which has less tension: tapewounds or flatwounds?

[envika]

string gauges and all other things being equal, of course.

[mario222]

I think the tapewounds would have less tension.

[Bassman316]

I've played both and I agree with mario, tapewound strings seem to have less tension than flatwound.

[seanm]

Tapewounds *feel* like they have less tension.

But my truss rod says that the Rotosound tapewounds have more tension than chromes flatwound. I must say I was surprised.

[staindbass]

its all in the mass of the string... the lighter/ thinner string requires less tension to come to a certain tension or note. weigh them on a postal scale and u will have the answer. johnny a/ staind

[One Drop]

Originally Posted by staindbass

its all in the mass of the string... the lighter/ thinner string requires less tension to come to a certain tension or note. weigh them on a postal scale and u will have the answer. johnny a/ staind

I'm not sure this is valid here as the weight of the tape will skew the measurements.

Flats might feel stiffer while being lower tension do to the way the wraps abut each other.

Some tapes have roundwound windings under the tape, others flatwound or just a core, IIRC, further complicating the issue.

[Pilgrim]

Most tapewounds are rounds with an additional layer of tape.

It depends more on the brand than whether they're tapewounds, rounds or flats.

[7flat5]

"Stiff" and "tension" are two different things, and both affect the feel.

For exactly the same "string gauge" the tapewound will have less mass per unit length, so less tension, but may or may not have a lighter feel.

So, depends.

Oh, one more thing. Flatwounds like the TI Jazz Flats have a layer of nylon inside, so have the same mass issues. And, they use very thin core wire. So, depends.