Conference napalm::guitar

    Strings begin losing their brightness as soon as you start using them. 
    Some pros like to use a new set for every gig!  Others (like me) look
    at the high price of bass strings and wait up to six months.  Some even
    like a dead sound and leave strings on till they break (I have one set
    that's been on the bass for over fifteen years).
    
    From day to day you usually won't notice much change in the tone of the
    strings, but over the course of weeks it can be really obvious! 
    There's no hard and fast rules here, you need to change strings as
    often as needed to keep getting the sound you like, tempered perhaps by
    your budget!
    
    As far as gauges:
    Lighter strings tend to give a thinner, snappier tone.  Heavier strings
    sound fatter but are harder to play.  That's about it.  You have to get
    a feel for what gauges are comfortable for you to play, sadly the only
    way to do that is try a few!  
    
    Sets form different manufacturers may be gauged differently even though
    marked the same (light, medium, heavy), so make sure you check the
    gauges.  If you like the tone of your E and A strings but find the D
    and G too thin, for instance, find a set where those two strings are a
    heavier gauge.  
    
    Relative merits of manufacturers:
    
    There aren't any truly "bad" strings out there.  Manufacturers tend to
    make many types of strings, though: flatwound, roundwound, half-round,
    groundwound, tapewound, etc.  They often make variations with different
    metals, so the prices can vary from about $15 (list) to over $50 a set.
    You need to try a few sets to see what sounds good to your ears.
    
    Rotosound is probably the single most popular roundwound bass string
    amongst rock bassists, but I find them too hard on the frets and your
    fingers.  
    
    							Brian

        
I use GHS BriteFlats (med. gauge) on both my fretted and fretless basses and I
like them. Like Brian, I also find the Rotosounds to be very harsh on the neck
*and* the fingers. String gauge I feel draws a fineline between  finger/hand 
strength and the tone you're looking for. Alot of roundwounds seem thin sounding
to me and flatwounds (include tapewounds) are too muddy and thumpy sounding, 
unless you're looking for that classic (?) '60/70's boom bass tone.  ;^)   I 
think I've tried almost every bass string that could be bought over the counter 
and I've been using GHS bass *and* guitar strings for over 10 years. They sound 
great and have never broken a string (guitar, or bass) since I made the switch 
to GHS in all those years. Nothing worse than breaking a string in the middle of 
a solo! Makes you adapt really quick to having one less string! YIKES!!!  ;^)

GAWD, I hate it when that happens!


Rock on,
	Fred

>Nothing worse than breaking a string in the middle of 
>a solo!
    
    You play enough bass solos that you have to worry about it, Fred?

Yeah...  I do! Bass isn't just for keepin' time ya know!


Rock on!

>Yeah...  I do! Bass isn't just for keepin' time ya know!
    
    I know, they make great coffee tables as well!

    
    Boy, here we go with the Bass-Bashing again (more string-envy ;^)
    
    As far as when to change bass strings ... It all depends on how
    much and in what manner you play your bass. When I played GB, they'd
    last for a couple of months. Playing rock (i.e. slapping, popping,
    slamming and sweating on my strings), they last a couple of weeks
    tops. It also depends on the sound you're after. I like a nice
    bright tone with lots of sustain and harmonics. For this, you've
    gotta have new strings. If you hit an open string, you should 
    hear a wide range of harmonics. If you don't, you most likely
    need new strings (or a better bass/amp). Lately, I've been using
    GHS Progressives (light gauge) on my 5-string and love 'em. 
    DR's are also very good; as are Ken Smith strings.
    
    My 2 cents ...
    
    Billy_K

    Do you guys mean I can actually put NEW strings on???
    
    Get out!! I thought they were under lifetime warrantee...
    
    A little Rust-o-leum keeps 'em looking fresh.
    
    Edd

    >Do you guys mean I can actually put NEW strings on???
    >
    >Get out!! I thought they were under lifetime warrantee...
    >
    >A little Rust-o-leum keeps 'em looking fresh.
    
    
    ...try some Pledge ... keeps em nice and slick!
    ;')

>    Do you guys mean I can actually put NEW strings on???
    
>    Get out!! I thought they were under lifetime warrantee...
    
    You must be the guy who put the ad in the WantAdvertizer:
    
       "Guitar for sale, may need tuning."
    
    Dave

    
    It may be that for vintage instruments, the collector
    value is lower when the strings have been tuned subsequent
    to the factory original tuning.  And anything
    but factory original strings might not be truly period
    authentic.  ; - )
    
    Dave

    >>"Guitar for sale, may need tuning."  

    I like Rotos.  Yeah, they're hard on fingers and frets as everyone
    claims, but they just sound so good.  I've tried several brands of
    nickel roundwounds; they sound bright and punchy for a couple of
    weeks, then go dead.  Rotos seem to work just the opposite; they're
    too bright and harsh for me the first week or two, then they settle
    in to this nice deep growl.  I typically keep a set on for 6 months
    to a year.  My first reaction whenever I put a new set on is "I
    should've left the old ones".
    
    As far as gauges, anything below the standard Roto gauge (.045 - .105)
    sounds a little weak in the low register to me, but the lighter gauges
    will seem to play a lot easier and do work a little better for slap and
    pop.  I've been experimenting with .040 - .100 sets; not bad, but I think
    I may be going back.

    > "Guitar for sale, may need tuning."
    
