Strings and other things….

I was amazed that the original Slinky strings were so great sounding and they felt great too. Great OEM strings on a great bass! Yessir.

Someone suggested that if I love the Slinky’s I would really love the Cobalt Slinky’s. So I ordered some and they arrived today so I just finished changing the strings.

They do sound terrific. Perhaps a little darker or smoother than the nickel Slinky’s. Fantastic balance string to string and really wonderful sounding. I would love them better than the original Slinky’s except for the feel. The nickel Slinky’s are really smooth and slick feeling but the Cobalts feel sort of sticky. Well, sticky is probably not the right word….they just don’t feel as smooth as the nickel strings. I will play them until they need changing and perhaps my fickle mind will change.

Some thoughts about changing strings:

With a bridge that is not a top load it is pretty easy to scuff up the finish on the body behind the bridge when sliding old strings out or new ones in. I avoid that by putting some of that blue painter’s tape on the body behind the bridge. It comes off easily and leaves no residue but does protect the finish while changing strings.

Intonation:

Most of us set intonation by checking the harmonic against the fretted note at the 12th fret. Many years ago I read an article by Rick Turner (bass builder and former Alembic employee) and he recommended checking the harmonic/fretted note at the 19th fret. I have been using Rick’s suggestion for years and find it to be far more accurate than the 12th fret. Chords and double stops just sing in perfect harmony when the intonation is set using that method.

Oh look! There is a Bongo 6 string. I must play it!