DR Strings Hi-Beams MR-45

These have been my go to strings for my Fender Jazz since the 90's.

I use .45's- 105's as the heaver gauge matches the weight of my Jazz and the thickness of the neck.

Stonking' rock sound, highly recommended. The quality is just as good as it always was.

However i found after purchase that for the 1st time i could have brought these cheaper had I
I shopped in the UK (but only by a couple of quid).

The problem was Brexit. I have used Thomann for many years, loving their huge range of gear as well as the fantastic prices & service.

Sadly I've found their prices now aren't always the best, as they used to be

It's a real pity as I really want to keep shopping with Thomann but sadly, I'm going to be checking UK prices 1st.

Shipping was also slower (usually about 3 days delivery but this took 7 days) but not a massive problem and in no way a game changer.

If Thomann can somehow keep their prices competitive then fine, but I sadly will have to shop elsewhere UK based if they can't. I'm really bummed out about it. :(.

So update 2023. Yup, prices are not always the cheapest anymore, but Thomann still remain my go to shop.

They are a fantastic business. It is effortless to order from them and even better, they are wonderful if anything goes wrong (which is very rare). It is knowing that they will sort me out if there is a problem with zero hassle that makes me keep using them as my default.

Having gone through a variety of strings I tried these on recommendation and was greatly impressed. As a pick player who plays the bass like it owes me money, my strings get a serious workout and many other brands simply aren't up to the hammering that I give them.

DR Hi Beams have outlasted all the other brands I've tried and provide the best bang for my buck. The sound gives me the right amount of brightness and, most importantly, they keep the tone longer. When I first fitted a set of these, the rest of the band commented on the richness of my bass tone and asked what I'd done! All I did was switch from Roto 66 to the Hi Beams.

The current set on my Thunderbird have been on for over six months and they're still full of life. Saying that, I do make a point of using Fast Fret and giving them a good clean after every gig and rehearsal. Saying that, they well outlast Roto 66 or EB Slinkies which I'd used before.

In summary, they may cost a little more than some other strings but they keep their tonelonger. If you're a serious string thrasher like me, these are definitely worth a try.

I am a huge fan of complex tone, a la Chris Squire, Pete Townshend, Les Claypool, etc.

For the gauge of the string, they are actually MORE flexible under the fingers than thinner strings by other brands (like the Ernie Ball misnomer "super slinky" ), and they have punchy highs and midrange over tones that give you that piano-string-like clarity to cut through the wash of distorted guitars, crashing cymbals and pretty much anything else, and give your bass tone independence and clarity in the mix.

The strings have such high output, I find with my set up, when I really dig in, I can even get soft clipping distortion like Chris Squire gets running his split signal through a guitar amp.

When I was in my teens, I tried out a bunch of other brands, like GHS bass boomers, and Dean Markley Blue Steels. Nothing compares to DR's quality, sound, complexity of tone, amplitude, and the length of life.

My last set I put on while recording an album with my band this past summer. More than 6 months later, after heavy use rehearsing and gigging, they still sound better "dead" than Ernie Ball strings sound when brand new.

I didnt like these strings to be honest . The quality of them is fine , they are well built and of a solid construction, no problems there but I really did not like the feel of the strings, They are pretty rough to the touch , but worse still they are very sticky .
They also give off a lot of finger noise which may or may not bother you.
That stickiness hindered my playing of my bass though and made me miss a few notes and this bothers me ... so in the end I just went back to my regular strings.

Sound wise they were fine , bit bright but I'd expect that they would die down a little after they got broken in . The string tension was a bit loose also I thought. I would not buy them again to be honest .

I know lots of people rave about them and say they are the only strings for them but I really didn't find them at all for me.

So I recommend making your own mind up and not going on what others say ..

One mans poison and all that ...

I bought these as a replacement for stock Warwick Red Label strings on my Pro Series Streamer LX. These are round wound strings done on a round core, which I found really nice. Put on these new DRs - and they sounded great! While I personally found red labels to be more harsh and have more growl (which I do not see as a disadvantage, but rather different style), High Beams certainly have more clarity and brightness. And I did not found this brightness to be harsh or annoying. Already have these strings on for quite a time, played few gigs and still find these strings to be fresh and nice sounding. Recommended!