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Best strings for fingerstyle on jazz bass

#4
I make this transition from time to time just
for a change.

I went from Super Slinkys (.45 - 1.00) to
D'Addario Chrome Flatwounds - Regular Light Guage (.45 - 1.00)

The Chromes are the same guage as the Slinkys (which I like, personally) Since I play with very low action and a light touch the Slinkys last for me. A lot of people don't seem to like them but I do.

When I put on the Chromes, they had a little more tension than the Slinkys and I was able to lower my action even further with
no fret buzz, which was an added benefit.

The additional tension was very acceptable and not severe at all. Easy to adapt to. And my Jazz bass has a more vintage
sound with the smooth-as-silk Chromes. I even added a narrow
slab of 1/2" Latex Foam at the bridge for a mute and the vibe is fantastic.

The super light touch of the lowered action feels magical.
I barely have to touch the strings and they're THERE!
Great stuff.

I highly recommend the light Chromes for this switch.

:hyper::bassist::hyper:
 
#5
In rounds I prefer DR Low Riders. Nice balanced tone on the Jazz with some real chime on the note if you give 'em a whack. In flats possibly D'Addario chromes, mind you I've yet to find a set of flats that get the most outta my Jazz
 
#7
SLaPiNFuNK said:
Fingerstyle what?

There are a ton of different options for Fingerstyle. What kind of tone would you like to achieve?
Click to expand...

+1 to that, Jason! "Fingerstyle" can encompass eveything from the old Motown-style thump to Rocco Prestia's trademerk "fingerstyle funk". There's a huge difference between the two styles (and many styles in-between) ... and the desired tone that one would desire when playing the different styles will certainly be different, too!
 
#10
Joshuadriller said:
I'm mostly looking for roundwounds. I've played flat wounds before, they aren't really my style.. I need more tone than they have to offer
Click to expand...

What strings were you using before? What did you like about them / what didn't you like about them?

That will give a better idea of what strings to point you to rather than suggest one of the other hundreds of other strings that can be used for "finger style."
 
#12
I've been happy with D'Addario EXL170 Nickel rounds which are light gauge and relatively low tension. I also prefer the nickel sound over that of stainless steel, though a couple of years ago that wouldn't have been the case. Your mileage may vary.
 
#13
SLaPiNFuNK said:
What strings were you using before? What did you like about them / what didn't you like about them?

That will give a better idea of what strings to point you to rather than suggest one of the other hundreds of other strings that can be used for "finger style."
Click to expand...

Ummm let's see.. Right now I play superslinkys, there isn't anything I dislike about them.. I just want to see what else is out there. I play very aggressively (like Tim commerford from RATM or geddy lee). I like to play different styles of music, but mostly rock, aggressive rock, alternative.. Stuff like that.
 
#14
I had really good luck with GHS Bass Boomers for a long
time playing aggressive rock and with a hard pick. They're a
long lasting string with great tone and growl. They also
make a Flea signature set that I like the same.

These are nickel roundwounds and were my main strings
for years.

:bassist:
 
#15
Used to use D'addario XL's 45-100 on a jazz for the longest time, occasionally switching to DR sunbeams once and a while. For a little over a year I used Chromes in the same gauge, sometimes trying a different set of flats or different gauge chromes but the 45-100 set won out. (The chromes were also my favorite sound with a pick on my jazz). Since right after x-mas I have been really digging a set of DR Lo-Riders (stainless) and it is the first time I have liked rounds in a while. A wonderful finger-style sound if you ask me. I don't have any recordings with these strings on my jazz bass but the soundcloud in my sig. is my jazz with chromes, finger-style, and mostly on the neck pickup.
 
#16
FWIW I've played Jazz Basses for years and never used flats on them after 1970. To me a Jazz Bass livens up more with rounds. Recently I restrung my Jazz Bass with GHS Pressure Wounds and I love them.

They very good right out of the package. No waiting for that zing you get with new rounds to tone itself down. They still have a lot of clarity but without the over brightness of some rounds I've played.

After talking with Jason (SLaPiNFuNK) of bassstringsonline.com and describing what I was looking for these are what he suggested and he was right on target. I get a lot of tonal variation from them and while they're a mellower string they aren't at all muddy when played fingerstyle yet they can be very punchy with a lot of harmonics when played with a pick.

Truly the best sounding strings I've ever played on a Jazz Bass. For a PBass I use flats but on a Jazz these PWounds are just a nice segway between a flat and a round.
 
#18
Joshuadriller said:
I guess the only thing I don't like about the superslinkys is the floppy tension. if I could find something that sounded the same and has tighter tension, That's what I would play.
Click to expand...

Super Slinky = .045 .065 .080 .100

Maybe step up to Regular Slinky = .050 .070 .085 .105

There is even Power Slinky = .055 .075 .090 .110
 

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