Red silks on unidentified strings means.....?

[Ricky Rioli]

I just bought a Yamaha BB424 on Reverb. It sounds great, the strings really suit it. The dealer I bought it from was short on communication skills, so I'm left having to identify what the strings are myself.

Fortunately they are very distinctive: they've red silks and are very rough in comparison with the Daddario Nickels I was using recently, so I'm guessing they're Rotosound RS66s?

Now I just have to work out which gauges they are The only other strings I have to hand are the Chromes on my other bass: my attempt to compare thicknesses of the rounds and the flats by touch just made me laugh. The roundwound E seems thinner than the 105 flat...but does that actually mean that it's thinner than 105?

I guess my first attempt should be the RS66LD (45 65 80 105) since they call that "standard"

 

[michael_t]

What do they look like at the ball ends? Any pic?

 

[Samatza]

Could be GHS Boomers.

 

[Jon Moody]

Now I just have to work out which gauges they are The only other strings I have to hand are the Chromes on my other bass: my attempt to compare thicknesses of the rounds and the flats by touch just made me laugh. The roundwound E seems thinner than the 105 flat...but does that actually mean that it's thinner than 105?

HA, no. It either "is" or "isn't" thinner than the Chromes .105. String gauge is measurable; you'll need to grab a micrometer to be absolutely sure.

You could also take one of the strings off, and compare it side by side as well, to see if it's a .105, or a .100. It's not as accurate as a micrometer, but still works.

 

[michael_t]

Fortunately they are very distinctive: they've red silks and are very rough in comparison with the Daddario Nickels I was using recently, so I'm guessing they're Rotosound RS66s?

View attachment 4119584

I asked for a pic of the bridge end (incl. ball ends) because those silked ends at the headstock look very much like the GHS Boomers, except they wouldn't be "very rough compared to D'A XL Nickels"; in fact, I find the Boomers at least as smooth as any other NPS rounds.

 

[bpc]

I assume Roto 66s would have the coloured ball ends same as Roto 77s? The red looks darker than the roto 77s I use. I'm assuming rotosound don't use different silk on different models of string. Could just be lighting I suppose.

 

[michael_t]

I assume Roto 66s would have the coloured ball ends same as Roto 77s? The red looks darker than the roto 77s I use.

That is exactly what I'm thinking.

Here's a pic of the ball end on the Boomer...

 

[bpc]

A new set of 77s I bought a few weeks ago has black silks at the ball end and red at the tuner. Older 77s I have, and not that old, last year, have red silks at both ends.

 

[mmbongo]

A lot of Made In China basses come with strings exactly like that, my SX did for example. So it could be anyting from Boomers to Roto's to $3 Chinese strings.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

Pretty sure that's Roto Red as already stated.
Dirk

 

[Ricky Rioli]

HA, no. It either "is" or "isn't" thinner than the Chromes .105. String gauge is measurable; you'll need to grab a micrometer to be absolutely sure.

I know its measurable - the point I'm making is this squishy finger tips accommodate a highly rippled surface in a way that is impossible with a smooth flat surface. And since grabbing a micrometer is similarly impossible during a hard lockdown, the question of gauge will not be answered any time soon.

 

[Jon Moody]

I know its measurable - the point I'm making is this squishy finger tips accommodate a highly rippled surface in a way that is impossible with a smooth flat surface. And since grabbing a micrometer is similarly impossible during a hard lockdown, the question of gauge will not be answered any time soon.

See the second part of my post; take one E string off and compare it side by side. The question of gauge can be answered that way as well, if you're really curious. Not as accurate as ordering a micrometer and waiting a week or so, but it'll be enough to make a pretty good estimate.

 

[michael_t]

A lot of Made In China basses come with strings exactly like that, my SX did for example.

You mean rich dark red like the one in the OP's pic? I ask because most of the cheap Chinese ones I've seen had black silk.

 

[Ricky Rioli]

See the second part of my post; take one E string off and compare it side by side. The question of gauge can be answered that way as well, if you're really curious. Not as accurate as ordering a micrometer and waiting a week or so, but it'll be enough to make a pretty good estimate.

My strings are very happy not being meddled with by me. However I was able to take a close up photo of the two strings next to one another, blow it up and use my ruler. I'm now as good as certain the round is no thinner than the 105 flat so I'll start my experimentation there.

 

[mmbongo]

You mean rich dark red like the one in the OP's pic? I ask because most of the cheap Chinese ones I've seen had black silk.

Like these.

The one's on the OP's Yamaha look more like GHS though.

 

[Ricky Rioli]

What do they look like at the ball ends? Any pic?

Kind of goldy colour, peering into holes they live in

Or do I mean brassy colour?

 

[Ricky Rioli]

That is exactly what I'm thinking.

Here's a pic of the ball end on the Boomer...

View attachment 4119640

I would say the balls on mine are a bit darker than that - like modern rose gold vs standard yellow gold

 

[michael_t]

Like these.

The one's on the OP's Yamaha look more like GHS though.

View attachment 4119658

See the way the red silk in your pic is staggered according to the positioning of the tuner posts? The Chinese strings I've seen on some low-end Ibanez basses with black silk had the same distinct feature.

 

[michael_t]

I would say the balls on mine are a bit darker than that - like modern rose gold vs standard yellow gold

Brass ball ends can tarnish with age and look darker. The one in my pic was taken when it was brand new. Plus, the lighting can affect the color as well, as in sitting in those small thru-body holes.

 

[Ricky Rioli]

Brass ball ends can tarnish with age and look darker. The one in my pic was taken when it was brand new.

I've just been Googling images of the RS66 ball ends - they look a match of what's down the holes!

What kind of tension and stiffness do the Boomers have? I'm really liking these strings which means they're taut, and have a nervy lively feel.

I've been going back and forth between them and the 45-60-80-105 Chromes and am enjoying similarity of the experience. (The Chromes are naturally a bit more stiff, but their smoothness and the slightly lower actionon on that bass are balancing it out.)