Half-Rounds: Yay or Nay?

[RKB900player]

I just restrung my Ibby with a set of regular light gauge half-rounds (D'addario) and I've fallen in love! I've been using regular gauge prosteels and nickelwounds, and aside from the endurance of the prosteels, they just don't excite me much. These half-rounds (halfwounds/groundwounds? ) make me want to play all day, every day because of the smoother surface, and that they keep enough brightness in the tone that I think they sound perfect. Anyone else a half-round player or have tried these and really enjoy them?

[chunkstyle]

if by half rounds you mean roundwounds that have been ground down (groundwounds) then i say YAY! Ken Smith Slickrounds are my string of choice.

Ken Smith also makes Compressors, which are round wounds were the outer wrap has been flattened into an oval shape. if that is what you mean, then i also say YAY! if i hadn't found the Slickrounds, Compressors would be my string of choice.

[RKB900player]

Replying to what you've said, half-rounds and halfwounds are VERY similar, sound VERY similar and feel/look similar. I think it's just the methods of production (the ones you listed) that differ them.

[Phalex]

GHS Brite Flats + SPB-3 = Ahhhhh......

[bassteban]

Slapped a set on my fretless Stambaugh 6. Perfect- all they say & more, even w/my sloppy technique. Buy some today!

[mambo4]

I used to use various half-rounds (and pressure wounds) until I got turned on to TI Jazz flats.

[Kael]

D'addario 1/2 rounds feel like a cheese grater with higher tension than the average set of rounds to me. They combine all the worst qualities of flats and rounds without ever managing to get a single one of the positives.

A big fat nay from this guy.

[ibnzneksrul]

Originally Posted by Kael

D'addario 1/2 rounds......combine all the worst qualities of flats and rounds without ever managing to get a single one of the positives.

A big fat nay from this guy.

+1 ... I hated them too.

[Jefenator]

I enjoyed the Dean Markley "ground" wounds I put on my first fretless.

You get one finger in each pie (but of course don't get to stick both hands in either).

[Funkdrawer4]

Originally Posted by ibnzneksrul

+1 ... I hated them too.

+2 way to stiff

[RKB900player]

Too stiff? that's something I never really thought of while playing these strings, maybe it's just my playing style or my bass itself that suits the strings. In any case, I'm a fan of them

[ishouldbeking]

Originally Posted by Kael

D'addario 1/2 rounds feel like a cheese grater with higher tension than the average set of rounds to me. They combine all the worst qualities of flats and rounds without ever managing to get a single one of the positives.

A big fat nay from this guy.

Same experience I had. They feel a lot like really stiff rounds, and sound like round wounds left to rot in toilet water. As a pick player, the dead roundwound sound just doesn't work for me. But to those that like them, that's cool, different strokes and all.

[Phalex]

Originally Posted by Funkdrawer4

+2 way to stiff

I like hard tension. To quote my wife: "If it aint stiff it aint worth a ****!"

[AngryJason]

+1 on the half-rounds. I think they're awesome

I have a '51 Turser copy that was strung with flats for about a year. Whie I LOVED the sound, I found that repositioning the tone knob made no difference whatsoever to the sound. (a common complaint among owners of this instrument on this board). I recently replaced them with heavy guage D'Addario half-rounds, and WOW! I can now get a wide variety of tones. They're not quite as easy on the fingers as the flats, but the tonal variety is worth it (and, oddly enough, the tone knob actually provides some functionality now). I ended up putting the flats on my Jazz, and now it's almost like having 2 new basses for the price of one set of strings.

[JTE]

Originally Posted by Kael

They combine all the worst qualities of flats and rounds without ever managing to get a single one of the positives.

Same here. I used D'Addario Half-Round (HR-72) first in 1977 and alternated them for a while with Fender 850 flats. Then I got my new Music Man StingRay in 1979 which came from the factory strung with GHS Brite-Flats. I liked them better than the D'Addario version, but ultimately decided that they combined the worst of rounds and flats rather than the best.

Hate 'em. I have basses with rounds for the roundwound sound, and basses with flats for the flat sound. D'Addario Half-Rounds, GHS Brite-Flats, and Dean Markely Ground Round Wounds all have the reduced life of rounds with the indistinct note of flats. None have the real "thump" of a good flatwound and none retain the definite note of a roundwound string.

jte

[ryco]

I'm voting yay. I strung my fretless Gibson with some BlueSteel flatwounds and they're too dead. I'm really having to work my butt off to get a good tone and the sustain is nil. Like hitting a bean bag with a baseball bat.

I'm going back to halfrounds for the fretless. I'll put the flats on my passive fretted P.

Have been using D'addario Halfies since the early 80s and I like 'em fine. I'm going to try some other brands first. Gonna try the GHS Brite GroundWounds. Someone on here also recommended the Fender TapeWounds which, I guess, are rounds wrapped in a black tape coating. True/false?

[Atomik Rooster]

Originally Posted by RKB900player

Too stiff? that's something I never really thought of while playing these strings, maybe it's just my playing style or my bass itself that suits the strings. In any case, I'm a fan of them

I like them as well. I'll agree that they are pretty stiff at first, but that settles down after some play and I really like the sound. Enough tone for definition plus some old school thunk. Works for me.

[Marley's Ghost]

I have a set of Half Rounds on my SB2 for about 2 months now. They seemed to have morphed into flats. The tone and clarity on the G and D are amazing. The sound is very punchy, but the round growl is completely gone.

[bassbully]

Originally Posted by Kael

D'addario 1/2 rounds feel like a cheese grater with higher tension than the average set of rounds to me. They combine all the worst qualities of flats and rounds without ever managing to get a single one of the positives.

A big fat nay from this guy.

I said nay for true half rounds. D'addario's halfs are the most God awfull strings i have ever tried IMO. On past posts other TBers as well as in this thread agree they are pretty bad.

But if you like them thats all that matters. I just went back to SIT silencers a four string set on one of my P basses and am in much love with them. They are compression wound with a true roundwound wire but the wire is thin making the strings feel like flats or half wounds. Silencers reduce string and finger noise but sound bright like rounds. They are a bit sticky for the first two or three plays but it goes away quickly leaving the strings feeling slick like flats almost like chromes.