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New strings on the.... [message #376323]

Fri, 03 October 2008 01:43

Jonah A. Kort
Messages: 56
Registered: August 2008
Location: Chicago, IL

Member

bass guitar. How many of you ask for this when recording? I know

guitars and drumheads are a must, but I've heard some debate on

the bass guitar. I've also heard of using rubbing alcohol on the

bass strings, any of you just do that?

Cheers

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #376329 is a reply to message #376323 ]

Fri, 03 October 2008 04:57

Tomas Danko
Messages: 3721
Registered: May 2004
Location: Stockholm, Sweden

Platinum Member

Zippo lighter fluid can work when you need to wipe down dirty strings regardless of guitar or bass. Just clean them dry with a soft and clean piece of cloth afterwards. Some people try and clean bass strings by boiling them in water...

I'd say it all depends on the music genre.

If we're talking metal you probably want very fresh strings.

If we're talking 60s/70s rock/pop andor/ you've got flatwound strings, the older they get the better. To a certain extent, obviously.

Personally, I just check to see if they are broken so that they mess up the intonation or not. It's easy to see if the strings swing freely or if some nick/dent on them alters their swing cycle. If they check out fine, it's a go.

...unles you're recording, say, Meshuggah. Then it's a new fresh set for every day! Very Happy

"T(Z)= (n1+n2*Z^-1+n2*Z^-2)/(1+d1*z^-1+d2*z^-2)" - Mr. Dan Lavry
"Shaw baa laa raaw, sidle' yaa doot in dee splaa" . Mr Shooby Taylor

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #376361 is a reply to message #376329 ]

Fri, 03 October 2008 09:39

beau
Messages: 50
Registered: May 2004
Location: california

Member

new strings for every song... to me there is no better bass tone than a p bass with fresh strings through an old svt.

peace

beau

I'll take ape tit for 500.

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #376421 is a reply to message #376323 ]

Fri, 03 October 2008 13:28

compasspnt
Messages: 11451
Registered: December 2004
Location: Compass Point Studios, Na...

Diamond Member

Many agree with Beau.

Alternatively, I can say for sure that Duck Dunn kept the same strings for many years, and sounded OK.

My early '60's Hofner, bought new and used on Big Star and many others, still has the original strings.

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #376433 is a reply to message #376421 ]

Fri, 03 October 2008 14:02

rankus
Messages: 4369
Registered: March 2005
Location: Vancouver Canada

Platinum Member

And I tend to prefer bass strings to be broken in for about week prior to the session. Although it also depends on the bass itself and the genre etc. (Stingray is a brighter bass naturally than say a P Bass) (So brand new on a P may be what the doctor ordered or if it's a Stingray it may be a bit bright)

Rick Welin - Clark Drive Studios www.hellfirerecords.com

"Make it count." ~ T Manning

"There is no crisis in energy, the crisis is in imagination" ~ Buckminster Fuller

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #376450 is a reply to message #376323 ]

Fri, 03 October 2008 14:35

craig boychuk
Messages: 352
Registered: April 2004
Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba

Active Member

Pretty situation dependent, I'd say.

I used to be of the mindset that new drum heads & new strings for guitars / bass were absolutely essential for every recording session.

In reality, I've found that a lot of the time it ends up being a hindrance more than anything. More so for drum heads than strings, I guess.

I've worked with quite a few musicians who, when presented with shiny new strings or drum heads, end up being thrown off psychologically because it's not what they're used to. Especially with drum heads, as their response will change and feel a little different, or sometimes a lot different if you're changing the type of head.

Of course, for others it's no issue.

It's good to try to sound out your client & try to find out what they'd be most comfortable with.

-craig

Capture the pasture rapture.

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #376763 is a reply to message #376323 ]

Sun, 05 October 2008 13:50

wwittman
Messages: 5922
Registered: May 2004
Location: New York

Platinum Member

Jonah A. Kort wrote on Fri, 03 October 2008 02:43

for roundwounds, EVERY session gets new strings.
sometimes more than that if they start to dull or the tuning starts to seem less solid.

for flatwounds, it's not AS crucial. but I'm still not one of the 'antique' strings cult.

I can see it on a tuner.
When the note starts to bounce around and will no longer look BANG in tune, it's time to change strings.
at a certain point, the harmonics seem to start to overwhelm the fundamental.
That's NOT a sound I want.

William Wittman
Producer/Engineer
(Cyndi Lauper, Joan Osborne, The Fixx, The Outfield, Hooters...)

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #376805 is a reply to message #376763 ]

Sun, 05 October 2008 17:48

j.hall
Messages: 3414
Registered: April 2004
Location: KC

Platinum Member

for bass. i can't really say i care too much. if i'm DI'ing it only, i'll probably have an opinion. but if we're micing up an amp, doesn't matter much to me.

j.hall
Theta Rhythm

"You have a great ear for vibe and feel and space. I'm not looking for any of that right now."

