Oliv/Eudoxa longevity

[Marcus Johnson]

Yeah, Ken, as a matter of fact, your contributions over there actually made me want to try this combo. I read those posts many times! It's only recently that a couple of folks have had some Olivs come apart in their hands, which led them to speculate that maybe there was a "bad batch" out there at the moment. Speculation isn't enough to make me take the deal off the table, but I do want to research before I plop down the $$$. It's still most likely going to be my next string experiment. I contacted Pirastro to see what they have to say, and I'll probably give Lemur a call as well.

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Marcus Johnson

Yeah, Ken, as a matter of fact, your contributions over there actually made me want to try this combo. I read those posts many times! It's only recently that a couple of folks have had some Olivs come apart in their hands, which led them to speculate that maybe there was a "bad batch" out there at the moment. Speculation isn't enough to make me take the deal off the table, but I do want to research before I plop down the $$$. It's still most likely going to be my next string experiment. I contacted Pirastro to see what they have to say, and I'll probably give Lemur a call as well.

Anything is possible in the string biz from what I have seen. Lets see what Pirastro says. Was it Adrian Muller you contacted over there?

I like the Eudoxa bottoms so much now that I am thinking of trying the G and D as well on some Bass some day.

[Marcus Johnson]

I just fired off an Email, I didn't contact anyone directly.

I was wondering about the Eudoxas on top as well. It just seemed that everyone fell pretty deeply in love with Oliv, so I wanted to have a date with her too.

[Don Higdon]

Marcus,
You know I dearly love Olivs, but with at the moment it looks as if Pirastro is having quality control problems. At the price, I wouldn't buy a new set until it's clear that Pirastro has solved the problem. You're young; wait it out. Ah, impetuous youth...you should have seen me on Place Pigalle in the 50's.

[Marcus Johnson]

THAT would be worth buying tickets for.

I'm just going to sit tight for now. Pirastro hasn't fallen over themselves in response to my Email anyway. I'm not necessarily surprised, but since I get fast responses from companies like TI and Velvet, I can only surmise that Pirastro is unconcerned about possible quality control issues. Maybe if my last name was Patitucci....

At any rate, I've got a set of Spiros on right now that are speakin', so no rush. At least I know those will never fall apart on me.

[Marcus Johnson]

Okay, I heard back from them today; here's their message;

Dear Mr Johnson,

Thank you for your interest in our PIRASTRO double bass Oliv/Eudoxa strings. Much to our regret, the requested strings are not available right now due to high demand from our dealers.

Thank you for your understanding.

Best regards,
Pirastro GmbH
Customer Service


Uhhh..... Okay..... thanks for clearing that up....
If they ever decide to get out of the string business, they may have a bright future in politics.

[Jamale Davis]

a funny story about olivs... i was talking to ratso harris, gushing because i had the chance to try out a pair of olivs on a loaned bass for a gig...(brief digression: having the opportunity to play a steady gig at smalls in ny, i've had the pleasure to be influenced by a lot of gut string bass players- ari roland, neal caine, and neal miner-thus my goal to get a pair of guts or something close to that sound)

... anyway, i was telling ratso how much i loved them and can't wait to get a pair or some straight gut strings... ratso tells me not to bother because you can get the same gut sound from steel strings- his words: " playing with gut strings is like wiping your a!@ with a leaf- there is no reason when you have toilet paper". does anybody agree with his opinion of achieving that gut string sound on gut strings, and if so what brand of steel string?