All of us double bass players often struggle to find strings that suit our different needs: good response to bow, nice pizzicato tone, sustain, brightness, fat bottom... I decided to give Presto Balance Hybrids a try, and I must say they are a pleasant surprise.
First of all, the name "Hybrid" is well choses: these strings represent a good compromise between bowing, pizzicato, they follow you into more complex bowing articulation but they still deliver a full tone when you must do a walking bass line or just improvise in other styles of music.
Another good side is the price: they come SENSIBLY cheaper than Obligatos or Spirocores, so even if they would not be your or mine first choice, they still represent a fantastic back up in case you have to change strings and you are out of your favorites, or in the unlikely event of breaking a string during a gig (very odd, but it CAN happen).
The cons: maybe a little too thin for my taste, mostly on the G string, but tension is comfortable and sound is nice. E string doesn't have the punch of a Spirocore. On the other side, D and G strings when bowed don't have the scratchy quality of a new Spiro, which is good, but they don't have the same sustain when played pizzicato.
Conclusion: a string set you should try if you can, the price is concurrential and every bass responds differently on different strings, so they are definitely worth a try.
