to break the strings in.

Hence the question.

I'd really be interested in hearing method preferences -- and also how successful in speeding up break-in those methods are.

Hey folks, my apologies for posting in the wrong forum. It was one of the hot topics listed and I didn't realize I was posting in the double bass forum at the time I posted about the strings I've used for my electric bass. I will try to pay more attention next time. sorry!

 

[Don Hergert]

@Rip Van Dan, as @Chris Fitzgerald said, we don't want to exclude anyone in TalkBass, so your comments here in this thread were welcomed. There are a LOT of people who play double bass and are active on the double bass side of TalkBass who also play bass guitar and are also active on the BG side of TalkBass. It's just nice for people to be aware of which community is going to focus attention on their threads and posts.

Welcome!

 

[groooooove]

i'm split between option 1 and 4.

i more or less just tune them up and play.

my studio is located on the main floor of my house, and it's sort of a weird layout. it's literally centrally located between all the most used areas in the house, so popping in there to tune every so often is convenient the day of/after a string change.

i'm also using tempera strings which do stretch more than typical strings but not quite as much as gut.

 

[ole Jason]

I just put on a new set of Spiros last night and tuning has been surprisingly stable through the day. I don't mind the tone too much on my bass but I'm looking forward to them mellowing a bit. I put a set of Evah Golds on my Shen last year and they stretched like crazy for a few days. Set aside a few days without gigs if you plan on putting those on!

The String Emporium still has Spiros on sale for $200 btw if anyone is in the market.

 

[Don Hergert]

i'm split between option 1 and 4.

Number 4 was my answer, no question about it, mostly because our music room is our living room, where my wife and I store all our instruments, practice, jam, often eat and watch the few movies we watch, together... So every time I go in and out of the living room, there's my Alcoa to check the tuning, and having just put on a full set of the fattest Deluxe "Dirty Guts", I've been "mother hen"'ing them. Happily they are now very stable for tuning so my break-in period is now focused more on my playing skills. As advertised, they took just about a week.

 

[CharleyJackson]

Took my set of LaBella SuperNils a full month to settle down and stay in tune. I played and tuned, played and tuned, played and tuned. Then one day realized I wasn’t needing to tune as often.

 

[the_Ryan]

I answered #6

In practice I functionally just treat them as I do my old strings (play normally and tune as needed), but I do actually turn each tuning peg about a half turn flat, give each string a tug, and measure that my bridge isn’t tilting forward or back before I first tune each day regardless of the age of my strings: the first two things are an extension of the “always tune up” philosophy and is mostly to make sure that the tension on both sides of the nut is equal (because particularly if there’s less tension on the tuning side of the nut the string is much more likely to “slip” through normal playing), and checking my string length is to make sure my bridge isn’t being pulled in one direction or another. Which I admit is obsessive on my part, but I don’t do that solely to break strings in, it’s more of a daily instrument maintenance thing.

I think particularly if you use steel core strings you should just play as normal and tune as needed: there’s not going to be as much stretch as a nylon or gut core string and the breaking-in period is more about waiting for some of the initial brightness to fade, which mostly comes from playing (and the oils from your greasy fingers).