Are TI Jazz Flats worth the $?

[LadyLoveStingRay5]

I have, mixed reviews. I tried them a few years ago and tossed a set on my 25 year old Ibanez ATK305. LOVE them on that bass. Phenomenal. The feel, the tone… perfection.

I bought another set for my Fodera 2 years ago. I hate them on that bass. HATE. The A string is incredibly floppy and considerably louder than the rest of the strings, D and G strings have multiple dead notes, and the B has very little definition except for the open B. No such issues with rounds.

Worth trying? I’d say yes. But I don’t think every bass likes em.

To me they don’t work so well on basses that are very modern voiced.
I’ve found that TI Jazz Rounds are the solution.

 

[ColdEye]

I like TI rounds too, just wished there was a set that just had a tad more tension. Still have 2 packs here.

 

[Diplock]

I use TI flats more like a really well broken in set of nickel rounds than a traditional flat wound. They're incredibly responsive, easy to play, articulate and last for years. Totally worth the cost if what they do is what you want to hear.

What they don't do for me is the woody, muscular sound of a stiffer heavier traditional flat like a Labella, Fender, GHS etc. which is my primary sound. I recently played some Dogal Jaco flats and am considering trying a set. They seemed to kinda split the difference between TI flats and Labellas.

 

[ColdEye]

The Dogal Jaco flats are really good. Different tensions available too. Love it on my stingray.

 

[James Hart]

I gave in and tried a set of TI Flats 2 years back after hearing the hype for 20 years. Digging them, I gave TI Jazz Rounds a go on a bass...

Now, 4 of my 5 electric basses are wearing TI Jazz Flats or Rounds and I'm trying to figure out a solution to put a set of Jazz Rounds on my 7 string Bee! I need to find a wrapped string to blend with the 6 string set... a .023 to .020

 

[Pimpernel Smith]

I believe that Fran (Festa) has about 20 Hofner basses wearing
T-I flats. They work for him and a lot of Hofner players. I like them, too, but prefer the Hofner/ Pyramid Gold flats just a bit more. There excellent flats and well worth the price in my opinion.They're actually a great value because they last so long.

 

[bassgasbassgas]

I don't like them on all of my basses ... but on my Bongo 4HH, they pair perfectly with the active preamp. They tame the bark a bit, so the tone is fat, crisp, and sweet up and down the neck. With slight adjustments to the EQ / pup blend, or where my right hand sits, I can get a warm thump, a mid-boosted growl, or a treble-y rock tone.

Playability wise, they're the most ergonomic out of any string I've used. Very smooth, perfect tension. My left hand glides around the fretboard. It's effortless to play, really like butter. Going back to my basses with rounds feels like playing on sandpaper.

I don't care about longevity tbh ... I want the best sound and feel, period. If the TIs ever lose their tone, I'd replace them in a heartbeat. I really think they're a perfect match for the instrument.

 

[Jeff Scott]

Playability wise, they're the most ergonomic out of any string I've used. Very smooth, perfect tension. My left hand glides around the fretboard. It's effortless to play, really like butter. Going back to my basses with rounds feels like playing on sandpaper.

The tension is quite a bit lower on these, but TI Jazz Rounds feel way more like flats than rounds as the outer wrap winding is much smaller than typical rounds. Superb strings, IME.

 

[friskinator]

Just put a set of Jazz Flats on the Pino Precision clone I recently built. Haven’t had a chance to gig with them, but I did have to slightly adjust the truss and raise the action a bit to compensate for the lighter gauge and tension. So far so good, but gigging will be the true test.

I got them on Amazon for $75 shipped. Not a bad deal compared to other sellers.

 

[MarshallAC50Stack]

TI Jazz Flats are the Spirocores of the electric bass world. Uncompromising quality. The Jazz Rounds are cool too, and an especially nice five string option.

 

[MarshallAC50Stack]

I gave in and tried a set of TI Flats 2 years back after hearing the hype for 20 years. Digging them, I gave TI Jazz Rounds a go on a bass...

Now, 4 of my 5 electric basses are wearing TI Jazz Flats or Rounds and I'm trying to figure out a solution to put a set of Jazz Rounds on my 7 string Bee! I need to find a wrapped string to blend with the 6 string set... a .023 to .020

Thomastik makes a heavier type of rounds, but I don't know much about them. Maybe a blend between sets?

 

[nonohmic]

100%.

 

[hogy]

They are the best sounding, best feeling flats I've ever come across. I love the earthworm like flexibility.

They are also the cheapest strings I've ever found. I bought a total of three sets in my life, for three basses. The set on my main P-Bass have been on there since 2005 and still sound great. So hour-by-hour of playtime they were basically free at this point.

 

[JKos]

Yes, 100%. If they fit your playing style and tonal desires.

I love them. They are perfect on my P. I do not find the tension too low or floppy at all. I didn’t even need to make a truss adjustment going from the rounds I had to the TIs and I have my board almost straight and low action.

 

[JKos]

and they also leave black residue on my fingers

I take it you didn’t clean them before installation. Makes a big difference.

 

[hogy]

just not better than chromes on any level except price.

I'm not understanding what you are saying. D'Addario Chromes cost half of what TI Flats cost.

 

[Diplock]

I'm not understanding what you are saying. D'Addario Chromes cost half of what TI Flats cost.

And sound and feel very different.

 

[James Hart]

Thomastik makes a heavier type of rounds, but I don't know much about them. Maybe a blend between sets?

lighter, not heavier... they don't make anything thinner than the .029 High string on the 6 string set. My current strings are .025 and a wound .020 so to match the .029, I need a similar tone and tension. I assume I will be looking for a .023

I use Stainless Curt Mangan sets, I'm going to buy a Nickel .025 or wound .020 from him.

 

[MarshallAC50Stack]

Count me as one who does not like them. I got them on an SBMM Ray34 HH I purchased used and hated them, so I removed them almost immediately. Tried them again several months later on a Dean Vendetta and after about 15 minutes I removed them again.

Here we are a couple years later and I just tried them again on a gig on a Schecter Omen Extreme and again I hate them. I don't get anywhere near the growl and zing that I get from rounds and they also leave black residue on my fingers. So yeah I will be removing them again during the week. This time I might just ask someone if they would like to trade some EB Super Slinky 2834's for them. I'm done wasting time on them.

Nice to figure out what doesn't work! That'll save you time and money.

 

[Wicked G]

I take it you didn’t clean them before installation. Makes a big difference.

I received them already installed on an SBMM Ray34 HH, so I don't know if they were cleaned or not. And no I did not clean them when I tried them on the other two basses, although I don't normally clean strings while installing them to begin with.