Fender tapewounds ..... wow!

[bassaussie]

Just wanted to post a quick review of these. I've only ever tried tapewounds once before - they came on a used fretless bass I bought, and I quite liked them, but since I couldn't identify them, and also since I decided to sell the bass, I never bought any more.

So .... having bought a couple of fretless basses recently, I decided to give tapes another go. Asked a few questions, read a lot of reviews, and decided that Fender would be the way to go - partly for price, partly for their relatively low gauge (58-72-92-110).

All I can say is that this is the best choice I could've possibly made for the bass. I usually use light gauge roundwounds (40-100, DR HiBeams), so I'm used to low tension and a lot of brightness, and the Fenders certainly haven't disappointed me. They're full sounding, with nice clarity, and enough top end sparkle to keep me happy. The feel, though, is what's blown me away. Super fast, very low tension, easy to bend - they're just like playing roundwounds, only I'm not ripping my fingers apart!!

I was slightly hesitant to go with the Fenders, as the LaBellas seem to be the strings that most people prefer, but partly due to their cost in Europe, and also due to their heavier gauge, I decided to give the Fenders a chance, and will now stick with them. The model of the Fenders is 9120.

Anyway - hope this helps anyone considering trying tapewounds out.

[Kilian.]

Thanks for the review! Where would you place them? More towards flatwounds, roundwounds or nothing between those?

[Funkengrooven]

Have you ever tried Rotosound Tape wounds??

They are very clean and smooth, I use them when I need to and the rest of the time I use Rotosound Round wounds RS 66 Swing bass

[bassaussie]

Originally Posted by Kilian.

Thanks for the review! Where would you place them? More towards flatwounds, roundwounds or nothing between those?

No worries. I wanted to put it up as there wasn't a great deal of info about them, so at least there's a bit of a review.

As far as where I'd place them, that's a hard one. They're certainly more flexible than flats, and I think they sound a lot brighter as well, but they're very smooth feeling. For me, they're perfect, as I don't like flats at all, but I wanted to get something that wouldn't chew up my fretless fingerboard.

[bassaussie]

Originally Posted by Funkengrooven

Have you ever tried Rotosound Tape wounds??

They are very clean and smooth, I use them when I need to and the rest of the time I use Rotosound Round wounds RS 66 Swing bass

That's what I was kinda saying above - I can't say whether I have or I haven't tried the Rotos, as I've only tried one other set of tapewounds, and they came on a used bass I bought. All I remember was that they had purple silk windings, and that they felt great.

[Mojo-Man]

I've tryed all the tapewounds.
Take a look at GHS tapewounds.
Great sound, and a normal 105 for E-string.
Very underrated.

[bassaussie]

Originally Posted by Mojo-Man

I've tryed all the tapewounds.
Take a look at GHS tapewounds.
Great sound, and a normal 105 for E-string.
Very underrated.

Actually, I liked the gauges of the GHS strings, but I couldn't get enough info on them to convince me, so I decided by economics!!

[Peter Kaae]

Originally Posted by Mojo-Man

I've tryed all the tapewounds.
Take a look at GHS tapewounds.
Great sound, and a normal 105 for E-string.
Very underrated.

..exactly!

[Rezdog]

Greetings from the North,
I've had great results with LaBellas. When I got my Reverend Brad Houser 5 I had it set it up with LaBella tape wounds. That was a couple of years ago and the same set of strings are still on it and they play and sound great. I'll prolly order another set as back up but I'll keep the original set on until they either go off or fail. Economic wise these strings have lasted longer than any other tape wounds I've used in the past, including Fender and Roto Sound.
Rezdog

[bassaussie]

Thanks for all the other experiences and suggestions.

I think what Talkbass needs is a "Mega Tapewound" thread!!!

[Jimbo]

i love the fender tape wounds. the sounded great on my MIM jazz fretless and brought life to a knock aorund bass i had. i tried the labella but i just didn't like the feel as compared to the fenders. great strings, now you got me thinking of switching back to flats!

-jimbo

[tai]

Originally Posted by bassaussie

Actually, I liked the gauges of the GHS strings, but I couldn't get enough info on them to convince me, so I decided by economics!!

i recently got a set from jacksmusic.com
they kick ass!
i have them on my geddy lee sig. series. with a little work, they can make it sound almost exactly like an upright, yet with a little more work, they can give the bass that classic geddy lee twang and punch.
amazing strings. very versitle.

http://jacksmusicstore.com/catalog/f...sts-ebg-i~3060

i searched for a few days and thats the best price i was able to come up with.