Double Bass Velvet strings megathread part II

[Jeremy Allen]

The windings on the Garbos are definitely smoother than on the Animas. On my bass, I felt like the D and G of the Garbos were significantly louder than the Animas, or at least that they have much more up-front attack, but not so for the E and A; they also seemed tubby and hard-to-get-around-on in the way that gut strings also can be, and the Animas were much more "modern" and sustain-y than the Garbos. But it's hard to tell what the bass is sounding like when you're standing behind it; there was an insane harmonic on my Anima E-string that drowned out the pitch of the fundamental, but I did some experimenting and realized it was only audible from where I was standing behind the bass...Likewise, the Animas were pretty darn loud on my bass, even if the Garbos seemed louder.

Animas are their own wonderful kind of unique string, but I wonder what the niche really is for Garbos. I've started playing Gamut guts on the D and G of my bass, and they have all of the best qualities of Garbos (big fat thumpy old-school sound) but are much easier under the fingers and easier to bow (the Garbo G is definitely the worst arco string I've ever played, and I'm the kind of person who thinks spirocores are pretty cool with the bow). I guess the Garbos would be more consistent from a tuning standpoint, and there is that magical "equal tension" thing that happens with Velvets, but you have to use the full set to take advantage of that.

 

[Marcus Johnson]

Maybe the Garbo's niche is for pizz players who want a little more tension, a little more stability than gut? I dunno; I'd go for the Gamuts too. Of course the price may also be a factor for some people. Not me; I just grit my teeth and buy what I want. Life's short.

One thing that the Garbos are really nice for is in the role of warming up an EUB's sound. I played a removable neck Eminence strung with Garbos, and it sounded and felt great. The owner said that the Garbos stood up well to the frequent detunings.

 

[anonymous8547j7d7b]

I found garbos to be simply the most beautiful sounding string I have ever tried. I thought their projection was fantastic - and don't buy what Velvet say about needing to crank your action 'cos my bass was set to 5mm'ish on the g side & didn't have a prob when the garbos went on. Thumb position sounds so full and warm with them - and what a low c !!!
However, I found them quite unstable pitch-wise and ended up retuning every couple of songs on gigs (This, to be fair, could be because I got them from a friend & used them on two basses subsequently ???). Coupled with the fact that the E string was very indistinct under my ear and at times on a gig it seems difficult to hear your intonation properly across the range, I didn't feel that confident with them in all situations. I suspect if I upgrade my amplification system this might be remedied (ie swap the minibrute for a pub280/360) somewhat ??? I'm on spiro reds now, and to be honest, I don't feel there's a tremendous difference in volume/projection per se - although the nature of it is definitely different. Of the mp3's below on myspace, the first 2tracks are obli's (anima's would have been more relevant ) with th g side @ 11mm & the third is garbos on the same setup. Okay, the recording quality ain't constant (at all!!!) but it's not bad for comparison.

 

[TimoMetzemakers]

I was mainly wondering if the winding on the E,A and D strings of the Garbo set are SMOOTHER than the Anima windings???

Since I'm down with the flu and have nothing better to do, I made some pictures of my current set of Garbos, to compare with the Anima pictures I made a year ago:

Here are the Animas:

And now the Garbos:

 

[yordison]

It´s true!!! I get my d string replaced from nuno in a few days by sending him the photo of the damage and the serial number...
Thanks again!

 

[LowG]

I also had great customer service from Velvet. Same deal, my string broke and they did not hesitate to replace it. Makes the high prices worth it, if you ask me.

 

[kwd]

Unexpectedly appropriate hybrid choice. Really liking them. Looking forward to seeing how they settle in.

I'm considering these or Jargar Mediums. The Velvets do not have the conventional ball end, right? I'm wondering how they would work with the Realist set up. The Realist uses a plastic loop to hold the jack housing that's held in place by the G string ball.

 

[jlilley]

I'm considering these or Jargar Mediums. The Velvets do not have the conventional ball end, right? I'm wondering how they would work with the Realist set up. The Realist uses a plastic loop to hold the jack housing that's held in place by the G string ball.

The Velvets work fine with a realist. I use cable ties for attachment instead of the ball end. Works for me...
John

 

[Nuno A.]

Dear Bass people:

Velvet Strings is thinking about making a Velvet Garbo "light" set.
The current tension of the Garbo is 25 kgs (same as Animas and 360's)
The light version would be about 22.5 kgs (same as a Gut String), we had some Garbo users , specially people who slap a lot or who have basses with big string lengths , telling us that they would like a lighter string, so, i would like to ask you all what you think about the idea, the diameter will be slightly smaller, maybe 0,02 mm, but the general construction will be the same, thanks in advance.

