I really hate strings. I hate giving them a second's thought. But over the past copule years I have, and I've done a little experimenting, and it never turns out good. I spent over $500 on strings for my upright until I settled on the cheapest good set you can get (Thomastik Superflexibles for those of you scoring at home) and I got off easy compared to some.

Tried a few really expensive electric sets as well, and I hate them all. Some I hated less than others, but I always go back to the old reliable D'addario XL's and Fender flats, again, the cheapest good strings you can get. But even they have major burdens to overcome. The flats are really stiff and annoying to play but they sound so good. The rounds are easy to play but they sound more clanky than what I'm into these days, even when they're dead.

I've tried to bump down the gauges to make them more tolerable, and the light strings are a lot easier to enjoy playing on a 4 hr. gig, but you do sacrifice some tone, especially on the notes below the 5th fret. So now I can't even use extra light strings anymore because I play a lot in the middle register and need those notes.

Nothing seems to work. There's always a tradeoff to be made with strings. And no matter how much money you throw at it, you can't fix it. I want a set of strings that are all things to everyone, and I want them available in a twin-pack for $24.95. But that's not going to happen. In order for me to be happy with my sound, I'm going to have to play strings that annoy me. And that sucks.

I doubt it'll happen in my lifetime, but I look forward to the day when strings are replaced with laser beams.

I feel your pain. Strings have always annoyed me. I've never been able to find a set that I love. Only ones that I can tolerate on different levels.

I think its funny that there have been so many posts between Jimmy and insomniac in the past 20 min.

hah, i wasn't going to say anything but since you brought it up....

I'm in the process of pulling an all nighter and need to keep myself occupied. I also need to catch up on some well deserved talkbass time.

But back to strings..... hahahaha

Lately I've been using a 4 string set of rotosounds (105) with an extra regular gauge high c for drop c tuning. I like how loose it is and easy to tap with this but i wish i could have higher tension sometimes because of the tone sucking qualities of low tension strings. also, not a HUGE fan of rotosound. I have yet to be wowed by them.

I used to share this frustration as well... particularly with flatwounds for electric. I recently got a set of DR Hi Beam flatwounds and they were exactly what I was looking for in terms of tension, tone and feel. I'm not saying they'll work for you but it might be worth a try.

For my other electric (my Jazz Bass) I am using DR Fat Beam round wounds which are nice and warm sounding, flexible, lower tension and feel like nickel even though they are stainless. They are a brighter string but they are not clanky bright like some. Again, it's all preference but I thought I would throw something out there that might appease your frustrations. I have tried every flatwound string ever made for an electric and these DR's worked the best for me. They are about $35 for a set but they will probably last a super long time as well.

For my uprights, I've been using D'Addarios but I cannot remember the exact series. I haven't changed upright strings in 10 years!

I went through this for a while and spent a fortune on strings. They seem to be a very personal thing. My solution was to totally unexpected and it was that I eventually became a big DR fan. I kept trying other manufacturers and eventually all 5 of my basses have Dr's. Each one has a different model and I did go through different ones till I found the exact one that I thought fit that bass. I have Sunbeams, Fat Beams, Black Beauties, LoRider Nickel and Steel. The only set I am not completely sold on is the Black Beauties but they sure look good on an all black bass :hyper::hyper:

The Black Beauties are basically coated hi-beams. I've also been told that Sunbeams are the exact same string as the hi-beams only in nickel instead of stainless steel. It doesn't matter to me because they are all great strings. I could put any of their sets on any of my basses and be satisfied.

I really hate strings. I hate giving them a second's thought. But over the past copule years I have, and I've done a little experimenting, and it never turns out good. I spent over $500 on strings for my upright until I settled on the cheapest good set you can get (Thomastik Superflexibles for those of you scoring at home) and I got off easy compared to some.

Tried a few really expensive electric sets as well, and I hate them all. Some I hated less than others, but I always go back to the old reliable D'addario XL's and Fender flats, again, the cheapest good strings you can get. But even they have major burdens to overcome. The flats are really stiff and annoying to play but they sound so good. The rounds are easy to play but they sound more clanky than what I'm into these days, even when they're dead.

