Which Gut Strings For My Plywood Bass? Chorda, Efrano, Swingmaster and Evah Pirazzi Slap compared! 

Thanks, yes that would be good "information". I will see if I can do that in the future.

Thank you, I really like it too!

Thanks for your feedback! I sometimes write mails to the string companies to get strings for a test but they often don't answer. Maybe I need a couple thousand more subscribers.... But good to know you are interested in these tests. You can also compare many strings on my website.

Thanks, yes they also have some similarities!

Me too.. same choice

Yes I agree! I think you mean Decay, not Delay (in ADSR) - I remember that from synths in the 80s! But exactly: To me the shape of the ADSR Envelope is one of the most important parts of the bass sound!!

Thanks!

Thank you Billy Bob! Yes I totally see what you mean with the full synthetic EP Slap. They are interesting but not totally convincing.

Thank you very much Chris!! Yeah for my ears "restorated" makes more sense, but on american bass websites they always talk about "restored" basses. Maybe the native speakers can help us 🤔🙂?

Thanks for your feedback!

The full synthetic EP Slap set is also very nice. It imitates quite well (90 %) the sound and feel of gut. It is very even too and the string bow very well.

Yes, the EP slaps would be nice to have with a slightly higher tension. Fellow bass player Grzegorz Nadolny used EP (probably weich) for a and e, combined with d & g evah slap. Of course there is a big sustain difference, but it's an interesting concept that you can hear on the album "imaginary landscape" by Mateusz Bliskowski.

Cool, thanks for the info! I never tried the C. Henriquez, they seem to be great.

I know them, but I never became a friend of the Eudoxas, they remind me a little bit of steel strings. I love Oliv G& D though, in my opinion they are closer to real unwrapped gut (especially the envelope).

Yes I know both sets, you can also hear them on the String Matrix on my website. I think Pirastro doesn't make the Pizzicatos any more. They sounded good, but to me they didn't respond in the way I like it (so I didn't feel really comfortable playing them). And for Eudoxa I feel the same: For my taste they bring the gut too much in a "non-gut" direction: Lots of sustain but not that much punch. That said, I have heard great bassists playing both and sounding great, it's just a matter of personal preference. I love Pirastro Oliv for G and D. I combine them with "Wraps" strings by Gerold Genssler (or sometimes with Evah Pirazzi weich, apparently John Pattitucci also uses this combination).

Yes, that was also my impression, the first time I tried Oliv. And it is true that the timbre is quite different from real plain gut. But the "envelope" , so the dynamic "curve" is quite close to that of gut. They have a clearer punch than all synthetic options (EP Slap snthetic comes close though). I love oliv G and D and have been using them since 2018.

@@stringmatrix Just curious, what do you think is the drawback of using pure gut? Since I don't think I know a lot of bassist who are using pure gut (from my impression). Most of people I knew would prefer Steel/Synthetic E A D with Oliv/Eudoxa G

Hi! I have no personal practical experience with this, but in theory I would say it should work!

Yeah why not?! It all depends on which qualities you want to have for your sound. The Evah Slaps E/A have more sustain an a more clear sound than the Swingmasters. The Swingmasters have more of a low-end thump.

Plus: That way you have an all vegan set!

@@stringmatrix never thought about the vegan aspect! my vegan brother will be so proud! thank you for your work. I'm new in playing double bass and your videos are one of the best on RU-vid

@@stringmatrix I have the Evah slaps and it doesn't have any sustain to it.. even with a low action ( Well typically use medium action ( 16mm, 15mm, 11mm, 10mm ) and I don't get any sustain.

I think medium, it was an older set.

It is really hard to tell a clear difference... I found both to be quite similar, I don't know if other players who tried both would confirm?

It's an old bass, probably german. I really like it, I think it's a specially good plywood. But I had many things done: New fingerboard, neck reset and of course new bridge.

I have always used a plywood bass, sometimes a solid as well but my preference has always been the sound from the plywood (esp for pizz swing jazz -- it gives me that 50s and 60s Oscar Pettiford, Jimmy Blanton sound.. with the gut string on it.. ( Evah slaps..)

Thanks Mirco, I often get inquiries about replacement possibilities for velvet. Since velvets were quite unique, I can't give really good answers. In your case I would try the combination at the end of this video: Swingmasters e+a and EP slap gut for d+g. I regret that I haven't tried gut-a-like deluxe yet because I have the feeling that they may be interesting too. I hope I can test these soon.

PS: Maybe also the whole Swingmaster Set would work. I played Garbo for more than 10 years and then switched for a while to Swingmasters, which was a step towards "more old school sound". Fantastic feeling but I also wanted to play melodies with a little sustain so I changed to my Oliv/Genssler combination.

Oh the swingmasters are much thicker than the Blues, and sound quite different. I will measure... Yes you would have to widen the grooves at the nut and bridge.

