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Magma Ultra Flats Impression - Flat that sounds like a Round

logdrum

logdrum

A person!
Jun 24, 2002
9,085
12,438
Walnut Creek CA/ABQ-SAF NM
#1
This is a recording I just made of the same Jazz bass special with Magma Ultra Flat Strings. I had the same Logic Pro profile and the same Zen Audio pre-amp set up
105-85-65-45

They do not sound like flats and it's not that new flats zing either. Maybe it will change in a month

Their tension I think is even less than the previous strings EB Cobalt Flats at 95-40. To maintain the same relief I had to loosen the truss rod a bt. They do look like flats compared to GHS Brite flats or D'Addario ground wounds. They are short strings and may not work well if you have a 35 inch scale or string through, - These would be the A and D but they do not taper for a while, so you could probably remove some of the silk and reseal with a slight heat. Nice to the touch and clean, no roughness or chemical.

The bass used is a 1984 Fender Jazz Bass special with an EMG Geezer PJ and EMG pots.

Switch to PJ and P and rolled the tone knob some but mostly open. They are not bendy when hanged on a peg, but they are supple when playing.

If they retain this sound for a while then I think these are truly the strings that achieve the flat feel but roundwound sound.

Soundcloud link:



Previous recording of EB cobalts



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upload_2024-2-9_13-27-31.png


upload_2024-2-9_13-31-16.png
 
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#3
Some 15 years ago I was a Magma endorser (I'm from Argentina, so is the brand, a generations long family business). I still keep an unopened 5 string set of my preferred (awesome) nickels, for a really special occasion.

I bought one of these Ultra Flat sets about 3 years ago. It strung a Stingray5 for a couple years (until recently, I needed it for other duties, with rounds). They are zingy bright just initially. They settle just like any other flats, the starting point is simply a little overkill, probably some mysterious alloy property. They eventually lose that.

This is a recording I made about 2 weeks of occasional playing after installed. It's still bright (Musicman in-your-faceness adds to that) but it's already lost the sparky/glassy highs. Bass part is played with a pick. Melody is plucked.



I'm curious now how they'd sound and feel in my fretless (currently on LaBella LTFs), I'll try that and report back with some recording if I happen to find the time. All in all, great flats, they'll eventually age, maybe a little later. They still keep punching and overall detailed/refined/rich in tone.
 
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#4
logdrum said:
This is a recording I just made of the same Jazz bass special with Magma Ultra Flat Strings. I had the same Logic Pro profile and the same Zen Audio pre-amp set up
105-85-65-45

They do not sound like flats and it's not that new flats zing either. Maybe it will change in a month

Their tension I think is even less than the previous strings EB Cobalt Flats at 95-40. To maintain the same relief I had to loosen the truss rod a bt. They do look like flats compared to GHS Brite flats or D'Addario ground wounds. They are short strings and may not work well if you have a 35 inch scale or string through, - These would be the A and D but they do not taper for a while, so you could probably remove some of the silk and reseal with a slight heat. Nice to the touch and clean, no roughness or chemical.

The bass used is a 1984 Fender Jazz Bass special with an EMG Geezer PJ and EMG pots.

Switch to PJ and P and rolled the tone knob some but mostly open. They are not bendy when hanged on a peg, but they are supple when playing.

If they retain this sound for a while then I think these are truly the strings that achieve the flat feel but roundwound sound.

Soundcloud link:



Previous recording of EB cobalts



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Click to expand...

I've been looking for the exact same thing for my P bass - I'm gonna give these a looksee.

And I love the Jazz Bass Special - awesome bass, my very first "real" bass.
 
#5
andruca said:
Some 15 years ago I was a Magma endorser (I'm from Argentina, so is the brand, a generations long family business). I still keep an unopened 5 string set of my preferred (awesome) nickels, for a really special occasion.

I bought one of these Ultra Flat sets about 3 years ago. It strung a Stingray5 for a couple years (until recently, I needed it for other duties, with rounds). They are zingy bright just initially. They settle just like any other flats, the starting point is simply a little overkill, probably some mysterious alloy property. They eventually lose that.
Click to expand...
Cool

Of all the flats I-ve tried. Its the brightest so far. More than Cobalts or Chromes , heck even some rounds (Boomers or Balanced Nickels). I also play sax and I use Gonzales Reeds also from Argentina. They are very good and if you know reeds, sometimes you only get 1 or 2 good in a box. Gonzales are like 4 or 5/5 good. I know they are not like DR or TI Jazz Rounds in longevity of brightest, so I am looking forward to these mellowing out. They do respond to the passive tone control quite well. This bass is bright. it's that GZR Jazz pickup. It is bright by nature. I think I never fully opened it when recording..

