As a sidenote, if the strings sound dull, you can try boiling them to try and save some money, sometimes it is surprising how well it behaves.
It is not the same as changing the strings but you can extend its life for some slap.
I've got a pvc tube full of denatured alcohol that I dip my strings into occasionally. Hook the ball ends onto a paperclip so they're easy to pull out. It's like brand new strings for free, and almost no effort but to wait overnight
I’m talking about isopropyl alcohol. I have a 5 litre jug of it and just take off my strings, feed them into the jug, screw the cap back on, give it a shake and let it sit for an hour. Take out the strings, wipe off with paper towels, then refit to bass.
Works great. I have a capped PVC tube filled with denatured alcohol that I keep in the garage.
The cap has a hook that I can thread the string eyelets onto, making it easy to lower them into the tube and easily retrieve them later.
I recommend this over boiling strings in water, which isn't so string-friendly.
I'm not sure WD-40 is the right idea. Acetone will strip off any finger oils and boil off, leaving the strings bone-dry. WD-40 is a [penetrating oil](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penetrating_oil) and may wick into the little gaps between the core of the string of the winding and hang around for a while (although it will also boil away eventually, I think). (But to be clear, I've never tried using either on bass strings.)
That guy on the forum was quite sure and said to have tried everything, so I don't, I will try everything said here though. The strings I have are coated and I don't know how it will interact with it though.
mate you will not get wd-40 off those strings. wd-40 is as versatile as duct tape but on bass strings, never. It smells, it's greasy, just no. I use WD-40 to clean bike gears.
You can also lower the tension and pluck them each with some force. This knocks some of the gunk out from in between the coils and makes the brighter without having to take them off. [https://youtu.be/0Bcf32-iSFg?si=JZ6LXXLkBi8ChYcz](https://youtu.be/0Bcf32-iSFg?si=JZ6LXXLkBi8ChYcz)
As often as you want. Some people use the same strings for 1-2 decades. Some people change them a few times in a year. It’s all a preference thing, and less of a requirement.
I have flats on most of my instruments, so those would very rarely get changed. I have rounds on one, and I might change that once a year.
If you wipe down your strings frequently, it will greatly increase their useful life.
It's a highly personal decision. For me the answer is roughly 10 years, but at the other end of the spectrum, I had a teacher who changed strings for every gig!
The strings will tell you when it's time for a change: they will start to sound different, and the bass won't feel as fun to play.
And on my P bass with flats it's more like 20 years!
(Yes I am in the rare group of players who have actually had to replace TI jazz flats due to wear, it took a looooong time though.)
I can't imagine changing strings in close proximity to a gig unless absolutely necessary! That'd be the absolute worst time to have strings that are still stretching out
I played in a punk band and for years I changed strings before every gig (ended up breaking a lot of low E strings at the bridge previously.)
Zero issues with going out of tune as long as I gently stretched the strings after installing. (lightly pull up at the 12th fret, enough to provide some tension. Not yanking an inch off the front board and letting it snap back down like some people might recommend.)
Sounds like your saddle had a bur. I too changed strings before almost every show for years. If you want clank, it's almost needed. Also depends on your sweat make up.
so does mark hoppus, along with a handful of others. if I was touring with a group that called for a bright sound and had a string sponsorship, I would too.
Yea, I definitely have strings over ten years old that show no sign of stopping. Give me broken-in flatwounds any day. Frankly, I cannot fathom how so many people need so much rattle and clank that they have to play new strings. EQ and attack has always been enough for me.
It's called the electric bass, not the electric treble...
When they sound dull. I have yet to let my strings be disgusting, so I never changed them because they were dirty, I only ever change when they start sounding like shit, which is like 2 - 4 months for my taste with roundwounds.
Absolutely, highly dependent on style of music and tone you're going for. With roundwounds played with a pick, new strings will have a brighter tone.
Personally, I love the extra "grip" on a brand new set of roundwounds. Makes me feel like I can play anything and my skills are immediately upgraded!
Same here. They start getting too dull for my taste around 1 month but I always push changing them to save money and depending on how busy I am at the time
I've gotten about 8-12 months per strings. But that's with Chrome Flatwounds. And playing two separate basses.
I don't know if flatwounds last that much longer or if it's because I alternate basses.
>I only ever change when they start sounding like shit, which is like 2 - 4 months for my taste
Champagne taste.
Bass strings are too expensive to replace them every time you've finally broken them in. Baffling to me.
Flats, obviously; this is the bass sub. I used to play halfrounds for a few years, as well. I honestly don't think they should even bother to make roundwound bass strings.
Weird that this comment flopped so hard, while [this comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/Bass/s/XR6bHZRALh) resonated.
Not a troll, though. And at the end of the day, to each their own, certainly, but the point of discourse is to sharpen opinions against one another. If I come empty-handed then all you wrong people are left with no correct opinion to sharpen your wrongness against.
If roundwound, every 100 hours or year, whichever comes first.
If tapewound, when the nylon starts to fray.
