D'Addario EXL160 Nickel Wound Bass (.050-.105): the top-selling heavy gauge bass set

D'Addario EXL160 is the gauge D'Addario reaches for when a bassist says EXL170 feels too loose. Medium, .050 to .105, long scale, wound with nickel-plated steel onto the same high-carbon steel hex core as the rest of the XL Nickel family. D'Addario's own product page badges it a top seller and describes XL Nickel as "the industry standard in electric bass strings," with this specific gauge singled out as its top-selling heavy gauge bass set.

It sits one notch up from the default. Where EXL170 (.045-.100) is D'Addario's most popular all-purpose gauge, EXL160 adds roughly 24 lbs of total tension for players who want firmer string feel, more low-end output, and more headroom for Eb standard or Drop D. It's also the exact gauge D'Addario itself uses to position two heavier siblings, the reformulated NYXL50105 and the stainless EPS160 ProSteels, both built around this identical .050-.105 spec.

Most bassists choosing a D'Addario nickel set land on one of two gauges: EXL170 (.045-.100), the company's most popular overall, or EXL160 (.050-.105), its top-selling heavy option. Same wire, same hex core, same manufacturing line. The difference is entirely in the numbers.

If you already own a set of EXL170 and it feels loose under a pick or a slap thumb, EXL160 is the direct next step up in D'Addario's own nickel line, not a different product family, just more of the same wire at a heavier gauge.

D'Addario also sells this exact .050-.105 Medium gauge in two other alloys, and each reads a different total tension on the company's own charts despite the identical gauge numbers. NYXL50105 now has its own CYS review; EPS160 doesn't yet, but D'Addario's own product pages for both were fetched live for this comparison.

D'Addario's own listings back that positioning up. NYXL50105's product page promises "higher break strength, enhanced tuning stability, and accentuated harmonics versus our standard bass strings," meaning this exact set. EPS160's own page calls it flatly "D'Addario's brightest bass guitar strings" and tags it "Ideal For: Metal, All Genres, Nickel free," a line EXL160's own product page doesn't carry. If none of that matters to you and you just want the heavier gauge that works, EXL160 is D'Addario's own answer.

Oteil Burbridge's national profile dates to 1991, when he became a founding member of the Aquarium Rescue Unit alongside Col. Bruce Hampton. That led to his membership in The Allman Brothers Band starting in 1997, work that earned him two Grammy nominations for Best Rock Instrumental, in 2003 and 2004, per D'Addario's own artist bio. In 2015, Grateful Dead members Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, and Mickey Hart joined with John Mayer to form Dead & Company, with Burbridge on bass; the band toured the US that fall and through the summers of 2016, 2017, and 2018, including sold-out shows at Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, and Citi Field. He also played in the Tedeschi Trucks Band alongside his brother Kofi, formed in 2010 by Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi; the group's 2011 debut album, Revelator, won a Grammy in February 2012. Burbridge stepped back from TTB touring in October 2012, per the band's own announcement (Jambands).

D'Addario's own artist page for Burbridge runs an "Oteil Burbridge's Favorites" carousel linking directly to this EXL160 gauge, the same .050-.105 tag that appears on the EXL160 product page's own artist carousel. CYS fetched both pages directly this session and confirmed the match. D'Addario's bio describes him as a two-time Grammy winner; this page reports that framing as D'Addario's own characterization rather than independently re-verifying each individual award.

One caveat CYS won't paper over: Burbridge's documented basses (Sandberg, Modulus, Fodera) are all 6-string instruments, and a 2023 Bass Magazine gear rundown lists his actual bass strings as D'Addario's 6-string XL Nickel Wound set, not this 4-string EXL160 gauge (Bass Magazine). Read the EXL160 tag as D'Addario's own artist-page association, not a confirmed description of what's strung on his bass today.

• Players who found EXL170 too loose. The direct step up in D'Addario's own nickel line: same wire, same core, more tension.
• Eb standard and Drop D bassists who want extra grip. D'Addario's own copy notes the 50-105 Medium gauge carries "higher tension, affording increased low-end response and output."
• Funk and slap players who want a firmer string under the thumb. The added tension pushes back harder against aggressive right-hand attack.
• A baseline before you upgrade further. If you're curious whether NYXL50105's durability or EPS160's brightness is worth the step up, EXL160 is the gauge both are measured against.

• Beginners or players with lighter touch. EXL170 (.045-.100) is D'Addario's own more comfortable, more popular default.
• Nickel-sensitive players. D'Addario's EPS160 ProSteels is its nickel-free bass string in this identical gauge.
• Players chasing maximum durability. NYXL50105 shares this exact gauge with a reformulated core built specifically for higher break strength and tuning stability.

EXL160 earns its top-seller badge honestly. It's the same nickel-plated, hex-core construction as every other set in D'Addario's XL Nickel bass line, just dialed up: about 189.3 lbs of total tension against EXL170's 165.7 lbs, enough to hold Eb standard or Drop D with real authority and give slap and pick players something firmer to push against.

If you want more break strength and tuning stability at the identical gauge, D'Addario NYXL50105 is the direct upgrade path in this exact gauge. If you want maximum brightness or a nickel-free option, D'Addario EPS160 ProSteels covers this exact gauge in nickel-free stainless. For everything else, standard-tuned or down-tuned rock, funk, or simply "my strings feel too loose," EXL160 is D'Addario's own answer.

D'Addario

EXL160 XL Nickel Wound Bass Medium (.050-.105)

.050 – .105

Price tier: $

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