I've tried to bump down the gauges to make them more tolerable, and the light strings are a lot easier to enjoy playing on a 4 hr. gig, but you do sacrifice some tone, especially on the notes below the 5th fret. So now I can't even use extra light strings anymore because I play a lot in the middle register and need those notes.

Nothing seems to work. There's always a tradeoff to be made with strings. And no matter how much money you throw at it, you can't fix it. I want a set of strings that are all things to everyone, and I want them available in a twin-pack for $24.95. But that's not going to happen. In order for me to be happy with my sound, I'm going to have to play strings that annoy me. And that sucks.

I doubt it'll happen in my lifetime, but I look forward to the day when strings are replaced with laser beams.


Laser beams are a ways away yet, but this seems to be getting more popular:

http://www.stuffwelike.com/stuffwelike/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/widow-maker-bass-guitar.jpg


...and for the upright:

http://img.game.co.uk/images/wk10/double_bass.jpg

I use D'A Chromes (ECB81) on EVERYTHING now. I don't even think about using anything else. I just get them and they always work (for me). I transitioned to ALL FLATS about five years ago and after much trial and error, I settled on the ECB81 set without regret. Rounds used to drive me nutz, but no more!

I spent over $500 on strings

This is probably the only downside that I found when I got back into playing bass full time. It costs me a small fortune trying to settle into something that I like. Wish it were like my guitars where I can go out for small change and get a bunch of strings to try.

For my jazz bass, I settled into R. Cocco nickel wound. Not too long ago, I played a Rob Allen bass for the first time. I loved the workmanship and playability of that bass, but the La Bella tape wound strings that came with it for me.....were to dye for. I loved the feel and the sound. So I blew my brains out recently on a set for my fretless and love them. I think I'm done for quite some time.

I use Darco Electric bass strings. Nickel. They sound great, nobody has ever heard of them but I love the way they sound and are half the price of most strings.

Very hard to find good strings plus you can't really test them. I can't tell you how many times I've bought strings excepting something and then took them off like 10 minutes after I put them on.

I tried a few strings sets, didn't spend near $500, but I've settled on Curt Mangan strings for all my basses. The Nickelwound ones. Nice tension and very even tone on all strings at all registers, at least in my experience.

http://www.curtmangan.com/bass.php

Heavy guage stainless roundwounds like, 50-70-90-110's, turn up the bass volume or amp volume, pluck a little lighter, BAM! Good sound, tone, and volume
without killing your fingers. As far as flats if you like Fenders, use the light guage.
The other soulution would be D'Addario Chromes 50-105's. I don't know if you ever tried those but I found some light with them. { The flats that is}
As far as rounds are concerned I like D'Addario Pro-Steels 50-105's/135 on my 5 strings.

I've settled into SIT Strings. Power Steels on my J/MM bass and Silencers on my H/H bass, or vice versa depending on the day. Nice thing about having two identical basses with different pickup configurations.... easy string swapping.

Hate strings? I have one word for you: TUBA! ;) :D

What irritates me is when roundwounds go dead - buzz kill. My tone uses a lot of grind and twang and I like Ernie Ball Hybrid Slinky but they're nickel and during the humid summer months they don't last so I use stainless steel (which I like less) until the fall.
I really hate strings. I hate giving them a second's thought. But over the past copule years I have, and I've done a little experimenting, and it never turns out good. I spent over $500 on strings for my upright until I settled on the cheapest good set you can get (Thomastik Superflexibles for those of you scoring at home) and I got off easy compared to some.

Tried a few really expensive electric sets as well, and I hate them all. Some I hated less than others, but I always go back to the old reliable D'addario XL's and Fender flats, again, the cheapest good strings you can get. But even they have major burdens to overcome. The flats are really stiff and annoying to play but they sound so good. The rounds are easy to play but they sound more clanky than what I'm into these days, even when they're dead.

I've tried to bump down the gauges to make them more tolerable, and the light strings are a lot easier to enjoy playing on a 4 hr. gig, but you do sacrifice some tone, especially on the notes below the 5th fret. So now I can't even use extra light strings anymore because I play a lot in the middle register and need those notes.

Nothing seems to work. There's always a tradeoff to be made with strings. And no matter how much money you throw at it, you can't fix it. I want a set of strings that are all things to everyone, and I want them available in a twin-pack for $24.95. But that's not going to happen. In order for me to be happy with my sound, I'm going to have to play strings that annoy me. And that sucks.