Possibly, but unfortunately I never tried them!

Thanks! Yes, the Swingmasters are bowable! Of course not like a real bow string but somehow ok. Yes I would recommend them. Gut-a-like now also has the Deluxe set, which seems interesting too, but I didn't get a chance to try it yet.

1. No, I also heard about oiling the strings but I don't know if that's necessary. The fibres : I used sandpaper to remove them but also here: I don't know if this is a good thing. 2. No I didn't encounter these problems. The round windings of Efrano and Chords are probably more aggressive. 3. The copper gets dirty/dark, but I had the feeling that it didn't affect my hands as much as the Garbo winding.

Hi Rickard, I don't think you'll be happy with an Oliv E. I will release a video in a few days where I will compare Oliv and Eudoxa. The Oliv E is too dead for pizz. You have very precise wished about tension (for me Spiro Weich is similar to EP Weich). I am not as sensitive to different tensions... Maybe you will like the EP slap E but I think it has less tension than Spiro Weich. Or you should look at solo strings tuned down. Maybe the dominant solo that are on the string matrix or some d'addario helicore solo. Or strings by innovation: the polychrome may be interesting they are not too metallic. Very difficult to give a good advice in your case but these would be my ideas.

@@stringmatrix thanks for the answer. I'm sorry I wasn't clear, the Spiro felt good in tension but maybe not optimal. I actually played my old Spiro's today on my friends bass, and I think I should opt for lower tension with my preferred string height. 70€ for a EP Slap isn't too bad either. I'll buy it and see in the week to come! Thanks for bearing with the questions! Keep up the good work.

@@stringmatrix Hi again, finally the EP-string is here, and I know after 5 minutes on the bass it was the right choice!

@@rickardlundin2343 Fantastic, I'm glad I could help!

Difficult to give you a precise answer. I would say they are quite similar, maybe the swingmasters are a little less stiff. As I wrote in an other comment, I thought the Chordas were generally more tense than the other sets in this comparison but I found out it was only the A and E that have a quite high tension. I didn't realize that while playing (strangely). The Chorda probably has a little more projection since the Swingmaster is a little darker. You talk about tension AND stiffness: I have been asking myself if this is the same thing or weather some strings feel less stiff (because the material is more elastic) compared to another string with the same tension but with a less elastic material. I don't know, maybe you have an explanation?

@@stringmatrix Well, from what I've read, mostly on talkbass,but also from experience, I understand that tension and stifness are two different things. Here are a couple of non-scientific observations: A string with higher tension will produce a bigger sound since the pressure on the bridge and, consequently, on the top of the bass will be greater than that of a string with lower tension( of course that also depends on how much pressure the top can withstand before it starts to "choke"). A stiff string will be harder to press down with the left hand compared to an elastic string set at the same string height. The density of a string plays, I think, an important role too:Spirocores always seemed to me to be "dense".. As oppose to Jazzers for example, which to my ear sound "airier". I think that the gauge of a string can also be of importance with regards to both left and right hand technique. A G string that is too thin may "cut" the left and right hand fingers when pressed or pulled. A string that is thick may be easier on the hands, however, as you well know, there are other trade-offs : thuddy notes, slow response etc. However, from a jazz pizz perspective, I wonder if I could find a plain G gut string that would be suitable for fast solo playing using very low string height, particularly 4mm on the G string. I want to combine it with the Jazzer string set. I think I would need a very stiff, medium gauge (no more than 2.2mm) plain gut G to have any chance at this working. Right now I'm experimenting with the Swingmaster G but at this string height it feels slow and also, as you say, it lacks high frequencies. So maybe, if I could find a G of average gauge and , consequently, tension but of high stifness this could work. I'm not interested in wrapped gut(maintenance issues) or a synthetic string at the moment, just plain gut. Sorry for the rant, I hope all this makes some sense. Again, thanks for all the work that you've put into the stringmatrix, it has been most helpful through the years 😊. All the best!

@@periklistrivolis1660 Yes that makes sense, thanks for your observations. I myself was also wondering about the stiffness vs. tension difference in the last months. Density is also an interesting thing. But you mean tonal density? Or density of the material of the string (which certainly also plays a role)?

@@stringmatrix I meant density of the material of the string but maybe that translates to tonal density as well. Spirocores have always felt and sounded like that to me. Would you by any chance have any suggestions as to what plain gut G I could use? Thank you very much!

@@periklistrivolis1660 Of "my" 3 Gs I would say that the Chorda had the most tension. I don't know if it would fit to such a low action (the problem will probably be the unevenness of the string). Pirastro says they have 22,8 kg tension. I also heard good things about www.gamutmusic.com/red-diamond-bass-strings which are designed as high tension gut strings. The G has 23 kg, so similar to Chorda.

