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Can you keep rounds on forever like flats?

#22
Sparkdog said:
Yeah, I'm in uncharted waters here. The rounds on the bass at the moment are pretty much perfect and I have no idea how they got that way...I've never been able to achieve that myself.

They're thumpy but have a distinct edge to them, played with a pick they do the Nashville "tic tac" bass thing to a tee. But alas, I fear tis a fleeting thing :)

I'm looking into TI Jazz flats, the word here on TB is that they do the thumpy yet clear thing very well and stay that way. Plus, they're low tension which would be a plus with this bass.

Thanks for the responses folks.
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That sound you like on those rounds might last for years, though.

There are several players around here who have basses with really old rounds on them; maybe it's a fashion trend. They still sound good, warm but with an edge. Rounds feel gooey if they are really old--maybe clean them with some rubbing alcohol occasionally.

Bosco Mann, Raphael Saadiq, and Chris Wood all like dead rounds. Maybe you can join their club. :)
 
#23
lucas vigor said:
I really love TI jazz flats. But for a little more "edge" have you looked at D'addario Chromes? I have them on one of my p-basses and thye still sound very bright.
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Oh yeah, I've been playing Chromes for years, love them to death. But this particular bass has a bit of an issue with the neck, I'm sorting it out and won't go into the gory details, but the short story is that low tension strings would save me some time and money because then there's NO issue.

Chromes, as cool as they are, are definitely not low tension.
 
#27
So, does anyone here have experience with the TI Jazz Flats and do you think they will sound anything like the tone I've described?

Those are my prime suspects at the moment when/if I decide to replace these 7250's.

Describing "tone" is such an abstract exercise, but I've done a lot of research and I hear great things about the TI's. Only trouble is it will cost me over $60 to hear them for myself!

:crying:
 
#28
When it was fashionable in the early '70's, I used dead La Bella flats, rotating two or three sets to let them rest, and boiling them in vinegar, etc. I found that the limit on dead flats' useable life came either when they broke at the machine head, or the windings wore through at the frets and threw the intonation off. That typically seemed to take around 5 years or so for me (I have dry hands and a a light touch).

IME, rounds go out of intonation much faster, making them un-useable well within a year. Maybe this is because more gunk builds up between the open windings? If you're like me, and you can't stand intonation problems, you might want to try boiling them in water with a little vinegar added, to see if it brings the intonation back. Based on my experience with flats, you get a little of that new zing back the first time you boil a set, but it goes away quite quickly.

I suggest vinegar because it's safer than alcohol, but also because the cleaning process is gentler. I suspect that alcohol might be likely to bring back more "zing" than you want.

Disclosure: The cleaning idea is just conjecture- I haven't tried it with rounds. I like the sound of slightly-used nickel rounds, from about the second or third week, until about the five or six month mark. Then I just change them.
 
#29
My Hagstrom Frankenbass has the same set of rounds that I put on it in the 70's - probably Rotos because of the date. The sound is so good that I am afraid to change them - just works right with the bass, pickups, etc.

It ain't broke so I ain't fixin' it (yet).
 
#30
Sparkdog said:
A friend of mine swears that DR Sunbeams are so warm and un-zingy that they would approximate the sound I'm getting from these. I ordered a set in the same gauge today just to have a backup, but I'm skeptical.
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IME DR Sunbeams start out kind of zingy when they are brand new, but I have found they "wear in" nicely and lose that "new string zing" after 10 to 20 hours of playing.

DR Sunbeams were the next-to-last strings I tried in the long quest for "my sound". I finally settled on TI Jazz Flats. I LOVE THEM on my pbass. I'm on my first set of TI Jazz Flats - about 3-1/2 years so far and they are still getting better and better. I play them about 10 hours per week, wipe them down once per week, and clean them with some spray-on string cleaner about once per month. That stuff is much milder than straight alcohol. My backup bass still has the DR Sunbeams. They are probably 5 or 6 years old, but haven't been played much since early 2009.

It sounds like TI Jazz Flats will give you the sound and tension you are looking for. "Worn-in" DR Sunbeams are very nice, but IMHO they don't have quite as much midrange presence as the TI Jazz Flats.

