Question rolling strings

[sanderhermans]

Ive noticed over the years i had some strings that roll over the fb while doing bends. Some do this alot while others dont tend to do this.... i find it pretty annoying to play if they do. Hard to do bends as the strings roll back underneath my fingers. My new cobalts seem to do this too so not super happy. Anny sugestions or is this normal?

 

[Golem]

`

My edumacated guess is that bass strings
are designed for bass technique, IOW not
for Stratocaster technique. IOOW there is
is no "normal" behavior as regards string
bending attempts on bass strings.

 

[sanderhermans]

I did notice this on guitar too. But as far as bass concerns i do think it is a problem. Not because i do huge bends or annything like that but the string feels less stable to me when playing it. If you dont land good on the string for instance my fingers tend to roll of.... could it have annything to do with how i put the strings on? I wind the string a few times around the tuner manually befor i start turning the tuner itself. Could this twist the strings?

 

[Golem]

`

Lotsa peeps use a few turns rather than the
typically recommended less-than-2-full turns.
Even if on occasion you screwed up one of
your strings you're not gonna screw up all of
them. I just can't get my sympathies around
the expectation that bass strings are suitable
for bending. I often hear remarks if certain
friends play other certain friends' geetars, as
"Jeeziz, I can't bend these strings ... " and in
such cases we're talking about 13s or 14s on
[usually] jazz geetars. Now just scale that up
to bass string gauges and you see where I'm
coming from ?

 

[georgestrings]

`

Lotsa peeps use a few turns rather than the
typically recommended less-than-2-full turns.
Even if on occasion you screwed up one of
your strings you're not gonna screw up all of
them. I just can't get my sympathies around
the expectation that bass strings are suitable
for bending. I often hear remarks if certain
friends play other certain friends' geetars, as
"Jeeziz, I can't bend these strings ... " and in
such cases we're talking about 13s or 14s on
[usually] jazz geetars. Now just scale that up
to bass string gauges and you see where I'm
coming from ?

Yeah, no insult intended, but it *sounds* like a combination of unrealistic expectations, and possible technique issues - and not a string issue of any sort...


- georgestrings

 

[sanderhermans]

I totaly agree about the technique thing and so on... however you must admit that on guitar this IS verry annoying. So i go back to my question: why some strings do this and some dont? Is the core of the strings different or do i twist them too hard when putting em on....

 

[JayDawg]

I just put Cobalts on the Breast Cancer Awareness bass about a week ago and noticed the same thing when I played it this last Sunday that the strings roll a bit when you bend them while playing them. It didn't affect my playing at all but it did take some getting used too.

 

[pete bass]

Different makes of strings and materials when tuned to concert pitch often have dissimilar tensions when bending....some you can and some you can´t .....

 

[five7]

give a set of coated slinkys a try, no rolling with them.

 

[sanderhermans]

give a set of coated slinkys a try, no rolling with them.

Indeed. On bass i only had this "problem" with cobalts. Altough i like em i think i wont buy a new set in the near future...

 

[jlepre]

I own Cobalts, but never noticed any rolling.

 

[Kong]

No bending, no rolling.

To be honest, maybe you missed to straighten the strings before mounting them. So if you move them to the side by bending, there might be a relieve on the slightly twisted string, and it rolls.

Twisted strings can cause some problems. A little twist is able to damp a string so it sounds dead when it comes under tension. I recommendet several times in a german bassmans website to loosen a "dead" string, and to twist it against the direction of the spinning, only 1 to 1 1/2 turns. Hold this, and get the string in tune again, it helps.

Just watch your string when you mount it. Does it ly flat on the bass? Or does it look like a serpent line? Just turn the ballend around until the string is lying flat on your bass.

There are still some "ifs" and "maybes" about this forcing a string to roll while beeing bent. But it is thinkable.

 

[OldManMusic]

I use Cobalts on 4 of my basses and have never had this happen. I don't bend a lot, but I know what you're talking about with the rolling strings. Like Kong said, I'm very careful when I put new strings on and make sure they are not twisted before I start winding the tuning keys. I've just never had that rolling issue with the Cobalts or any Slinkies, for that matter.