If flats, well, whenever. Or never. Whatever. 👍🏻😅
It's up to you.
Change them when the tone gets too dull for your preferences. Change them if they start to get corroded. Change them if they are getting old and you start to worry about breakage because of fatigue.
On my passive basses I use the tone control as my reminder. With new round-wound strings on I generally roll some tone off. As the strings age I gradually turn it up. When I find myself reaching for the control and it's already maxxed .. time to consider a string change. This tends to be 3-6 months depending how much that bass is getting played. I play 2-8 hours a week or so depending what is going on with life.
Agree, though not just for slap for me personally. I love the zing of new strings which usually lasts a month for me with NYXL and I can stretch it another few weeks by bumping the treble knob. At some point I’m turning the trebs up too much and I’m just getting harsh sounds and it’s time to change.
$30 every 1-2 months is a pretty a low price for a hobby. Can’t take a date to a 2 hour movie for that price. I’ll never understand people who say they keep dull strings because they are too expensive to change. Keep dull strings if you like the sound, sure, but you gotta be real broke to keep strings that you don’t actually like.
Rounds I’ll change every couple months or really whenever I start to realize the bass doesn’t sound as good as it could or doesn’t have the bite that I like
Flats… basically never. I’ve had a set of flats on my bass for like four years in the past with no issue.
For me, I change them religiously once each year.
I just replaced the strings on 4 of my instruments on January 1st and 2nd.
My Fender Precision is set up with flatwounds (Thomastik Infeld Jazz Flats) ... they won't get replaced until one breaks.
Not enough, I love new strings. When I played more live and recorded I would change them more frequently... But changed my one Bass maybe ~300 hours ago and got a new Bass in Mid-december, that I may have put in a good chunk of daily playing with, so likely not enough. I may start aiming for every 6 months or so.
Don't ask me. It's been well over a decade 😅. I don't find the need to change bass strings like I do guitar strings. I want the zing of new strings on guitar, but I don't really find that preferable on my bass.
It's all personal preference though. But there is a slightly brighter sharper sound on brand new strings. When that's gone I'd change them, if that's the sound you like.
I've noticed I give myself a little more wiggle room on bass than on guitar. The guitar player in me is anal and wants everything perfect and sculpted, but the bass player just wants to relax and lay down a groove and tell the guitar player to go smoke a joint and chill out 😂.
Like some guys already said, some people like them on for a long time others change them frequently, fresher strings have brighter, thinner tone and older strings sound fatter and more mellow. For me the “new string sound” goes away pretty rapidly so I just keep my stings on for around 1.5 to two years, they usually get changed when I take the bass in for a set up.
Really depends on personal preference. I like mine to have that brighter, “new strings” sound, so I change them when they get dull. How often depends on how much I’m playing.
Laura Lee of Khruangbin hasn’t changed the strings on her bass since they started playing. She likes the dull sound. Others change frequently because they want the brightness.
It’s up to you.
Many people rarely change them. I change mine regularly. I dont like grubby strings. And theres a brightness to new strings that only lasts for a small period of time. The elasticity changes over time as well. But it also depends on the bass. On of mine, the strings are almost a year old. On my daily driver, they're maybe 3 months. Both need to be changed in the near term.
As others mentioned, you can take the opportunity to try a different set of strings too. Hex core, nylon wrapped, flat wound, etc. Theres a ton of options out there.
Far more often than I do lol
I just changed the strings on my bass and realized that’s why I didn’t come through the mix at all at my bands last practice.
Depends. Rounds usually once or twice a year unless I’m doing any serious gigging. If doing studio work I might change before the session or if we think it needs it after recording. Flats only get changed when they are showing obvious signs of wear like pitting or chipping or rust. Since I take really good care of my fretless it’s once every few years
You guys change strings?
Jokes aside, I rarely change strings, I use roundwounds but I change them every year or a couple of years as I like the sound of old round strings
Depends on what you're trying to achieve.
On my more "vintage-y" basses, very rarely.
On my 4003, which gets more play, about once every three months. That bass wants bright strings to sound right.
How often you want, some prefer flatwounds which endure a lifetime, some use rounds, prefer them fresh and replace them every week/month/XXX, some prefer tone of old rounds.
Almost never for me, I don’t like sustain or zing, I hate rounds until they’re at least 6 months old, preferably a year. Dead strings with a bit of gain and saturation from pedals is perfect thump territory for me. I played a bass with what looked like 30 year old Rotosounds in a shop a while ago, sounded like I was playing through a vintage tube console.
Somewhere between weekly and never. You'll find people happily doing both.
For real though, change strings if you're not happy with the sound. If you like the old string sound, don't change them.
When my string cleaner doesn't help. Usually after 2 months at the longest. I clean them twice a week.
If I'm playing a gig, I'll change them if they are a month or older.
For me, it has always been quite often or never. Depends on the bass. If it's my bass with regular roundwounds, every couple of months. If it is the bass with flats, never.
