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TapeWound Club~Anyone?

#1,781
dlmarquez said:
I have been looking for information on which tapewounds are the lowest tension (4 string long scale) to put on a Ric 4003.
Currently running LaBella 760N lights.
Are there any tapewound sets with lower tension than the LaBella's? I haven't been very successful in finding info on tapewound sets and their tension.
Click to expand...
Here ya go. Some manufacturers like La Bella, Magma no longer, or maybe never have published tension stats for their tapewounds. The tension data for the Pyramids is on the Strings By Mail website

Invalid Link Removed

Scale length 34"
E standard tuning. Total tension in pounds force from lowest to highest

*D'Addario XL Black Nylon Tapewounds ETB92

E Standard Tuning
Gauges 50 65 85 105

E1/.105/31.90lbf
A1/.085/35.54lbf
D2/.065/38.68lbf
G2/.050/40.04lbf

TT = 146.16lbf

*Galli Black Nylon Tapewounds G77-4



E Standard Tuning
Gauges 55 75 100 115

E1/.115/30.74lbf
A1/.100/43.61lbf
D2/.075/41.86lbf
G2/.055/37.18lbf

TT = 153.39lbf


*Pyramid Black Nylon Tapewounds 648/1

E Standard Tuning
Gauges 55 75 95 112

E1/.112/39.68lbf
A1/.095/38.58lbf
D2/.075/48.50lbf
G2/.055/30.86lbf

TT = 157.62lbf


*GHS Black Nylon Tapewounds 3060

E Standard Tuning
Gauges 50 70 90 105

E1/.105/34.30lbf
A1/.090/44.60lbf
D2/.070/48.00lbf
G2/.050/40.90lbf

TT = 167.80lbf


*Rotosound Trubass88 Black Nylon Tapewounds RS88LD

E Standard Tuning
Gauges 65 75 100 115

E1/.115/34.53lbf
A1/.100/47.06lbf
D2/.075/43.84lbf
G2/.065/51.72lbf

TT = 176.15lbf


So D'addario Black Nylons the least and Rotosound Trubass88 the greatest as far as sets for which data is available.

HaphasAsard in particular may be able to sniff out some other manufacturers of tapes and/or some data that I haven’t mentioned
 
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#1,783
Oh snap - I just played a set for the first time yesterday. We host a monthly jazz jam and a fellow brought in his fender 5 with labella black tapes and I’m smitten.

Problem is I’m very happy with the DR pure Blues on my Lakland 5 and the GHS precision flats on my…Precision. I guess the TB approved solution is to buy another bass just for a set of those strings! I’m on it.
 
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#1,784
Prodigus Filius said:
Here ya go. Some manufacturers like La Bella, Magma no longer, or maybe never have published tension stats for their tapewounds. The tension data for the Pyramids is on the Strings By Mail website

Mexican manufacturer Eclipse makes 45-105 sets too

Scale length 34"
E standard tuning. Total tension in pounds force from lowest to highest

*D'Addario XL Black Nylon Tapewounds ETB92

E Standard Tuning
Gauges 50 65 85 105

E1/.105/31.90lbf
A1/.085/35.54lbf
D2/.065/38.68lbf
G2/.050/40.04lbf

TT = 146.16lbf

*Galli Black Nylon Tapewounds G77-4



E Standard Tuning
Gauges 55 75 100 115

E1/.115/30.74lbf
A1/.100/43.61lbf
D2/.075/41.86lbf
G2/.055/37.18lbf

TT = 153.39lbf


*Pyramid Black Nylon Tapewounds 648/1

E Standard Tuning
Gauges 55 75 95 112

E1/.112/39.68lbf
A1/.095/38.58lbf
D2/.075/48.50lbf
G2/.055/30.86lbf

TT = 157.62lbf


*GHS Black Nylon Tapewounds 3060

E Standard Tuning
Gauges 50 70 90 105

E1/.105/34.30lbf
A1/.090/44.60lbf
D2/.070/48.00lbf
G2/.050/40.90lbf

TT = 167.80lbf


*Rotosound Trubass88 Black Nylon Tapewounds RS88LD

E Standard Tuning
Gauges 65 75 100 115

E1/.115/34.53lbf
A1/.100/47.06lbf
D2/.075/43.84lbf
G2/.065/51.72lbf

TT = 176.15lbf


So D'addario Black Nylons the least and Rotosound Trubass88 the greatest as far as sets for which data is available.

HaphasAsard in particular may be able to sniff out some other manufacturers of tapes and/or some data that I haven't mentioned
Click to expand...
Tension data, no. In fact I would probably have forgotten Galli and Pyramid having published theirs...
That's all she wrote, as far as I'm aware. No data in my possession from La Bella, Fender, Warwick, Magma, Eclipse, Lemma Sound. Nor the old Status tapes, for that matter.

