heavy strings tuned high

[sky]

found this interview with the old deftones bass guitarist chi cheng, https://www.deftonesworld.com/bass-guitar-summer-2003-chi-interviewed/ in it says he uses 65-120 gauge strings, which seem really heavy being what tuning would be be using that in, 2003 would be self titled era but those songs are tuned G# which i think he generally used a 5 string fender roscoe beck with a swapped pickguard, so 65-120 for white pony songs in drop C, i wouldve thought a 65 gauge would snap tuned to F being that i had the lower strings of a 5 string set on an old beater bass that i think mightve been a 60 and it snapped when i tried to tune to C# standard. basically just wondering whats the heaviest and highest tunings you can take a string before it just snaps

thanks, leo

[sky]

pretty sure he was mostly using ghs strings too, being he had red silk only headstock end nothing at bridge end and no coloured ball ends at the time where rotosound hadsilk at both ends, and their heavy set is 50-115 which id think would be pretty nice for drop c or c#...

[Bolo]

I use DR DDT 5-55 tuned in AEADG. 

A 65-120 set sounds like only three or four strings to me, a downtuned fifth would be 135 or 140 in such a set?

[thodrik]

For drop C on a four string I use gauges of 130, 95, 70 and 50. I used to use a 120 but prefer the tightness of the 130 though I wouldn't try to tune it to D standard! With a drop C/D standard bass I used a 120-90-70-50 set of D'addario Balanced Tension strings,

If Chi Cheng was using 120-65 strings for drop G# that would seem to me to be very light gauges for the tuning. Pretty sure that he was using a four string tuned to G#, C#, F#, B, so a 65 gauge tuned to B wouldn't be overly tight.  I used drop G# tuning and needed to at least use at 145 gauge but had better results with a 160. The type of tone Chi Cheng went for did not require a really tight bass sound. His sound was massive, slightly-soupy and all-enveloping, so it is possible to use lighter gauge strings tuned down if you are going for that kind of sound. Personally I really liked Chi's playing. 

 

I used to use 115-55 sets of GHS strings in standard tuning, which were about my limit.  

[shoulderpet]

On 13/12/2022 at 12:19, sky said:

found this interview with the old deftones bass guitarist chi cheng, https://www.deftonesworld.com/bass-guitar-summer-2003-chi-interviewed/ in it says he uses 65-120 gauge strings, which seem really heavy being what tuning would be be using that in, 2003 would be self titled era but those songs are tuned G# which i think he generally used a 5 string fender roscoe beck with a swapped pickguard, so 65-120 for white pony songs in drop C, i wouldve thought a 65 gauge would snap tuned to F being that i had the lower strings of a 5 string set on an old beater bass that i think mightve been a 60 and it snapped when i tried to tune to C# standard. basically just wondering whats the heaviest and highest tunings you can take a string before it just snaps

thanks, leo

You would be surprised how much tension a bass string can take, when I was younger and more prone to abusing my body and my instruments I played a Fender musicmaster bass with a 130-65 set of Rotosounds tuned to standard EADG tuning, I wouldn't dare to use such heavy strings nowadays

[sky]

you madman

[Dan Dare]

65-120 tuned up a semitone? Must have been like playing iron bars.

[sky]

well i can confirm that that 65 snapping seemed to be a mystery because my 2nd bass is currently rocking the lower strings of a rs665ld set tuned to c standard so 65-130 and is playing perfectly fine

[sky]

On 28/12/2022 at 18:53, Dan Dare said:

65-120 tuned up a semitone? Must have been like playing iron bars.

currently have 65 to 130 tuned up a semitone to c and i think its vaguely similar to 40 to 105 in e maybe 50 to 110, its really suprisingly playable. makes a nice change after using a 55 to 110 set tuned to c standard and having to play the low c really lightly to stop making the note go sharp lol

[sky]

although maybe thats the tone to go for... i get the feeling a lot of early stoner rock stuff was all done on guitars and basses with normal strings going down to c or b and then when they pick the chord or note they hit it sharp but maybe im just starting a conspiracy theory 😄