| Impressions: La Bella 760FS flats
A couple weeks ago I purchased a 50's Classic P bass from a fellow TB'er. After asking him what strings were on the bass he told me they were La Bella Deep Talkin' Bass flats, .045, .065, .085, .105. I really like these strings, they have a really 'old-school', thumpy feel, and that's the only way I can rally describe them. They make the 50's classic P sound awesome.
I don't have a ton of experience with flats, and this is only my second set of flats ever. My other bass ('76 P) has Chromes (.045, .065, .080., .100) on it. The 760FS set is noticeably stiffer feeling, but I actually prefer that. I can get my action a little lower without any buzzing or rattling. I was also surprised at how bright these can get with the tone controls up on the bass. Makes it a very versatile string for me, as I feel like I they would even work fine in a rock type situation. Compared to the Chromes, they have a more natural tone, rounder, more 'vintage' sound to me. I know the terms 'old-school' and 'vintage are very subjective, but I really don't know any other way to describe them.
I guess I would put it this way...if you play mostly rock, heavier rock, with loud guitars in your band, but prefer the feel of flats and also want the sound of flats once in a while, Chromes would be the way to go. If you really want that old Motown, 60's, flatwound sound, but still want a versatile string that could hang in a rock setting and still punch it's way through the mix the La Bella's seem perfect, but I prefer more 'thump' than zing and bite and clang, but still need the sound of rounds on occasion.
I have found that when I dial in the bass around 1 o'clock, cut the mid control to 9 o'clock and boost the highs to 3 o'clock, dial back the tone knob on my bass a bit, and also dial back the volume knob just a tad, I can really get that nice, thumpy, sort of Motown tone out of my PF500 with the La Bellas on the Classic 50's.
All in all I'd highly recommend these strings if you're looking for that old school thump, but still want a versatile set of flats.
Last edited by sbpark : 03-10-2013 at 02:11 PM.
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