Beautiful bass but short scale and a 4 saddle 3 point, no thanks.
I just restrung my Ibanez Studio with a D'Addario EXL170-8 set, and there seems to be a huge difference in tension between those and whatever was on there before. Haven't decided if I like it yet. I kinda miss how pliable the old strings were.
What strings do you all run on your 8s?
I don't like the EXL 170 gauges, especially the high strings. I've been using a few different sets on different basses. I've found it's less expensive and more flexible to use a preferred 4 string set and individual strings. You can buy a dozen guitar high "G" string gauge pak for around $2.25 from MF and a 3 pak of a single gauge high EAD for $4.50
For a light set I use an EXL 220 (40-95) fundamental and 22, 25, 35, 45 on my Robelli. On my current build I'm using a nickel 45-105 Allparts ($5) and the 22, 25, 35, 45. The high strings are Hamer gauge. I like the way they balance the fundamentals compared to the D'A 18, 28, 40, 50. You could use a MF set ($8) for the fundamentals. I like fresh strings, building my own sets eases the pain of changing them often. Works out to less than $12.
IMO it's a big advantage to have extra high Gs, they break more often/go dead faster than the other 7 wound ones.