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Double Bass Velvet strings megathread part II

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#601
Well I had a two hour gig tonight at a reception--typical DC thing, women in cocktail dresses, guys in suits, fancy canapes on trays, nobody listening. Got sore fingers on my right hand

Loud--but the Velvet blues held up. They projected well enough so the piano player could hear me and so could the crowd, at least those listening. I could hear myself fine. I might have to raise the action a bit as the E and A strings were a bit rattly when i pulled hard. Very little left hand fatigue. Would have been much more with the ittles. Bass tone swung well enough to get a few people tapping and swaying, which is a miracle at this kind of gig.

Did a little bowing earlier today and they are not bad--I'm keeping them on for a while. So far I'm very happy. Have not tried amping them yet
 
#602
Ive noticed that with the full circle pickup, there is a massive difference in sound with these depending on were the pickup wheel is turned. Ranges from overly boomy with little definition to very electric sounding. What pickups are others using with these strings?

Im thinking that I will have to raise my action slightly to get a bit more tension. I LOVE the feel and sound of these strings, but at faster tempos and with more technical things I miss the spirocores. Hmmm. We will see. In my apartment, they sound fantastic and have a response that allows me to play more technichal passages, but in a loud band situation Im feeling that maybe they are not as practical as I would have hoped.

For anyone who has tried these or the Animas - is there anything out there that is kind of in between Weichs and Velvets as far as tension, and sound????
 
#604
Are these strings any good for orchestra arco work? They sound great for pizzicato and jazz.

I had a set of medium weight Corellis once and they were too soft and light for arco on my bass. Currently I'm running medium Helicores, but I really have to work on a jazz gig and they are useless for rockabilly
 
#605
Hi! So I just put on these pair of strings and they sound wonderful!!

Some words:

The tone in orchestral tuning is very dark and brooding, a really lovely "bassy" tone, and they're incredibly low tension but still put out a good sound and resistance to the bow. Not exactly a section players string, more suited towards chamber music and soloing at orchestral pitch and "hybrid" baroque playing when you can't put the real deal on (plain gut). If you like to push these strings are not for you because they will not respond with insane amounts of volume as say Pirastro Original Flat-chrome.

When tuned up to solo pitch these strings really shine, they produce a very cello like tone in the upper register but still keep that bassy resonance which is nice.

To be fair I must admit that this is my third set of strings from the Velvet company. The first set I purchased 1 month ago and two of the strings snapped. Nuno was very kind and he sent me the SUITES for free within seven days directly from Europe. Unfortunately my girlfriend bought me a set of the Regulars (Early-Christmas!) because she saw that my old ones broke and was unaware that I asked customer service for a replacement so I'm now stuck with a package of Compass 180 strings that have never even been used...Any bidders? heh.


Happy playing.
 
#606
These strings have had me intrigued, but I've always been put off because no one has really posted anything on them. I'm glad to have some feedback from a classical oriented guy. If you have tried belcantos, how would you say they compare tension wise?
 
#608
JoeyNaeger said:
These strings have had me intrigued, but I've always been put off because no one has really posted anything on them. I'm glad to have some feedback from a classical oriented guy. If you have tried belcantos, how would you say they compare tension wise?
Click to expand...

They're definitely A LOT lower tension than belcantos and they have a very different tone (much more pleasing in my opinion.) Once again, the dynamic range at the top of the spectrum is not very large but for playing even the most minute details they really shine. Definitely not recommended for settings where you need maximum volume. These strings simulate the response of gut only in that you need to use much more bow speed to get them to react nicely. The thing I like about them is how long the sustain is!!! I think the G-harmonic lasted about 15 seconds or so on my bass!
 
#610
Like someone else said in another thread, if all I did was jazz pizz, these strings would be pretty good. I've been doing a bit of orchestral stuff lately though, and I needed something w/ a little more volume. It's funny, the Compas were loud, but I felt they lacked in presence. Btw, I had the reg. orchestral tension, and only the D and G.
 
#611
Agreed, they are really nice strings. They are actually very nice sounding for Jazz pizz as well. A great hybrid string if you like a bit lower tension, and need an exceptionally easy string to bow. I had them on my old German bass for a while and really liked them.
 
#613
I currently play Velvet 360s and need to replace them w/ something less expensive. My requirements are: Low tension (like my Velvets as I am set up for high action); smooth strings, easy on my hands; mellow sound and longevity. I play Old-time music exclusively. Occasionally slap, and rarely bow.

So far I think that I would like the Innovation Rockabilly black nylon, or possibly the Velvet Blues. I've also played the Pirastro Flat wound chromcors and thought they played nicely.

