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Best Flatwound Strings?

#141
jeffbonny said:
If you've frequented recent flat wound threads you might have seen my response to complaints about price:
$50 = a little less than $0.03 a day over the five years you will get out of any set of flats. Compare that to the $250 running DR Sunbeams changing them twice a year will cost you over the same period. Even higher priced flats are a good deal.
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That's mere rationalization. I don't buy it.

Strings are generally badly designed and made and are overpriced.

And I'll add at no extra charge that in a long and eventful life, I have never seen -- with the possible exception of cult members -- any group of people who struggled so hard as musicians do to justify their own manifold exploitation. It amazes me. :rollno:
 
#142
GrandLowBass said:
I dislike Chromes. They were my first and only set of flats for a long time. But recently I got thump fever and dropped the dough on some LaBella Deep Talkin' Bass flats. Holy cow. A world of difference from the Chromes. I'll have to see how they break in, but for now the LaBella's are staying put.
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I gotta say, there could be a reason why the Labellas cost almost twice as much as the Chromes. Whether they are "twice as good", I'll leave for others to decide. Chromes are an affordable introduction to flatwounds, but to these ears, there's a whole lot more going on with the Labellas, TIs, Sadowskys, hence the price.

Now, just to confound the issue and contradict what I just said(!): After using mostly the 3 flats mentioned above for my time as a bassist (35+ years), I tried a standard set of GHS Precision Flats, a relatively affordable string for a flatwound, and I am kicking myself for not having tried them sooner. They bring an awful lot to the table for under $25. Even new out of the box and even though they are not very balanced (yet), they are pretty GREAT strings.
 
#143
Fit4pain said:
I like TI's but switched to Sadowsky's and never looked back. I also tried Fenders, just ok for me. The fenders were to bright. TI's sound great but they felt to soft. The Sadowsky's just fit and sounded perfect to me.
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Exactly the experience I had, and likewise the reason I switched to Sadowskys.

I don't mind paying more $$ if it means getting the tone and playability I am looking for (and thankfully with flatwounds, you only have to do it once every so many years), but I think the light gauge Sadowskys (40-100) will get you awfully close to TI territory for less $$.
 
#145
La Bellas


Simply the best. Worth the money for the tone, feel and tension. I wish Sweetwater would sell them.

I love'm so much I'm exploring all the other types of of strings they make. Just put black nylons on another bass of mine. I really wondering about the "Jameson's" strings now. I'm kind of curious about the white nylon strings also.
 
#151
I didn't read through the whole thread, but here is my suggestion. I have used several flatwound strings with my p bass and I really like the Ernie Ball Flatwound Group II. The Rotosounds are really good as well, but have a much higher tension. I use the LaBellas on my Danelectro Longhorn Bass because they are short scale.
 
#152
Timpala said:
I didn't read through the whole thread, but here is my suggestion. I have used several flatwound strings with my p bass and I really like the Ernie Ball Flatwound Group II. The Rotosounds are really good as well, but have a much higher tension. I use the LaBellas on my Danelectro Longhorn Bass because they are short scale.
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You didn't read the whole thread? Not good enough. Go back and start again. ;)
 
#153
VincentB said:
La Bellas


Simply the best. Worth the money for the tone, feel and tension. I wish Sweetwater would sell them.

I love'm so much I'm exploring all the other types of of strings they make. Just put black nylons on another bass of mine. I really wondering about the "Jameson's" strings now. I'm kind of curious about the white nylon strings also.
Click to expand...

The tone of the "Jameson's" is intoxicating...

LaBella "Jamersons" are something special, too. While the tension is high, they play well, and nothing sounds like they do, not even other LaBella DTFs.
 
#155
Well guys, after taking my beloved '64 Jazz Bass to the local
Fender Gold Level Authorized Luthier, I'm definitely not running round wounds any more.

I'm having it gone over and fully documented and registered
with Fender for it's 50th Birthday this May.

The frets are still all original, but the tops were flat from wear when they should have a smooth crown.

I've used D' Addario Flats and like them, but this time around I'm going back to Black Nylon Tape wounds to preserve the frets and talk about Smooooth!

I used them in the studio back in '73 and the engineers were really happy with how they tracked and also reduced unwanted finger noise and string clack.

They will tame some of the brightness you guys mention, but in a way similar to old school slightly muting excessive ring.

Really sweet for tracking D/I too.

A good friend tried a set of Black Nylon Wrap,
D' Addarios on his Gibson EB and that bass has never sounded better.

The strings are actually lights, but with the wrap, they list them as mediums.

If you want to find a Gold Level Luthier in your state, contact
Fender Customer Relations.

I'll certainly never take my basses and guitars to anyone else.

In 45 minutes, he solved a 20 year old problem on my '66 Hofner 501. The truss bar adjustment nut was so tight I was afraid to turn it any more and the neck was still bowed.

I had insane estimates from techs telling me the neck would need to be pulled, heat treated and reset.

Larry looked at it, said Yup! He then proceeded to make a threaded spacer on his metal lathe, installed it, gradually cranking about a turn and a half and said, well its straight now! :-) Full set-up, fret dressing, carefully lowering the action by sanding the base of the bridge and saddle and it has never played so good. Intonation better than ever before too.

$80.00 :hyper:
 
#156
Just to hear what I'm talking about.

This was recorded D/I through an original hand built legacy API console at Bias Recording Studios original Falls Church VA location. 1973

We had to stop tracking because the thunderstorm was so loud.

Then this light bulb went off and we decided to include it in the song.

The group and I parted ways, but they kept this track and included it on the debut album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7X0JYhz_4E
 
#158
For double-ball strings (for Steinberger and the like) I found LaBella's SUCK. Very dead sounding. Eventually I found Status Graphite's strings which are great. They have both flat-wound and half-wound (as well as round-wound and tape-wound) and are MUCH cheaper and they also offer 5-string sets which LaBella doesn't. You can buy them off their website.

They also have regular single-ball strings as well...
 

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