What gut strings (G and D) work with Spiro Weichs E and A. I'm not really interested in synthetic strings, I'd prefer to have tuning issues than breakage issues. Thanks!!!
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Double Bass What guts/ Spiro Weich E, A.
- Thread starter Kai Sanchez
- Start date
Efrano, Lenzner, Clef, LaBella (not too expensive)
Dlugolecki, Gamut, Pirastro (expensive)
There are more boutique/handmade gut strings in Europe but I am not very familiar with them so hopefully our Euro Brethren will also respond.
The tensions for all of these strings are similar. If you use plain gut you won't have many tuning issues after they break in.
As for which strings to get, your wallet may end up being your guide. I've played on most of these brands and would feel comfortable purchasing any of them. I currently have a full Dlugolecki set on my bass with 2 Efranos and 2 Clefs that I bought through the classifieds on Talkbass as a spare set... maybe start there.
-Jeff
Dlugolecki, Gamut, Pirastro (expensive)
There are more boutique/handmade gut strings in Europe but I am not very familiar with them so hopefully our Euro Brethren will also respond.
The tensions for all of these strings are similar. If you use plain gut you won't have many tuning issues after they break in.
As for which strings to get, your wallet may end up being your guide. I've played on most of these brands and would feel comfortable purchasing any of them. I currently have a full Dlugolecki set on my bass with 2 Efranos and 2 Clefs that I bought through the classifieds on Talkbass as a spare set... maybe start there.
-Jeff
There are really no guts that match well with Spiros ,,,,I mean one is metal other is gut,,so your not going to find a gut to match that,,you would be better off trying to find a A&E to match gut G&Ds,,I like Velvet garbos for a good A&E match with gut G&Ds,,The best thing to match a gut G&D is a gut A&E,wrapped of corse,,,Chordas,or gamuts are good,,gamuts tend too be a bit light for my taste,but he will make you anything you want,You can go the all wrapped gut string,Eudoxas,or Olives,,they would feel more like what you are useto if you have been playing steel strings, hope this helps,,Kent
One setup that used to be popular was Spiro E&A with Golden Spirals (tynex wrapped gut, no longer made), but I agree with Kent that you can match gut upper strings better with something like Velvet Garbo, Sensicore, Pirastro Pizzicato or roundwound gut on the E&A. If you like the Weichs on the bottom, maybe a flatwound gut like Eudoxa would go best, but honestly, in that case I'd get Evah Pirazzis (synthetic) and save a bunch of money. Using steel on the bottom and plain gut on top is a big contrast in timbre, IMO, and this gets even more noticable when amplified, but it might work on certain basses, and if the Spiros are old.
I know that combining metal and gut is not a good idea but I find it difficult to spend a ton of money for a gut experiment...I'll see.
And I've heard/read about Velvet strings breaking and that scares me knowing how expensive they are. My experience so far (as I can remember) have been about 8 years of Hybrid helicores mediums on a Kay and 4 years with Spiro Weichs on a carved bass. I love spiro weichs, my hands on my bass can't deal with mittels, but that G weich...I don't know...is kind of like I feel I shouldn't be settling with something that I'm not totally happy with. I'll maybe hold out until I can get a second bass for me to try guts, the range of work I do compasses everything from swing to brazilian to pop so I also need the sustain of spiros.
Most likely you'll be less than happy with the Spiro E & A if you really dig the the gut strings! 
...but that's a whole 'nother can of worms.
Do you know any bass players that are currently using gut? It's good to at least play a bass strung with gut before spending any cash, or maybe just start with the G string and beg, borrow or buy used to check it out.
-J
...but that's a whole 'nother can of worms.Do you know any bass players that are currently using gut? It's good to at least play a bass strung with gut before spending any cash, or maybe just start with the G string and beg, borrow or buy used to check it out.
-J
Most likely you'll be less than happy with the Spiro E & A if you really dig the the gut strings!
Do you know any bass players that are currently using gut? It's good to at least play a bass strung with gut before spending any cash, or maybe just start with the G string and beg, borrow or buy used to check it out.
-J
I don't think there's a single bassist using guts down here in South Florida. I think the high humidity levels frustrated their attempts.
Anyways, thanks for all the advice, I'll hold off on the gut experiment for a while until when times are ideal (second bass, improved cash flow, etc).
Metal E+A and gut D+G work great together. It's just different than all gut, all metal, or whatever combination. A nicely worn-in pair of Spiros will sound fantastic with any of the gut brands mentioned. And that may not work for you, or that may be perfect, or it may be good for now.
- May 6, 2003
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- Proprietor Fifth Avenue Fret Shop. Technical Editor Bass Gear Magazine
I used Gamuts and Spiros for a year and really liked the mix. It's not good for arco but it can work pizz if the spiros are on the older side.
See the huge Gamut Gut thread.
I don't do it anymore. Just use Spiros now.
They are distinctly different so you have to play them knowing that they don't blend. For the most part that worked fine when I used them. Now that I'm spending more time playing arco I'd rather use the same set across the bass for consistent tone and bowing technique.
I would rather have all guts or all spiros under the bow than mix them. To much weirdness in bow touch with both mixed on the bass at the same time.
