Bright flat wounds

[stevensivak]

Currently using Thomas Jazz flat wounds and while I really like them, I am looking for something a bit brighter....

I have tried using round wounds but I can't seem to keep the string noise down to a minimum... so I wonder if
there is a range of tonal qualities from flats.


Got any ideas?

 

[onda'bass]

chromes and EB colbalt flats are the brighter choices

 

[MIMike]

Both Rotosound 77 and D’Addario Chromes should be brighter.
But, if you like the way your Jazz Flats play, you will notice a great deal more tension in both of the above options (all other things being the same).

 

[ardgedee]

To my ears, Chromes sounded a bit duller than Jazz Flats, which have richer mids. It may depend on your bass's tonal balance. Chromes are a lot stiffer, too.

Have you considered groundwounds like LaBella Super Polished? I haven't tried them yet but they sound like an interesting compromise between round and flat.

 

[Low Commotion]

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[michael_t]

Currently using Thomas Jazz flat wounds and while I really like them, I am looking for something a bit brighter....

Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats (aka Slinky Flatwound) are by far the brightest and the most roundwound-like in their tonal character. They're also one of the more flexible of all flats. If you're used to the flexible feel of the TIJF, you might want to try the Cobalt 40-95 set.

 

[michael_t]

I have tried using round wounds but I can't seem to keep the string noise down to a minimum...

I need the roundwound tone for what I do, but as a former acoustic guitar player I'm psychologically allergic to finger noise. That's why I'm a big fan of the GHS Pressurewounds. Plenty of the roundwound tone I need, but with a smoother surface feel than a typical roundwound and reduced finger noise.

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[stevensivak]

Well thanks to all for your replies- seems like I should try the pressure wounds and the cobalt flats for sure!!

The Ernie Ball line up is confusing.... which one do I want (if the feel is close to my TI flats (.043-.100 the would be great!!

 

[ardgedee]

Look for packages with the words "Cobalt" and "Flat" on them. For example: Invalid Link Removed and Invalid Link Removed

 

[michael_t]

Well thanks to all for your replies- seems like I should try the pressure wounds and the cobalt flats for sure!!

The Ernie Ball line up is confusing.... which one do I want (if the feel is close to my TI flats (.043-.100 the would be great!!

The second one from the left in the pic, ie "Slinky Flatwound 40-95". The other three are roundwound.

If you want to try the GHS Pressurewound, try the L7200 set (40-96), which is the set I use.

GHS Pressurewound Nickel-Iron Bass Strings Long Scale - 4-String 40-09

GHS Pressurewound Alloy52 Rollerwound Electric Bass Strings Long Scale- 4-String 40-096 L7200 .040 .054 .076 .096 GHS Pressurewound Bass Strings are made from GHS's exclusive Alloy 52, a magnetically active material designed specifically to increase the strings brightness. During the winding...

fretnation.com

 

[Stranger Danger]

Currently using Thomas Jazz flat wounds and while I really like them, I am looking for something a bit brighter....

I have tried using round wounds but I can't seem to keep the string noise down to a minimum... so I wonder if
there is a range of tonal qualities from flats.


Got any ideas?

Do you play in a band or just at home by yourself?

 

[superiorpine]

As above, string tension may be a concern. I was a GHS Brite Flats fan for a long time, until I switched to TI's

 

[Bass4ThePublic]

I haven’t found many flats that are brighter than Tomastiks, so maybe a new set of those? The Tomastik Jazz Rounds seem to be right up your alley. String noise on a bright sounding bass guitar is going to be a given, but it does settle down once the strings break in and your technique adjusts. Also, string noise disappears in live mixes.

 

[rickdog]

Got any ideas?

A few... I tried EB Cobalt flats on my Alembic, they sounded fantastic. I thought I had found the ideal strings for this bass until one just broke for no apparent reason (first time in decades I've had a bass string break). I'm not the only one who has had problems with this. Try them, you might really like the sound too, but maybe carry a spare set just in case

I'm currently using GHS Pressurewounds on that bass, also an excellent sounding string. They seem to be aging very nicely too, so I'll probably have them on there for a while. Haven't broken one yet.

As mentioned, when playing live a little string noise really isn't going to matter. I try to clean this up when I practice (with limited success) but when I'm playing with the whole band I just let 'er rip.

What kind of a bass are you putting these bright flat wounds on? Guessing a P-bass from your avatar. I'll toss out one more idea: tapewounds. I put an old used set I'd saved on a Squire P-bass I was setting up for someone, and they really brought out the best. They're not nearly as bright as the Cobalts, though.

 

[JumboJett35]

I have a set of Fender flats on my Squier CV 50s Precision and it gets very bright when I roll the tone on. Admittedly it may be the pickup aswell but I've had good luck with those strings. I also have a set of TI Jazz Flats on my Rickenbacker and I would say coming from those to the Fender flats feels the most similar. I really like LaBella the most but they are generally higher tension.

 

[gmarcus]

I used TI flats on everything for a long time. I switched to chromes when I needed brighter flats. I recently switched to labella black tape wound strings. Same tension as the TIs but much brighter and the sing like roundwonds. Definitely worth a shot they are smooth like flats and really comfortable under the fingers.

 

[toughluck]

Try nylon tapewound strings. They're much brighter than flatwound strings while being much less stiff.

 

[L-u-A-R]

I've got TI jazz flats on my multi-scale at the moment.
Rotosound flats and Chrome flats, both of which I've tried, will not really get you somewhere brighter, to my ears they are in roughly the same ballpark is TI flats, if not less bright.
Pressurewounds, which I've also tried (only Rotos), will be brighter but I think they will be too close to round in feel, they don't have as little fret noise as flats, and are not nearly as smooth, especially compared to TI flats.
I've only tried D'addario tapewounds, to me, they were 'darker' than flats.

I haven't tried EB Cobalts yet and haven't put my set of Labella super polished on anything yet, but those two would be my top choices for your goals.

There's also Dogal stranded core flat wounds, if you'd like to take on a relatively pricey experiment.

 

[J-Bass RMR]

I'll add Dunlop Flats to the mix.


They are "a bit" brighter than TIs - especially after the TIs are broken in a bit..

 

[shirojiro]

I like EB Cobalt flats, Chromes, and Ken smith Slick Rounds. I have not tried the Ken Smith compressors or the Pressurewounds but I'm planning to try those as well.

For a quiet round wound string, I've found DR Sunbeams sound great and age very nicely. I feel like those strings don't create a lot of finger noise.