Alternative to La Bella flatwound strings

[MichelD]

Not even the local three-storey outlet of the biggest music equipment chain in Canada has La Bella flatwounds here.

I wonder what other company makes good ones I could purchase instead?

 

[AppalachianBen]

GHS Precision flats if you want thump. If you want something more modern I like Dunlop flats.

 

[MichelD]

GHS Precision flats if you want thump. If you want something more modern I like Dunlop flats.

Thank you.

 

[Fernando Costa]

Amazon.es
La Bella LTF-4A

 

[michael_t]

Not even the local three-storey outlet of the biggest music equipment chain in Canada has La Bella flatwounds here.

I live in Canada and L&M is the last place I would be buying my bass strings from! I just ordered four sets of strings from Fret Nation (based in the US) and saved a bunch of money. Don't limit yourself to what you can find locally.

 

[michael_t]

For traditional flats similar to La Bella, I would go with GHS Precision Flats.

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[HaphAsSard]

DR Legends too are (usually) said to be in that ballpark, tone-wise.

 

[Moogmelt]

I'll second the DR Legends, although some sets I've had left me with a dead or unimpressive E string.
For something out of left field, I'll also highly recommend the GHS Pressurewounds. Best of both worlds IMO.

 

[cavemanbass]

Longtime LTF player, I recently started using Pyramid gold flats and really like them. A bit less thump than the LTF.

 

[thisheregiraffe]

I'm with michael_t, if you want to get the strings you really want, look at online retailers.

La Bella is actually a great example of how it's better to buy them online if you live in Canada. You can find them online for better prices and delivery times than Long & McQuade. An example: Last year I wanted to try copper tapes (750C set). My local L&M store could have ordered them and the lead time would have been several weeks, and my price would have been $ 57.99, or $ 65.53 after tax. Strings By Mail had the 750C set in stock, and I got it in under two weeks. I paid $ 56.18 all-in. 38.95 USD + 4.17 USD shipping, and the exchange rate of the day was 1.30287. I'm sure shipping will be more costly now, but SBM might still be a better deal than L&M. This isn't necessarily the case with all brands, but La Bella isn't cheap at L&M.

 

[Pilgrim]

Amazon has them.

 

[Low Commotion]

Hmmm…. My L&M store sells them. They might not always be available, but they sell them. And they’re cheaper than Amazon. L&M sell them for about $57 Canadian. They are a lot more from Amazon.

 

[MichelD]

Hmmm…. My L&M store sells them. They might not always be available, but they sell them. And they’re cheaper than Amazon. L&M sell them for about $57 Canadian. They are a lot more from Amazon.

Thanks. L&M has an awesome transfer system if they don't have what you want in stock. My local store got me a used small block Traynor that was on sale at another store in one day, and that was a ferry-ride away too. They got me a five-foot Speakon cable from another store swiftly as well.

If they don't have a set locally, I'm certain they can find some somewhere in the system.