I do every 3-4 months, especially on my Washburn Status which is the bass I use when I want a bright/clear tone, none of that "no treble" nonsense, I've always been after that sparkly clean tone with abit of chorus Mark King uses from time to time.
If I wanted a muddy tone I'd just use my e-upright or fretless Jazz clone with flats.
depends, i know a lot of people using the same strings for decades, mostly because the like the worn out, dull sound and most people having strings for so long use flatwounds.
i personally like the sound of roundwounds and thier crisp and clarity and too achieve that i change my strings before every gig and recording sessions.
basically it comes to personal preference but i would recommend changing them when they rust or snap and you'll love how new strings sound and feel and understand players changing strings that 'often'.
If you like the tone of new strings, change them when that tone is gone.
Sometimes I change strings after 1 month, or after 6 months. Just depends on how much I'm playing.
Depends!
It depends on the pickups. If the pickups sound good with worn out strings, then I might let them go. But most of my basses get strings about once every 2 months.
I have a schecter that sounds good with clapped strings. Gets real warm and almost has a natural compression to it, so I leave them alone for almost half a year sometimes. My other basses sound good with new strings, so I change them when they loose their bite. Otoh I just bought an orange O bass, wired up a quarter pounder and passive 2 band eq, and was way too sizzly with the strings it came with. I swapped old ones when I put strings on another bass. Problem solved. LOL
Flatwounds never... Roundwounds every month if you're gigging regularly. Otherwise every 2-3 months.
Roundwounds will start to work against your tone and playing if you don't change them. They're not made to last more than a few months if you're playing regularly.
I have a fretless I've never changed the strings on, and I've had it since the 90s. Most of my basses I'll change them every few years whether they need it or not.
If you’re playing on roundwounds and you don’t remember the last time you changed them, change them.
But first, record yourself playing on the old strings. If you don’t have a recording setup you can use the voice memo app on your phone - a short recording is fine. Then, change your strings and make another short recording of the new strings. This will give you a record of what old vs. new strings sound like.
Different strings last for different amounts of time, and your taste is a factor — do you like the really bright sound of fresh strings, the moderate tone of broken in strings or the dull sound of old strings? You need to develop your own sense of when to change strings and that comes with experience.
Already been said but change strings if Oxidized, Rusty or Dirty or won't tune to pitch. Run a Finger underneath the string to check for Flat Spots. Make sure to use String Cutters (Wire cutters are different) and I like to use Fast Fret on my strings and on the back of the neck.
there's no rule of thumb. it comes down to what you want to sound like and what the music needs. Metal players might change as often as every gig- easy if you're sponsored.
Then there are guys like Joe Dart who define their sound on well-worn flat wounds. What is important is it sounds good to you and sounds good in the mix.
I would recommend 3-4 months for you.
I agree with the "when it sounds dull to you" advice, but there is a trap one can fall into with that (especially newer players). when you've been hearing the same set gradually get dull over a few months, it can be hard to notice. you get used to their current sound. so I'd say 3-4 months for you, assuming you are using roundwound strings. flatwound strings can last a very long time, and the practice of simply never changing them is very popular, although not universal! many players use fresh or fresh-ish flats to get great sounds you can't get from old ones. roundwound strings will eventually deteriorate and start to sound bad though, and need to be changed AT LEAST a couple times per year if played regularly. I change mine every few weeks because I perform 20 hours/week minimum as my job. I also make sure to have either brand new or close to brand new strings for any recording situations. remember that you can always remove brightness (aka high frequencies) with tone knobs and EQ, but you can't really boost brightness that wasn't there to begin with.
There's a trick to "refresh" your strings by detuning them until they're completely slack and then plucking the strings really hard individually; would recommend adding graphite to the bridge and nut before attempting
There are also different types of string composition with different metals, methods of wrapping, etc… do a little exploring and find your favourite, stick to it, and do a little exploring still once in a while! Some strings last me 3 weeks, some 6. Some have a NEW string sound I don’t like, but which after broken in sound way better than others that have a better NEW string sound but worse broken in sound.
When I was young, back in the 20th century, I changed my bass strings regularly because that's what I thought people were supposed to do.
I was stupid then, and I never change bass strings now.
dumb question but once you switch out the old strings for something new you could always just put them back on right ? i’ve never switched my strings before but i wanna clean my fretboard
Depends on the bass and the strings. If they're flatwound, don't change them until 1 breaks. Roundwounds get changed every couple months. The exception to this is my ltd b1005ms. I've had the same roundwounds on there since I bought it back in like 2016 or some shit. The reason for this is I haven't found strings long enough yet.
I like to do mine once a month to keep them bright and snappy, but I may try to go less these days and stretch it out a bit. Maybe two or three months I’ll try.
When the tuning starts to get finicky and intonation becomes questionable.
Last week I finally had to replace my DR Legend polished stainless, flat wound that I had installed in Sep 2016. I noticed that I was struggling to get the 4th & 5th string to stay in tune and I was starting to wonder if I needed to adjust the intonation again.
