Been playing bass 28 years...

[Blankandson]

I'm not seeing anyone with old basses, just people who have been playing for many years. My main bass today is 22 years old and the strings that came with it are no longer made. I talked to the company and they said their new 'high end' basses used so-and-so strings today, so I bought some. (Rounds but made differently than the DR rounds I've been using.) About $80 but wow my old bass finally sounds like it was designed to sound. Anyone else with an old bass and having to find out what strings came on it when new?

 

[Humbled]

I'm not seeing anyone with old basses, just people who have been playing for many years...

Good Lord. How's my 1964 Precision (on the left) for an "old bass"...

...or my 1965 Precision... or my 1941 Kay OM100B...

Yeah. They're real.

 

[D M C]

I've tried both rounds and flats. I prefer flats.

Oh, I've tried tapes too, but not on a bass that I own.

I still prefer the flats.

Haven't tried half-rounds though.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

TBH in a blind test, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between flats & rounds, unless the rounds were really fresh.
I can tell the difference right now between fresh Dunlop Super Brights & the D'Addario Chrome Flats, but not really much difference between a year old set of GHS rounds & the Flats.

 

[DavC]

back in the early 70's , my first bass had flats .? i didn't now any different for a couple years , then went to rounds . Just a few years back i got some Ti flats , for the first time in about 40 yrs . They do have their own sound/feel !!

 

[electracoyote]

And this my first time playing with Flats!! Lovin' them!!!

After reading some posts about flats I
ordered some LaBella Deep Talkin' flats from bassstringsonline and put them on my Pbass special.

Now that's what a bass should sound like!

I've always played metal and hardcore so always used roundwounds but these feel great for a low end tone.

Late to the party

Yeah, I waited decades before finally stringing a bass up with flats.

I won't go so far as to say "that's what a bass should sound like," but it is definitely one great tone and smooth feel.

 

[paparoof]

TI Flats for me. Just got back from band practice where I spent most of the evening staring into my cab just amazed at the tone I was hearing. This set of strings is now about four years old and I've logged hundreds of hours of play time on them so I'm not at all unfamiliar with the tone. It's just that I still can't get over how happy this sound makes me. And they have years of life left in them too!

 

[30yobass]

Funny, I just discovered this forum to research my 30+ year old Fender P-bass to see how much it was worth. I was considering selling/trading for a Fender Jazz. While reading through the P-bass thread, I noticed how popular flats were in the thread... all I ever used were roundwounds. I bought a new Tort PG and threw on some flats, and now I'm in love with how good my bass looks and sounds.

Did you just call me, babe?

 

[AshInAmsterdam]

Hah I've been playing guitar for 22 years and bass casually for about 6 of those, I always treated my bass the same as my guitars - D'Addario XLs all the way. Then I got a P Bass which has a more cutting, trebly sound than my other bass and thought flats would solve that.. and they did!

So yeah, I love the flats, but I will be keeping rounds on my Ibanez, even though the feel of sliding on flats is just great.

 

[Thumper19605]

Strange title for a thread about flats.
I put flats on recently, but I can't say I am feeling it. I can't say I can tell a huge difference from the year old rounds I took off.

I use both and agree with Super freak, Don't get me wrong I love my flats but hate the tension, so I use old rounds for now.
I understand Tomastik has low tension and may try a set when I can get myself to spend that kind of cash on strings.
Glad your digging the thump not the twang.

 

[schietschijfje]

I love my Labella flats. The sound is so warm and dark, ideal for reggae/ska but also great for jazzy basslicks.

 

[timonvh]

TI Flats for me. Just got back from band practice where I spent most of the evening staring into my cab just amazed at the tone I was hearing. This set of strings is now about four years old and I've logged hundreds of hours of play time on them so I'm not at all unfamiliar with the tone. It's just that I still can't get over how happy this sound makes me. And they have years of life left in them too!

View attachment 772474

Like the scratchplate!
BTW TI flats on nearly everything. In Europe they're reasonably affordable.

 

[Metalbasspro]

I recently tried Steve Harris Signature flats. It was like putting on used strings that had been in service for 6 months. Screwed with my action too. I removed them and will never again use flat wound. I don't know how Harris get s a good tone out of that stuff.

 

[Mattrill]

Welcome to the thump club.

 

[Sav'nBass]

I started out with flats... The first rounds I ever used were Rotosounds. I had a set of TI flats on my Lakland but I took them off and put them on my 78 Jazz. I generally prefer rounds but flats have their place.

 

[mongo2]

Was a time a few decades ago when flats were very hard to come by. Back then I bought a few used P basses just because they had their original flats. I used them for a while and later removed the flats, put rounds on them and sold the basses. Over the decades I've used those flats on several basses.

 

[Ric5]

And this my first time playing with Flats!! Lovin' them!!!

After reading some posts about flats I
ordered some LaBella Deep Talkin' flats from bassstringsonline and put them on my Pbass special.

Now that's what a bass should sound like!

I've always played metal and hardcore so always used roundwounds but these feel great for a low end tone.

Late to the party

I started on flats in 1968 ... then went to rounds and never looked back.

 

[Steven Ayres]

I ordered some LaBella Deep Talkin' flats.... Now that's what a bass should sound like!

My very first bass came with flats on it, and they sounded awful to me, so I switched. But that was 1973. Over time I grew more sensitive to that little click every time I fretted a note, and about 15 years ago started trying various flatwounds to see whether it would help. Eventually I found the tapewound LaBellas, and I now keep them on all but one of my EBs, the exception being a fretless. The technology has changed quite a lot.

 

[Dana R Gregory]

I recently put flats on my Fender Am Std Pbass. They are soooooooooo smooth and comfortable on my fingers. No more string noise when you change frets. I will never go back to rounds. Rounds tore up my fingers and caused blisters. Flats forever for me.

 

[delta7fred]

I had been playing 46 years before I discovered flats.

I did have an Hofner Senator bass (hollow bodied) back in the 60s that had flats, I hated everything about it and couldn't sell it fast enough. After that I got a P (with flats) and bought a set of rounds at the same time and changed them as soon as I got home.

Ironically the flats I have now are on a Violin bass so not too that far removed from a Senator.