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Unicorn string set for a Mustang

Tim Skaggs

Tim Skaggs

Sep 28, 2002
5,157
8,253
#1
I started back playing full time (almost every weekend) in March of this year (‘21) and we have recently had a few dates where we played two gigs in the same day. This can get a little tiresome, so I broke out my early 2000’s Fender CIJ Mustang to help with my stamina. It’s had Chromes on it for a few years because I used it on acoustic gigs, I wanted the thump & I played zero slap on those gigs.

Now I want to brighten it up as much as possible for some rock / pop where I play some slap, and I can’t find any bright rounds with decent tension. I thought about going to .050 -.110 gauge, but that gauge tends to kill some of the brightness. I can live with .045 - .105 (which is what I have on it now in D’Adderio XL), but I need something with a stiff core wire, tighter winding, or something that creates higher tension. I’m not getting along with the floppy feel well at all.

Looking for a bright, high tension string set that maintains its tension on a 30” scale.
 
#7
Rocket Queen said:
The highest documented tension short scale strings that I know of:
GHS Bass Boomers Regular Gauge (.050-.107) = 161.4 lbs
Stringjoy Heavy Gauge (.055-.110) = 174.2 lbs
Click to expand...

And when you put it in context, 161.4lbs on a short scale is still less than a set of Med-Light Bass Boomers at 34" scale length (~177lb).
 
#10
michael_t said:
This means you need a "medium scale" set with a minimum of 33.5" in winding length (ball end to taper/silk). Most "short scale" sets would be too short.

GHS Super Steels, 44-63-84-106, do come in "medium scale" with 35.5" winding length (ball end to silk).

https://www.ghsstrings.com/products...r-steelstm?category_id=1964708-super-steelstm
Click to expand...
Yes sir, I’ve been down the silk-below-the-nut road before when I first got the bass tried some “short” scale strings. Over the years I’ve owned the Mustang, I think I’ve had 34” scale strings on the bass more often than medium scale strings. I even had one set of medium scale strings with the outermost final winding on the E string that ended below the nut, so I try to make sure…
 
#11
Tim Skaggs said:
Yes sir, I’ve been down the silk-below-the-nut road before when I first got the bass tried some “short” scale strings. Over the years I’ve owned the Mustang, I think I’ve had 34” scale strings on the bass more often than medium scale strings. I even had one set of medium scale strings with the outermost final winding on the E string that ended below the nut, so I try to make sure…
Click to expand...

You said you wanted them "bright and stiff"... GHS Super Steels, being stainless steel, are brighter than the Boomers (NPS), and they're also at the stiffer end of the roundwound stiffness scale.
 

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