See the huge Gamut Gut thread.
I don't do it anymore. Just use Spiros now.
They are distinctly different so you have to play them knowing that they don't blend. For the most part that worked fine when I used them. Now that I'm spending more time playing arco I'd rather use the same set across the bass for consistent tone and bowing technique.
I would rather have all guts or all spiros under the bow than mix them. To much weirdness in bow touch with both mixed on the bass at the same time.
Just to really mess with your head, and throw you even more ideas...
Have you looked at those Presto/Eurosonic strings at all? They make a good alternate to a gut D/G (IME) that blends better with Spiros than plain gut does. They still have that upfront, midrange focus that you get with gut, but with a little more growl and a lot more sustain.
They're not good arco strings, but I can't see that wrap being any worse than what was on Golden Spirals. They're not a synthetic core, so breakage is not an issue.
I had a Spirocore weich E/A, Presto Light D/G thing happening on my new hybrid this past spring for awhile - and it was a great balance.
I'd also second the Evah Weich suggestion. Either put a D/G up top with the Spiros, or Evah E/A with the gut up top would be a great combination.
Have you looked at those Presto/Eurosonic strings at all? They make a good alternate to a gut D/G (IME) that blends better with Spiros than plain gut does. They still have that upfront, midrange focus that you get with gut, but with a little more growl and a lot more sustain.
They're not good arco strings, but I can't see that wrap being any worse than what was on Golden Spirals. They're not a synthetic core, so breakage is not an issue.
I had a Spirocore weich E/A, Presto Light D/G thing happening on my new hybrid this past spring for awhile - and it was a great balance.
I'd also second the Evah Weich suggestion. Either put a D/G up top with the Spiros, or Evah E/A with the gut up top would be a great combination.
I used to put Spiro on the Bottom and gut on top when humidity gets to high. There quite old, the mix is good, my bass likes tension on the bass side. What I have to adjust to is the different tension.
I really think to mix guts and spiros is not a very good match,,for one thing the difference in sound of spiros compared to guts is alot different,All of the spiros I have heard have that "whang" too them,,gut produce more of a smooth punch.Would you mix steel strings with nylon on a guitar??I think not,,and then the tension diffrence is so much different,,I dont see how in the world you could play with such a difference,I have played guts for 25 years and there is no substiute for good wound A&E gut strings,,I have tried all sorts of metal/synth mixes and nothing comes close.The only one that still has some decent tenison are Garbos,,but even they still differ some what.If you like metal strings and higher tenison and want to try guts then I would go with Eudoxas,they are great strings.I have used them also with plain G&Ds,but I feel a whole set would be balanced tenison wise and sound.I know alot of folks complaine about windings on wound guts and you just have too have your bass set up for them, the bridge and nut both have too be right,and lube the slots with plenty of lead.The worst time for wound gut here is in the winter when the humidity drops low,just last night I used a E string which was loose the last time I tried it which was back in Jan,,but now its working fine.
The Prestos blended very well, tension-wise, with the Weichs on the bottom. I still haven't gotten around to trying a full set of spiro weichs, so I can't compare the Presto D/G with weich D/G - the tension charts, IIRC say the Prestos are just slightly less tension. They make up for it with volume though.
I did need to bump the string height up a tad, but not to anything unmanageable. They're quite comfortable to play actually. The only reasons I took them off, was that I want to really start working on my arco (and do it on that bass) and the bass itself is already very dark and thumpy sounding, and really needs a steel string.
I hear what you're saying - but for many of us, due to weather constraints, wound guts just aren't an option. I tried a wound E with the first set of guts I had. It was like throwing a hundred dollar bill into a snowbank. On some basses the difference (between mixed strings) isn't that huge from a few feet away anyway.
BTW, I realize that recommending Evah's in my last post was contrary to the OP's lack of enthusiasm for synthetics...they do sound great/match well though.
And, if you want "Spiros but darker", to blend better with the guts there's always Superflexibles.
I didn't like gut D/G, Spiro A/E. The difference in timbre between the D and A drove me nuts and the tension difference was too great for my bass. I tried wound gut E/A (gave it a good long go) but ultimately the climate around here stinks for wound gut. I couldn't keep them in tune. It wasn't that much of a problem when it was hot out and I had to tune them up throughout the gig. When it was cold and I had to detune (sometimes as much as 2 full steps throughout a gig), it was a nightmare. The bass sounded like a washtub bass after detuning so much. I've been using Garbo E/A and I love them. They match sound-wise and tension-wise really well with the Gamut Pistoy G/D I have on and there is almost no tuning drift. They sound remarkably like the Gamut wound E and A that I had on. They are a little tighter sounding and they have a little more growl to them although nothing like a Spiro growl.
I understand they suck for bowing, though which is a drawback if you are into that sort of deviant behavior.
mark
I understand they suck for bowing, though which is a drawback if you are into that sort of deviant behavior.
mark
Don't completely discount Velvet; I didn't have the breakage issues some people did and I had mine on 6 months to a year (can't remember for sure now). And if one does break, Velvet's customer service is pretty amazing by all accounts.
I've had Velvet Garbos on and off my removable-neck bass about 9 or 10 times and they're holding up well.
