Strings for Ibanez ASB-140 semi-hollow

[particleman]

Picked up a used Ibanez semi-hollow Artcore yesterday and it came with flats. I have no idea of the brand or the age, but they sound ok to me, and it's the first time i've ever used flats for more than 5 minutes, so it's a whole new world for me. I'm in a Beatles cover band so this instrument will do a much better job at recreating that Hofner sound.

I'm finding that no matter how i eq my amp (Markbass 112 combo and Mesa 115 extension cab) i either get to much or too little "thickness" out of the G string. It sounds thin nonexistent. If i jack up the bass to thicken the sound, the E string becomes overbearing and i have to lay off the lower notes.

I'm thinking of throwing on my new D'Adarrio nickel wounds, 45-100, to see how it affects the sound. How will this change the overall sound of the bass, and especially the quality of the G string? Will it negate the Hofner thump I'm after?

thanks,
pm

[62bass]

Originally Posted by particleman

Picked up a used Ibanez semi-hollow Artcore yesterday and it came with flats. I have no idea of the brand or the age, but they sound ok to me, and it's the first time i've ever used flats for more than 5 minutes, so it's a whole new world for me. I'm in a Beatles cover band so this instrument will do a much better job at recreating that Hofner sound.

I'm finding that no matter how i eq my amp (Markbass 112 combo and Mesa 115 extension cab) i either get to much or too little "thickness" out of the G string. It sounds thin nonexistent. If i jack up the bass to thicken the sound, the E string becomes overbearing and i have to lay off the lower notes.

I'm thinking of throwing on my new D'Adarrio nickel wounds, 45-100, to see how it affects the sound. How will this change the overall sound of the bass, and especially the quality of the G string? Will it negate the Hofner thump I'm after?

thanks,
pm

I have no idea what the D'Addarios will sound like on your Artcore, but I have the same Artcore and have it strung with Thomastic JF344 flatwounds. No problem with the G string. Nice balance all over.

One problem with the T.I. strings--because of the long tailpiece the E string silk winding comes out just on top of the nut. I just took a razor blade and trimmed of about 1/4" of the silk winding. Problem solved and no degradation of sound. They've been on almost a year now and sound fantastic. It takes a few hours of playing before they balance up tone wise, and after that just get better.

There are subtle differences in sound when you change the height of the tailpiece from the body. You might want to play around with that too. And of course the pickup height can be adjusted to favour the low or high strings.

I put a little foam muting under the strings under the bridge if I want a less bright sound. The Artcore is a very lively sounding bass with a bit of a Stingray flavour to it.

Do you have the usual problem of a totally ineffective tone control on yours? One of these days I'm going to replace mine.

[particleman]

Originally Posted by 62bass

I have no idea what the D'Addarios will sound like on your Artcore, but I have the same Artcore and have it strung with Thomastic JF344 flatwounds. No problem with the G string. Nice balance all over.

One problem with the T.I. strings--because of the long tailpiece the E string silk winding comes out just on top of the nut. I just took a razor blade and trimmed of about 1/4" of the silk winding. Problem solved and no degradation of sound. They've been on almost a year now and sound fantastic. It takes a few hours of playing before they balance up tone wise, and after that just get better.

There are subtle differences in sound when you change the height of the tailpiece from the body. You might want to play around with that too. And of course the pickup height can be adjusted to favour the low or high strings.

I put a little foam muting under the strings under the bridge if I want a less bright sound. The Artcore is a very lively sounding bass with a bit of a Stingray flavour to it.

Do you have the usual problem of a totally ineffective tone control on yours? One of these days I'm going to replace mine.

The tone knob is definitely pointless. Doesn't do much of anything. You gotta use your amp to adjust the tone, or adjust hand position, playing style, etc. Otherwise, it's a great value of a bass. I kind of have Epiphone Jack Casady envy though.

Re: the TI flats, i'm a little hesitant to switch to another pair of flats before giving rounds a shot on that bass. Can i reuse flats if i take them off? I may decide i like the flats more than rounds on that bass. I just don't know if you can "reuse" strings.

[62bass]

Originally Posted by particleman

The tone knob is definitely pointless. Doesn't do much of anything. You gotta use your amp to adjust the tone, or adjust hand position, playing style, etc. Otherwise, it's a great value of a bass. I kind of have Epiphone Jack Casady envy though.

Re: the TI flats, i'm a little hesitant to switch to another pair of flats before giving rounds a shot on that bass. Can i reuse flats if i take them off? I may decide i like the flats more than rounds on that bass. I just don't know if you can "reuse" strings.

You can reuse the flats. Take them off carefully and rewind them the same way if you put them back on. Don't get any twist or kink in them when re-installing. With roundwounds, which the bass originally came with, it's a very bright bass with more of the Stingray flavour.