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Convince me to buy a Modulus (or talk me out of it)

Taustin Powers

By Taustin Powers
in Bass Guitar

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Taustin Powers Newbie

Taustin Powers

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Well, the money has changed hands, the bass will probably arrive by the end of next week or so. :)

 

Tony offered me a free set of strings, either to be included in the box, or put on the bass directly before it ships. I opted for putting it in the box, as I'd like to hear the stock strings first to compare.

 

The bass has D'Addario nickel strings on it, and I ordered a set of DR Lo Riders (steel). It will be interesting to see how they sound. Would stainless steel strings be too bright on a Modulus? RockStarBassist, what's your experience with different kinds of strings on your bass?

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RSBro Newbie

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Well, the money has changed hands, the bass will probably arrive by the end of next week or so.
:)

Tony offered me a free set of strings, either to be included in the box, or put on the bass directly before it ships. I opted for putting it in the box, as I'd like to hear the stock strings first to compare.


The bass has D'Addario nickel strings on it, and I ordered a set of DR Lo Riders (steel). It will be interesting to see how they sound. Would stainless steel strings be too bright on a Modulus? RockStarBassist, what's your experience with different kinds of strings on your bass?



Glad you asked! :)

Fortunately, I was able to have 2 Q5's at the same time (my chechen/chechen Q5 went out today via FedEx to a new home... :(), this summer I wanted to try out some different strings on each.

For my stock/phenolic green Q5, I ordered DR Lo Rider Nickels, and for my chechen Q5 I ordered DR Hi Beams, based on some talk on TB in the Strings forum because of their tightness.
I was considering putting the steels on the phenolic board, but glad I put the nickels on there!

I've always liked Lo Riders, but figured would be a tad bright for phenolic board. The Nickels are an absolute dream match. Sound amazing, and not too bright at all.
For the chechen, I used the Hi-Beams and they weren't too bright either and I really liked their consistency. I haven't decided if I'm going to put the Nix or the Hi Beams on my new Q5, which has a chechen board like yours does. But probably stick with the Nickels. They come stock with the D'Addario nickels which I do not like at all, so I'll have Tony put on a set of either before he ships, as I'm having some custom pickup work done when it gets to him from Modulus.

But yeah, you'll be happy with either, honestly. I'll probably go with the Nickels just because they're a good bit smoother to my hands, and I'm getting used to them as I'm only playing my green Q5 right now.

Those two are can't miss. :)

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guitargod0dmw Newbie

guitargod0dmw

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The bass has D'Addario nickel strings on it, and I ordered a set of DR Lo Riders (steel). It will be interesting to see how they sound. Would stainless steel strings be too bright on a Modulus? RockStarBassist, what's your experience with different kinds of strings on your bass?

 

 

I use the SS lo riders on my Q5 (and everything else for that matter) I think they make the bass sound AWESOME! It was such a difference when I put them on. I don't think they're too bright...but they are growly...and the extra tension might be something to get used to. I went from Elixir strings, which sounded good and lasted a long time...but they seemed to lose their brightness after like a hour, and then be pretty stable for 6 months after that. I changed them in favor of EB Hybrid Slinkys (nickel) which also sounded good, and felt better to my fingers. I don't like coated strings really. They just didn;t last as long as I wanted. Then I went to the DR's. Hands down the best string I have ever used. They are going on like 5 months...and they do need to be changed, but that was fairly recent. I play a pretty good amount too, so it's not like they're just sitting around not getting used. The extra tension on the low strings is fantastic for note definition. They are also pretty easy on the fingers. Other SS strings that I have tried (D'Addario, Roto) were pretty rough.

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ModmanQ6 Newbie

ModmanQ6

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My Q6 originally came with GHS Super Steels. When I got my bass, these were the only strings that had the wide variety of gauges. Until recently I always used the same strings and had to buy them singly guaged. I now have DR- Hi beams and really like them a lot. My fretboard is phenolic, so I don't have to worry about abrasions as much as with a wood fingerboard.

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RSBro Newbie

RSBro

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Cool, I have a feeling I'm gonna end up using the steel Lo Riders, but I definitely wanted to hear the nickel strings first to compare.


Scheduled delivery is next week on Wednesday - the wait begins!
:)



Not too long at all to wait for it going international! :)

The Lo-Riders are just great strings overall. I mainly prefer the Nix b/c of the feel. I had the steels on my old Flea 5 and they were downright awesome. :cool:

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Taustin Powers Newbie

Taustin Powers

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Well, I just took her for a spin for a few hours, and she's definitely a keeper!

 

At first I wasn't sure about the tone with the (stock) nickel strings on. I kept playing arounf with the EQ, and it all sounded pretty good, but always a little dull for my taste and simply did not blow me away. But once I put on the steel Lo Riders, the bass really opened up immediately and had that edge that I was looking for. I pretty much keep the EQ all in neutral settings, with just a TINY boost of bass. Sounds wonderful! The strings are a tad bit too sloppy for this bass though (they're 40's), so I'm gonna get a set of 45's for more punch and tightness.

 

One thing I noticed right away way how incredibly balanced the whole fretboard is - all notes sound perfectly round and even. The slap tone is punchy and aggressive, while the fingerstyle notes are still warm and buttery smooth. Impressive. It also looks really pretty and is not nearly as heavy as I has expected.

 

My fretting hand does notice the difference of the 35" neck just a little, but it's something I will get used to fast, I'm sure.

 

All in all, a happy camper! :thu:

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guitargod0dmw Newbie

guitargod0dmw

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One thing I noticed right away way how incredibly balanced the whole fretboard is - all notes sound perfectly round and even.

 

 

That's one of the biggest differences to me. I switch between a few pretty nice basses, but non of them are as even across the whole fretboard like my Q5 is.

 

Glad to hear that you like it!

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RSBro Newbie

RSBro

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Rockin' man!

 

You might be right about the nickels being a tad dark for the chechen board.

 

I liked the Hi-Beams on my last one, so I may be sticking with those as they've got great tension and feel.

 

Now for some real-life pics of that bad boy! :thu:

 

 

----

Also, like you the only EQ adjustment I ever make is just a SMUDGE of boost on the bass. Everything else is perfect set at flat.

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