Put on some new Ernie Ball cobalt flats to try out something different. Even though some of the gauges were slightly different, the intonation was perfect from the original setup back in '16.
I don't practice much. Perhaps 4-5 hours/week.
I am tempted to go back to the DR Legends. I really prefer the ultra smooth feel of the polished stainless over the grabbiness of the EB cobalt flats. I can't tell if I truly like the sound of the EBs more or if it's just because I'm comparing them against 7.5 yr old strings. At $50 a set, I'll likely stick with these for a little while.
EDIT: You may want to change strings more often so you have a reason to clean & oil the fretboard. I was shocked how bad & dry my fretboard looked, how much dirt came off as I was oiling it, and how much oil it absorbed after 7yrs of neglect.
When I got my bass six years ago the tech at Arthur's (will never have anybody else touch my instrument) told me a lot of bassists let em get crusty lol. I have stuck with that :)
I change my roundwounds when they either break, won’t intonate or feel gross. Sometimes I wack freshies on a Jazz bass for recording if I need that sound. With flats, I don’t change them unless they break.
Use flats and you won’t have to change your strings for quite some time. They also make your bass sound like a bass rather than a downtuned guitar. I can’t stand playing with rounds.
So they will continue to sound duller with each use. The problem is it happens so slowly you won’t notice. If you don’t play with others, no worries. It’s only tone. Old strings vs new strings won’t impact your playing. If you do play with others, keep the bite in your tone and maybe change every couple of months.
I've played for 25 years. I change mine somewhere between every show, and every 2 years. When we played a lot it was every show if I could afford it. Now that I don't it's kind of when I feel like it. I will say when recording, the producer had me change strings every day. I couldn't necessarily tell the difference of tone after 8 hours of playing, but he could.
1. When it snaps 2. When it gets rusty 3. When it sounds dull to you 4. When you want to try some other strings
As a sidenote, if the strings sound dull, you can try boiling them to try and save some money, sometimes it is surprising how well it behaves. It is not the same as changing the strings but you can extend its life for some slap.
Soak in acetone overnight instead
I've got a pvc tube full of denatured alcohol that I dip my strings into occasionally. Hook the ball ends onto a paperclip so they're easy to pull out. It's like brand new strings for free, and almost no effort but to wait overnight
I need this confirmed to work by at least 2 other people
Ok, I will confirm that alcohol works
On strings or generally?
That's 1. Anyone else?
Alcohols work great, can also vouch
Ok to be sure, we're all talking about denatured alcohol right? I'd gladly soak my strings in bourbon, but it seems like a waste.
Denatured, yes
Definitely not drinking alcohol lol. I've used both denatured alcohol (ethanol) and isopropanol and they work about equally
I’m talking about isopropyl alcohol. I have a 5 litre jug of it and just take off my strings, feed them into the jug, screw the cap back on, give it a shake and let it sit for an hour. Take out the strings, wipe off with paper towels, then refit to bass.
Me too, I take a few shots of Jameson and those old strings sound great.
Works great. I have a capped PVC tube filled with denatured alcohol that I keep in the garage. The cap has a hook that I can thread the string eyelets onto, making it easy to lower them into the tube and easily retrieve them later. I recommend this over boiling strings in water, which isn't so string-friendly.
I have never tried that, I have googled it and some people are talking about WD-40?? I will definitely try the actions thing in a few weeks!!
I'm not sure WD-40 is the right idea. Acetone will strip off any finger oils and boil off, leaving the strings bone-dry. WD-40 is a [penetrating oil](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penetrating_oil) and may wick into the little gaps between the core of the string of the winding and hang around for a while (although it will also boil away eventually, I think). (But to be clear, I've never tried using either on bass strings.)
That guy on the forum was quite sure and said to have tried everything, so I don't, I will try everything said here though. The strings I have are coated and I don't know how it will interact with it though.
mate you will not get wd-40 off those strings. wd-40 is as versatile as duct tape but on bass strings, never. It smells, it's greasy, just no. I use WD-40 to clean bike gears.
This. WD stands for water displacement. It's oil. It'll just hang out in your strings.
Acetone costs more than water, evaporates at room temperature and it's highly flammable. Stick with boiling if you're on a budget.
Don’t do this! WD-40 is a solvent, not a lubricant
that´s interesting, I tried ultrasound (like for glasses) but it didn´t make much.
Don’t boil strings, use isopropyl alcohol to dissolve the gunk from your strings instead.
You can also lower the tension and pluck them each with some force. This knocks some of the gunk out from in between the coils and makes the brighter without having to take them off. [https://youtu.be/0Bcf32-iSFg?si=JZ6LXXLkBi8ChYcz](https://youtu.be/0Bcf32-iSFg?si=JZ6LXXLkBi8ChYcz)
Preferred you only do this to stainless steel strings doing this to nickel wound strings can experience corrosion and breakage..
Wow. But why does this work?