I love the Gut-A-Likes for jazz, when I don't need to play "singing melodies". They have a great thump for swing that also amplifies well. I wrote to Superior Bassworks but they did not respond yet.

Oui leur souplesse est très similaire à celle de cordes en boyau.

EP Slap synthetic are very nice/easy to bow. The plain guts work too but it is a tone of it's own.

That's a good question and I just checked the tensions on the Pirastro site. Fact is: The E string has a higher tension than EP Mittel E. The A string has slightly less tension than EP Weich A. The D and G have much lower tensions. These very different tensions were irritating and that's why I thought they are not too comfortable to play.

@@stringmatrix Alright. Like you said about some of sets of string, I sometimes find gut strings can almost be a little "too easy" to play. But at the same time I love the general playability of gut string. It would just be fun to find that perfect string for the bass.

Thanks for the interesting feedback!

Eugene Wright is amazing... He also plays in a Doug Watkins record. I love Doug's bass sound, so full, round and resonant (ofc is mostly in his hand) but any guess about the strings? I heard that he and Paul were using Artones.

@@StavrosKalt In a blindfolded test, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between Paul and Doug. Their sound was so phenomenal.

Oh yes it is a very different feel. Less tension, thicker diameter, different surface. It is like "another world".

Sorry for the late answer... No this is very unusual. Even if the strings would detune by a third or fourth I am pretty sure the bridge would still be in place. Maybe the bridge was already leaning towards the neck? Or maybe the feet aren't properly adapted to the shape of the top? Only speculating, this is very unusual.

Difficult to give a good tip... For the string, maybe you could try a Pirastro Obligato. In my perception they make a "big" sound on lots of basses. But maybe a specialist (luthier) could find something to optimize in the setup: Action, new bridge, soundpost placement, height of the saddle - or maybe a combination. But only a good specialist will be able to find out.

@@stringmatrix thanks a lot! :)

I remember that I was surprised, how much tension the wound chordas (a, e) have. I'm sure they have a clearly higher tension that Evah Slap a and e. Concerning the plain e: I never tried one and there are certainly very different types, so I can't really help...

@@stringmatrix thanks for the reply…. I ended up throwing on the evah slap E and was blown away by the difference it made. It goes well with the plain A-G and wow, it bows incredibly. I think it’s the easiest bowing string I’ve ever used. Crazy…. That said, do you know of any LOW tension traditionally designed wound gut E strings? I still want to try one out so that I can have a period accurate setup.. something that has tension similar to the evah slap. Really such a phenomenal string. I’m blown away haha.

@@joldisyri8936 no I don't have any recommendations for a low tension wound gut E, sorry. Yes I also found the Arco response of the Evah P Slap extremely comfortable, it's amazing.

@@stringmatrix truly, the bow glides so nice. Do all the wound guts you’ve tried typically have high tension? Any you’ve tried that feel as good as the eva slap?

@@joldisyri8936 I only know chorda and efrano. I believe efrano had a slightly lower tension, but you can ask the manufacturer for the tension you want anyway. But I really can't remember if the efrano e that I had, had a similar tension to evah slap.

I must see and play the bass to answer this question. Maybe the bass itself is weak in that register. But maybe it is a setup problem, bridge, Soundpost, strings... Try to find an experienced player or a bass Luthier.

Will do. It is like like my E string is half as loud as the other strings in short. @@stringmatrix

I took it a place in Modesto, CA. The luthier adjusted the sound post and bridge.The sound post was just sligtly out of place but my E string sounds normal now@@stringmatrix

They have a model called Red Diamond

No not yet!

It's perfectly ok if you personally dislike the sound of a pizzicato played double bass. Many people enjoy it though.

Hi Poulou, OK, this can happen, we have a different opinion. I played these strings for a while after playing Velvet Garbo and I really enjoyed them. After a while I realized that I also want to play some melodic stuff in middle/high range and for this the G-A-L are not adapted. But I also twice had my G-A-L Swingmaster bass played by touring bassists on concerts and I remember that I totally enjoyed the sound also as a listener, for me they really have this great old style punch and you could hear each note very clearly. Maybe some of the sets were not manufactured well or maybe they don't match with your basses. Or it is simply a matter of taste. Still thanks for your feedback, it is interesting to hear different optinions.

@Stringmatrix reading and watching this makes me almost wanting to set them back up on my second DB. After all I already have them at home. Maybe I fell on a bad number. Maybe it’s not that bad and desearves more time to balance on the bass. But the metal core falling apart 2 weeks after, come on… It’s true that it sounds pretty close to gut. For a specificly rhythmic playing it makes the job, but indeed with a little lack of high frequencies. Actually watching your vids I went into Aquila reds and I’m ok with them now. I used to play velvet Animas, witch was close to perfection to me, but they don’t make it anymore. Aquila reds are in the same spirit with even less tension. But what a sustain !! Thanx for your job!!