Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Anyone Prefer Dead Roundwounds to Flats?
- Thread starter funkmaster p
- Start date
Yep. Not all rounds age well. I've settled on DR Nickel Lo-Riders as rounds I can leave on forever for what I'm going for. They get to a really nice place where you can thump but you can still clank if you need to. And the trusty 66's would be my second choice.
Im similar to you except I never changed: I still like bright new roundwounds. The thing is, I like new rounds because (especially with active basses) I can tone-shape down zing and brightness PRN and make them sound deader as needed - but I cant add zing to already worn strings if I need to
I just mentioned this in another thread: the problem with worn roundwounds (or any string) is that the strings usually age different tonally. I remember engineering recording sessions where the bass player had a dead E string, an almost dead A string, a moderate D, and a bright and zingy G string
Last edited:
New product: Dead Wounds
Actually, there’s a lot that makes sense tone-wise; dark tone with the flexibility of rounds.
Some flats can do that, plus you don’t have the fret wear.
Have a 4 string with 13 year old DR roundwounds. Use it for smooth jazz and reggae. No sustain but sound great to me for those genres.
I don't like how nickel plated steel rounds break in, but pure nickel outer (TIJR) or stainless steel (Roto 66) seem ok to me. I had an over two year old set of TIJRs that I only removed to try a different type of string. Only then I realized how much they had broken in, but I still liked them very much.
With my basses, dead rounds are great on my P Bass, since it's naturally really bright for a P. I like flats better in most cases, but whenever I find myself playing a lot of rock I do miss the frequency response of a good, bright set of rounds. Super dead rounds usually get really dirty in my experience which I'm not a fan of.
Material also makes a difference: super played in nickel rounds are really nice where with stainless steel I find myself just wishing that high end was still there.
Material also makes a difference: super played in nickel rounds are really nice where with stainless steel I find myself just wishing that high end was still there.
drumvsbass
Commercial User
- Aug 20, 2011
- 1,985
- 4,325
- Disclosures
- I work for Long and McQuade Musical Instruments Canada in Sales.
I don't know about prefer, but it certainly is a 'thing'.
With reservations, me.
I can kill just about any roundwound PDQ, so it was pointless for me to buy flatwounds as I'd be in that tone neighborhood soon enough. Plus, flatwounds just feel too smooth, just wierd under my hands.
Plus I generally operate under the idea I can calm bright new roundwounds down to suit, but no way can I get flats to imitate rounds.
I can kill just about any roundwound PDQ, so it was pointless for me to buy flatwounds as I'd be in that tone neighborhood soon enough. Plus, flatwounds just feel too smooth, just wierd under my hands.
Plus I generally operate under the idea I can calm bright new roundwounds down to suit, but no way can I get flats to imitate rounds.
2+ year old rotosound swing bass strings = sweet spot.
I have always strongly preferred rounds over flats. Generally use DR round core nickel rounds (DR Pure Blues or Sunbeams) and in the past 5 years have discovered the beauty of "well worn/settled in" nickel rounds. However I've found that there is a fairly narrow line between "well worn/settled in" and just plain old dead though, so I just keep my ears open as I use the bass that has those older rounds on it. I find at a certain point they do wear out enough to make them difficult ... dead spots from fret wear, hard to intonate/tune, uneven "deadness" between strings (I find the lower 2 ... E and A get more dead quicker than the D and G).
That said, I do have 1 reasonably fresh/semi-zingy rounds option (same DR's) available at all times too.
Its all about the tools you need.
That said, I do have 1 reasonably fresh/semi-zingy rounds option (same DR's) available at all times too.
Its all about the tools you need.
I used to hate dead rounds till I switched to Dunlop Super Bright Nickels. They sound great to me dead. Even when really dead, they still have some zing when it’s needed.
But it’s entirely situational. If I were playing in a Rush tribute, I would change them fairly often. But I’m not so the sets on my main two basses have been on for 4 years
But it’s entirely situational. If I were playing in a Rush tribute, I would change them fairly often. But I’m not so the sets on my main two basses have been on for 4 years
I second the Dunlop Nickle Super Bright's. I've been experimenting with just leaving them on my newer American Deluxe J V for a year. They sound more like my 64 Jazz with broken in strings. I'm loving it.
Oooh, thanks for the recommend. Im gonna give those a try to use as continually bright strings to maybe get more life out of strings than I currently do. I change strings so often I may need to take a second mortgage out on my house so anything that would help at this point is appreciaited lol
I like old round wounds, they have more mids than flats, I leave Roto Swing 66's on some basses for a long time. I like them new though too. I don't like them when they start sounding different from each other though or play out of tune.
I used to play a passive P-Bass clone (Jay Turser) and would change my roundwounds every week. Perhaps of note, I was playing the cheapest strings I could get (Ernie Ball Power Slinky's) and playing as many hours a week as I worked in my full time job. I liked the bright sound. I let that bass go when I switched to an active 5-string (G. Gould GGi-5) and his proprietary roundwounds. I found that I didn't need to change strings more than monthly, even if playing was the bulk of how I was spending my time, to get a sound that pleased my ears and cut the mix. Maybe it was the difference in the quality of the strings. Maybe it was in the differences between an el cheapo and a supremo bass. It wasn't the amount of time on the strings, because that may actually have increased during that time frame. Also of note, I keep my strings very clean and use the Dunlop String Cleaner/Lubricant before and after I play and wipe things down. Also, no dust accumulation from the bass sitting uncovered or uncased.
In the last few years, coming with changes in my personal life and home circumstances, the time I spend playing has dramatically dropped with a few spells of zero playing for months at a time. When I picked up the bass and plugged it in, I expected to be swapping out the strings for a fresh set, but it turned out that things were still holding up well, tone-wise. Maybe my tastes have changed...I dunno.
To answer the question, I prefer rounds to flat every day of the week and I prefer fresh sounding rounds to dead sounding rounds with the same frequency. When I say dead, I refer to the tone, not so freakin' old that they won't hold a tune and affect the intonation.
In the last few years, coming with changes in my personal life and home circumstances, the time I spend playing has dramatically dropped with a few spells of zero playing for months at a time. When I picked up the bass and plugged it in, I expected to be swapping out the strings for a fresh set, but it turned out that things were still holding up well, tone-wise. Maybe my tastes have changed...I dunno.
To answer the question, I prefer rounds to flat every day of the week and I prefer fresh sounding rounds to dead sounding rounds with the same frequency. When I say dead, I refer to the tone, not so freakin' old that they won't hold a tune and affect the intonation.
Last edited:
