| Line | Peter Infeld |
| Instrument | Double Bass |
| Size | 3/4 |
| Gauge | medium |
| Supplied as | Set and single strings |
| Item number | ST-PI600-SET34 |
In playing the strings impress with direct response, good dynamic control and a comfortable feel under the left hand.
The construction of the string (string length, tension, cross section, material properties) keeps its overtones close to the harmonic series; the higher partials lie only fractionally above the exact multiples of the fundamental. In wound strings this is achieved by the composite design of a thin, flexible core with one or more windings of metal ribbon or wire, which puts a lot of mass on the string with little bending stiffness.
A string tuned to the same pitch on the same string length carries proportionally more mass per metre (linear mass density) when it is under higher tension.
Under the bow the travelling kink of the Helmholtz motion (the string sticks to the bow hair and slips back) stays sharp on the flexible string, and the bridge receives a sawtooth force that contains every overtone of the fundamental.
The double bass is tuned in fourths; in orchestra tuning with A = 55 Hz the open strings E, A, D and G sound at about 41.3 Hz, 55 Hz, 73.3 Hz and 97.8 Hz. For solo tuning, F sharp, B, E, A, a whole tone higher, there are dedicated sets; an orchestra set would carry about 27 per cent more tension there.
In pizzicato the plucking point shapes the tone colour: plucked near the bridge more high partials remain, towards the middle of the string the tone becomes rounder.
The PI600 set is built on a hybrid core of spiral and rope with chrome winding, with an aluminium end and a crimped ball. Alongside G PI61, D PI62, A PI63 and E PI64 there are a C extension string PI64C and a low B string PI65 with tungsten and chrome. At 117.9 kg in 3/4 it sits, among the five Thomastik bass lines in orchestra tuning we compare here by their 3/4 set figure, Belcanto, Dominant, Peter Infeld, Spirocore and Superflexible, close to Dominant at 118.0 kg and Belcanto at 115.2 kg, and 8.6 kg below Spirocore.
The low B string PI65 uses tungsten (19,300 kg/m³), which allows very heavy and at the same time thin windings for low tuned strings. The steel of the hybrid core brings 7,800 to 8,000 kg/m³ and a modulus of elasticity (a measure of material stiffness) of 190,000 to 210,000 MPa.
For us, Peter Infeld is the set for everyone who sits in the pit one evening and stands in the club the next. In it we experience the easy bow response of Belcanto and the intensity of Spirocore in one set. The tone is focused, present and powerful, with strong mids over a dark base colour.
If jazz is your only home and you want still more power and growl, you will find it in Spirocore. For solo tuning we recommend Belcanto Solo, and for still more warmth in the orchestra Belcanto.
The winding adds mass to the string without making it stiff. On the same string length a low note at similar tension needs a much higher linear mass density, and the metal of the winding supplies it.
From 440 Hz to 442 Hz, as many orchestras tune today, tension rises by about 0.9 per cent, and to 445 Hz by about 2.3 per cent.
In orchestra tuning with A = 55 Hz and pure fourths they are about 41.3 Hz (E), 55 Hz (A), 73.3 Hz (D) and 97.8 Hz (G).
We recommend a dedicated solo set for that. Tuned a whole tone higher, an orchestra set would carry about 27 per cent more tension.
No, for the double bass it comes in exactly one version, in 3/4, medium and orchestra tuning.
The PI600 set in 3/4 has 117.9 kg.
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