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Bright and thumpy

#21
Abner said:
I think there's a little more to it than just strings. I do use the Ernie Ball stainless flats (Group I, .055 to .110 tuned to D-standard), but what contributes is a Diamond compressor (or sometimes a FEA Labs Dual Band Compressor-Limiter) and a Broughton Audio high-pass filter. And for live thump, sheer horsepower is critical. You are not going to get any serious thump with a 30 watt amplifier.
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Great points. The Broughton HPF has been my GAS list for awhile
 
#22
DCCat said:
You say you like the LaBella Gold tapes. Have you tried the others (black, white, copper white)? I don't know about the B strings on any of those sets, and maybe they're all like the gold one you don't like, but it might be worth investigating the others. In particular, the whites are the brightest, and their underlying metal construction is more conventional than the coppers or golds, so it's possible the B might be better.

Dunlop flats might work for you. They start off pretty bright and retain some of that over time, but they also develop a nice thump as they break in.
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Honestly I don't know exactly what tapes these are, they have been in my closet for about 5 years! Definitely LaBella, and either gold or whites. It really was just the B string so I do want to try some other tapes. I was thinking of trying some non LaBella tapes though
 
#27
iiipopes said:
La Bella flats with a pick and a damper sponge under the strings at the bridge. The pick gives the articulation, and the sponge damps the sustain. Listen to any recording where the backing band was the Funk Bros. (Detroit) or the Wrecking Crew (L. A.).
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THIS!! ^^^
What @iiipopes said. And it doesn't have to be LaBellas. Try the Ernie Balls Stainless Steels (for example) with foam and a pick and if you no like, take foam out, use fingers. I personally love this sound, and it is punchy as all get-out!
 
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#28
DCCat said:
You say you like the LaBella Gold tapes. Have you tried the others (black, white, copper white)? I don't know about the B strings on any of those sets, and maybe they're all like the gold one you don't like, but it might be worth investigating the others. In particular, the whites are the brightest, and their underlying metal construction is more conventional than the coppers or golds, so it's possible the B might be better.

Dunlop flats might work for you. They start off pretty bright and retain some of that over time, but they also develop a nice thump as they break in.
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+1 on the Dunlop flats.
 
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#29
I'd second the EB Cobalt Flats.
I don't have any experience with the B string as I play 4's, so i can't really speak to that. But the sets I've had on my 4's make me believe you could get fairly close to what you describe you want out of them. Maybe combining those strings with the "pick and foam under the bridge" suggestion, plus a little EQ magic, you hit your tone goal right in the bullseye :thumbsup:.
 
#31
Update for anyone who cares- I ordered a set of Cobalt flats and Ernie Ball traditional flats from Fret Nation to compare. Jason called me after I placed the order to let me know that the traditional flats have been backordered for a long time, and there is no ETA. So I got the Cobalts and Dunlop Flats instead. Excited to compare the two. Jason gave me the Dunlops for the lower price of the Ernie Ball too, great customer service
 
#33
AboutSweetSue said:
Sounds like you need La Bella tapes...I’d go with the black ones. I didn’t care for the Cobalts. I thought they were absolutely devoid of thump. But, I didn’t give them much time so who knows.
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I didn't like the B string on the Labella Gold or White (not sure which they were), it was too dark and undefined. I don't think the black tapes would be any better but please correct me if I'm wrong
 
#34
PrimitiveMan said:
I ordered a set of Cobalt flats and Ernie Ball traditional flats from Fret Nation to compare. Jason called me after I placed the order to let me know that the traditional flats have been backordered for a long time, and there is no ETA.
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If you do want to try the EB Stainless Steel Flats, Strings By Mail has two of the 5-string set (45-130) in stock right now.

Invalid Link Removed
 
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#36
PrimitiveMan said:
Update for anyone who cares- I ordered a set of Cobalt flats and Ernie Ball traditional flats from Fret Nation to compare. Jason called me after I placed the order to let me know that the traditional flats have been backordered for a long time, and there is no ETA. So I got the Cobalts and Dunlop Flats instead. Excited to compare the two. Jason gave me the Dunlops for the lower price of the Ernie Ball too, great customer service
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I've been following this thread a little since I have a 655E and also am trying to find a bright and thumpy string. I'm glad you got some Dunlop flats since those are my current favorite for that category. Hope you enjoy them! I'm definitely curious about the Cobalt flats so please report back about those as well.
 
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#37
AppalachianBen said:
I've been following this thread a little since I have a 655E and also am trying to find a bright and thumpy string. I'm glad you got some Dunlop flats since those are my current favorite for that category. Hope you enjoy them! I'm definitely curious about the Cobalt flats so please report back about those as well.
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Oh cool, thanks man
I will update in a couple weeks probably
 

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