    Nice to know that if I ever get TFSO'd that there's another trade
    I can take up:
    
    	Dave Blickstein
    	Guitar Tuner
    
    p.s.  There's this lady who used to keep coming into Daddy's 
    	  to have her guitar tuned as if it was like changing the
    	  oil on a car.

    re: -1
    
    db,
    
    what would yer ad slogan be?
    
    Dave Blickstein, guitar tuning: "let Dave turn yer crank!"
    

    
    To keep those vintage strings in shape, trying several layers
    of polyeurethane on each string. It keeps them looking new,
    seals out dirt and dust while sealing in flavor and freshness ;^)
    
    /Billy_K
    

>    ...try some Pledge ... keeps em nice and slick!
    
    ;')  I've seen it in action!!

    Maybe you folks can advise me on the best way to tune my bass...
    
    My Gibson has 2 tuners on each side of the head. Looking at the bass
    from the edge...
                           Edge view
    			( ========_____ ) 
                           Neck    Body
    
    ...should the tuning keys be aligned so that they are parralel to the
    body? Perpendicular? Is it necessary to use a special tuning square,
    or can I simply "eyeball" them within a couple degrees? I've heard it
    is better to tune slightly obtuse; 'zat true?
    
    I tried tuning so that all the keys were parralel to the body, but this
    created too much wind resistance when waving the guitar, and I kept
    ending up at the back of the stage during a blustery outdoor gig. I
    then turned them to be perpendicular. That helped until the wind
    shifted around to my right and I found my self playing too far up the
    neck.
    
    I may trade it for a Fender because all the keys will be on the left.
    Should I tune it to look like " | | | | ", or " - - - - "? I don't
    wanna look like a jazz player with a wierd " | \ -- /" tuning.
    
    Help.
    
    Edd

    Re: .17
    
    Edd,
    
    Buy a Steinberger.  That way there are no tuning pegs to worry about. 
    Plus it has these neat wheels at the bottom of the body that let you do
    pitch bends.  Also the small body mean less wind resistance overall.
    
    						Bob Bruning

    I had a Steinberger once. Leaned it against a picket fence and haven't
    seen it since...
    
    Edd

        Some people!   Edd, there are two methods you mention there and
        you have to  decide  if  you want the sound in-phase (peg-heads
        aligned) or out of  phase  (peg-heads  at  right  angles).  Any
        points in between can be a bit muddy and make your aerodynamics
        unpredictable. 
        
        Hope this helps,
        
        Andy
        

    Sorry to inform you, Edd, but the real problem is that peghead design. 
    All the good Gibson bass players remove the flat keys and replace them
    with round garden-hose spigot handles (suitably chromed, of course). 
    That way, it doesn't matter which way you have them turned; they look 
    just as cool when the strings are in tune as when they're not.  The
    real advantage is that you don't have to de-fret the guitar to be able
    to play it, as I'm sure you were contemplating.  Aerodynamics are
    consistent for all tunings, and no one confuses you with one of those 
    guys who plays a hockey stick.
    
    Dave

    
    I've found that the best tuning is to have each tuning peg 90 degrees
    past the the previous one. The cumulative 360 degrees creates a nice
    "round" sound. Unfortunately, I've been totally screwed since I got a
    5-string (maybe I need to move up to an 8-string bass ???)
    
    /Billy_K
    

    re: Andy
    
    Anyone who's been in this business a while knows that if you combine two
    outta phase signals (peg-heads at right angles) you'll cancel the bass.
    
    Hey! Gigs are hard to find!!! Cancel the damn drummer for a change!!!
    
    re: change the keys to faucet handles...
    
    Hmmmm, is this process what is known as "changing key"? What type of 
    key to I want for, like, Bb? Those nice Lucite ones in the men's room 
    at the Marriott look nice. Would a single handle type faucet allow me
    to play in any key? Could I control it like a joy stick? ("Ha! Watch me
    make the band play jazz for 50,000 points!!!!")
    
    re: de-fretting...
    
    In my quest for perfect pitch I've had to move the frets many times.
    The idiots who originally built the axe didn't even space the original
    ones evenly. To jack up the price of the bass they squashed a whole
    bunch of frets real close together down near the body, probably
    thinking I wouldn't notice. Well, I did. So I ripped 'em out. I spaced 
    them all 1" apart which sounds good sometimes, but sometimes not. I'm
    going to install more frets for a 1/2" spacing, giving me twice as many 
    right notes. When I get enough right notes, I'll pull all the unneeded
    frets off.
    
    Thanks for all your help.
    
    Edd

    You can also go the other way, and increase your aerodynamic drag by
    having a welder add metal flaps to the existing tuning keys.  With this
    modification, your tuning will be adjusted by every change in wind
    velocity or direction.  It's good for certain songs, like "They Call Me 
    The Breeze", or that one where Bob Dylan sings, "You don't need a Gibson 
    bass to know which way the wind blows."
    
    Dave

    > your tuning will be adjusted by every change in wind velocity or
    > direction.
    
    > ... where Bob Dylan sings
    
    This could very well explain alot.
    
    Edd

    
    	Security breach!!  Nasser has broken into Edd Cote's account!!
    	I'm pretty sure Edd is wandering down 42nd Street as I write
    	this so I'm almost positive we're being Abbasied.  
    
    	\hope this helps
    	\tom
    

    you guyz make me laugh.  I had my tuning adjusted at the store when I
    bought the bass, and I haven't touched it since.  That way I know it's
    right!

    What's all this about tuning a *bass* ? I've heard you ccan't tuna-fish.
    
    Paul
    

    yeh, but you can do  'licks' on its scales.....