Please share your comments on these and any other suggestions as well.

Of course, I'd like to get these for New Year's as there's playing to be done!
 
#614
The 360s have been discontinued and replaced by the Blues, which are the least expensive Velvets too, methinks.

Innovation Rockabillies are quite floppy, and possibly best suited for slap.

Pirastro Chromcors use a solid steel core and are quite stiff.
Forget them if you seek low tension.

Maybe you'd like Eurosonics, which are available in three gauges.
They feature a clear polyamide wrap over steel rope-core and are easy to play, and have an old-time feel and sound.

Hope this helps.
François
 
#616
Of course, Francois can answer for himself, but my $ .02 is yes and no. Within a single brand of strings, lighter usually means lighter, but bass strings can be made a lot of different ways and there are lower tension strings that are thicker in diameter. I don't have any experience with Eurosonics, but I would trust Francois, he's put his hands on a lot of strings.

I have played a few strings that were lighter in gauge (usually orchestral strings), but kind of high in tension and they hurt me in strange ways that thicker strings would not have. If you take something like an Obligato G string or an OLIV G for example, they will be fairly large gauge and comparitively low in tension and will probably be more finger friendly than soemthing like a Jargar G for example, which will be smaller diameter, but possible stiffer. Think of classical, nylon guitar strings vs metal, acostic guitar strings, for comparison.

If you look at the sticky in this forum, you'll find a link to a chart of gauge and tension, that will drive you batty, but it does give you some idea. Lots of good experiential information if you search and read the archeives. You'll ultimately have to try a few things before you find your setup.
 
#617
Guitar strings are not as much complex as upright bass strings.
But when look at a given brand, which offers a few gauges, the light and ultra-light sets will be easier to play; less tension.

Upright strings can be made of different materials.

You can get cores made of:
  • gut
  • synthetic (usually nylon)
  • silk (Velvets)
  • solid steel
  • braided steel (also called rope-core)
Around the core is wrapped some material to add mass, and/or finally an outer wrap, which can be made of nylon (flat or round), metal (flat or round) or other synthetic (like polyamide).

The recipe will result in a string of given diameter and flexibility.

Some are thicker (gut strings in particular), some are thin (steel all the way).

Gut strings, while thicker, are elastic and flexible.
Solid steel core is more rigid than braided steel.
You get the picture.
Thomastik Spirocores Mittels (medium gauge) are relatively high tension and relatively stiff.
That's why many players choose the Weich (light) gauge, or even the solo-tuning strings (which are designed to be played a whole tone higher (F# B E A), so they're even thinner) and play them at standard orchestra pich. (E A D G)

The Velvets are quite unique.
Each string in the set has the same tension.
They use silk, which is very flexible, and use semi-round copper in the outer wrap, which gives them clarity. (the 180s use flat steel I think though)
I'd classify them as Light, but rather on their feel and tension than their gauge.
 
#618
OK - got the Eurosonics and I'm putting them on (my husband is a luthier - builds banjos and guitars) so he's my technician, but we have a question that isn't answered in any of the instructions I could find. Is it OK to cut Eurosonics at the nut? Can I? Should I? They're very stiff and I expect there will be 1 - 1/2" of material that is not able to be caught under the string that will be free floating in the peg head and could rattle.
 
#619
Oldtimebasslady said:
Is it OK to cut Eurosonics at the nut? Can I? Should I? They're very stiff and I expect there will be 1 - 1/2" of material that is not able to be caught under the string that will be free floating in the peg head and could rattle.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure I understand this part:
I expect there will be 1 - 1/2" of material that is not able to be caught under the string

Caught under the string???
You must not overwrap the string over itself.

You can cut excess lenght, but you MUST leave at least a couple of inches of the silked part. (at the peg end of course)

The excess being silked, it shouldn't rattle. (if it's short)
 
#620
hmm. I don't think I said that very well. Sorry. What was causing us to question cutting the string is that there is wound metal at the nut end of the string that is VERY stiff. We were wondering about cutting that off, but worked with it and it seems OK. Since we've never changed bass strings before, this was an adventure. I'm still wondering about the metal winding, but we decided that it may be essential to keeping the string from unraveling and since we were able to work with it despite the stiffness I guess it's OK. On the other hand, I really, really like the strings. I got lights, but probably could have gone with ultra lights. I'm sure these will be fine. They feel great and have a nice dark tone. Going to a party tonight and will solicit opinions from the other musicians as to how they like the sound. They are very familiar with how it sounded before, which wasn't bad, but different, I think. Thanks for your help. I needed advice desperately, and quickly - and you were great to offer it.
 
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