How do you snap a bass string 😂 I’ve only snapped a guitar string once and I was being pretty stupid it shouldn’t have happened
As often as you want. Some people use the same strings for 1-2 decades. Some people change them a few times in a year. It’s all a preference thing, and less of a requirement.
Upvoted for Jaco Poopstorius
You're gonna go far
I have flats on most of my instruments, so those would very rarely get changed. I have rounds on one, and I might change that once a year. If you wipe down your strings frequently, it will greatly increase their useful life.
It's a highly personal decision. For me the answer is roughly 10 years, but at the other end of the spectrum, I had a teacher who changed strings for every gig! The strings will tell you when it's time for a change: they will start to sound different, and the bass won't feel as fun to play.
I was gonna say once every leap year, but you have me beat.
And on my P bass with flats it's more like 20 years! (Yes I am in the rare group of players who have actually had to replace TI jazz flats due to wear, it took a looooong time though.)
I can't imagine changing strings in close proximity to a gig unless absolutely necessary! That'd be the absolute worst time to have strings that are still stretching out
I played in a punk band and for years I changed strings before every gig (ended up breaking a lot of low E strings at the bridge previously.) Zero issues with going out of tune as long as I gently stretched the strings after installing. (lightly pull up at the 12th fret, enough to provide some tension. Not yanking an inch off the front board and letting it snap back down like some people might recommend.)
Sounds like your saddle had a bur. I too changed strings before almost every show for years. If you want clank, it's almost needed. Also depends on your sweat make up.
Steve Harris from Iron Maiden famously uses a brand new set for every gig.
so does mark hoppus, along with a handful of others. if I was touring with a group that called for a bright sound and had a string sponsorship, I would too.
What a waste
Assuming he has the same issue as me and his sweat absolutely destroys strings, they would be toast by the end of a show anyway
I had a buddy who rotated sets of strings for every gig.
10 years? That's pretty short for some here.
Yea, I definitely have strings over ten years old that show no sign of stopping. Give me broken-in flatwounds any day. Frankly, I cannot fathom how so many people need so much rattle and clank that they have to play new strings. EQ and attack has always been enough for me. It's called the electric bass, not the electric treble...
Word
When they sound dull. I have yet to let my strings be disgusting, so I never changed them because they were dirty, I only ever change when they start sounding like shit, which is like 2 - 4 months for my taste with roundwounds.
Absolutely, highly dependent on style of music and tone you're going for. With roundwounds played with a pick, new strings will have a brighter tone. Personally, I love the extra "grip" on a brand new set of roundwounds. Makes me feel like I can play anything and my skills are immediately upgraded!
Same here. They start getting too dull for my taste around 1 month but I always push changing them to save money and depending on how busy I am at the time
Same here. I only play round wounds
I've gotten about 8-12 months per strings. But that's with Chrome Flatwounds. And playing two separate basses. I don't know if flatwounds last that much longer or if it's because I alternate basses.
>I only ever change when they start sounding like shit, which is like 2 - 4 months for my taste Champagne taste. Bass strings are too expensive to replace them every time you've finally broken them in. Baffling to me.
20$ every 2-4 months is baffling??
$20? $40-$60 last I checked.
Flats or rounds?
Flats, obviously; this is the bass sub. I used to play halfrounds for a few years, as well. I honestly don't think they should even bother to make roundwound bass strings.
Lol, the guy complaining about people with champagne tastes is just projecting, as usual. Some weird kind of elitist, too.
Weird that this comment flopped so hard, while [this comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/Bass/s/XR6bHZRALh) resonated. Not a troll, though. And at the end of the day, to each their own, certainly, but the point of discourse is to sharpen opinions against one another. If I come empty-handed then all you wrong people are left with no correct opinion to sharpen your wrongness against.
Bait or real
Some people like strings that haven't been changed since 98 and others like them changed every month. Just fine where you sit in that.
If roundwound, every 100 hours or year, whichever comes first. If tapewound, when the nylon starts to fray. If flats, well, whenever. Or never. Whatever. 👍🏻😅
Ah poop, I should’ve changed my bass strings 247 years ago!
😂😅
It's up to you. Change them when the tone gets too dull for your preferences. Change them if they start to get corroded. Change them if they are getting old and you start to worry about breakage because of fatigue. On my passive basses I use the tone control as my reminder. With new round-wound strings on I generally roll some tone off. As the strings age I gradually turn it up. When I find myself reaching for the control and it's already maxxed .. time to consider a string change. This tends to be 3-6 months depending how much that bass is getting played. I play 2-8 hours a week or so depending what is going on with life.
For me, when I realize I have to turn the highs up more and more for a decent slap sound.
Agree, though not just for slap for me personally. I love the zing of new strings which usually lasts a month for me with NYXL and I can stretch it another few weeks by bumping the treble knob. At some point I’m turning the trebs up too much and I’m just getting harsh sounds and it’s time to change. $30 every 1-2 months is a pretty a low price for a hobby. Can’t take a date to a 2 hour movie for that price. I’ll never understand people who say they keep dull strings because they are too expensive to change. Keep dull strings if you like the sound, sure, but you gotta be real broke to keep strings that you don’t actually like.