The above having been said, if one is dead set on getting not just nylon tapewounds but the lowest-tension tapes available,
- apart from the La Bella 760NHBB (a Beatlebass-specific - ergo too short for a long-scale bass)
the only tapes that come with a 100 low E (likely to have extra thin metal innards, as in 085-ish) are
- the Warwick Tapewound Bronze,* set 34210 ML LOS 4, 40-100.
(Be aware that I've seen less than flattering reviews of this particular set.)
- They also come in 45-105 (set 34200 M LOS 4).
- Mexican manufacturer Eclipse makes 45-105 sets too (BXC-4).

- Anything else by any other manufacturer is at least 50 to 105
(GHS 3060, which are tighter because of their flatwound construction, as shown above;
D'Addario ETB92;
Magma BE405NB;
La Bella 750N;
the White Nylon sets, also by La Bella: 750T, 750C* and 750G*).


* [Only the outermost metal layer under the nylon is bronze or copper: core is steel, and intermediate wraps probably are as well, so these can work on electric basses.]



Finally, as you pointed out once, there is the option of using the ADGC subset of the Roto Trubass 88, detuned a perfect fourth:
Prodigus Filius said:
Mark King does EADG with 30 50 70 90 with the Roto Funkmasters.
I've mucked about with the 065 075 100 Roto88 tapes tuned to EAD. The underlying gauges are prob 50 60 85 I guess. Was a blast. Low tension for sure.

These would be the tensions with the 050 from the 6 string set as G ( underlying gauge 035 I spose). So the 'real' gauges 35 50 60 85 are not far off the Funkmasters
Rotosound Trubass 88

E1/.100/26.41lbf
A1/.075/24.60lbf
D2/.065/29.02lbf
G2/.050/22.98lbf

TT = 103.01lbf

The Funkmasters by comparison. Just 4lbf overall difference

Rotosound Funkmaster 66

E1/.090/27.02lbf
A1/.070/30.41lbf
D2/.050/29.85lbf
G2/.030/20.11lbf

TT = 107.39lbf
Click to expand...
 
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#1,785
By way of comparisojn with the Roto88's underlying stainles steel rounds, the Swing bass66 Extra light set, has an even lighter bottom than the Funkmasters ( 65 85 compared to 70 90)

RS66LA
Gauges 30 50 65 85

E1/.085/26.41lbf
A1/.065/27.62lbf
D2/.050/29.85lbf
G2/.030/20.11lbf

TT = 103.99lbf
 
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#1,787
dlmarquez said:
I have been looking for information on which tapewounds are the lowest tension (4 string long scale) to put on a Ric 4003.
Currently running LaBella 760N lights.
Are there any tapewound sets with lower tension than the LaBella's? I haven't been very successful in finding info on tapewound sets and their tension.
Click to expand...
If you like the 760N's but want less tension, the answer is simple: LaBella 750Ns. Possibly the most flexible strings I've played.
 
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#1,788
DCCat said:
If you like the 760N's but want less tension, the answer is simple: LaBella 750Ns. Possibly the most flexible strings I've played.
Click to expand...
The La Bella 750N are the same gauge as the D'addario XL tapes. One would assume a similar underlying gauge making then low in the ranking of overall tension. Speaking of the XL tapes, the tension specs, which D'addario seems to update now and then, now have the E 105 at 33.20lb and rounded the decimals for the other gauges in the set, so the overall tension of the set is now
147.60lbf. Still the lowest of sets with published data
 
#1,789
Prodigus Filius said:
The La Bella 750N are the same gauge as the D'addario XL tapes. One would assume a similar underlying gauge making then low in the ranking of overall tension. Speaking of the XL tapes, the tension specs, which D'addario seems to update now and then, now have the E 105 at 33.20lb and rounded the decimals for the other gauges in the set, so the overall tension of the set is now
147.60lbf. Still the lowest of sets with published data
Click to expand...
I asked D'Addario yesterday what the actual tensions were for the XL tapes because the numbers were different on the website than on the packaging. They told me this morning they were going to make the corrections and that they now round the number one decimal over. I guess they're pretty fast.
 
#1,790
Just Wrong said:
I asked D'Addario yesterday what the actual tensions were for the XL tapes because the numbers were different on the website than on the packaging. They told me this morning they were going to make the corrections and that they now round the number one decimal over. I guess they're pretty fast.
Click to expand...
D’addario are one of the better manufacturers when it comes to responding to customers.
 
