Giving Chromes a shot...

shinynewtoy · Post by **shinynewtoy** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 4:44 pm

Good idea Jeffrey... next thing you know they won't be $24 anymore!

beatlefan · Post by **beatlefan** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 5:47 pm

Bob....same setup as Jeff's

45-55-75-95

I had to buy the 55 separately as the stock set had a 60 D string.....which is a good bit more tension than the 55.....with the 55 , they are all around the mid 30's in tension/lbs....

...and I thought it was weak pickups...saved me a BUNCH of money guys....THANKS again!!

....so....what car insurance do you guys use???

bob_atherton · Post by **bob_atherton** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 6:35 am

Chris, I use Chromes on my FL and they sound just dandy. All my fretted basses have RW's on them, did you go from RW's to Chromes or were you flat in the first place?

Just wondered because, as you are now very aware, the Chromes are smoother than the smoothest thing that you thought was very smooth, and if they could give me enough RW twang I might just 'do a Chris P' and use them on all my basses.

beatlefan · Post by **beatlefan** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 8:23 am

Bob, I think I've found the exact string I've been looking for.....IMHO....they sound VERY close to my DR Highbeams RW's, bright and kind of piano-like, which I like very much, but with no left hand noise.

They are VERY smooth indeed!! I can tap them , slap them, pluck them....OR play nice smooth ,slow stuff with the same bass.....I love 'em! They are REALLY filty dirty out of the package , though....I took about 10 min. wiping the oil off of 'em....

Chrome super softs....if you want a round wound sound AND smoooooth feel....this is your string!

bobcat · Post by **bobcat** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 9:11 am

I would use them all the time, except that my hand gets tired from so much tension. They're definitely the highest tension strings I've ever played.

bob_atherton · Post by **bob_atherton** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 9:33 am

Robert, can we be talking about the same string? My Ernie Ball 45 - 105 have way more tension. These feel just right

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 9:36 am

I use Chromes on my V63 and will use them on my C64 as well. They sound great. It's funny though, I've never had a dirty set. Never had to wipe them off at all. No oily residue on mine either. I use DR nickel Lo-Riders on my 4003 though. As far as tension goes, The Chromes are not as high in tension as Fender flats or Pyramids IMHO. The lowest in tension are the Thomastik-Infeld flats. I'm interested in trying them to see how they sound sometime.

jojo99 · Post by **jojo99** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 7:56 pm

Are the Chromes super-softs the ECB81 set? I just put those on my SX P-Bass.. 100 .80 .65. .45
They are quite a bit stiffer in feel from the Thomastiks on my 4001, which are very loose feeling--too loose for the 4001, IMO. With the Chromes, I feel like I'm playing roundwounds again, as far as sound and tension. I'm just wondering that since they are quite bright, if they will go "dead" and lose responsiveness the way a roundwound does. I've had the Thomastiks on the 4001 for three years now, and they sound identical to how they sounded new, even though there are pretty wide spacings between the windings in the Thoms for gunk to accumulate in.

beatlefan · Post by **beatlefan** » Sun Dec 04, 2005 3:14 am

Jo.....the correct set # is ECB80, which includes .040 .060 .075 .095 ...... with the .060 REPLACED with the .055, which you have to buy as a single.

The .060 has much higher tension than the others....it's rated 45.2 lbs tension compared to 35 or 36 lbs for the .055 string.....makes a BIG difference!

beatlefan · Post by **beatlefan** » Sun Dec 04, 2005 3:25 am

....they SEEM to have just a bit more tension than the TI Jazz flats....they come up to pitch rather quickly, almost as fast as the TI's....

The ultimate test was putting them on my 4005, which has a very slim neck and tends to bend forward with any other string than the TI's or chromes....

The TI's sound good too, but different....they are not quite as smooth and sound a bit....muddier? I don't know if that's the right term...but I'll stick with "muddier" for now...

The chromes are "it" for me....bright sounding , medium to low tension on the neck and smooth as silk.....what a combo!

jps · Post by **jps** » Sun Dec 04, 2005 11:35 am

Robert,

The ECB 80 Super Soft is what you want. You have a higher tension set on your bass. Do as I suggested Chris do and replace the .060 string with a .055 and it becomes a very nicely balanced set that is low in tension but not floppy like the TIs are.

marc61 · Post by **marc61** » Sun Dec 04, 2005 12:01 pm

Everyone seems to love them, and they're not expensive. I'm going to give them a shot. Especially since my 4005 needs a set up bad.

jps · Post by **jps** » Sun Dec 04, 2005 12:12 pm

Send it here! I'll return it...eventually!

marc61 · Post by **marc61** » Sun Dec 04, 2005 12:33 pm

Exactly.. I can see the e-mails now...

"Jeff, it's Marc, is my 4005 set up yet?"

answer...

"Marc...almost...just needs a little more tweaking"

then me...

"Jeff, How come you have photos of it at your latest gig and on your album cover?"

response:

"Marc, I just want to make sure it's photogenic, as well as stageworthy. You should be thanking me for this"

Final Decision:

Gotta keep it close to home as it'll probably be set up perfect, but it'll need a fret job by the time you're done with it...

BTW, have you ever had the frets done on your WB?Just curious.

jps · Post by **jps** » Sun Dec 04, 2005 12:54 pm

No, that is partly why I have flats on it. It does need some things done to it, like a new nut, but as all that is original and I can play her just fine I am not going to get a refret done.