"Adventures with Flats"

[GwenOnBass]

I was almost ready to pull the trigger on the Dunlop at one point, but it was your post about intonation issues with them that made me hesitate. I'm kind of glad I didn't go through with it.

Installed medium scale Dunlop flats on the big blue semi-hollowbody with the floating bridge, and never could get them properly intonated. Reckoned it may have been user error at install. Just scrapped the set and reinstalled La Bella Low Tension Flats. They've been there since, and are staying right where they are.

 

[jdjk7]

and a purpose.

An open free-flowing chat broadly about trying all kinds of flats and all things related. Worthy of a sticky in Strings?

Anyway, I ordered a set of Rotosound RS77 Jazz Bass monel flats today to try next on a P bass. The fact that Roger Waters and Glen Matlock use/d these strings is enough cause for me to be interested.

The 45-105 RS77 set has just a little less tension in pounds than 55-105 GHS P Flats so setup adjustment won't take much.

I've got two basses and two guitars with flats on.

One bass is a fretless Carvin Jazz-style (unmarked, kit bass) with TIs, about 5-6 years old. The other is a Fender MIM Precision, with Jamerson flats. Originally it had an EADG set on, but recently I ditched the high string and converted it to BEAD tuning. Immensely deep and thumpy tone, great for pop and dance music.

My electric (G&L Comanche Tribute) has TIs, while my acoustic (1940s Gibson archtop) has Black Diamonds, I think 13s.

 

[Grinderman]

Installed medium scale Dunlop flats on the big blue semi-hollowbody with the floating bridge, and never could get them properly intonated. Reckoned it may have been user-error at install. Just scrapped the set and reinstalled La Bella Low Tension Flats. They've been there since, and are staying right where they are.

Dunlop flats intonate in a particularly odd way--when the will intonate--, and that's on a fully adjustable, four independent saddles type bridge. It's the G strings that I found to be the problem over and over again, whether the sets were 45-105 or 40-100. The high G string saddle always had to be slammed back on the bridge as far it can go, or too far, to compensate.

 

[ColdEye]

I was such a big fan of EB Cobalts, never had the rust issues with them, then it just happens on a set I had for a year and a brand new set that was only on for a few weeks. Contacted EB about it they pretty much said I was on my own. So no more EB Cobalts for me.

I now stick to TIs since it's fool proof for me, and also another good one is the Dogal Jaco flats. No i do not have it on a fretless, I have it on my stingray EX with mutes and it rocks.

 

[GwenOnBass]

Dunlop flats intonate in a particularly odd way--when the will intonate--, and that's on a fully adjustable, four independent saddles type bridge. It's the G strings that found to be the problem over and over again, whether the sets were 45-105 or 40-100. The high G string saddle always had to be slammed back on the bridge as far it can go, or too far, to compensate.

It was the G I had trouble with. The bridge looked like this and the bass still wasn't intonated properly. No such problem with the La Bella LTFs.



The EB Group IV flats I use on the full scale remind me of Dunlops in their tone and response. It is no great surprise that EB strings compliment a StingRay. OTOH the EB Cliff Williams limited edition Ray shipped with Group flats.

 

[Grinderman]

It was the G I had trouble with. The bridge looked like this and the bass still wasn't intonated properly. No such problem with the La Bella LTFs.

View attachment 4983603

The EB Group IV flats I use on the full scale remind me of Dunlops in their tone and response. It is no great surprise that EB strings compliment a StingRay. OTOH the EB Cliff Williams limited edition Ray shipped with Group flats.

There it is.

 

[mikewalker]

Sadowsky Blue Label are insanely good flatwounds, medium-high tension and beautiful harmonic signature. [decent price here]

 

[Grinderman]

Sadowsky Blue Label are insanely good flatwounds, medium-high tension and beautiful harmonic signature. [decent price here]

Hmmm...

Huh?

I went to see about the 45-105 version of those. Do you have a discount code?

 

[Ron Berenato]

I try flats every now & then but I just can't embrace them. Too dead sounding / feeling for me. I just took some Rotosound flats off my precision and put on some Ernie Ball rounds and there it was - the life came back. I can roll off the highs and get all the "bassiness" I need. Flats have just never worked for me but every once and a while I give them another chance just in case.

