Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light Review: The Longevity King or a Quality Control Gamble?

As a gigging bassist for over two decades, I know the cycle all too well. You spend an hour meticulously cleaning your instrument, stretching a fresh set of strings, and setting the intonation perfectly. For the first few hours of playing, the tone is glorious—a symphony of bright, articulate highs, punchy mids, and a low end that shakes the room. Then comes the first rehearsal. Then the sweaty gig. Within a week or two, that beautiful ‘zing’ is gone, replaced by a dull, lifeless thud. The constant cost and hassle of replacing strings feel like a tax on tone. This relentless pursuit of a string that could maintain its sonic integrity for months, not days, is what led me to first try coated strings years ago. The promise was simple yet revolutionary: a microscopic polymer coating that shields the string from the tone-killing enemies of sweat, oil, and grime. The Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light represents the pinnacle of that promise, aiming to deliver not just longevity, but a premium playing experience from day one to day ninety.

What to Consider Before Buying Bass Strings

Bass strings are more than just wires; they are the very source of your instrument’s voice, a fundamental component that dictates its character, feel, and response. Choosing the right set is a critical decision that can transform a good bass into a great one. The primary benefit of investing in a premium set like the Elixir 14652 is twofold: sonic consistency and long-term value. While the initial cost is higher, the extended lifespan means fewer changes, saving both time and money for the working musician. This technology directly solves the problem of rapid tonal decay that plagues traditional, uncoated strings.

The ideal customer for this type of coated string is a musician who plays frequently—whether gigging, recording, or practicing daily. If you’re someone who values a bright, modern, and aggressive tone that cuts through a mix and hates the chore of changing strings, these are designed for you. Players with acidic sweat that corrodes normal strings in days will also find them to be a game-changer. However, they might not be suitable for everyone. Bassists who are chasing a vintage, warm, and mellow tone might prefer flatwound strings. Similarly, players who genuinely love the slightly rough, tactile feel of a brand-new, uncoated roundwound string might find the smooth, slick feel of the NANOWEB coating to be an unwelcome change.

Before investing, consider these crucial points in detail:

• Gauge & Scale Length: The Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light comes in a ‘Light’ gauge (.045, .065, .080, .100). This is a very popular, versatile configuration that offers a comfortable tension for most playing styles, making it easy to bend notes and play fast passages without excessive fatigue. The ‘Long Scale’ designation is crucial; ensure it matches your bass guitar’s scale length (typically 34 inches) for proper fit and intonation.
• Tone & Performance: These are stainless steel, roundwound strings. This construction provides the brightest, most aggressive tone with rich harmonic overtones and a piano-like clarity. It’s the sound of modern rock, funk, and metal. This is very different from nickel-plated steel (warmer, more balanced) or pure nickel and flatwound strings (dark, thumpy, and vintage). The performance promise here is that this bright tone will last significantly longer due to the coating.
• Materials & Durability: The core innovation is the ultra-thin NANOWEB Coating. This patented polymer tube completely shields the stainless steel wrap wire from the outside world. This barrier prevents skin cells, oil, and moisture from getting into the windings—the primary cause of corrosion and tonal death. This material choice is what allows Elixir to claim their strings last “3-5x longer” than uncoated strings.
• Feel & Playability: The coating creates an undeniably smooth, almost slick playing surface. This dramatically reduces finger squeak when sliding up and down the neck, which is a huge benefit in a studio environment. Some players find this slickness allows for faster, more fluid playing, while others may initially find it takes some getting used to compared to the grip of an uncoated string.

While the Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light is an excellent choice for many, it’s always wise to see how it stacks up against the competition. For a broader look at all the top models, we highly recommend checking out our complete, in-depth guide:

First Impressions: Unboxing the NANOWEB Promise

The Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light arrive in a clean, professional cardboard sleeve, with each string individually sealed in its own paper envelope. This is standard practice, but it’s the first line of defence against the elements. Upon opening the envelopes, our set was pristine—bright, shiny, and free of any defects. The first thing you notice when handling them is the feel. It’s distinctly different from an uncoated string. The NANOWEB coating gives them a silky, almost polished texture that feels incredibly smooth to the touch. There’s none of the slight raspiness you get from a typical roundwound string. While we had a perfect experience, it’s crucial to address a recurring theme in user feedback. A number of players have reported receiving sets with visible oxidation or rust, mismatched gauges, or a strange, “gunky” residue on the strings. This suggests potential issues with quality control or storage with certain batches, a significant concern for a premium product. We recommend inspecting your strings carefully immediately upon purchase, which you can do by ordering from a reputable source.

