The Best Bass Strings (Light, Medium & Heavy Gauge) 2024

If you’re looking to learn more about bass guitar strings, check out the sections below. We’ll cover things like how string gauges and materials change your tone, as well as how to find the right strings among the many choices to get the tone you want.

How Many Strings on a Bass Guitar and Bass String Names

Most bass guitars, including acoustic bass, have four strings. And 4 strings bass is the default configuration. As such, bass string names are easy to remember, even for a beginner. The names are similar to the top four strings of a guitar. The thickest is the E string, followed by the A string, then the D string, and the G string (EADG).

Once you have taken the names of bass strings into account, you can work your way up to familiarize yourself with each note on the fret.

Aside from conventional 4 string bass guitars, there are bass guitars with more than four strings. 5-string bass guitars are quite popular. It has an extra string on top of the low E, meant to handle lower frequencies. It is usually tuned to low B, so 5-strings have a default tuning of BEADG.

The standard bass guitar tuning corresponds to the names of the bass guitar strings. Note that this tuning can change depending on what the bass player prefers.

There are basses with 6 strings and more, and they have more complicated setups, sometimes combining bass strings with guitar strings. Note that basses with more than four strings will require a different set of strings.

Bass String Gauge Explained

When we talk about “gauge”, we’re referring to how thick the strings are. So, for example, when someone says “heavy gauge strings,” they’re talking about bass guitar strings that are thicker than what you’d normally encounter.

The heavier the string, the harder it will be to play because the string itself is thicker. It takes more tension to get it up to pitch, and the more tension a string is under, the harder it is to press down. The opposite is true with lighter gauge strings, which are significantly easier to play than heavy gauge strings.

Heavy and light gauge strings also sound different. The heavier the gauge of a string, the warmer it’s going to sound, and it’s also going to produce a stronger signal (which means it will be louder coming through an amp). Lighter strings are the opposite, so they’re going to be brighter and produce a quieter signal.

Because of how easy light strings are to play, they are the favorite performance set of many bassists. On the flipside, medium and heavy gauge sets cater to the needs of bass players who want a fuller sound.

The following table lists bass string gauges that can be found in various standard (non-custom) sets. Note that these aren’t an official standard, and different manufacturers make sets with different bass string gauges even though they use the same name, such as ‘Heavy’ or ‘Light’.

Bass String Sets and their String Gauges

The following table lists bass string gauges that can be found in various standard (non-custom) sets. Note that these aren’t an official standard, and different manufacturers make sets with different bass string gauges even though they use the same name, such as ‘Heavy’ or ‘Light’.

Bass String Sets and their String Gauges

	G	D	A	E
Extra Light	.030	.050	.070	.090
Light	.040	.060	.080	.100
Medium	.045	.065	.085	.105
Heavy	.050	.070	.090	.110
Extra Heavy	.055	.075	.095	.115

String Materials

Bass guitar strings are made from a variety of different materials. Below, we’ve listed a few of the most common ones and how they sound in relation to one another. Note that their natural sound can be tweaked using Bass EQ.

• Stainless Steel bass guitar strings are the brightest-sounding electric bass guitar strings. Because they’re made from stainless steel, they’re also more resistant to corrosion than similarly constructed nickel strings.
• Pure Nickel bass strings are significantly warmer than steel guitar strings. They’re great if you’re looking to emulate vintage bass tones, though they do lack the punch and clarity you get with stainless steel bass guitar strings.
• Nickel-Plated Steel strings are a great compromise between pure nickel strings and stainless steel guitar strings. They have a great combination of punch and warmth, though it should be noted that they aren’t as corrosion-resistant as stainless steel strings.

Flatwound vs Roundwound

Flatwound and roundwound refer to a string’s winding. Winding is the wire wrapping on the outside of a string. Roundwound, the most common winding, feels textured like the edge of a quarter. Flatwound is smoother (though still slightly textured).

Roundwounds have a brighter tone and more pop than flatwound strings, making them a good choice for those of you who are looking for a brighter and more aggressive tone. Flatwound strings are very warm and thumpy, which makes them great for smooth, melodic bass lines. And because they’re not as textured, less dirt and oil stick inside of their grooves, making them last longer. If you want a ticket to warm sounding bass tones, then flatwound string sets are perfect for you.

Another option is to go for tapewound strings. These sets offer a more inbetween feel and tone compared to the other two.

Hex vs. Round Core

Just like the wrapping of your string, your string’s core is also going to have an impact on your tone. Hexcore strings, the most common type of string, have a hexagonal surface. Roundcore strings look like a piece of spaghetti.

The main benefit of roundcore strings is that they’re easier to play. The wrapping is looser, so the string is under less tension. However, this also means that they don’t have the articulation or punch of hexcore strings (though this might be a bonus if you’re looking for a warmer tone!).

Coated Strings

Coated bass strings are coated in a thin polymer layer to increase their lifespan. Another benefit of the coating is smoother feel, and less finger noise. The main downside is pricing, coated strings are more expensive. There’s also the issue of the coating material reducing the treble frequencies.

Coated strings are a controversial topic in the guitar-playing world, with some loving their increased longevity and others feeling that the coating robs strings of their tone.

We wouldn’t necessarily say that coating a string hurts its tone, but it definitely does cause some high-end loss. Uncoated strings have a bit more treble, but this treble is eventually lost as the string ages.

My buying advice is this, if you like really warm sounding strings, a coated set might be right up your alley. Conversely, if you want a really bright tone from your strings, you might be better off going with a non-coated alternative.

Matching Your Strings with What You Want to Play

A lot of bassists ask, “What strings should I use if I want to play X genre?”. Another question is about the strings used by their favorite bassists, like Marcus Miller and James Jamerson.

That’s a good question to have because it stands to reason that if strings have certain characteristics based on what they’re made from, then there should be a clear-cut answer to which string is best for a given situation, right?

Well, it’s not quite that simple. The main thing to know is that you have to balance the tone of your strings with the tone of your amp and your guitar. So, say you want to play jazz. If you have a darkly voiced bass and amp, going with pure nickel flatwounds might make your tone too muddy.

With that being said, here is a table below that shows which strings have the potential to work in a given situation. But before you make up your mind about which set is right for you, be sure to double-check how your bass/amp sounds compared to how you want it to sound.

Genre	Gauge	String Material	Core
Slap	Light to Medium	Stainless Steel	Hex
Jazz	Medium to Heavy	Pure Nickel	Round
Country	Medium to Heavy	Pure Nickel	Round
Rock / Metal	Light ot Medium	Stainless Steel	Hex
Funk	Light to Medium	Stainless Steel	Hex