If you can get your hands on the Fender short scale then you should try that, my American Performer Mustangs came installed. I cleaned them with the ultrasonic, and relubed the strings and never changed them since. Another one I like is the tapewound. I have that on my Sterling SS. Fretless and fretted, love them.
I know the feeling - sometimes I grab one short scale … but other times I just grab the other short scale
Yeah … the GB707s are quite small. The Wilkinsons are larger … but the gap/hole is even smaller on those ones.
I just grabbed some old strings out of my chaos box and tested with strings that measured 105 and 125.
Again, of course I got short scale strings for a short scale bass.
But I found @howard idea of just cutting strings intriguing … as this would open up new possibilities (looking at you DR Black Beauties ^^).
Based on my tests I won’t go for long scale strings that need to be cut though. So I remain with my EXL160S for the time being…
Brand new basses from the factories even the premium ones can be quite filthy. Unless it’s a small boutique brands. They install the strings then Plek the instruments and quick wipe but that’s not enough. That’s why you get the black fingertips the first time you play on the new bass.
I have a small and medium tank ultrasonic cleaner so I just drop the strings in and shake out the filths,
@MikeC mentioned TI Jazz flats, or even rounds, I’d give that one a try if I were you. It’s another religious experience altogether especially the flats. Plus, you can get that in your neck of the wood.
Ah, ok. Got it!
I had one until a few weeks ago, for cleaning sunglasses. Gave it away, cause it never worked properly … but that was a cheap one.
Maybe I’ll have a look for a better one!?
No flats!
I really want the harmonic “fuzz” of roundwounds for the time being. All the tracks I’m playing currently are dirty and nasty, except when I feel sick and am in a whiny mood, than I play softy stuff like Sting
Yeah. While I think rounds do sound better, my dislike for flats is purely feel - hate the way they grip my fingers. Even so I could totally rock them for most genres. Might be hard to pull off some of the artist styles more known for treble and high mids though (Hooky, etc).
I think you’re going to make me record Transmission before I’m 100% ready just to prove you wrong. Of all the covers I’ve done so far the tone I’ve found for that one might be my favorite, and I’m using my G&L (with flats) to do it. I’ve actually been excited to get your opinion on that set up.
Been said before, but bears repeating: TI Jazz Flats are not grippy in the least. I have them on my EBMM Cutlass, and when I switch from playing rounds to playing it, I’m constantly thrown by how slick they are under my fingers.
I play TI Jazz Rounds regularly on my other basses, and I really miss their relative tactile friction (even though TI rounds are much smoother than the usual suspects by D’A, EB, GHS, etc.).
I can slide like crazy on my TI Jazz Flats – essentially too much until I acclimate to their properties, and a hell of a lot more than I can normally on rounds. But I play rounds easily 90+% of the time.
I do need to try T-I; they are really high quality strings with a great rep. But that’s also a pretty steep string buy for a type of string I don’t really enjoy otherwise, too - they run about $90 here.
The GHS 3070 Brite Flats were high on my list (top 2).
I really wanted to get them, but chickened out at the last moment, cause I didn have enough information about them.
I would also prefer the smoothness of flats, but I really did not want to loose mids and highs.
The GHS could have been all that, I guess!?
One interesting thing is I think this is a skin type thing. My skin is usually super dry, and so with flats, the extra contact area feels more frictiony and grippy to me than it would for people with more normal levels of skin oils.
Always had this thing and not just with bass, I’m one of those who can never open plastic bags in the supermarket without using the little sponge they have to wet your fingers
Well then you are in for yet another big surprise, it gets even better much, much better after you break them in in my estimation about 75-100 hours, possibly more. My SB-2 has TI Jazz for quite a few years and it’s smooth as silk, when I install a brand new set it feels noticeably rougher than the broken in set, which bring smoothness to the next level. It is in every sense, the last set of string you have to buy.