I use DR Fatbeams on my Gibson Midtown. They too are pressure wound.
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Thunderbird Club
- Thread starter TBird1958
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I've been curious about the Roto version as well. They don't seem to get much conversation (Solo Bass 55). They are SS and seem to be interesting, but not many play them.
Based on the videos Rotosound did: Solo Bass sound like they are Swing bass 66, which have been pressure wound.
OK, I've done some time with the RS66s on the VP. They do a great angry piano. Nit I'm not playing much music tat calls for an angry piano. I love EBCFs on the CP, but on the VP I want a bit more growl and bite. I'm thinking pressurewounds may be the way to go. Thoughts? Faves? (I've seen recent traction on SIT and GHS.)
For pressure wound, my go to is Fatbeams.
Smoother than rounds, but not as smooth as flats; not silent to slide around. Neither thumpy nor twangy. Not as aggressive (angry piano) as steel rounds, but not warm and mellow like nickels; more brightness than nickel.
I guess my best comparison would be - you know that sound of well broken in RS66 before they go bad but with a tame top end? Much like that.
It depends, of course, on a lot of other factors like what one is playing through, but I really LOVE GHS Boomers on a VP. Big and punchy. My clear first choice, even above the cobalt Flats. Next might Stringjoy's rounds, then maybe Dean Markely Blue Steels. The Boomers have bite and punch, but can be made more aggressive or less aggressive as needed. As much as I love GHS Pressurewounds, they didn't do much for me the times I tried them on VPs. Not enough punch and bite. Oh, GHS Progressives sound really good too. They are made of basically the same material as their Pressurewounds, but are not compressed. (Exposed core on the E.) They are currently revamping that string and GHS does not list them. However some stores might. The Stringjoy's sound a lot like Boomers to my ear. They have great customer service and you can get a set of strings in almost any custom gauge you want for the same price. Well made strings.
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Ok, strings then...
1) Who's got a favorite with a Classic Pro, and why?
2) What's your target for sound, and are you hitting it?
1) Who's got a favorite with a Classic Pro, and why?
2) What's your target for sound, and are you hitting it?
Not an exact match, but the CP should sound a lot like the Gibson Anniversary Thunderbird in my avatar. My hands down favorite on that bass is Optima Gold rounds. Note that the strings are plated a gold color (they claim gold plated
) and that might not be you're cup of tea, but I think they might also have regular colored strings.These are very warm strings, deep, smooth, punchy, exceptionally well balanced from string to string, medium tension, clear clean highs with very little sizzle or shimmer on the top end. They give me exactly the sound I'm targeting - warm, mellow with the tone turned down and crisp and clear with the tone turned up. Never crunchy, harsh or brittle sounding, very little finger noise for a round. A tad deeper and stronger bass on the bottom end than Black Beauty strings, but similar to BB on the top end. BB's are more mid focused than these strings.
They last a good long time, easily three or four times as long as a typical nickel round (ten times longer than an EB slinky Round) but cost quite a bit more than a typical bass string (about $75 a set). When they go dead, they're dead, no reviving technique works well on them. I can easily get a couple of years out of a set. The coating does not chip or wear off like Black Beauties and I suspect they are pick friendly. Also An excellent string to try if you have metal allergies or corrosive sweat.
FWIW - finger style playing only, no slap, no pop, no pick.
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I'm very familiar with the Cobalt sound on my VP and liked it a lot. However, I currently have Fender 7150s on the VP that will need to be replaced soon. Always up for trying something different. Can you compare and contrast how the Boomers and Cobalts sound on a VP For a finger style player?
I really like the Cobalt flats on my CP. I'm going for mucho low end, including a lot of heavy 60s and 70s sounds on this bass. Think Black Sabbath, Grand Funk, Uriah Heep, Cream, as well as fake upright ("Stand by Me"). For more recent sounds, think Silversun Pickups. So lots of low end, good mids, zero to medium highs.
For zingier stuff, I have the VP.
@GBassNorth turned me on to Black Beauties. And they sound great on a TB CP. But for a more aggressive sound, I like Roto steels. So it depend upon what you are looking for. Warm and round 'nickel' sound - BBs. Aggressive and angry - RS66. Or at least those are my favourites.
Thunderbird content! Nikki gets some camera time, too. I really, really need to see these cats up close when Covid finally gets bored and goes offline.
I'll sure try. I am horrible at trying to describe sound. The strings are currently on different basses. Boomers on the white VP and Cobalts on the burst. For whatever reason, the burst might be a slightly less bright than the white VP. I find that the Cobalts and Boomers both have a relatively big sound, Boomers more so. Both have punch and non-harsh crispness (if desired and EQed). Boomers have the edge in both of these categories. Neither string is overly bright unless EQed that way. The mids are very similar and are in a similar place. What that frequency is I wouldn't hazard a guess as it would likely be wrong. Both strings tend to be thick sounding or full-bodied (no dreaded scoop). Boomers again, have the edge slightly for my purposes. Boomers tend to retain their bigness when played with a pick, whereas the cobalts tend to get a little thin sounding for my purposes. Boomers just get a nice pick sound. This really won't help, but to my ear, boomers and cobalt sound very similar, but boomers sound a little better in all the ways that the cobalts to do. Maybe better said, the boomers do everything the cobalts to do only better. At least for my tonal objectives anyway. And my fingers aren't sore!
I have also tried Round Core Boomers as well. A little warmer and maybe slightly deeper than regular boomers, noticeably a little less top end, but without being dull or lifeless. I haven't played the new version of fenders since they came out. I loved the old style Super Bass Strings.
Just for S&G I tuned the EBCF's on my TBIV to DGCF. Same for the GHSBF's on my Epi EB-0.
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- Mar 13, 2008
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- Endorsing Artist Mike Lull T Bass pickups, The Bass Shop, Seattle WA.
My '89 with the stock pickups, I'd quite forgotten about this recording, our guitarist did this remix. While the bass may sound a little clanky for some tastes it's always interesting how it rides in the mix with the whole band.
Scratch and sniff here.
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Scratch and sniff here.
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Oh man. Made my day!
You have to see them! Go two nights. The first Night at the stage.
The second Night further back to take in the whole mix. I love them.
I’ve not seen her play that bird before. She usually plays her burst with the giraffe or her other burst when I’ve seen her. She also has a white one. The Red one looks to be an ‘18 with a Babicz. That’s a good video. I was going to see that show when it returned to LA. Alas it didn’t happen. That may have been their last before the shutdown?
My Gibson has the same pickups. I go for an aggressive hard rock kinda tone, but play anything from lighter rock to punk. My tone tends to sound about the same, though. Mix and all. My baseline was the Rotosound RS66. I fell in love with La Bella SS, but they discontinued them. Finally found the SIT Power Steel and they're very much like the La Bellas. I only play finger style, but they're aggressive-sounding and seem very full across the spectrum. I also find their tension (similar to the Rotosounds) and feel really nice to play. Pretty perfect for me. So I stopped my search. No interest in trying anything else, other than some mild curiosity.
If I needed strings now and couldn't get the SIT in time, I'd be perfectly happy with the RS66. Same arena.
Thanks for the responses on strings for the CP Bird...