I doubt it'll happen in my lifetime, but I look forward to the day when strings are replaced with laser beams.

I think everyone gets this way at some point. I've gone through every major brand, and I'm sold on Elixir for good. Easy on my fingers, doesn't have that clanky new string sound, medium tension, lasts a long time, etc.

I've been using DR Hi-Beams for quite some time on my spector NS2. I have a set of MM on my MM Sabre and a set of BB on my GWB35(Fretless). I like the strings that I use. Normally, I'm a creature of habit. However, I'm going through some changes in my life and I thought I would mix it up a bit.

I just had a setup done on my NS2 and I was talked into trying a set of Jonas Hellborg. The DR rep and the owner of Bass Specialties really like them. I hope that I do. I'm picking up the bass this weekend so I'll let you know how I like them.

I won a set of Bootsy Collins strings at a Bass Extremes clinic; which I'm going to try out on my MM Sabre.

I have BB on my GWB35. I like them for that bass. But I was thinking of trying a set of flats. From what i read and heard I probably won't like them, but sometimes you just have to try things out for yourself.

Hate strings? I have one word for you: TUBA! ;) :D

I played the trombone for 6 years and couldn't stand the spit anymore.
I have spent mucho dinero on strings in the past 4 years, settled on DR's fatbeams but curiosity will probably keep me looking for the best fit possible. Grass is always greener syndrome:bassist:

A nice set of Dead Rotosound SwingBass 66s work wonders on my jazz bass. Warm when you need them, and snappy when the time calls.

There's always a tradeoff to be made with strings.
That about sums it up. :hmm:

FWIW, I've settled on LaBella 760fl flats, and TI Superalloy rounds.

I'd like to settle on strings that don't cost $40-50 a set! ;)

I'd like to settle on strings that don't cost $40-50 a set! ;)

I used to say that too, but I only replace them every 9-12 months anymore.

Jimmy, I use Flats exclusively and I've settled on the La Bella 760FS 45-105 set which I find to be a nice balance of medium tension and good bottom. They are also extremely smooth. For less tension I would go with the 760FL they are 43-104 with medium light tension and IMO are a great string for fretless expression.

As far as cost goes, I don't think $50 is that big a deal when I can easily get a year of use out of one set of Flatwounds.

George

I'm in this same boat, but unlike Jimmy I've been able to get a nice fat tone out of my TI flats so that gives me a nice alternative to La Bella and Fender higher tension flats. The TIs don't have the same percussive thump as these two but their tone is so full (for me) that by adjusting my touch I'm enjoying enough "punch" that I can use them anyway.

One string set I've got in the box and haven't yet used but anxious to try is DR flats. I've read good reviews here and I'm hoping they might have the La Bella / Fender thump with less tension, more response, etc. Jimmy, maybe try a set of DRs?

Jimmy, maybe try a set of DRs?
I have...two different sets. Nice string but I wasn't knocked out by either set.

I don't hate strings. For the most part I have always used the same string: D'addario Chromes, I have them on over ten basses and have always been happy, I also have TI Jazz flats on two basses for a bouncier feel. My only gripe right now is I wish some one would make subcontra strings in flats, or at least lose the exposed core ends, those things can be a little hard to control at times.

As for DB strings........... Yeah............. I've done the same as you but I hated the Superflexible E and have settled on Jargar fortes.

I have...two different sets. Nice string but I wasn't knocked out by either set.

Hmmmmm.... that's discouraging. I'm wondering if that pile of old strings next to my desk is ever going to stop growing.

Hmmmmm.... that's discouraging. I'm wondering if that pile of old strings next to my desk is ever going to stop growing.

I save all my old strings, and usually end up using them on strange projects............

I played a lot in the 70's and was always happy with light gauge Rotosound round wounds.

I all but quit playing for 29 years and just got back into it this year. I bought a new G&L Tribby L2000 that was strung with rounds. I just couldn't seem to get the zing out of my tone and still get a tone I was happy with, so I switched to TI jazz flats.

I've had the TI's on for about 3 months now. I *THINK* I really like them (I love the woody "thunk"), but sometimes I think not. I was playing my Ripper (strung with rounds) last night and found myself kind of missing the feel of rounds.

