what strings to give warwick a "vintage-y" tone

[rorykins]

hi all.
I asked a question about tone in the basses forum and thought i would try here too.
I'm looking to make my warwick streamer lx sound a bit more like my jazz bass...i know, i know...trust me...
I want to keep the feel and range of the warwick, but keep more of the "vibe" of the jazz. one post suggested changing to different strings.
what strings would get my modern to sound more like my vintage re-issue jazz bass?
I've used ernie ball super slinkys exclusively for the last 5 or 6 years now.
what would you suggest? i was thinking of rotosounds, d'addarios,???
any help at all would be nice!
cheers team!

[rorykins]

p.s.
i just thought would mention...i guess i'm looking for a darker tone?
ok, ok, im done
thanks

[jasper383]

I would suggest trying the regular Fender nickel/steel strings. Pretty dark for rounds. Longest lasting rounds in my experience.

Maybe if you feel like going even more vintage, try D'Addario Half Rounds, or even Chromes.

[rorykins]

would those strings be "boomy" or "thuddy", being like flat wounds?

idealy, im looking for a roundwound tone, but a bit "richer" or darker than what im using.
whow do d'addarios compare to ernie balls? i thought they woud be similar. but rock and punk guys seem to use ernie balls and lots of jazzers and guys like egan, manring, willis, bailey, watt, haslip, all use d'addarios.
id rather get a tone like those guys than...say...pennywise, and nine inch nails.
thanks

[jasper383]

Boomy or thuddy I think can pretty much be eq'd out.

D'addarios will be a little smoother across the spectrum. Ernie Balls sound crunchier up top to my ears. They are definitely similar in feel and construction.

I think that who plays the brands has more to do with endorsements than what strings the musicians would play if they had their choice.

Rich and dark roundwounds? Fender. Maybe DR Sunbeams. Leave them on a few weeks.

If you actually want boom or thud, think flats.

[rorykins]

ok, so boom and thud was not what i was thinking...i should have known that cause ive got rotosound flats on my other bass..

im thinking i will switch to d'addarios anyway, cause if they are smoother all round, and feel simiilar to the ernie balls, then im cool, (the ernie balls do have a bit of a bite-y top end).
it helps that the academy i teach at is endorsed by d'addario...son i get em cheap...really cheap....in fact i have no idea why i've not switched yet.


aboutthe fenders, i will try them out too, i never thoughtaboutthem cause i put them on my jazz and diddnt like them. maybe on the warwick.
cheers thanks

[Pilgrim]

Vintage = flats
Dark = flats

Ergo:

Solution = flats

Labella Deep Talkin' flats will give you vintage without being thuddy.

[projectMalamute]

Ever heard the soundtrack to Raumpatrouille? German TV miniseries from the 60's, music by Peter Thomas. Really great stuff with that sort of old school big money analog technicolor production style. I can totally get that bass sound with a Warwick strung with flats and a good compressor. So I guess my point is that you can get a real good 'vintage' sound out of Warwick, for a bizarre enough definition of 'vintage'. I don't know how well getting it to sound like a 60's jazz would work.