In general, I don’t like flat wounds much preferring round wounds. I absolutely hate (ahem) “vintage” flat-wound strings that should have been replaced decades ago.
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.
Are there strings you actually dislike?
- Thread starter FunkyYeti
- Start date
In general, I don’t like flat wounds much preferring round wounds. I absolutely hate (ahem) “vintage” flat-wound strings that should have been replaced decades ago.
LaBella Flats, the ones with the purple silk
DOA out of the pack.
Don't get me wrong, luv me some dead flats, but these were like 80yo flats in a 8 week old package
DOA out of the pack.
Don't get me wrong, luv me some dead flats, but these were like 80yo flats in a 8 week old package
TIJF. I tried, I really did. Tried them on my Ric, my Stingray, my precision’s. Was an expensive experiment.
The tone isn’t bad, sounds good on the PJ, but the tension. They are too floppy for me.
The tone isn’t bad, sounds good on the PJ, but the tension. They are too floppy for me.
LaBella 760FLs. The top 3 sound fine, but the E always sounds weird. I really wanted to love them, but I've yet to buy a tonally balanced set. Plus, the last set I had actually rusted after I'd taken them off and saved them.
D'Addario Half Rounds. Great tension, rough feel, and surely not my sound. To me, they sounded like the worst of both worlds.
Rotosound Tapewounds. I hated these instantly. Interestingly, a friend of mine had these on an old MIJ violin bass, and they sounded right on that thing. On my P bass, no way.
GHS Boomers. My least favorite round. I just didn't like them, but it was mostly about the stiffness. Not my thing. Funny, because I love their Pressurewounds, I just don't have enough basses to keep them on something long-term. Gotta fix that, I reckon.
D'Addario Half Rounds. Great tension, rough feel, and surely not my sound. To me, they sounded like the worst of both worlds.
Rotosound Tapewounds. I hated these instantly. Interestingly, a friend of mine had these on an old MIJ violin bass, and they sounded right on that thing. On my P bass, no way.
GHS Boomers. My least favorite round. I just didn't like them, but it was mostly about the stiffness. Not my thing. Funny, because I love their Pressurewounds, I just don't have enough basses to keep them on something long-term. Gotta fix that, I reckon.
For years based on online recommendations I assumed I’d love TI flats. Ended up hating them. Love TI rounds now though 
.
.
Chromes. Hate ‘em. I have a set in my shop that I want to trade for a different set of almost anything else.
Nothing brand specific, but I have issues with strings that are too thin or not stiff enough (low tension). I also appreciate a relative balance between them (relatively similar tension across the strings). Basically, I start with a certain tension/stiffness/thickness goals and work from there.
Okay I must admit, I fell for the whole coated string thing when it started to get popular. Silly me. I'm so gullible, I'l believe almost anything said here. I tried DR Black Beauties because I wanted everything on My #1 Black! Finish, hardware, & strings. they Look Killer and sound good, but after about A month or 2 when they start to die, They get terrible! rubbery, flaky, sticky, & dull sounding. I couldn't stand them. I thought they would last longer being coated, nope. once they go they suck! Dont get me wrong, I love other uncoated DR strings! so I was surprised I disliked these so much! even wiping them down religiously after practice, they felt horrible. they felt rubbery,& fake. until I found Rotosound Nexus strings, they're wonderful so far!
I cannot stand Chromes. They start zing and fade to thump, and not a good thump. They don't have a "sweet time" where the zing wears off before going completely dead. And the gauges are horrible, with the D string really, really tight and the E string looser than it needs to be for consistency of tone string-to-string. Did I say I cannot stand Chromes....
Never had strings that made me want to remove them right away. If they don’t make much of an impression on me, I just don’t seek them out in the future. Overall, I’ll try out nearly any medium gauge string I can get my hands on. But I do have my faves.
DA Chromes and EB Slinkys. I don't like the tone of Chromes (yes, Chrome lovers, I've let them break in) and the Slinkys die within a couple hours under my hands.
Didn't like Maxima Gold - very sticky. Dunlop Super Brights were too Bright.
Like Elite Nickel 40-100
Like Elite Nickel 40-100