I'll stick with the TI's for a while, but when I get some spare cash I may experiment. Not sure which I'll go - all I know is that I like the feel of a light guage string without the overly bright sound that a lot of rounds have.

By the way, Jimmy, referring to your earlier thread about TI's - I haven't noticed that they have changed much at all tonally in the 3 months I've been playing them. I think they've gotta be broken in by now. I love the tone, I'm just not 100% sure about the feel, though.

I played the trombone for 6 years and couldn't stand the spit anymore.
I have spent mucho dinero on strings in the past 4 years, settled on DR's fatbeams but curiosity will probably keep me looking for the best fit possible. Grass is always greener syndrome:bassist:

I put some fat beams on my p-bass and really didn't care for them. I was thinking the midrange emphasis would be great for picking and such, but it just seems sorta muddy and bland...well, like you said, grass is greener :crying:

But on a positive note, I love the sound of my Elixirs on my SR500, really awesome strings for that bass

y the way, Jimmy, referring to your earlier thread about TI's - I haven't noticed that they have changed much at all tonally in the 3 months I've been playing them. I think they've gotta be broken in by now. I love the tone, I'm just not 100% sure about the feel, though.

Feel wise the TI JFs are a odd string, they move more like DB strings but then considering TI's bread and butter IS DB strings.........

I've had them on one bass for I think 5 years and no real change after the third/fourth month, I have another bass that has a 10 year old set and the G is about gone.

http://img.game.co.uk/images/wk10/double_bass.jpg

Lord no.

http://www.justinbuist.org/blog/images/polar-bear-face-palm_thumbnail.jpg

====================================

Stings are a necessary evil Jimmy. I'll bet the perfect long-lasting perfect sounding moderately priced strings are sitting in a dark secret vault right next to the 200 mpg carburetor. :D

Strings and dry cleaners have one thing in common: there are amazing differences in price from one provider to the other, but they are all pretty much selling the same thing.

In other words, I have found absolutely no advantage to buying expensive strings. I've settled on $15 Carvin nickels, which are really LaBella Slappers. Nothing works better for me, but nearly everything else is more expensive.

I played a lot in the 70's and was always happy with light gauge Rotosound round wounds.

I all but quit playing for 29 years and just got back into it this year. I bought a new G&L Tribby L2000 that was strung with rounds. I just couldn't seem to get the zing out of my tone and still get a tone I was happy with, so I switched to TI jazz flats.

I've had the TI's on for about 3 months now. I *THINK* I really like them (I love the woody "thunk"), but sometimes I think not. I was playing my Ripper (strung with rounds) last night and found myself kind of missing the feel of rounds.

I'll stick with the TI's for a while, but when I get some spare cash I may experiment. Not sure which I'll go - all I know is that I like the feel of a light guage string without the overly bright sound that a lot of rounds have.

By the way, Jimmy, referring to your earlier thread about TI's - I haven't noticed that they have changed much at all tonally in the 3 months I've been playing them. I think they've gotta be broken in by now. I love the tone, I'm just not 100% sure about the feel, though.


TI SuperAlloys on the L2000 sound great. And they last a long time..... I've had mine on for well over six months. Not super zingy out of the pack..... settle in nicely, and stay that way for longer than any other rw string I've used.... even longer than Loriders.

I have TI JF's on my SB1, and they sound incredible. But I try not to think of them as a traditional flat.... the mids are just to sweet to think of them as traditional thumpers.

Jimmy... I'm still confused here on the Fender Flat thing... I have a set here that are brighter than any other flatwound I've tried (except for brand new chromes or rotos), and these things are like 12 years old.... on my jazz bass, they are extremely slappable.... even more so than the TIJF's.

Ljazz

I doubt it'll happen in my lifetime, but I look forward to the day when strings are replaced with laser beams.
http://www.lightwave-systems.com/lightwavepickup/LightWavePickup.htm
I have no clue, never seen one of these in real life and haven't even heard one (to my knowledge?) in a recording.
I hate strings too.
Put a set of DR Sunbeams on my Sterling and they're way too floppy. EB rounds I used to have were too clanky. And so on. I quit.

