Strings for my new 1988 Spoiler?

[Bassman8416]

Just wondering what type of strings will fit on a Spoiler. I put a set of D'Addario Half Rounds on...would really like to find some fat, warm nickel rounds that I can use a pick and fingers on.
Mahogany body, ebony top and fingerboard with maple neck.

[FC Bass]

Till date, I haven't found strings that won't fit. :-)
 
I have a Master set that is cut to length (with max amount of windings around the tuner)
I use this set to cut the new strings to the right length.
 
This is with a ADGC set (130-110-90-70)
 

 
My preferred strings are Stainless steel roundwounds (R.Cocco)
 
Best strings I've tried were Gali Saturn signature sets, nickel plated roundwounds. By far the best tone and strong/tight low B string (extremely impressive on my Elan)  
Downside: They're extremely hard on the fingers, one gig with my Spoiler playing finger style and I had a hole in my finger that almost reached the bone... :-(  
Also they're pretty expensive over here...
 
For recordings and high profile gigs, I will put them on my Elan again though. I only play with a pick on that bass and I have a hefty stash of them :-) (picks)

[adriaan]

The ones I like best are DR Fatbeams (the old Marcus Miller signature set). They're round core and not too high tension, so they're not too hard on the fingers (like DR LoRiders) and they seem to pit out more lows than DR HiBeams. I remember being perfectly happy with plain old d'Addario roundwounds in nickel too. From way back I remember the original Alembic strings that came on my Epic as a very nice string with a beautiful sound (go figure the elves know how to spec a proper string for a proper bass) - and they have elliptic outer wraps, and they lasted a very long time.

[adriaan]

I should perhaps mention strings I really didn't like, GHS  Bass Boomers. A little surprising, knowing that Jimmy Johnson plays them all the time, and he gets a fabulous sound.

[Spoiler Alert]

Just had mine set up with new DR Hi-Beams 45-65-85-105 and I really love em! It had a slight buzz on the first fret of the E string before changing the strings, but now it's dialed in and buzz free. Thanks for everyone on the forum for the advice on strings they love and hate. These DR Hi-Beams are a great fit for this axe.

[tomiv9]

I really like the DR Nickel Lo Riders(45-105). Very warm sound. They do have slightly more tension as others mentioned, but I like that on my medium scale distillate. It counters the lower tension of the medium scale nicely

[germansal]

if you like to slap check out elixir 0,40

[rgasper]

I'm surprised that you guys were able to make DRs work on your Spoiler. They're my string of choice on all of my other basses. The winding length is so long on those, though-- you've got to have a substantial part of the full thickness of the string wrapping around the post on the E string. I've been trying to find strings that are a sufficient winding length for my Spoiler. I've got D'Addario Pro Steels on mine currently, but still, some of the thick part still starts to wrap around that E post. I actually broke a brand new Dunlop Super Steels E string as I was putting it on one time, because of the winding length issue.


I've been checking out Bass Strings Online because they've got a page with all of the major manufacturer's winding lengths. I measured my Spoiler, from ball end to nut is about 34.75, and from ball end to the middle of the E post is about 36.90. There aren't many options out there where the winding length falls between those two measurements. So far, all I've found is GHS and Fender strings. La Bella is very close at 37, and I think there are some others that fall right at 37.


It's funny, I hopped on here to see if any other threads had popped up about strings for a Spoiler, and this one was at the very top, and my Spoiler also happens to be an '88. 

[mica]

Usually with the D'Addario strings you use the next scale length UP. So for medium scale Alembic basses, usually their long scale strings work. For long scale Alembic basses, usually the D'Addario extra long scale strings work.

[adriaan]

I get about the same measurements on my 88 Spoiler, and the fit of DR long scales isn't too bad. When I install the E string, I hook it up in the tailpiece, lay it out and then make the little bend at the A tuner, then cut off the excess length about a 1/2" beyond the bend. The bent piece goes into the tuner peg, and I end up with just a little over three windings on the tuner. Like so ...

[rgasper]

Usually with the D'Addario strings you use the next scale length UP. So for medium scale Alembic basses, usually their long scale strings work. For long scale Alembic basses, usually the D'Addario extra long scale strings work.

I've noticed that! I had a set of LaBella medium scale flats sitting around, and I realized they were too short for it! Yeah, the D'Adds I'm using now have held up just fine... it's that thick part of the string wrapping around the post that makes me nervous because I've broken brand new strings in the past due to that very issue.

I get about the same measurements on my 88 Spoiler, and the fit of DR long scales isn't too bad. When I install the E string, I hook it up in the tailpiece, lay it out and then make the little bend at the A tuner, then cut off the excess length about a 1/2" beyond the bend. The bent piece goes into the tuner peg, and I end up with just a little over three windings on the tuner. Like so ...

I'm actually fascinated that that works for you. I'd be so afraid that the string would just unravel from all of the stress being placed on the thickest part. Maybe I'm just paranoid because I've had DRs break for the same issue on different basses in the past. Went to install a low E DDT drop tune set on a friend's Epiphone Thunderbird, and it has those same style posts, and I literally broke the string two times in a row. As soon as that thick part started to wrap around that small post, it just gave up. Had a replacement string sent to me, and it did the exact same thing again. And then, as I had mentioned earlier, I had a Dunlop Super Steel E string do the same exact thing when I went to put it on my Spoiler. Maybe it had something to do with the core wire. Those Dunlops do have a very slinky, sorta low tension feel to them. None of this is an issue on a larger Fender-style post-- it's just that sharper angle that the string has to bend to fit around the narrower post that creates an issue.

Maybe if I'm feeling brave one day, I'll try to throw a set of DRs on. I love Hi-Beams in general, but some Lo-Riders would sure be nice on the Spoiler.

[adriaan]

I'm actually fascinated that that works for you. I'd be so afraid that the string would just unravel from all of the stress being placed on the thickest part.

How much string length do you have wound onto the peg? On mine it's about 2.5" and I'd guess that puts enough distance between the thickest part of the string and the stress point where the string is forced into the peg. There needs to be some clearance at the bottom of the peg, but I've found 2.5" is about right for a .105" guage of most brands of string.

[rgasper]

adriaan-- maybe this picture will help me to explain it a little better. It's not so much about the number of wraps as it is trying to find strings where that thick part doesn't start to wrap around the post. With the D'Addario set, the thickest part of the string wraps about 3/4 of the way around the post. I know for a DR set, it will do that even more because they have a longer winding length (so, the thickest part of the strings extends for a longer length before it reaches the first taper). I think the D'Adds have about a 37.1" winding length, and DRs are 38". It must not be that big of a deal, though, if you've made DRs work without issue. I noticed in the picture that FC Bass posted here-- that's a .130 gauge where the thick part starts to wrap, and that looks to be working too. Ideally, I'd just like to find strings where the first taper happens before it reaches the post. If I hadn't had strings break on me for this issue in the past, I never would've given it a second thought!

[adriaan]

Well, one obvious difference is that you have Gotoh tuners, and mine are Schallers. Going by the number of wraps showing on your picture and Flip's, the post on the Gotohs might be a good bit shorter than on the Schallers. If also the post diameter is a bit larger on the Schallers, it might explain why there is less stress on the string for me.

[pauldo]

Interesting, I have a HipShot D tuner on my E string.  The post is shorter on the HipShot and the fat part of the string wraps around the post (GHS Boomers - sorry Adriaan ).
Never had any issues.


Rgasper, is the string breaking at the earlier/ first winding(s), have you verified that there is no sharp edge on the tuner post?