• The selection of strings for acoustic bass guitars is limited in comparison to electric bass guitars. Virtually all acoustic bass guitar players use phosphor-bronze strings with a steel core. Other string variant include phosphor-bronze with a nylon core, coated strings, and tapewounds. There is no universal best option for bass strings, but each type of string has advantages over other types of strings. This means each individual bassist will have a string option that works best for his or her needs.
  
  

Phosphor-Bronze (Steel Core)

• Phosphor-bronze bass strings with a steel core are by far the most common strings found on acoustic bass guitars. Most of these basses actually come with this type of strings. The main advantage is that this type of string is by far the easiest to find. Any store that carries acoustic bass strings will have this type. This gives phosphor-bronze strings with steel cores the best convenience factor.
  
  

Phosphor-Bronze (Nylon Core)

• Phosphor-bronze bass strings with a nylon core are less common than the steel core variants. This type of string will give an acoustic bass guitar a softer, mellower tone when used. The desirability of this tone change will vary based on the style of music and bassist's tonal preference. One notable advantage is that this string looks and feels similar to the more common steel core strings, which means that switching between the two string types should not be awkward.
  
  

Coated Strings

• Coated strings are not specifically a different string type in itself. A coated string is a bass guitar string that has a coating on it to protect the string from corrosion causing elements, particularly sweat and dirt. Most coated bass strings are made from phosphor-bronze steel core strings. The coating will make the string less bright sounding than an uncoated string. Coated strings have the best corrosion resistance of any type of string for an acoustic bass guitar. Some bassists with unusually corrosive sweat benefit even more with this type of bass string.
  
  

Tapewound Strings

• Tapewound strings have a steel core that is wrapped with nylon tape. This creates a smoother, warmer tone that is distinctly different from the other types of bass strings. This type of string allows an acoustic bass guitar to more closely approximate the tone of an upright bass. This similarity is even more pronounced on fretless basses. This is the best choice for a bassist that wants to produce an upright bass tone with a bass guitar. This type of bass string is quite rare. Some stores that carry bass strings may not also stock tapewounds.