I use medium gauge flats, either Fender 9050's or D'Addario Chromes, more or less interchangibly. I like the increased tension as it allows me to play with a lower action and a lighter touch for my right (plucking) hand. I used light or extra light gauge roundwound strings for years, played with a high action and dug in plenty with my right hand. The result of all that abuse was tendinitis in my right arm. Playing with a lower action and a lighter touch has kept the tendinitis at bay.

I use medium gauge flats, either Fender 9050's or D'Addario Chromes, more or less interchangibly. I like the increased tension as it allows me to play with a lower action and a lighter touch for my right (plucking) hand. I used light or extra light gauge roundwound strings for years, played with a high action and dug in plenty with my right hand. The result of all that abuse was tendinitis in my right arm. Playing with a lower action and a lighter touch has kept the tendinitis at bay.

I'm intrigued. I never thought of action as having much effect on how hard I pluck the strings. It does affect the fretting hand, but the plucking hand?

I'm intrigued. I never thought of action as having much effect on how hard I pluck the strings. It does affect the fretting hand, but the plucking hand?

It doesn't really, it's the tension of the strings that he's talking about. A tighter string is going to take less of a dig with your right hand because it's, well, tighter.

I'm intrigued. I never thought of action as having much effect on how hard I pluck the strings. It does affect the fretting hand, but the plucking hand?

Sure, if you have low action and play hard with the plucking hand you'll have a real buzzfest happening...the lighter/looser the strings are, the more buzz you'll get.

The thing I hate about strings is silk. I don't want silk on my strings and It is nigh impossible to find easy info(i.e. listed online in the description) on weather a string has silk or not.

I don't have an upright, but I have gone through some strings in order to find the ones I like. Right now, I'm really diggin' the TI Jazz Flats. I also like DR Lowriders too.

I think I'm at that place where I'm content. I wish the OP the same thing.

Same here. I have enough trouble affording pedals and the like, let alone experimenting on different bass string sets at the price they go for per set. I really like the flatwounds on my Marcus Miller (Picato 45-105) but I am not sure whether I could do with a little more tension. Which makes of flatwounds would you consider to have a pretty high/very high tension? I obviously may not be looking for anything tendon-wrenching, but I've found that I normally like my string tension pretty stiff...

Jimmy, I use Flats exclusively and I've settled on the La Bella 760FS 45-105 set which I find to be a nice balance of medium tension and good bottom. They are also extremely smooth.
+1 - I've settled on the same set.

Just as an FYI, Big City Strings has LaBella flats (4-string) for 37 bucks + $4 shipping, not a bad deal.

Funny ya'll should be talking about this... I too am getting sick of messing around with strings ;).

I just went back to my daddario flats on my L2500 this morning. I had been waiting for my exl 170 rounds to die out, but they just won't calm down and give me a good thump/pop.

Am now aiming for this tone or close to it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNlNxNgkE5k

I can get close to this on my L2000 with rounds on it, but those strings are 5 years old. Don't want to wait 5 years for my L2500 to break in.....

Did my setup again this am, had to lower action and go tighter about 1/4 turn on the truss rod. We'll see how things sound in a few days....

LS

Which makes of flatwounds would you consider to have a pretty high/very high tension? I obviously may not be looking for anything tendon-wrenching, but I've found that I normally like my string tension pretty stiff...
The D'Addario Chromes .50 - .105 set is pretty darn stiff. And they sound great, lots of mid punch.

LaBella 760FM set (.49 - .109) is also said to be good and stiff, have not tried those myself though.

The thing I hate about strings is silk. I don't want silk on my strings and It is nigh impossible to find easy info(i.e. listed online in the description) on weather a string has silk or not.

Oo that's a good point...I have a set of Rotosound SS swingbass on my fretted jazz (and on my fretless jazz), and they came with no winding on the part of the string that crosses the bridge saddle. Weird right? I swear they stayed brighter than usual.
For me, I always come back to the rotos, love the feel and the sound, wish they lasted a little longer though. I like that stainless steel right out of the package sound.
I love the sound when other people play flats, but I have yet to like the feel of them enough to really start going through sets of flats. Tape wound strings have me intrigued though....
I was very impressed with a couple of sets of TI strings that I tried, but I found out that I really don't like nickel strings.