In the Trenches: A Deep Dive into the Elixir 14652’s Tone, Feel, and Longevity

A string’s true worth is only revealed under pressure. We strung up a trusty Fender American Professional II Precision Bass with the Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light and put them through a rigorous testing period spanning six weeks of daily practice, band rehearsals, and one particularly humid outdoor gig. This is where the marketing claims met reality.

The Signature Tone: Bright, Punchy, and Full of Growl

Right out of the package, the tone is exactly what you’d expect from fresh stainless steel strings: brilliantly bright, but not harsh or brittle. There’s a wonderful piano-like clarity to each note, with a complex harmonic richness that makes chords and double-stops ring out beautifully. The low E (.100) has a taught, focused fundamental with deep lows, avoiding the muddiness that can plague lesser strings. But the real magic is in the midrange. As one user aptly described it, these strings have “that growl & aggressive tone that you hear in jazz, funk, & other genres.” We found this to be spot on. When digging in with a pick, the strings delivered a clanky, aggressive rock tone that sat perfectly in a dense mix with two distorted guitars. For funk and slap playing, the percussive attack was sharp and immediate, with a shimmering high-end that made every pop leap out of the speakers. Even when rolling the tone knob back for a warmer, more rounded fingerstyle sound, the inherent articulation of the strings remained, ensuring the bass line was always defined and present. Unlike some overly bright strings, the Elixir 14652’s have a warmth and body that prevents them from sounding thin, offering a versatile palette for almost any modern musical context.

The NANOWEB Feel: A Silky-Smooth Playing Experience

The tactile experience of the NANOWEB coating is perhaps its most divisive feature, but we quickly grew to love it. For anyone who has ever winced at the sound of their fingers screeching across the strings during a quiet passage in a recording studio, this coating is a revelation. The ultra-smooth surface virtually eliminates finger noise. This clean, professional sound is a massive advantage for recording artists and sound engineers. The feel is often described as “fast,” and we concur. Long slides and rapid position shifts feel effortless, as your fingers glide across the fretboard with minimal friction. This was particularly noticeable during fast, complex funk lines and walking bass patterns, where the reduced resistance seemed to lessen left-hand fatigue over longer playing sessions. There is an adjustment period, especially for players accustomed to the grippy texture of uncoated strings. Initially, it can feel a bit slippery, but after an hour of playing, it began to feel completely natural. We never experienced the “gunky” texture a user reported, suggesting their set was likely from a defective batch, reinforcing the need to purchase from a trusted seller to ensure authenticity and proper storage.

The Longevity Test: The Real Reason You Buy Elixirs

This is the ultimate test and the core value proposition of the Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light. After six weeks of consistent, heavy use, the results were nothing short of remarkable. A standard set of uncoated stainless steel strings on our test bass would typically be audibly dull after two weeks, and completely dead by week four. The Elixirs, by contrast, retained a significant portion of their initial brightness and character. Of course, the brand-new, out-of-the-box “zing” did mellow slightly after the first week, but instead of dying, the tone settled into a highly usable, consistent, and still-bright voice that remained stable for the entire testing period. They never reached that dreaded “thud” stage. We can easily see how one user, a gigging musician with four basses, gets “3 months easily” out of a single set. For a professional player, this translates into enormous savings. If a standard set of strings costs £25 and you change them monthly, that’s £300 a year per bass. If a £40 set of Elixirs lasts three months, the annual cost drops to £160—a substantial difference. This longevity isn’t just about money; it’s about reliability. It’s the confidence of knowing your bass will sound great night after night without needing a last-minute string change before a big show.

The Elephant in the Room: Addressing Quality Control Concerns

It would be irresponsible to ignore the consistent and troubling feedback from a segment of users regarding quality control. We read numerous accounts of players receiving strings that were oxidized, corroded, or even rusty straight out of the sealed packaging. Others reported receiving mismatched sets, such as two .100 gauge strings instead of the correct .080 and .100. One long-time user of 15 years stated it was the “first time I’ve faced such a situation,” which could suggest a more recent lapse in quality control or an influx of counterfeit products into the market. This is simply unacceptable for a product positioned at a premium price point. While our test set was flawless, this pattern of negative experiences is too prevalent to be dismissed as isolated incidents. It creates a gamble for the consumer: you are paying for one of the best, longest-lasting strings on the market, but there is a non-trivial chance you may receive a defective product. Our advice is unequivocal: inspect your strings the moment they arrive. Check for any discoloration, rust, or irregularities, and confirm the gauges are correct before you even begin to unwind them. Purchasing from highly-rated, authorized retailers can mitigate, though not entirely eliminate, this risk.