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #376922 is a reply to message #376323 ]

Mon, 06 October 2008 11:16

iCombs
Messages: 431
Registered: March 2006
Location: Minneapollis

Active Member

I suppose I'm in the "it depends" camp.

On some of my basses, older strings sound and feel fine. On others, they die quickly and sound like ass when they do. I could probably leave the flats on my fretless for quite some time...no frets to ding the strings up...so if I keep them clean they should hold up for quite a while. On my Stingray...those stings die and die ugly...the bass goes from being a clangy awesome metallic sounding beast to sounding like the strings are made of bakelite and feeling like overcooked pasta. Just gross.

It depends on the sound you're looking for. Dub reggae probably won't sound too hot on an Alembic with fresh stainless steels on it, you know?

When I hit the studio, I slap fresh strings on my bass (my 5 strings - not my fretless) a day or two before I go in so they get a little chance to stretch and stabilize...after that, if they feel like they're dull or not responding how I want, I change them. I don't sweat it too much, as I'm primarily concerned with playing my ass off, but if I notice something's off, it's usually worth my time to address it.

Ian Combs
Producer/Engineer
Lightspeed Group, Inc.
----------------------
"Mista apareeatah... can I have maar beass at all frequencies?"
----------------------
I'm utterly baffled at the general opinion regarding smoking. I don't smoke, but it's a bar, for God's sake. That's what your supposed to expect. It's a den of iniquity where people are going to indulge in all of the minor vices and sins denied to them during their mundane workdays. You can wreck your liver, ruin your hearing, get into a fight, and pick up an STD, but somehow smoking is unacceptable? Sheesh. We've turned into a nation of entitled whiners.

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #377476 is a reply to message #376922 ]

Wed, 08 October 2008 17:08

Hallams
Messages: 549
Registered: November 2004
Location: Melbourne_Australia

Gold Member

On my Maton Premier archtop ( Gibson L7 copy) the sound i like is Dr Thomastik green set and they stay on for 6 to 12 months. Also leave strings on my Epiphone lap steel for a month or two.For all my other guitars, new is the way to go

Chris Hallam.
Melbourne, Australia.

http://www.myspace.com/bigheaventhestudio

"Your Faith Needs to Be Greater Than Your Fear."

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #377501 is a reply to message #376323 ]

Wed, 08 October 2008 18:25

pg666
Messages: 329
Registered: April 2004

Active Member

i play with a guy who doesn't like the 'vibe' of new bass strings. i kinda wanna slap him. i've yet to have a bass track that sounded too zingy (which would be a simple fix anyway), and far too many that sounded dull in the mix.

i know of guys who change their bass strings for every show and while i feel that's sort of wasteful, i bet they always sound good. i heard from someone who played Lollapalooza a long time ago that the dude from Tool had his tech change the strings on all of his basses for every show, even if he didn't play them. now that's a tonechaser! Cool

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #377552 is a reply to message #377501 ]

Thu, 09 October 2008 00:21

Paul Cavins
Messages: 347
Registered: October 2005

Active Member

pg666 wrote on Wed, 08 October 2008 19:25

Man, I worked as a stage hand a long time ago. I would have loved to work that show. I used to try to get to the bass tech early in the day before he might have cut the "old" strings on the bass, so I could take them and put them on my bass.

I have grown to like old bass strings. The music I like and play is more classic oriented and the old/warm bass tones work. I don't like the boing so much.

PC

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #377734 is a reply to message #377552 ]

Thu, 09 October 2008 15:01

pg666
Messages: 329
Registered: April 2004

Active Member

Paul Cavins wrote on Thu, 09 October 2008 06:21

pg666 wrote on Wed, 08 October 2008 19:25

The guy I heard that story from got the box of 'used' strings from the Tool guy! As far as I know, he hasn't bought bass strings since 1995..

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Re: New strings on the.... [message #377743 is a reply to message #377734 ]

Thu, 09 October 2008 15:17

Devin Knutson
Messages: 528
Registered: April 2007
Location: Portland, OR

Gold Member

pg666 wrote on Thu, 09 October 2008 13:01

The guy I heard that story from got the box of 'used' strings from the Tool guy! As far as I know, he hasn't bought bass strings since 1995..

Ha! Who says there's no retirement benefits in the Roadie game?

SpongeBob, reel it in, quick! Can't you hear the music?
That's a 4/4 string ostinato in D-minor!
Every sailor knows it means death!
- Mr. Eugene H. Krabbs

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Recording Engineering & Production: Making records better, not just louder and cheaper. The brightest minds from the creative and scientific world of audio discuss the elements of audio production that interest you most.

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