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#1,791
Prodigus Filius said:
D'addario are one of the better manufacturers when it comes to responding to customers.
Click to expand...
Completely agree. I've contacted seven manufacturers in the past years.
  • One never responded (two messages via their web form and one email)
  • Another I contacted twice:
    • The first time they refused to acknowledge the string was defective and refused to do anything about it
    • The other time, on a completely different topic, they couldn't answer my question and went out of their way to add a snarky comment that added nothing to the conversation but make them seem arrogant
    • And I have nothing but bad things to say about this company's customer service, which I've also dealt with through other means unrelated to the two experiences above
  • Two answered my questions promptly and respectfully
  • One replaced one defective string with two sets of strings
  • Two went above and beyond to help me — one of those was D'Addario: they couldn't answer my question, but told me to try it, and if it didn't work they would refund the strings. The other was Pyramid — they custom made one string and shipped it all for free to test if it would work before making a custom set
 
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#1,792
Just Wrong said:
Completely agree. I've contacted seven manufacturers in the past years.
  • One never responded (two messages via their web form and one email)
  • Another I contacted twice:
    • The first time they refused to acknowledge the string was defective and refused to do anything about it
    • The other time, on a completely different topic, they couldn't answer my question and went out of their way to add a snarky comment that added nothing to the conversation but make them seem arrogant
    • And I have nothing but bad things to say about this company's customer service, which I've also dealt with through other means unrelated to the two experiences above
  • Two answered my questions promptly and respectfully
  • One replaced one defective string with two sets of strings
  • Two went above and beyond to help me — one of those was D'Addario: they couldn't answer my question, but told me to try it, and if it didn't work they would refund the strings. The other was Pyramid — they custom made one string and shipped it all for free to test if it would work before making a custom set
Click to expand...
Wish I could say Magma was good at customer enquiries. But doesn’t seem to be the case unfortunately. Hopefully the Magma tapes I’m waiting on are better. Speaking of which, I have ordered from Strings By Mail before and the orders have arrived at Australia very quickly, but have then got caught up in delays here in Oz. But not this time around. 15 days since I ordered and tracking indicates may not have left the U.S yet. Maybe not unusual I guess. Just anxious to give these tapes a burl (slang for ‘go’ for those
not in the know he he)
 
#1,793
Prodigus Filius said:
Wish I could say Magma was good at customer enquiries. But doesn't seem to be the case unfortunately. Hopefully the Magma tapes I'm waiting on are better. Speaking of which, I have ordered from Strings By Mail before and the orders have arrived at Australia very quickly, but have then got caught up in delays here in Oz. But not this time around. 15 days since I ordered and tracking indicates may not have left the U.S yet. Maybe not unusual I guess. Just anxious to give these tapes a burl (slang for 'go' for those
not in the know he he)
Click to expand...
Oh, I forgot to add Magma to my list, actually.

I contacted them twice. I contacted their Argentina site first. They responded promptly, but told me to contact the US site, which never responded.

Then I purchased four sets of rounds from the US store and got four sets of flats—with hefty duties, which I'd never gotten before when ordering strings from the US. The US store answered promptly when I told them I got the wrong strings. I'm pretty sure I ended up returning the flats, keeping one set to try, and I'm actually not sure who paid for the return shipping...

Anyway, I asked them to label the new package as a "return" or a "gift" so I wouldn't pay duties twice. They didn't. I think I ended up paying around CA$80 (AU$90) if not $100 ($120) in taxes.

I didn't like their flats. They were stiff and overly bright—they didn't stay on the bass for very long, so I couldn't tell you how they mellowed. By that point, I hadn't played rounds in half a decade, so I couldn't tell you what they were like. I remember thinking they felt rough, but I suppose any rounds would feel rough after five years of playing flats and tapes exclusively.
 
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#1,795
mrperkolator said:
I've only contacted La Bella and I've had great experiences. And I don't get tons of marketing emails so that's nice

Edit: also Kala with success for my ubass.
Click to expand...
I contacted LaBella when I broke a string on a new(ish) set of black tapes (first time with a powered string winder & I went the wrong way).
They told me they could send me a single string if I paid postage (to Australia). I replied, yes; but commented that the postage they quoted was a bit 'wow' (just a casual aside, not a complaint. It was still much cheaper than buying a full set). They then sent me the string without charging me for the postage.

That's the sort of customer service that means every new set of strings I have bought since then has been La Bella.
 
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#1,797
Just got my set of LaBella 760N-B's! Gonna put them on my Ibanez SRD905F soon. Right now it's got D'Addario's. Bottom three tapewound and top two are the stock flatwounds. 😅 Only had those three leftover from when I re-strung my SRAS7. lol
 

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#1,800
Do this to get the definitive winding length needed for any bass with through body loading.
For the E string , grab a marker pen and put a mark on the string just clear of the rear of the nut. Put the second mark on the string just before it reaches the tuning machine post. Take the current E string off and measure the distance from the rear of the ball end to each mark.
You want the new string winding length to have at least the length of the first measurement from ball end to start of silk and no longer ideally than the second measurement from ball end to silk. This method takes all the guess work out when wanting to buy strings for a particular bass with strings loaded through body.
If you do this and post your measurements with specifics about your bass model, it is really helpful for others with the same question for the same bass in the future
 
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