Been playing bass 28 years...

[GretschWretch]

July 20, 1949. I wasn't even a gleam in Leo Fender's eye.

 

[Altitude]

OK,
Now to throw some gasoline on the fire.
Are flats / ground wounds really that different sounding than rolling off the treble with the tone pot with round wound nickel plated strings?

[I'm a roundwound guy, so that's where my answer is coming from]

Probably not to the untrained ear. There's a short-sustain thing happening with flats that is hard to fake, but to your point if I only had one bass I'd keep rounds on it, roll off some high end, palm mute a little, and get >80% of the flatwound tone. It's much harder to come the other way.

 

[The Chuck]

Round here-

When I was born, I was very young.

 

[Thomas S Loomis]

Love flats myself, although I find that the use of flats are very specific. I have a set of warm brights on a maple fretless five and it's really nice and fat sounding. I find it really useful with a pick as well; sometimes getting that tone where I'm just cutting through the midrange with enough attack (without the evil glare from the guitarist). Get close to a Paul McCartney sound with that technique.

 

[Funkabilly]

I guess I'm the kid around here, I was born 1966.

 

[Mvilmany]

OK,
Now to throw some gasoline on the fire.
Are flats / ground wounds really that different sounding than rolling off the treble with the tone pot with round wound nickel plated strings?

Yes, there's more meat.

 

[phillybass101]

My first Bass had flats on it 45 years ago I do have a new P bass that I'm thinking about putting flats on but I'm not giving up my SS strings for other basses.

 

[twinjet]

Awesome! Glad you found the love for your bass.

For real though flats are a whole other world from rounds. Crazy.

100% tone, 0% tone... You can't go wrong with P bass. I loved the DR flats I used, pretty damn thumpy. Gonna try TI Jazz flats at some point, heard they're bliss.