So Jimmy, what strings do you enjoy tolerating the most?

shawn

A nice set of Dead Rotosound SwingBass 66s work wonders on my jazz bass. Warm when you need them, and snappy when the time calls.

+1

Jimmy, have you ever given them (more than a brief) a shot? FWIW, I run two "ancient industry standards"


DB: Thomastik Spirocore
EB: Rotosound SwingBass 66


and I'm totally happy with both of them. Just go with a mainstream solution, adapt and overcome ;)

Just as an FYI, Big City Strings has LaBella flats (4-string) for 37 bucks + $4 shipping, not a bad deal.

Here's usually where I find Labellas a lot cheaper:

http://imperialguitar.stores.yahoo.net/strings-bass-la-bella.html

Just to put things in perspective, I play harmonica too. It's a cheap instrument, but the way I play it (bad technique?) I go through reeds like crazy. Once a reed is gone it's time for a new harp. If I was playing it full time instead of bass I'm sure I would spend a lot more than I do now on strings.

I guess I'm stuck either way until I'm playing a real harp with the angels after I die. Of course, I may be going in the opposite direction ... what DO they play down there (I know the devil plays a fiddle)? :rolleyes:

Hmmmm....Yes, I see.
Since turning 49 a couple of months ago, I have come to the point in my life where I seem to be satisfied with what I have. I used to really searched for that perfect string or gauge, and actually find (and still do) that changing strings and doing set-ups to be quite....stress relieving and enjoyable.
I now have settled on Fender 7250 nickel strings to be my go-tos for rounds, and GHS Precision Flats and TI Jazz Flats to be what I like in that category. I will probably keep the rounds on my Carvin 5 strings (which I primarily use for recording) and use the TIs and Precision Flats on everything else.
I still do string changes and set ups on my friends' guitars and basses, which are very theraputic at the end of a stressful day of teaching, and find discussions about strings to be enjoyable.

Jimmy have you tried LaBella 760FLs? I love mine. And I've done alot of string experimenting too.

The LaBella 760FLs sound excellent after they lose their initial zing (goes away after about 10hrs). They also are super smooth, and while not super low tension, they are fairly combfortable to me.

Others I have tried:

Chromes - too much treble
Ti J44 - Weird sounding... very middy and zingy
Pyramids - I still own these but I am annoyed when the E is way fatter than the other strings. This is the case here. Pretty dead sounding though.
Fender flats - Medium gage. Okay sounding, a little dull for my taste. Dont like the feel. Too sticky.
LaBella Jamersons - Played these for quite awhile. Pretty high tension. One day I just swapped for the 760s I had lying around and never went back to the Jamersons after that.

All I play is flats. I'd like to try Roto 77s as I've heard alot of good things about them, but I've had my Labella 760s on for about a year and they sound great.

I really hate strings.

play the tuba then...




or the bassoon

I also hate strings. I keep flip flopping and swip swapping. The frustrating thing for me is one day I feel like the only string for me is a super light gauge roundwound. That was yesterday. Today I seem to only want a medium gauge flatwound, so I swapped out the D'addario xl220 for a set of labella fl760m. I love the sound of the labellas right now(holding bass as I type). But I am willing to bet that tomorrow I will want nothing to do with them.

Wow, I never knew how many of you hated strings as much as me. The posts mounted up while I was gone. Sorry I can't answer them all individually but that's a lot of posts.

Know what really bugs me? Guitarists can get strings in any gauge they want. But bass strings are almost all sized in increments of 5 thousandths. Well maybe I think that .040 G is too light and the .045 too heavy. Maybe I'd like a .042 instead. Or even a .043. A guitarist can darn sure get a .042 or .043 if he wants one. Yeah, I know...(insert favorite obscure $50 brand of strings here) makes them. Eh...why doesn't everyone?

Because guitarist are a bunch of whiny-asses and there are more of them, that's why.

oh god, Jimmy. I guess it would be nice to have more gauge choices...but that might just add to the frustration of trying to find one's personal best strings. I have spent enough money already only to find out that I have no clue what I want out of a string. If I had endless gauge choices, I would need a completely different plan of attack as to how to find the right strings for me.