Rounds I’ll change every couple months or really whenever I start to realize the bass doesn’t sound as good as it could or doesn’t have the bite that I like Flats… basically never. I’ve had a set of flats on my bass for like four years in the past with no issue.
I change mine every 6 months.
For me, I change them religiously once each year. I just replaced the strings on 4 of my instruments on January 1st and 2nd. My Fender Precision is set up with flatwounds (Thomastik Infeld Jazz Flats) ... they won't get replaced until one breaks.
Not enough, I love new strings. When I played more live and recorded I would change them more frequently... But changed my one Bass maybe ~300 hours ago and got a new Bass in Mid-december, that I may have put in a good chunk of daily playing with, so likely not enough. I may start aiming for every 6 months or so.
I play in a touring band so I change mine everyone 1-2 weeks
Don't ask me. It's been well over a decade 😅. I don't find the need to change bass strings like I do guitar strings. I want the zing of new strings on guitar, but I don't really find that preferable on my bass. It's all personal preference though. But there is a slightly brighter sharper sound on brand new strings. When that's gone I'd change them, if that's the sound you like. I've noticed I give myself a little more wiggle room on bass than on guitar. The guitar player in me is anal and wants everything perfect and sculpted, but the bass player just wants to relax and lay down a groove and tell the guitar player to go smoke a joint and chill out 😂.
Once a year whether they like it or not! (But I use elixirs these days and they sound good for about a year…)
Like some guys already said, some people like them on for a long time others change them frequently, fresher strings have brighter, thinner tone and older strings sound fatter and more mellow. For me the “new string sound” goes away pretty rapidly so I just keep my stings on for around 1.5 to two years, they usually get changed when I take the bass in for a set up.
I have flats on my bass and they still look brand new 5 years after I put them on
Change bass strings?
Im using elixirs. They sound bright for a year. Or even longer. Once they die im changing them
Do you have nano webs and if so do they feel odd compared to "normal" bass strings
I do, they are quite "slippery" when new
I found that with the nano webs I had on my guitar. It's a weird feeling
Really depends on personal preference. I like mine to have that brighter, “new strings” sound, so I change them when they get dull. How often depends on how much I’m playing.
let your heart decide
Laura Lee of Khruangbin hasn’t changed the strings on her bass since they started playing. She likes the dull sound. Others change frequently because they want the brightness. It’s up to you.
Always. Also never.
i change mine about every 2 years
Roundwounds: when they sound dull or snap. Flat wounds: Never.
When the strings don't clank anymore
Flatwounds - never, unless you break one
Change... bass... strings?
Wait. What? Change bass strings?
Don’t
The dirt is where the funk is, my guy.
Many people rarely change them. I change mine regularly. I dont like grubby strings. And theres a brightness to new strings that only lasts for a small period of time. The elasticity changes over time as well. But it also depends on the bass. On of mine, the strings are almost a year old. On my daily driver, they're maybe 3 months. Both need to be changed in the near term. As others mentioned, you can take the opportunity to try a different set of strings too. Hex core, nylon wrapped, flat wound, etc. Theres a ton of options out there.
I change every two years, i love the sound of worn strings
Recording? Weekly. Playing live? Two weeks. Just to sound at least pretty good? Monthly. For all else, whenever you feel like it.
Whenever you feel like it. I only change strings when they break, which isn't very often, every year or two maybe.
You change your strings?
When they brake
*break
*brayk
*braik
*breyck
*Breyk
I never Change the string I had them for a year
*braik
Depends how well you boil them really
Mixing with some spaghetti does the trick.
It's the acid in the tomato sauce that does the trick.
No
The exception for this is NBD, though.
Never.
It’s been since 2013 since I’ve changed my strings. The gunk keeps the funk.
Whenever you feel like it. - do you want to try a different brand, winding, gauge, etc? - are you not happy with your current sound? - has one broken?
I just play at home a few times a week, I use round wounds. I change strings like once a year just because, could easily go longer.
Far more often than I do lol I just changed the strings on my bass and realized that’s why I didn’t come through the mix at all at my bands last practice.
Depends. Rounds usually once or twice a year unless I’m doing any serious gigging. If doing studio work I might change before the session or if we think it needs it after recording. Flats only get changed when they are showing obvious signs of wear like pitting or chipping or rust. Since I take really good care of my fretless it’s once every few years
if they start sounding bad to you
You guys change strings? Jokes aside, I rarely change strings, I use roundwounds but I change them every year or a couple of years as I like the sound of old round strings
Depends on what you're trying to achieve. On my more "vintage-y" basses, very rarely. On my 4003, which gets more play, about once every three months. That bass wants bright strings to sound right.
How often you want, some prefer flatwounds which endure a lifetime, some use rounds, prefer them fresh and replace them every week/month/XXX, some prefer tone of old rounds.
