Help! Where can I find these flatwounds?!

[harperbass]

I'm a flatwound user. Have been since I joined the Union in 1969. Dean Markley are my faves but I can't find 'em anymore. Not even from JustStrings.com. Markley's website aren't that helpful either. I know Grodin installs them on some of their new basses, and I read an interview w/ Joe Osborn years ago where he said he bought his in Memphis somewhere. Are they still being manufactured? They are very smooth and very very loud (I use a Music Man Stingray and Fender Jazz basses) and have a purple string wrap. Anyone out there w/ any info pro or con would be greatly appreciated. I used Earnie Ball's "Flex IV" strings for decades and bought a half case. They were basically the same as Markley's w/ a blue wrap. Their new flats aren't near as good, in my opinion, not much output, so I've been "settling" on D'Addario chromes.

To add to the issue both my basses load from the back so they have to be very long scale, esp the G on the Fender.

This is my first post. Don't know why I've waited so long to join this forum.

Regards, everyone, and Happy Thanxgiving!


Rick Harper

[JohnnyB53]

Here's Dean Markley's electric bass strings page, and you'll see that they don't offer any flatwounds. The closest they come is the FretMaster, which burnishes the winding where it passes over the fretboard.

There are a lot of other brand flatwounds out there, some good, some excellent, and some legendary.

[JTE]

Dean Markley's strings were originally made for him by Sterlingworth String Company. I understand that now they are the same company (don't know if Sterlingworth bought Markley or if Markely bought Sterlingworth). And as much as I despise Mr. Markley, their Ground Round Wounds and their Flats were very very good strings.

Because Markley apparently doesn't make a flatwound set any longer, I'd suggest you try a set of GHS's Precision Flats. I really like them because they have all the fundemental "thump" a good flat should have, and at the same time they have a definite note in them without being twangy. That's what I recall of the Dean Markely ones, so you might like the GHS ones a lot. Make sure you get the Precision Flats, not the Brite-Flats (which are NOT a flatwound, but a moddified roundwound).

PS, I first joined the AFM in 1976, local #102.
John

[harperbass]

Thank y'all.
Gonna give those precision GHS flats a shot. Don't care for the brite flats. They're just a ground roundwound, I think. It's ironic Fender flats won't fit on my Jazzbass: not long enough. Carol Kaye says Thomastik are tops, now.... but in order to get the guages I want I'd have to buy 2 sets. And of course I've always wondered about Pyramids. My main complaint about most flats these days is there's so little output. I think there has to be more iron in there, or something. I wonder if I'm the only bassist in the world who wishes someone would make a properly guaged nylon tapewound string.

[One Drop]

Robbie Shakespeare uses them, FWIW. Funny you should mention how loud they are: he is famous for how much sound he coaxes from a Jazz Bass.

[mmbongo]

Here's an interesting article mentioning Markely/Sterlingworth:

http://www.mlive.com/living/kalamazo...rings_kal.html