Rollin Thunder Posted April 21, 2020 Share Posted April 21, 2020 mini review Bought some of these late last year, very impressed. Hand made (sic) Uk company not too cheap, but for high quality and supporting small business price is acceptable. First up a set of Platinum Nickle hex cores, put these on my Jazz bass as a like a more worn in warm set of strings on my jazz. You must take care when cutting the string ends and i would advise you follow the cutting interactions fully. these sound fantastic, i have always liked a set of well worn in Rotosound 66 nickels on this bass and i got this sound straight out of the packet. They have been on since November and tone has stayed the same, i have ordered another set as the strings are pretty much made to order and take 14-21 days to arrive (longer during lockdown) so i expect i will be looking at changing these in another 4-8 weeks and they are getting a hammering during lockdown. Second ordered a diamond stainless steel set hex core to my Gibson EB4 (2019) as i like a really bright sound with the twin humbuckers, previously used Rotosound 66 steel or Dunlop super brights. These have great bright tone but really rounded harmonics and plenty of zing without being too harshly zingy, the Dunlops are a bit too zingy out of the packet. Again been on since November and this is probably my main bass (i only have 3 bass's in Total) just noticed a drop of in tone and these are ready for changing, not dead but past there peak ordered a new set and these will be replaced as soon as they arrive. These are slightly cheaper than the platinum sets and are a bit rougher to feel but still very smooth and more aggressive sounding string, so have been well worth the price and great value. both sets of stings are .45 -.105 the spring selector allows you choice of nickel or steel on both types of strings and options for sets of gauges. you can also completely customise a set of strings but at additional costs. a set of Diamond and a set of platinum set me back around £55 including a small uk deliver charge so around £27 a set which is not silly money. you can get 10% of first order if you sign up to news letter. To sum up, if you like a particular sound and specification they pretty much cater for all. If you want quality, great tone ,longevity and do not mine paying a bit of a premium these are for you. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naxos10 Posted April 22, 2020 Share Posted April 22, 2020 Nice review. I have been using Newtone strings for a few years and find them reliable, value for money with great service. For an even more worn in sound you can go for the round core option (which is what I go for). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollin Thunder Posted April 22, 2020 Author Share Posted April 22, 2020 5 minutes ago, naxos10 said: Nice review. I have been using Newtone strings for a few years and find them reliable, value for money with great service. For an even more worn in sound you can go for the round core option (which is what I go for). Ordered a set of round cores next, looking forward to getting them. Thanks for the review feedback 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted April 22, 2020 Share Posted April 22, 2020 Just remember with the round cores you need to bend them before cutting them to length. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollin Thunder Posted April 22, 2020 Author Share Posted April 22, 2020 5 minutes ago, BigRedX said: Just remember with the round cores you need to bend them before cutting them to length. Always use a set if pliers and give the string a firm squeeze then bend on all my strings, reason people get a dead string us they just cut them iff without a firm bend/squeeze. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silvia Bluejay Posted April 22, 2020 Share Posted April 22, 2020 These are all roundwounds, am I right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naxos10 Posted April 22, 2020 Share Posted April 22, 2020 I believe so Silvia. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted April 22, 2020 Share Posted April 22, 2020 2 hours ago, Rollin Thunder said: Ordered a set of round cores next, looking forward to getting them. Thanks for the review feedback Please report back when you get them. I'm a fan of DR roundcore strings, and it sounds like Newtone might be a good alternative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted April 25, 2020 Share Posted April 25, 2020 I have used new tones, both for a short scale 5 string Set and for a chapman stick. Can take a while but they worked well where I used them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClassicVibes Posted May 3, 2020 Share Posted May 3, 2020 On 22/04/2020 at 14:05, mcnach said: Please report back when you get them. I'm a fan of DR roundcore strings, and it sounds like Newtone might be a good alternative. I've tried Newtone roundcores but went back to my beloved Sunbeams and Fat Beams. Reason being is that I felt the Newtones were a little stiffer (similar to roundcore GHS Boomers) and they didn't quite last as long as the DRs did. They're good strings but just didn't quite do it for me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted May 3, 2020 Share Posted May 3, 2020 47 minutes ago, ClassicVibes said: I've tried Newtone roundcores but went back to my beloved Sunbeams and Fat Beams. Reason being is that I felt the Newtones were a little stiffer (similar to roundcore GHS Boomers) and they didn't quite last as long as the DRs did. They're good strings but just didn't quite do it for me. Thank you. That would be a no-no for me too then, because I really like the feel of the DRs too. Both Sunbeams and Fat Beams for me too, although I've developed a love for Pure Blues too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClassicVibes Posted May 3, 2020 Share Posted May 3, 2020 Pure Blues to me were confusing. I thought of them has a hybrid of Sunbeams and Hi Beams but didn't particularly outshine either string. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted May 4, 2020 Share Posted May 4, 2020 16 hours ago, ClassicVibes said: Pure Blues to me were confusing. I thought of them has a hybrid of Sunbeams and Hi Beams but didn't particularly outshine either string. To me they seem mellower than Sunbeams from day one, but still have plenty of brightness. More focused on the lower mids, and less bottom end. They sound very good on my Sandberg VM4 (P/MM config), but I'm not sure whether I prefer them to Sunbeams or Fat Beams. They are all slight variations of the same theme, I think, my preference between Sunbeams and Fat Beams varies, I keep switching between them. The one thing I don't like about them is waiting for the initial extra brightness to fade... Pure Blues are already there from new, I just haven't decided whether their mids response is preferable to the others... :shrug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClassicVibes Posted May 4, 2020 Share Posted May 4, 2020 I will say, I thought Pure Blues were brighter fresh on than Fat Beams which was surprising. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollin Thunder Posted May 4, 2020 Author Share Posted May 4, 2020 (edited) I will be replacing the DR hi beams on a bass with a new set back of Newtone Round core steels, so should be easy to make a straight comparison, with regards feel and tension. Different of course but the two hex core sets I have are not overly tense but they both feel really smooth not harsh like Rotos or Dunlop super brights. Edited May 4, 2020 by Rollin Thunder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted May 22, 2020 Share Posted May 22, 2020 So what's the deal with having to bend the round core before cutting them? I've never heard of that before. Mind you, I have no idea what core any of the strings I've ever used are! Are any of the Newtone ones similar to D'addario nickels? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted May 22, 2020 Share Posted May 22, 2020 The website: https://newtonestrings.com/product-category/bass-guitar-strings/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stewblack Posted May 22, 2020 Share Posted May 22, 2020 What's all this 'cutting' strings business? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted May 23, 2020 Share Posted May 23, 2020 12 hours ago, fretmeister said: So what's the deal with having to bend the round core before cutting them? I've never heard of that before. Mind you, I have no idea what core any of the strings I've ever used are! Only applies to their round core strings - something that should be explained better on their web site and packaging IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naxos10 Posted May 23, 2020 Share Posted May 23, 2020 So should all other string manufacturers. At least it is on the Newtone website. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted May 23, 2020 Share Posted May 23, 2020 32 minutes ago, naxos10 said: So should all other string manufacturers. At least it is on the Newtone website. At the moment, the only Newtone strings I buy are the Axion Bass VI sets, which come with dire warnings about not cutting the strings before fitting them, on the packing. Because the bass I am using it with has standard bass machine head posts this is of course impossible. However an email to Newtone reveals that because these strings are hex-core it is OK cut them first. AFAICS the packing is unique for these strings so why are the installation instructions incorrect? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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