Considering that EB has raised their flat prices along with Dunlop, I think Magma will be a way to save some bucks. Or for guys who need a bright sound but no squeaks -- this will be perfect.
 
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#9
AlarmClock314 said:
I also want to know how 45-105 Magma Ultra Flats compare to 45-105 Slinky Cobalt Flats which have been by go to string for years. I’ve tried at least 12 brands of flats before in search of the best and brightest. Just bought a set of these.
Click to expand...

I like them better than Cobalts, they are brighter. The .105's are probably the same tension as the .090 Cobalts. So for 22 days now, they are still bright.
 
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#11
Here’s my review vs Cobalt Flats. The TLDR is they’re somewhat brighter but have design issues.

These are labeled as flats but are in fact compression wound. They weigh more and the package says they’re “wounded and flattened with stainless steel”.

The best part is they’re bright and smooth. They sound fairly unique but in a good way. The tension is about the same. The two main issues I had are the silk ends are too long and the ends aren’t tapered. If strung through-body the silks will be over the nut on the E and A strings and could pass the nut on the E string with drop tunings, I’d only recommend stringing them top-load. Because they aren’t tapered and compression wound, they add a noticeable weight to the headstock/neck which I dislike on most basses. I didn’t use them long enough to test their longevity but they shouldn’t tarnish like Cobalts or become dull sounding like Chromes.
 
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#13
maturanesa said:
Magma are preassure wounds, they may feel like flats but they sound just close to a real flat in months.
I like them, they are more versatile than a real flat but forget about having that jamerson or mccartney tone. They just get close but not the same.
Click to expand...
AlarmClock314 said:
These are labeled as flats but are in fact compression wound. They weigh more and the package says they’re “wounded and flattened with stainless steel”.
Click to expand...
MaHei said:
They are labeled as flats but are in fact compression wound, but they sure look like groundwound.
Click to expand...
AFAIK they're not compression-wound. The fact that "flattened" in English usually means "to make flat by pressing" doesn't mean that is what happens here; by the way, "wounded" alone should cast doubt on the reliability of the translation.
The original Spanish-language blurb says "entorchardas" (wound) and "pulidas" (polished), which to me points toward groundwounds anyway.

If any of you has seen additional information, by all means link to it and I'll gladly stand corrected.
 
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#14
Wow these magmas have me very interested! if they are in fact, a smooth, flexible, pressure or ground, that would be awesome. Was wanted to string that somewhere in between pressurewounds and TI’s and this might be it

by the way, I will say it again, I love TI Flats, but just not on a precision bass. For a jazz bass I think there’s absolutely nothing better. I play jazz over the back pickup, so TIs feel good there. When I put them on a P bass and play over the pickup I don’t like the way it feels especially since I have them on a jazz bass where I play in an area where they are tighter. It makes it even more of a contrast and they feel too flabby to me.
 
#17
I got myself a set of these as well and I am very happy with how they sound and feel!


20240919_200151.jpg


They are smooth, slick and silent and have round high end presence without any zing, a tiny bit of mid scoop and a full, even low end. Very comfortable to play, a bit stiffer that TI flats, quite similar to the Cobalt flats.
Only time will tell how they hold up but so far I am impressed, not least as they are really affordable compared to many other flats out there.
 
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#19
Dude, thanks for the follow up! Sounds great! Sounds like they keep a little more of the sparkle and harmonics of the fresh ones than cobalts. I love my cobalts, but wanted to keep the highs a little more like how they were when they were fresh. The highs are still present, but I've found they really mellow out.

You don't happen to push the treble EQ on the amp?
 
#20
Novarocker said:
Dude, thanks for the follow up! Sounds great! Sounds like they keep a little more of the sparkle and harmonics of the fresh ones than cobalts. I love my cobalts, but wanted to keep the highs a little more like how they were when they were fresh. The highs are still present, but I've found they really mellow out.

You don't happen to push the treble EQ on the amp?
Click to expand...
No. In fact it was at about 11:30
 
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