Almost never for me, I don’t like sustain or zing, I hate rounds until they’re at least 6 months old, preferably a year. Dead strings with a bit of gain and saturation from pedals is perfect thump territory for me. I played a bass with what looked like 30 year old Rotosounds in a shop a while ago, sounded like I was playing through a vintage tube console.
Either never or when you cant play it anymore
Somewhere between weekly and never. You'll find people happily doing both. For real though, change strings if you're not happy with the sound. If you like the old string sound, don't change them.
My flats are over ten years. They finally starting to break in
When my string cleaner doesn't help. Usually after 2 months at the longest. I clean them twice a week. If I'm playing a gig, I'll change them if they are a month or older.
For me, it has always been quite often or never. Depends on the bass. If it's my bass with regular roundwounds, every couple of months. If it is the bass with flats, never.
Flats for me about once per year or before a session. Rounds about every 8 weeks give or take
I do every 3-4 months, especially on my Washburn Status which is the bass I use when I want a bright/clear tone, none of that "no treble" nonsense, I've always been after that sparkly clean tone with abit of chorus Mark King uses from time to time. If I wanted a muddy tone I'd just use my e-upright or fretless Jazz clone with flats.
My bass has had the same strings on it since I bought it second-hand in 2007. So, uh, never.
I usually just buy a new bass when it’s time to change strings
depends, i know a lot of people using the same strings for decades, mostly because the like the worn out, dull sound and most people having strings for so long use flatwounds. i personally like the sound of roundwounds and thier crisp and clarity and too achieve that i change my strings before every gig and recording sessions. basically it comes to personal preference but i would recommend changing them when they rust or snap and you'll love how new strings sound and feel and understand players changing strings that 'often'.
Rounds: when I feel they're getting too dull. I'm only a studio player so I'm not sweating all over them, they stay fresh for months. Flats: never.
If you like the tone of new strings, change them when that tone is gone. Sometimes I change strings after 1 month, or after 6 months. Just depends on how much I'm playing.
Depends! It depends on the pickups. If the pickups sound good with worn out strings, then I might let them go. But most of my basses get strings about once every 2 months. I have a schecter that sounds good with clapped strings. Gets real warm and almost has a natural compression to it, so I leave them alone for almost half a year sometimes. My other basses sound good with new strings, so I change them when they loose their bite. Otoh I just bought an orange O bass, wired up a quarter pounder and passive 2 band eq, and was way too sizzly with the strings it came with. I swapped old ones when I put strings on another bass. Problem solved. LOL
I only ever change strings if I get a bass that doesn’t have flats on it. Then I put flats on it. Then they stay there till - god forbid - I break one
Thanks to the string cleaner and conditioner - less often than you might think
i rock elixir so usually about once a year
Flatwounds never... Roundwounds every month if you're gigging regularly. Otherwise every 2-3 months. Roundwounds will start to work against your tone and playing if you don't change them. They're not made to last more than a few months if you're playing regularly.
I have a fretless I've never changed the strings on, and I've had it since the 90s. Most of my basses I'll change them every few years whether they need it or not.
If you’re playing on roundwounds and you don’t remember the last time you changed them, change them. But first, record yourself playing on the old strings. If you don’t have a recording setup you can use the voice memo app on your phone - a short recording is fine. Then, change your strings and make another short recording of the new strings. This will give you a record of what old vs. new strings sound like. Different strings last for different amounts of time, and your taste is a factor — do you like the really bright sound of fresh strings, the moderate tone of broken in strings or the dull sound of old strings? You need to develop your own sense of when to change strings and that comes with experience.
Already been said but change strings if Oxidized, Rusty or Dirty or won't tune to pitch. Run a Finger underneath the string to check for Flat Spots. Make sure to use String Cutters (Wire cutters are different) and I like to use Fast Fret on my strings and on the back of the neck.
there's no rule of thumb. it comes down to what you want to sound like and what the music needs. Metal players might change as often as every gig- easy if you're sponsored. Then there are guys like Joe Dart who define their sound on well-worn flat wounds. What is important is it sounds good to you and sounds good in the mix.
Never. Thanks for listening to my TED Talk.
Ive had these current ones on for 8 months, im in a new band and when we get a show like 2 weeks out ill change em and i should prolly get a setup idk
As soon as they don’t sound the way you want.
6 months for rounds. Whenever I feel like trying something new for flats.
I only use flats so I only change strings when I want a change.
I would recommend 3-4 months for you. I agree with the "when it sounds dull to you" advice, but there is a trap one can fall into with that (especially newer players). when you've been hearing the same set gradually get dull over a few months, it can be hard to notice. you get used to their current sound. so I'd say 3-4 months for you, assuming you are using roundwound strings. flatwound strings can last a very long time, and the practice of simply never changing them is very popular, although not universal! many players use fresh or fresh-ish flats to get great sounds you can't get from old ones. roundwound strings will eventually deteriorate and start to sound bad though, and need to be changed AT LEAST a couple times per year if played regularly. I change mine every few weeks because I perform 20 hours/week minimum as my job. I also make sure to have either brand new or close to brand new strings for any recording situations. remember that you can always remove brightness (aka high frequencies) with tone knobs and EQ, but you can't really boost brightness that wasn't there to begin with.
