D'addario Chromes -> La Bella 760FM

[Grinderman]

The string sets in no particular order:

A: GHS Precision flats 3050 55-105

B: Fender 9050M flats 55-105

C: Rotosound RS77LD Jazz flats 45-105


The basses

 

[JenderBazzFass]

Thanks again everyone, so many helpful posts here! Great community!

 

[Grinderman]

The string sets in no particular order:

A: GHS Precision flats 3050 55-105

B: Fender 9050M flats 55-105

C: Rotosound RS77LD Jazz flats 45-105


The basses
View attachment 5204228

Oops... I forgot to say guess which.

 

[4StringDave]

Oops... I forgot to say guess which.

If it were me, I'd have the fenders on the jazz and the others on the Ps

 

[Grinderman]

If it were me, I'd have the fenders on the jazz and the others on the Ps

True.

Roto 77's on the Blonde P because I think those brighter strings go better with the brighter or less compressed sound the 1-pc maple neck makes.

GHS P flats on the Sonic Blue P for the opposite reason.

Whatever the strings, what we pair them with can matter.

 

[JenderBazzFass]

Well, I've had the TI Jazz Flats for a few days now and I'm still waiting for them to settle in. I do like the tone of these, but they are so much looser feeling than the La Bellas were. This will take a little getting used to, but it should be no big deal. Overall I like the sound better than the La Bellas already, and sustain is improved.

The only issue is that on the A string, after changing to the TI Jazz Flats I have a weird buzz at the bridge. At least I think it's coming from the bridge. None of the other strings do it, and the bass didn't do it with the Chromes or the La Bellas.

To me, granted my ears are not that experienced but the TI Jazz Flats seem like they have more midrange and hopefully this translates well to the P-Bass when playing live. It seems as though it should cut through really well even as P's go.

 

[Hillbilly Sam]

Hey, so glad that you're liking them so far! They are not stiff at all, so yep, you might need some time to adapt your touch and bass set-up to it. But I'd say that if lack of stiffness is your only complaint, you've found a worthy keeper.

Regarding to the buzz on the bridge for the A string, I'd really need more info. What I can tell you is:
- I've never had or heard about TI flats coming defective out of the box (I'm sure some do, but what I mean is that the issue is marginal enough to almost discard that option).
- TIs have fair less tension than the La Bellas you came from, so a truss rod tweak (in the loosening direction) is a must.
- Also, being less stiff (=more floppy), this strings have more travel distance than stiffer ones, which usually means that, apart from the truss rod tweak, some height increase in the saddles might be necessary too (I'd say that, given the same attack, stiffer strings allow for a lower action).
So maybe the buzz you're hearing comes from the end of the fretboard? I'm just guessing.

- Lastly, ofc, you can double check that the ball end of that string is tight against the end of the bridge and that the saddles, screws and spring are all tight and properly set-up.

 

[JenderBazzFass]

Hey, so glad that you're liking them so far! They are not stiff at all, so yep, you might need some time to adapt your touch and bass set-up to it. But I'd say that if lack of stiffness is your only complaint, you've found a worthy keeper.

Regarding to the buzz on the bridge for the A string, I'd really need more info. What I can tell you is:
- I've never had or heard about TI flats coming defective out of the box (I'm sure some do, but what I mean is that the issue is marginal enough to almost discard that option).
- TIs have fair less tension than the La Bellas you came from, so a truss rod tweak (in the loosening direction) is a must.
- Also, being less stiff (=more floppy), this strings have more travel distance than stiffer ones, which usually means that, apart from the truss rod tweak, some height increase in the saddles might be necessary too (I'd say that, given the same attack, stiffer strings allow for a lower action).
So maybe the buzz you're hearing comes from the end of the fretboard? I'm just guessing.

- Lastly, ofc, you can double check that the ball end of that string is tight against the end of the bridge and that the saddles, screws and spring are all tight and properly set-up.

Thanks!

I'm not sure what was wrong, but was able to stop the A string from rattling. I slackened the A string and then tuned and reseated it in the saddle a bunch of times. After doing this numerous times it stopped rattling for reasons that are unclear to me.

It may have been touching the spring on the screw that moves the saddle back and forth. I rotated the spring a bit so it wouldn't touch and maybe that solved it. I would not guess that could cause a rattle since it's not part of the string's vibrating length, but who knows. I checked every aspect of the setup and everything else was good.

I'll play them happily now I suppose, just one of those things. Definitely liking the sound and thanks for the recommendation!

 

[Prodigus Filius]

Thanks!

I'm not sure what was wrong, but was able to stop the A string from rattling. I slackened the A string and then tuned and reseated it in the saddle a bunch of times. After doing this numerous times it stopped rattling for reasons that are unclear to me.

It may have been touching the spring on the screw that moves the saddle back and forth. I rotated the spring a bit so it wouldn't touch and maybe that solved it. I would not guess that could cause a rattle since it's not part of the string's vibrating length, but who knows. I checked every aspect of the setup and everything else was good.

I'll play them happily now I suppose, just one of those things. Definitely liking the sound and thanks for the recommendation!

Uneven grub screws can do rattles, or more specically, one not touching the plate firmly

 

[onda'bass]

not winding down on the tuning post enough will do this.

 

[thedovewarlord]

Thanks! That's one thing I didn't like about the Chromes. The D and G strings seem too strident and too... present for my taste.

As we all know, the bass picks the strings. Each brand of strings has different qualities and we can use those qualities to compliment the different qualities of the bass. Some basses are thumpy and could use a string like Chromes to add a little something extra or maybe a bass is a little bright sounding and can use a darker sounding string. It's all a matter of blending the ingredients together to get a desired result.

I love this post! The bass picks the strings. Ive tried many brands and styles of strings and personally I've found D'Addario Chromes work best for me. Beginning with my hands. They respond to the way I play, in a way that is predictable but still inspiring.

And to underscore the point "the bass picks the string" the overall resulting sound varies from each of my basses -- something I want -- they help bring out the character of each bass.

Other reasons why I like Chromes (vs La Bella's), I don't dread the break-in period at all. For example, I have a set that's about 5+ years old on my #1 P-bass and have no intention at the moment of taking them off, but I just swapped an even older set that was on my '66 P because I grew tired of the lighter 45-100 gauge and wanted to hear what 50-105 did for the bass. Still breaking in and they sound great, and gives me another contrast to my other basses.

LaBella's are great strings but personally I didn't find they sounded particularly good when I was breaking them in and after a while replaced them.

One of the only brands I haven't tried is TI's. Im sure I'd love them for what they are but why don't they come in 50-105's, the lighter gauge has me apprehensive not so much the price tag.