It seems every time I get a favorite set of strings, the companies stop making them, or stop making the gauges I prefer:
1) 1980's Original D'Addario Reds for college jazz band (never found a replacement for jazz band I like)
2) Gibson flat wound electric guitar strings (finally found DR Legend Flats)
3) Gibson bright alloy acoustic guitar strings (bought a dozen sets from new old stock when I heard)
4) Fender 9050 CL flats 45-60-80-105 (I have one set.)
5) GHS Progressives (on my 4002 for decades, since they were a new string; looking forward to version 2.0 - 2021?)
6) Now that Tony Rice has passed, I wonder how long before they discontinue their "retro" monel strings, which they almost discontinued the Lawrence Juber set, and compromised on calling it the "LJ" set which I use for a tune-down acoustic.
Right now, D'Addario XL 170 BT 45-107 is my favorite bass set with an added 130 for my 5-string bass handling the gigging chores while I try other strings on other basses. The BT's live up to their name. They have even tension, even tone, even feel, last a relatively long time for nickel plated rounds, and are relatively inexpensive. Over the last few years, since this set came out, I've tried others, but come back to these.
One major exception: GHS Pure Balanced Nickel for short scale. I have one short scale bass I experiment on, and these strings are the best thing that has ever happened for short scale bassists. Ever. Pure nickel is more dense than nickel plated steel wrap wire, so you get more mass, therefore more tension out of the same diameter. And being round wound, the E string retains flexibility and doesn't go thumpy, so all four strings retain balance, tone and feel.
1) 1980's Original D'Addario Reds for college jazz band (never found a replacement for jazz band I like)
2) Gibson flat wound electric guitar strings (finally found DR Legend Flats)
3) Gibson bright alloy acoustic guitar strings (bought a dozen sets from new old stock when I heard)
4) Fender 9050 CL flats 45-60-80-105 (I have one set.)
5) GHS Progressives (on my 4002 for decades, since they were a new string; looking forward to version 2.0 - 2021?)
6) Now that Tony Rice has passed, I wonder how long before they discontinue their "retro" monel strings, which they almost discontinued the Lawrence Juber set, and compromised on calling it the "LJ" set which I use for a tune-down acoustic.
Right now, D'Addario XL 170 BT 45-107 is my favorite bass set with an added 130 for my 5-string bass handling the gigging chores while I try other strings on other basses. The BT's live up to their name. They have even tension, even tone, even feel, last a relatively long time for nickel plated rounds, and are relatively inexpensive. Over the last few years, since this set came out, I've tried others, but come back to these.
One major exception: GHS Pure Balanced Nickel for short scale. I have one short scale bass I experiment on, and these strings are the best thing that has ever happened for short scale bassists. Ever. Pure nickel is more dense than nickel plated steel wrap wire, so you get more mass, therefore more tension out of the same diameter. And being round wound, the E string retains flexibility and doesn't go thumpy, so all four strings retain balance, tone and feel.
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