TI Flats, DM Flats, and sliced fingers

[Anthbass]

I went down to one of the local stores today to pick up a new set of flats for my 5 string fretless. Selection was limited to say the least. I had D'addario's on the bass, which are fairly bright, and was looking for a more 'thumpy' sound. My choices were TI flats ($80!!!) or Dean Markley's at around $40. I'm not a wealthy man so the DM's came home with me. I had just nicely gotten the bass restrung when the E string unwrapped and cut the @#$% out of the uppermost joint on my left pinky finger. Poor quality control? I really don't know but am now wishing that I had sprung for the TI's. So, my question is to the TI users: are they worth the big money?

[Chazinroch]

My humble opinion yes. I have TI flats on my fretless and they feel and sound so much better than the D'Addario flats I had on my P-bass. I took the flats off the P-bass (which were practically brand new) and replaced them with the TI flats. Check eBay, you may find TI flats a little cheaper than at your local music store.

[jasper383]

TI Flats are unique. You will quite likely love or hate them. Low tension, really middy, and lots of character.

You should contact Dean Markley. They probably will replace the bad string. String manufacturers, in my experience, have excellent and responsive customer service.

[GeneralElectric]

You can get TI flats for $40 online

[Anthbass]

Originally Posted by GeneralElectric

You can get TI flats for $40 online

Where? I checked at juststrings and the particular strings I saw earlier today were priced at $70.

[P_bass]

I have DM Flats on my P Bass, TI Flats on my medium scale Alembic and TI Flats on my 5 string fretless. The DM's belong on the P, it is the sound I hear on it. The TI's belong on the Fretless and record amazingly well on the Alembic.

I believe I paid 60 bucks for my TI's about two years ago, yea they are still sounding like new and are worth the cost.

[Loel]

You can get TI 5'ers at Strings and Beyond.com
for 69.95 free shipping to Canada..

Yeah there expensive but last forever..

[jasper383]

Originally Posted by GeneralElectric

You can get TI flats for $40 online

Not 5 string. Add $20 for 5 string, usually.

[GeneralElectric]

I got mine from Lemur music for $40 + shipping about 6 months ago IIRC

[amper]

Originally Posted by Anthbass

I went down to one of the local stores today to pick up a new set of flats for my 5 string fretless. Selection was limited to say the least. I had D'addario's on the bass, which are fairly bright, and was looking for a more 'thumpy' sound. My choices were TI flats ($80!!!) or Dean Markley's at around $40. I'm not a wealthy man so the DM's came home with me. I had just nicely gotten the bass restrung when the E string unwrapped and cut the @#$% out of the uppermost joint on my left pinky finger. Poor quality control? I really don't know but am now wishing that I had sprung for the TI's. So, my question is to the TI users: are they worth the big money?

TI Jazz Flats, to me, do not sound so much better than any other brand that I would use them exclusively. That said, they sound great, and are certainly lower tension than many other brands.

I just got a set of Rotosound Jazz Bass 77 RS775LD's from JustStrings.com. They were less than $50.

My favorite flats are TI's, Roto's, and D'Addarios, because they bother to make the gauges I like. I think I may like Roto's the best of all. La Bella also makes the right gauges for me, but I haven't tried them yet.

[Anthbass]

Cool. I'm planning on ordering some DR's and giving them a whirl. I didn't mind the D'addario flats; I was just looking for a tonal change. The DM's are decent, very thumpy and smooth. I don't they will be a long term sound for me but in the interim they work fine.

[BluesWalker]

The TI's are worth it, they are all I use. Excellent tonal quality out of the box that does not degrade with time. They last a long time and have the nice mellow tone I like.