What Other Users Are Saying

The general sentiment surrounding the Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light is a tale of two extremes. On one hand, the vast majority of users who receive a good set are overwhelmingly positive, often becoming lifelong converts. Phrases like “fenomenal sound,” “extremely long playability,” and “you can’t go wrong with these quality strings” are common. Many, like the musician who has been “string chasing for decades,” find that they “always come back to Elixirs” for their unmatched lifespan and brilliant tone. On the other hand, the negative experiences, while fewer in number, are severe. Reports of receiving “oxidized bass guitar strings” or a pack with “incorrect and mismatched strings” are deeply frustrating for customers who have paid a premium. One user noted the strings were “gunky,” forcing them to cut them off after just a week. This duality defines the product’s reputation: when they’re good, they are arguably the best in their class for longevity. When they’re bad, it feels like a betrayal of the brand’s premium promise.

How the Elixir 14652 Stacks Up: A Look at the Competition

No product exists in a vacuum. To fully understand the value of the Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light, it’s essential to compare them to other popular choices on the market, each offering a different philosophy on tone and feel.

1. Adagio PRO Electric Bass Strings 45-100

The Adagio PRO strings represent a completely different tonal universe. These are flatwound strings, meaning the round wrap wire is polished down to a smooth, flat surface. The result is a much darker, warmer, and mellower tone with a deep, fundamental “thump” and very little high-end brilliance or sustain. This is the classic sound of 1960s Motown, soul, and jazz. Players seeking the sound of James Jamerson or Paul McCartney would gravitate towards these. While they also have a smooth feel and a long lifespan (due to their construction, not a coating), they lack the aggressive growl and slap-friendly brightness of the Elixirs. They are an alternative in feel, but a polar opposite in tone.

2. Ernie Ball Regular Slinky Electric Bass Strings

The Ernie Ball Slinky is the industry standard, the benchmark by which most other roundwound strings are measured. These are uncoated, nickel-plated steel strings known for their balanced tone, comfortable feel, and affordability. They provide a fantastic, punchy sound right out of the pack. However, this is the very string that highlights Elixir’s main advantage. A set of Slinkys will lose its brightness and clarity exponentially faster than the coated Elixirs. A player might choose Ernie Ball Slinkys if they are on a tighter budget, prefer the raw feel of an uncoated string, or are a musician who actually enjoys the ritual of changing strings frequently to always have that “brand new” sound.

3. Ernie Ball Power Slinky Cobalt Bass Strings 55-110

Ernie Ball’s Cobalt strings are a direct competitor to the Elixir stainless steels in the “bright and aggressive” category. Cobalt has a stronger magnetic relationship with your bass pickups, resulting in higher output, a wider dynamic range, and a unique blend of powerful lows and crisp, defined highs. They are uncoated and come in a heavier gauge (55-110), making them ideal for aggressive rock and metal players who want maximum punch and don’t mind a stiffer feel. They offer a different flavour of modern brightness compared to the Elixirs, but without the benefit of a protective coating, their vibrant tone will have a much shorter lifespan.

Final Verdict: Are the Elixir 14652 Bass Strings Worth the Investment?

After extensive testing and analysis, our verdict on the Elixir 14652 Stainless Steel 4-String Bass Strings Long Scale Light is a strong, albeit conditional, recommendation. For the working bassist, recording artist, or serious hobbyist who prioritizes tonal longevity and a bright, modern sound above all else, these strings are a triumph of engineering. The combination of a brilliant stainless steel voice, a fast and smooth playing feel, and a lifespan that genuinely lasts three to five times longer than uncoated strings makes them a sound economic investment over time. The reduction in finger squeak alone is worth the price of admission for many studio musicians.

However, this recommendation comes with a significant caveat: the persistent reports of quality control issues cannot be ignored. While we did not experience this ourselves, the risk of receiving an oxidized or incorrect set is real and prevents us from giving a blanket endorsement. Therefore, we recommend them to players who understand this risk and are diligent enough to inspect the product upon arrival. If you get a good set, you will almost certainly be thrilled with the performance and long-term value. For those ready to make the investment in a tone that lasts, we believe the potential reward is well worth it. You can check the current price and availability to experience their longevity for yourself.