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heaviest gauge string


Cameronj279
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I'm sure this has been posted many many times, however here goes.

I tune down to GCGCF when i play with my band (no prizes for guessing what kind of music) but I'm in need of new strings and was wondering what are the heaviest strings out there and where can i get my hands on them?

the heaviest ive found in shops around here are rotosound swing bass .130 which is still pretty floppy (although the .105 'E' string is the worst)


Warwick dark lord strings don't count....although i am considering buying a pack of them

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[quote name='Cameronj279' post='1171531' date='Mar 21 2011, 11:21 PM']I'm sure this has been posted many many times, however here goes.

I tune down to GCGCF when i play with my band (no prizes for guessing what kind of music) but I'm in need of new strings and was wondering what are the heaviest strings out there and where can i get my hands on them?

the heaviest ive found in shops around here are rotosound swing bass .130 which is still pretty floppy (although the .105 'E' string is the worst)


Warwick dark lord strings don't count....although i am considering buying a pack of them[/quote]

Heaviest ones that I can think of are the D'Addario ProSteels - they go up to .145.
I have a sneaky suspicion that their sets also stop at around .130 so you'd have to buy single strings and make up your own bespoke set.

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There are sets of strings for extended range basses that go down to F# but I don't know who makes them.


EDIT
ps
According to Google (!!!)

Warwick Black Label (Long Scale) Bass Strings
Handmade stainless steel round wound strings. Very precise intonation with a full, brilliant tone. Warwick basses get strung with Black Label strings.
Dark Lord F# B E A - 085", 105", 135", 175"
Beware - these strings are only for basses designed or set up to cope with extreme low tunings..

Edited by chris_b
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How's about Rotosound Drop Zone? £20 from Strings Direct:

[url="http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/products/5806-rotosound_drop_zone_plus_stainless_steel_rs66lh_85_175"]http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/products/58...l_rs66lh_85_175[/url]

Gauges are 85 / 105 / 135 / 175. I guess you could buy a single for the 5th string.

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[quote name='chrismuzz' post='1171981' date='Mar 22 2011, 12:26 PM']+1 on the Newtone Strings front! I'm tuned ADGCFBb and my bottom string is a .152. Works great! Pop them an email they're sound guys and should get back to you fairly quickly. Ps tittie bum[/quote]

tittie bum indeed.

also, what are the prices (estimate) for those strings in a 5 string set?

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My missus grabbed my iPhone.. Not sue what she did to it lol. I asked them to make stainless steel ones so they do have a nice bright sound to them yeah! The only brighter strings I've heard were bass centre elites. But they don't do them in crazy gauges!

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I'm letting them recommend to me. I tune CGCF and have stated I like high tension, usually use 110s for standard tuning EADG and want something comparable for tuning CGCF and I am willing to alter the nut to accommodate. All on my 34" ACG.

If thats not enough information I'm sure theyll ask for more :)

Drop C tunings strings should be in standard production by now though IMHO

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Newtone can do stuff with the cores that is more cunning than just making fatter strings, gives higher tension without hugeness, is pretty convenient, but less of a warning to people not to try and tune to standard. Had trouble with that previous, with a lady whose guitar I fitted with a custom set tuned to some sort of open A# tuning (hence intonation being set appropriate and far different from standard) , some other band was fairly insistent they were going to borrow the guitar and retune it to standard, then thinking she was a dick for refusing to let them.

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I use a .175 gauge for my low F# on my 7 string. It will quite happily tune to a G and I would recommend it over a standard 145 for example. I used to use a Warwick Dark Lord single .175 on the bottom of a six string set - but I moved back to Rotosound when they started manufacturing the Drop Zone strings. All of their strings are available as singles and I would talk to whoever supplies your strings to buy the gauges you want. Stringbusters have been mentioned already and I recommend them too. I've used Newtone myself as well for completely custom strings in the past and they were very helpful with a great quality product but back then a .175 was out of the question. I've no idea if it's something they can do now or not. The highest gauge strings I am aware of are either S.I.T or Conklin strings used by Jauqo III amongst ohers and IIRC they weigh in at a cazy .190 gauge for a low C# below my F#!

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[quote name='dood' post='1172358' date='Mar 22 2011, 05:39 PM']Make that a .194!! [url="http://www.conklinguitars.com/bass_strings.html"]http://www.conklinguitars.com/bass_strings.html[/url][/quote]

Good grief! :)

Much heavier than that and it'd be used on the National Grid! :)

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[quote name='icastle' post='1172364' date='Mar 22 2011, 05:47 PM']Good grief! :)

Much heavier than that and it'd be used on the National Grid! :)[/quote]


Heh heh - I seem to remember that in my original build diary for my 7 string (when this forum was known as Bassworld.. or BassTalk, I forget which it was at the time) it was suggested that some of the cables from the Severn Bridge were removed to build my bass :lol:

[edit] ahh it appears it was Bassworld at the time: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=3746&st=0&gopid=97349&#entry97349"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...amp;#entry97349[/url]

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