 

[Medbo_BassBoy]

I LOVE STRING THREADS. Tried Roto77 flats on my jazz AND P-bass 2 years ago. It was the first set of flats I had tried in 14 years. They were not my preferred flats tone on either bass. Recently tried a set of La Bella - Low Tension Flats on my p-bass and found the tone I wanted. To my ear the La Bella were much warmer and lively.

 

[Phaidrus]

Well, I've tried numerous sets of flats over the years, always looking for that tone for my Pbass (with PV63 pup), which I never found, perhaps because it only exists in my mind. Or is the result of heavy production, as heard on certain recordings I take as reference, including compression with supa dupa tube compressors that cost thousands of bucks.

How would I describe that tone: super thick and creamy and warm and round and plastic and elastic. Or something like that. Like the tone of the great reggae bassists: Flabba, Fams, Robbie etc.

The closest I got was perhaps with a set of LaBella 760FS - but only as regards the E and A strings. D and G were horribly trebly and thin sounding even after six months of daily use.

So it's been about three months now that I have a Fender 9050M set on this Pbass. There's days I sort of like them and there's days I don't. They're pretty much even sounding across all four strings, which is good. Sometimes I have the impression the tone is somewhat hollow (like I also thought about Dunlop flats), some other days they sound kinda alright.

DR Legend were perhaps the best set overall, consistent end even and quite juicy.

Pyramid Gold were also not bad, perhaps not as lively as I would like them to be, which is not much.

 

[JimmyM]

Rotos are good but feel a bit odd to me. But I think it should be one that undecided folks should give a shot.

 

[jimmydean]

Totally using flats now on my jazz bass and F/EX bringing my new fretless PB tomorrow , which will be strung with GHS flatwound nylon 40-95 .

 

[Killing Floor]

I am open to trying any set of strings. I actually have 2 favorites, using TI JF on fretted but I prefer a little more fight on fretless so I use LaBella DTF on fretless.
I like 77s and Chromes and others.

There’s no best.

 

[Grinderman]

Now regarding darker thuddier sounding flats I'm still curious about Webstrings Detroit Bass stainless flats.

Does anyone have a good sense of how they compare in tone, tension and stiffness versus GHS P flats and or LaBella DTB (760FM or 760M)?

 

[michael_t]

GHS flatwound nylon 40-95.

What exactly are you talking about? GHS Precision Flats 45-95 or GHS Tapewound 50-105?

 

[Phaidrus]

The other is a Fender MIM Precision, with Jamerson flats. Originally it had an EADG set on, but recently I ditched the high string and converted it to BEAD tuning. Immensely deep and thumpy tone, great for pop and dance music.

You mean you've tuned the Jamerson set to BEAD?

 

[jmattbassplaya]

I’m the kind of player who loves the idea of flats but has had a heck of hard time finding a set that checks all the boxes regarding tension, tone, and feel.

TIs have a great feel but are too loose with regards to tension. They sound great in a mix but do nothing for me when soloed. Chromes feel great and sound great soloed, but they can be a bit tough to play for long periods and the low end gets lost in a mix. Roto Steve Harris signatures are literal bridge cables but they do have some good growl both soloed and in a mix. Labella LTFs feel awesome, but they’re a little looser than I’d like and don’t inspire me tone wise.

I finally got my hands on some GHS Precision Flats, and these might be the ticket for me. Good feel, good tension, and they have that classic tone. I haven’t had the chance to try them in a mix yet, but they may end up being keepers.

 

[Twocan]

For anyone not fully committed to going into flats, I recommend GHS Briteflats. They are rounds that are ground down. Good mixture of tone - not too bright and not muddy. They feel like flats and seem to get better with age.

 

[jdjk7]

You mean you've tuned the Jamerson set to BEAD?

Yeah, wasn't clear. I got myself a Jamerson low B string and stuck that on. It's probably not the optimal set for BEAD tuning, but it's what was on the bass and it does its own thing.