That will be $0.02, please. I'll put it on your account. ;)
 
#32
Sure!!!
You can also go a lifetime without ever brushing your teeth!
Or changing your underwear,
Or your motor oil,
Or taking out the trash,
Or having sex,
...
:hiding:

But seriously, I have had a used set of 7250's on my P for some months now and they still work great.
 
#33
steve_rolfeca said:
If you're like me, and you can't stand intonation problems, you might want to try boiling them in water with a little vinegar added, to see if it brings the intonation back. Based on my experience with flats, you get a little of that new zing back the first time you boil a set, but it goes away quite quickly.

I suggest vinegar because it's safer than alcohol, but also because the cleaning process is gentler. I suspect that alcohol might be likely to bring back more "zing" than you want.

Disclosure: The cleaning idea is just conjecture- I haven't tried it with rounds. I like the sound of slightly-used nickel rounds, from about the second or third week, until about the five or six month mark. Then I just change them.
Click to expand...

I've done the string-boiling thing back in the day...with roundwounds. True, it does give you that new string "zing". But as you say, it does also go away quite quickly.

One other thing that string-boiling does is to loosen your windings - making the strings even more susceptible to gunk build-up than before, to say nothing of accelerating the rate at which they eventually just fall apart.

IME/IMO, boiling is strictly an emergency quick fix - nothing more. :hmm:

MM
 
#34
darkstorm said:
No, not unless you want dead sounding strings. People use roundwounds for that new to somewhat broken in sound that flats will never ever equal. Most change their roundwounds around once every 3-4 months. It all depends on how close to new fresh out of the box, sound you want. Some prefer the sound of somewhat broken in strings, still got the roundwound sound and nice treble top, but a bit less bright etc.

Myself for new strings I'll roll off the treble control slightly till theyre freshly broken in. At which time treble control on the bass goes back to its regular position. When string tone is at the point that I'm boosting the treble more then normal its time to change strings or approaching that time for me.

Dead strings are the worst sounding thing I know of for nice bass or guitar. Oddly to me though theres some that like dead sound.
Click to expand...

I tend to do the same
 
#35
madmatt said:
Sure!!!
You can also go a lifetime without ever brushing your teeth!
Or changing your underwear,
Or your motor oil,
Or taking out the trash,
Or having sex,
...
:hiding:

But seriously, I have had a used set of 7250's on my P for some months now and they still work great.
Click to expand...

What a conversation killer! Trying to bring reality into a discussion? Come on. Delusion only, please. :cool:
 
#37
diegoholyshize! said:
Rounds can sound good all old and deformed, but after a long time if they're partially surpressed due to sweat and finger grimes they'll break easier. The longesti'veever hada set of strings on was 8 months playing 8 hours and over a day 7 days a week.
Click to expand...

That's like being a victim of strict parenting where you have to practice the violin until your fingers bleed. "We have a recital on Friday! Play. NOW!!!"
 
#38
Rockin Mike said:
Dead roundwounds won't tune up or intonate properly. I don't know anybody that likes the sound of an out-of-tune bass.

Plastic coated roundwounds are a lot less bright than regular rounds.
Nickel roundwounds are less bright than steel.
Half-rounds are about midway between flats and rounds.

The new non-plastic coatings like DR's "k3" are not dead-sounding at all, if anything they are brighter than normal strings and are designed to keep that brightness longer.
Click to expand...

Dead rounds will in fact tune up and stay that way. I used a set for six years. My bass was almost always dead in tune, unless there was some temp or humidity change, just the same as with new strings. And I NEVER, EVER had any problem tuning up. The only reason I changed them is because I thought I "ought to."
 
#39
Sparkdog said:
So, does anyone here have experience with the TI Jazz Flats and do you think they will sound anything like the tone I've described?

Those are my prime suspects at the moment when/if I decide to replace these 7250's.

Describing "tone" is such an abstract exercise, but I've done a lot of research and I hear great things about the TI's. Only trouble is it will cost me over $60 to hear them for myself!

:crying:
Click to expand...

Used TI Flats for three years on my Lakland 55-94, then switched to Sadowsky Flats in 2010 -- I now preefer them, and they record great. Also, $45 for as five-string set diret from Sadowsky website.
 

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