Nuno

 

[neal davis]

I personally loved the sound of Velvet strings while they were on my bass for the past six years. The gauge is fine in my opinion but I do have a question. Did you change the composition of your strings in the last year or two. I had stocked up on some of your strings a few years back(just in case I wouldn't be able to find your strings just like the golden spirals I used before) and I bought a new set and they sounded and felt completely different. I have heard this feeling as well from a few other players in town who use your strings any info would help.

 

[Marcus Johnson]

I personally liked them big fatty Garbos when I played them. But I imagine there would be some guys who like thinner strings that would dig 'em.

 

[Nuno A.]

The change in gauge will be minimal, the Garbo lights wont be thin strings or nothing like that, maybe 0.01 or 0.02 mm difference (i said a couple of mm by mistake). but its tension wise that the strings are going to be different and thats what we are really trying to get some opinions about.
The tension will be a lot like a plain gut string because we know players who have 2 basses one with gut and one with Garbos and the Garbos are stiffer and have 3 kgs more, so we want to make a lighter set,also for players with really big string length basses, if they have a 43" or something like, they can use a light set and still have a lower tension string. about the changes in construction, the strings made nowadays are very different from the strings made 5 or 6 years ago, core, winding, a lot has changed, in the last couple of years the only thing that has changed is the winding that we are trying to make as smooth as possible instead of the old style Velvets that were roundwound.
of course because the strings are hand made, and the core is made of silk and other natural fibers, 2 strings from the same serial , can sound different, i already noticed that while testing strings, but usually that is rare and as soon as the string stretches, they pretty much should sound the same.
thanks a lot for your opinions, keep them coming, as always if you want to know something else, you can always contact me - info (at)velvetstrings.com.

Nuno

 

[ROD BOOTHROYD]

Considering changing from heicore to some type of gut synthetic string.Just find the string tension and the tempo of some bluegrass tunes. Don't suit steel strings theydon't speak quick enough. Plus the slap factor sounds more genuine on gut. Not to mention the ouch factor! Can anyone shed any opions from experience for the best string for bluegrass? Thanks Rod-Melbourne Australia.

 

[Blaine]

i vote in favor of offering the lighter guage just because i think the bass needs more options in string tension in general. i play animas and i can see where slap guys might want it a bit looser.
it's been a pleasure playing your strings the last few years.

 

[MollyKay]

I just recently purchased a set of garbo strings to put on my 43" string length American Standard bass. I will be able to give you feedback once they are on the bass. I was looking for a string that has a simular tension as the Dominant solo's tuned down to EADG...so I will use this tension for my comparison.

I think a light weight, low tension string would be a nice option for the Velvet line, much like the Thomastik weich... which is my basic "house" bass string. Bluegrass and roots music lends itself to a gut like, low tension string that can be slapped and still sound "thumpy" if that is a word. Just a few more weeks until the garbo's are installed. Thanks for asking.

 

[gangsterska]

I just bought a Velvet Garbo g string and strung it today ... and the string tension is tighter then the OP Trio ! Everything that I have read about the Garbos's indicate loose tension .. not tight ... but mine is way tighter then the obligato I had on previously (I found the obligato g string to be too thin and metal sounding).. everytime I have tried gut strings on other people's basses ... there always so loose and floppy ... can anyone relate to this .. or any advice at all would help .. thanks a lot.

 

[TimoMetzemakers]

Maybe there has been a mistake. What does your Garbo G look like? What colors are the silks?

Edit: The top silk should be green, and the bottom silk yellow with a red ring.

 

[Nuno A.]

Dear gangsterska:

the tension of the Garbos is 25 kgs per string, however this is for a 41" bass, if your bass has a longer stringh lenght or your action is high, the grooves of the nut are not wide enough, etc, all this can afect the tension and give you the feeling of a tighter string.
how long is your string lenght? we just made a garbo Light version (23 kgs instead of 25 kgs per string) because of many players that have basses with really long string lenghts (43" and more) , in those basses instead of 25 kgs, the tension would be 27 kgs.
Let me know your string lenght and maybe i can help you more, or write me at [email protected] and ill be more than glad to help you.
thanks in advance.

Nuno

 

[gangsterska]

there's no red ring .. its just one solid yellow silk string bottom which loops inside then around the tailpiece string hole

here's a pic of the string
Link Removed

I'm thinking maybe the store made a mistake and shipped out a d-string instead of a g ... any thoughts ..

p.s. .. if the pic doesn't work right away refresh your browser and it should work .. thanks again

 

[TimoMetzemakers]

This is indeed a D string. Maybe I misused the term "ring". In your picture, it's the green thingie where the yellow afterlength meets the copper string.

The G is quite different. I made a few pictures of my Garbos (and Animas) which you can see here. Careful, I'm a lefty so the string order is reversed.

Timo