I also hate strings. I keep flip flopping and swip swapping. The frustrating thing for me is one day I feel like the only string for me is a super light gauge roundwound. That was yesterday. Today I seem to only want a medium gauge flatwound, so I swapped out the D'addario xl220 for a set of labella fl760m. I love the sound of the labellas right now(holding bass as I type). But I am willing to bet that tomorrow I will want nothing to do with them.

Well when I do this, it usually means I'm playing or practicing too much and my hands are so beat up I can't get a good sound on anything in my room ;).

I'm doing the flatwound thing again mostly for mechanical reasons. on my L2500 the rounds I was using also really did have a problem with the sound - they were just too freaking bright and the B string was nuclear weapon louder than the other strings.

But rounds are absolutely shredding my fingerboards. I couldn't believe how much grooving there already is on my L2500 after only having it for a few months now and my L2000 is getting kind of scary.

As for the sound, I'm not really good enough for different strings to really make much difference unless there's really a problem like with my exl170's. And unless you're playing something that sounds awful - I gigged for years with a rick 4003 and it just sounded terrible no matter what strings I put on it or what amp I plugged it into - it ultimately isn't going to matter too much once you crank the amp up.

I mean unless you're a really good player which I'm not.

That keeps the OCD down for me. I just put the basses down and do something else for a while. After my hands/arms have rested, my basses all go back to the same mud when I pick em up again and my OCD is cured for the time being....

LS

Well, I got hold of the board tape of the Bowzer shows I did this week where I brought a few different basses and switched too much. Funny how these "glaring" differences in tone and feel that annoy you so much when you play seem to get minimized into not much at the end of the day. So I'll be sticking with my little baby extra light roundwounds because they sound the same on tape, even if they don't in a live setting ;)

I did find a store nearby that carries D'addario Chromes and Half Rounds in an extra light gauge 40-95. Just put the Chromes on my P Lyte...so far so good...nice and slinky and they're built like they'll deaden nicely in time. Having a hard time deciding what bass to put the Half Rounds on. Might put them on my Turser Beatle Bass. I don't like the Rotosound flats on it. I also have an SX I might like to try them on. Tried them 30 years ago and didn't like them, but that was back when I was into rounds only. But I figured I'd give them a chance again since they weren't too bad in price.

I spent near $700 on strings for my Jazz bass, tasting just about everything I could get my hands on. You think, thats alot of strings. For guitar, crap thats over 70 sets easy. Bass? 25-30 depending on the price.

I've had just about everything I could buy in town, and for me if I'm going to put it on my basses, it has to be from the following short list:

Labella 760FL (fat and round sound)
Fender 7250ML (fat and bright sound)
DR Highbeam Medium (more sizzle)

I've settled on Elixirs, but I don't mind looking around. I definitely like the Elixirs on my SX, but I've played other basses where they just don't sound too hot. I want to try the Sunbeams and get another pair of Fender strings that shipped on my Squier P Bass.

Great string if I remember right, but I tear through a set now faster than I did then. My last set of Elixirs only lasted me 4 months.

Then again,
$10 a month... not bad.

i have Thomastick Superalloy's on my 3 basses. great strings.
but if Bass Emporium started selling the Sadowsky Blue Labels, i might be hard pressed to give those a go again.
hmmm...

Three of my 4 basses are strung with Elixirs. The 4th is the Yamaha RBX 170 and that doesn't see any playing time but I have it strung up with my other go to brand which is D'Addario XL's or Slowounds. Not sure which is on it because I haven't changed them in forever.

All of my basses get Elixers these days.

Strings. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em.

Strings. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em.
It's funny cause it's true!

Fortunately for me, though, it looks like I might have partially solved one problem, as these super soft D'addario Chromes and Half Rounds I'm trying out are deadening up and starting to sound thumpy, and they feel quite slinky under the tootsies. I definitely like the Chromes better than the Half Rounds (been 30 years since I used Half Rounds but they feel rougher than I remember), but I thought maybe the long scale Half Rounds wouldn't break as easily as flats might on my short scale Turser Beatle bass. So far so good. Much better than the Rotosound flats I had on there, but the rough feeling is a bit disconcerting. It's not as pleasant a rough feeling as rounds.

So I guess I'm making my peace with strings again, but it's an uneasy peace that can break out into war at any minute ;)