Flats for a short scale ?

BillyRay · #1 08-14-2008, 01:19 PM

I have a Lakland Skyline Glaub strung with Chromes and they sound good, with the tone rolled off a bit (with the tone full on, they have a clankiness in the high mids I don'T particularly like, but I attribute that to my Peavey BW 215 wich is very mid focused). I use that bass for 80% of the songs.

I have another bass, a Godin SD, wich is strung with some mystery heavy gauge roundwounds. That covers my basses (pun intended) for punk playing.

But I have an Ampeg Dan Armostrong reissue that just sits there, unloved. It has Roto's on it and they are dead meat. I have also started to fade away from the whole "bright" vibe, so I have decided that it would make a killer last set bass since both the Glaub and Godin weight upwards of 9 lbs (the Godin is actually a whopping 11 lbs!).

Bummer is that it is a short (30" scale) and the tuning key holes are minuscule, so using longer strings and cutting them isn't an option (I did this when I strung the thing with light rounds). I also want a heavy gauge that thumps for tension and feeling reasons. That thing has a lot of bottom end but clearly lacks in the "balls" (low-mid region) so I'd only use it for old-school stuff where a hollow, mellow but crisp (fast attack, short decay) sound is needed.

What are my options ? I'd like to try a different brand than the chromes since they would probably be too bright and I want some change.

fretlessguy · #2 08-15-2008, 06:29 AM

Good news: If you know where to get them, You can get short scale strings in any type of string and gauge, just like the long scales. www.juststings.com has the widest assortment of short scale strings that I have found.
If you want a deeper, less bright and thumpy sound, you should go with flats. Thomastik-Infield has a short scale set in medium gauge that would probably meet your needs. They are not cheap.
GHS has a short scale set for every type string they sell, and some are in medium gauge although most sets in this scale are lights.
D'Addario makes an XL set in medium gauge that are .45-.105, but they are rounds and a little brighter than probably what you want. They make a set in their half-rounds and chromes as well, but I think they are light gauges.
Another good alternative would be the set of tapewounds. Both LaBella and Rotosound make a set of short scale tapewounds in .50-.115 gauge, and they are noted for their deep thumpy sounds.
GHS Pressurewounds split the difference between flats and rounds. The sound of a flats with the lower tension of a round. I am not quite sure if they come in medium gauge.
Best of luck with your search, and I hope you find the perfect strings for your needs.

J.D.B. · #3 08-15-2008, 07:17 AM

You could also open the tuner holes up. Just be sure to "break" the edges around the enlarged holes.
Josh

Juniorkimbrough · #4 08-15-2008, 08:26 AM

i'm in the same situation....got an old '70's musicmaster I want to string up with flats like the rest of my basses but not sure what would be the best strings to us.

sonrise · #5 08-15-2008, 07:37 PM

I use an Epi Allen Woody short scale and use D'Addario half rounds on it...

rllefebv · #6 08-15-2008, 08:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Juniorkimbrough

i'm in the same situation....got an old '70's musicmaster I want to string up with flats like the rest of my basses but not sure what would be the best strings to us.

Seriously, I just now sat down after stringing my '78 Musicmaster with D'Addario Chromes... ECB81S... They always rock on my shorties!

-robert

BillyRay · #7 08-20-2008, 12:14 AM

Probably going with the Roto Tru Bass 88: comes in short scale, big gauges, medium to light tension. Should play really well with a pick for McCartney type of lines.

bobyoung53 · #8 09-03-2008, 07:08 PM

Just a FYI, The TI's short scale flats are not short scale, they're medium scale, 32". I've never seen a short scale by them, the wound portion will wind around the peg making them go dead in a very short time. The lightest strings short scale strings I've found are GHS and they're made for a short scale bass 30"-31"

http://www.juststrings.com/ghs-3020.html

I haven't tried them yet but am looking for some light short scale strings for an EB-3 and these were recommended to me. I have the Regular Light Chromes on it now (ECB81S) and they sound great but are really a little to heavy for this bass at least on first play.