Well I went ahead and did it. I had a little trouble getting the B string to fit through the hole in the bridge but eventually got it. The set I put on there were D'Addario Chrome flatwounds 132, 100, 80, and 65. I did notice that there was perceptively less sustain. Now the sustain is about the same as my Zon bass. The thing I was surprised about was how much my fingers hurt from the friction after playing on them for awhile. No blisters but definitely sore. I wonder if nickel flats would be smoother. I suppose I can keep a chicken bone in the gig bag to lube up before playing
(obscure Jaco urban legend).
I've only played it through my studio monitors at home but will be trying it out at church this Sunday.
Incedentally, I used my B1 (is that the model name?) for the first time in a live setting last month. I intended to use it only on a couple of songs but had such a blast playing it that I ended up using it for the whole set. We had three services and in each service, I had at least 3 or 4 guys send their wives up to ask me about it. Alota wimpy men out there I guess.
anyway, the Barker bass made the whole room shake. It was a completely different tonal experience from playing a regular bass. Can't wait to try it again this week. And this time with flatwounds.