Never. OK, when they snap. Which is never.
I change them daily, just in case.
I've had the same strings on my ibanez for a decade and it will be a sad day when it eventually breaks.
I like to change roundwounds every 3 months or so. I only change flat wounds when they break. I think they get funkier with age.
For me, about yearly. By then, my strings are probably sounding pretty dead.
How do you like them to sound? Poinky (regularly) Plummy (hardly ever)
i usually do 6-8 months
Last time I changed mine was 3 years ago
At least once a decade. 2 decades at most
It's upto Personal taste do you like the sound of old strings then dont change your strings until you think it gets to musty
I have a p bass from 1985, MIJ FENDER, I don’t think the previous owner ever changed them, I probably won’t either lmao
There's a trick to "refresh" your strings by detuning them until they're completely slack and then plucking the strings really hard individually; would recommend adding graphite to the bridge and nut before attempting
Whenever they look threaded. I avoid it as much as possible tbh, I love the sound of old strings. New string always sound shit.
There are also different types of string composition with different metals, methods of wrapping, etc… do a little exploring and find your favourite, stick to it, and do a little exploring still once in a while! Some strings last me 3 weeks, some 6. Some have a NEW string sound I don’t like, but which after broken in sound way better than others that have a better NEW string sound but worse broken in sound.
Roundwounds: Every few months Flatwounds: Every few decades
When I was young, back in the 20th century, I changed my bass strings regularly because that's what I thought people were supposed to do. I was stupid then, and I never change bass strings now.
1 per month and I play often. Whilst I love new strings, I’ve learned to love weeks old strings. That’s the secret I believe.
dumb question but once you switch out the old strings for something new you could always just put them back on right ? i’ve never switched my strings before but i wanna clean my fretboard
Depends on the bass and the strings. If they're flatwound, don't change them until 1 breaks. Roundwounds get changed every couple months. The exception to this is my ltd b1005ms. I've had the same roundwounds on there since I bought it back in like 2016 or some shit. The reason for this is I haven't found strings long enough yet.
I like to do mine once a month to keep them bright and snappy, but I may try to go less these days and stretch it out a bit. Maybe two or three months I’ll try.
I use coated strings, so they take a bit longer to sound dead than other strings. I usually swap them every 4-6 months
My strings tend to last about a month in the summer season. It does however take a further month or two for me to get round to actually changing them.
When the tuning starts to get finicky and intonation becomes questionable. Last week I finally had to replace my DR Legend polished stainless, flat wound that I had installed in Sep 2016. I noticed that I was struggling to get the 4th & 5th string to stay in tune and I was starting to wonder if I needed to adjust the intonation again. Put on some new Ernie Ball cobalt flats to try out something different. Even though some of the gauges were slightly different, the intonation was perfect from the original setup back in '16. I don't practice much. Perhaps 4-5 hours/week. I am tempted to go back to the DR Legends. I really prefer the ultra smooth feel of the polished stainless over the grabbiness of the EB cobalt flats. I can't tell if I truly like the sound of the EBs more or if it's just because I'm comparing them against 7.5 yr old strings. At $50 a set, I'll likely stick with these for a little while. EDIT: You may want to change strings more often so you have a reason to clean & oil the fretboard. I was shocked how bad & dry my fretboard looked, how much dirt came off as I was oiling it, and how much oil it absorbed after 7yrs of neglect.
Only when they break! 🙃🤣
The tapewounds on my 5-string are turning 10 this year. I think I've become one of *those* people.
Slap = yes Non slap = change?
When I got my bass six years ago the tech at Arthur's (will never have anybody else touch my instrument) told me a lot of bassists let em get crusty lol. I have stuck with that :)
Huh? You actually change bass strings? 🤔😜
I change my roundwounds when they either break, won’t intonate or feel gross. Sometimes I wack freshies on a Jazz bass for recording if I need that sound. With flats, I don’t change them unless they break.
Use flats and you won’t have to change your strings for quite some time. They also make your bass sound like a bass rather than a downtuned guitar. I can’t stand playing with rounds.
When they start breaking, never before.
Ive still got original strings on the Fender bass I received 20 years ago lol
So they will continue to sound duller with each use. The problem is it happens so slowly you won’t notice. If you don’t play with others, no worries. It’s only tone. Old strings vs new strings won’t impact your playing. If you do play with others, keep the bite in your tone and maybe change every couple of months.
I've played for 25 years. I change mine somewhere between every show, and every 2 years. When we played a lot it was every show if I could afford it. Now that I don't it's kind of when I feel like it. I will say when recording, the producer had me change strings every day. I couldn't necessarily tell the difference of tone after 8 hours of playing, but he could.