Great Topic. I have been toying with trying Flats. I too like rounds as they getter older. Everybody said I would not "cut through with flats playing classic rock and blues. You convinced me to go with my instincts.... next set of strings, Flats. 
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Confessions of a Flatwound convert...
- Thread starter Sundogue
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Smeet..uhm..yes, obviously someone will have to show you. Anything can be achieved with a little ingenuity.
47 pages and over 900 posts and all we had to do was come to you for the universal truth. Boy, do I feel stupid.
I find this to be untrue ! It does get you in the "ball park", but does not sound like Flatwounds...sounds like muted Roundwounds. Only one way to get the Flatwound sound...use Flatwound strings.
Great Topic. I have been toying with trying Flats. I too like rounds as they getter older. Everybody said I would not "cut through with flats playing classic rock and blues. You convinced me to go with my instincts.... next set of strings, Flats.
Flats cut better IME. Especially for classic rock and blues.
Obviously you don't have the worn out set of rounds I do, or the kind of foam mute I am using either, or my amp and cabinet...if you heard it, you would believe what I mean...All flats do is make mud unless Jesus is working the sound board lol!
I think I see where you're coming from. If you think flats simply sound like muddy and indistinct sounding rounds with no sustain, then yes, you can get that with a mute.
I am using Chromes, and I can get bright enough to play Rush, maintain a strong fundamental, have a fat brutal attack, and have a decently long sustain at the same time.
If you get a sound you like with the foam mutes, then that's great for you. I hear a huge difference. Naturally I haven't heard YOU play, but unless you are different from every other player I have heard live or on record, it doesn't sound the same to me.
Lots of players also claim they can sound just like an upright bass using their thumb and palm-muting. I think that with palm-muting you can sound like a crappy upright, or with a mute you can make worn-out rounds sound like crappy flats.
The real thing sounds different, whether we are talking about flats, tubes, or pickup types. That doesn't mean everybody has to like the same thing. My tonal goals are not the same as yours. As long as each of us can get a sound that makes us happy with our setup, that's all that matters. The audience probably can't tell the difference between any of it.
Just ordered a set of Sadowsky Flats for my Jb2. I've played chromes before and liked the sound...but hated the high tension. If I ever get Chromes again, I will probably go with a lighter gauge.
OK - not exactly how I expected things to turn out - but the essential point is the same. Flats are their own wonderful beast and do really great things as do rounds.
Having a second bass around ready to roll with flats is optimal, IMO and IME. Expecting them to do what rounds do or vice-versa is a little wrong-headed. (Not that I think Sundogue thought that...)
Once you're open to the idea of flats and you try them there's a real honeymoon phase. But like anything, it's the right tool for the right task. Sometimes flats are right for the gig - sometimes they're not. Nothing is a be-all-end-all, though.
+1 I think you are seeing a resurgence of flats on TB because there are quite a few of us who play blues and/or classic rock. Flats work great for those genres!
OMG guess who went to GC today and bought a pair of RotoSound RS77's? Last chance and if they don't convince me this time {yeah these are pretty bright susposedly for flats}, I will be on a crusade against flats forever lol...hey I am open minded to some degree if I am willing to spend $45 on strings that i hate.
Cool, but as others have said, try to judge them in a band context, not on their own.
Record with them and you'll fall in love. When you hear the playback, you'll be surprised at how really dynamic they are. Some of that doesn't always project in a loud, live band setting - although they sound great there too - but get a recording. Play with a pick, turn the tone really down - then run the tone wide open - get a full range sample of how they sound and I bet you'll dig 'em.
Flats are really great and can sometimes be "IT". But they're kind of like Stilton bleu cheese - you have to sort of learn how to appreciate them before you fall in love.
Flats are really great and can sometimes be "IT". But they're kind of like Stilton bleu cheese - you have to sort of learn how to appreciate them before you fall in love.
Horny Toad...I used another set of "flatter" flats per se with the band and couldn't find my tone because of the 800 lb. mud-monster in the room. These Roto-Sound 77's seems to be a little more on the round side in tone and punch, we'll see!
I just purchased my first set of Chromes and my initial impression is to take them off and get another set of Pyramid Golds. I don't like the tension and the brightness of these strings. Admittedly I am comparing them to my Gibson SG, but the difference is huge and wasn't what I was expecting. I heard that they mellow fairly quickly. Am I being too hasty?
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