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D'Addario Half Rounds - Not Impressed So Far

skyline_01

skyline_01

Endorsing artist: Nordstrand Audio, Tsunami Cables
Nov 14, 2006
1,905
2,670
Lebanon, OH
jsnichols2.wixsite.com
#1
Hey,

So I threw a set of these on my fretless 'Ray tonight. They were a Christmas gift from my kids but I haven't had the time to mess with them until now. The E sounds damn near dead (think 20-year-old muted flatwound) and the A is not much better. I previously had Chrome flats on this bass and they sounded a lot more alive to me. These are also kinda sticky, which I'm guessing will wear off with time - I'm not so much worried about that.

I currently have D'Addario NYXL on my G&L 5'er and they're great, plus I've used several other sets of their strings over the years with no problems. Am I missing something? :sour:
 
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#4
When I tried a set of half-rounds (GHS Brite Flats) for the first time on my J bass, they only stayed on there for 3 wks. It was the initial stickiness that caught me off guard. Then about a year later, I decided to give them (the same set) another try and this time they stayed on for 6 mths. The stickiness was all but gone by then and I actually ended up like them a lot. In fact, I liked them enough to order another set to try on my P bass later this summer. I'm hoping their flatwound-ish tonal character (still with roundwound bite and definition) will suit a P better than a J.

I also like the light set of GHS Brite Flats (45-98) because they seem to be nicely balanced both in tone and tension all across four strings. No issue with a dead E or A.
 
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#5
fourstringdrums said:
I'm not a fan of half rounds. I was hoping they'd be the best of both world, but I thought they fell short of that. I found they were more like dead rounds.
Click to expand...

It's all about one's expectations, I guess... If you expect them to be "the best of both worlds", then you might be in for a disappointment.

I used to say half-rounds were only half of what's good about either rounds or flats. But I have since come to appreciate their unique tonal flavor as "semi-flat".
 
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#6
michael_t said:
It's all about one's expectations, I guess... If you expect them to be "the best of both worlds", then you might be in for a disappointment.

I used to say half-rounds were only half of what's good about either rounds or flats. But I have come to appreciate their unique tonal flavor as "semi-flat".
Click to expand...

Directly before I put GHS Brite Flats (back) on my fretless bass, I had installed a light set of Rotosound 77 flatwound strings. I had tried these before, and thought well of them. And indeed, they did sound good. So good, in fact, that I kept playing them a while before putting the Brite Flats on.

I expected the Brite Flats to sound pretty similar, as Rotosound 77s are consider among the "brighter" sounding flats.

No way! The Brite Flats had a much brighter, more open sound. For what I desired on this bass, a much superior option.
 
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#14
skyline_01 said:
Hey,

So I threw a set of these on my fretless 'Ray tonight. They were a Christmas gift from my kids but I haven't had the time to mess with them until now. The E sounds damn near dead (think 20-year-old muted flatwound) and the A is not much better. I previously had Chrome flats on this bass and they sounded a lot more alive to me. These are also kinda sticky, which I'm guessing will wear off with time - I'm not so much worried about that.

I currently have D'Addario NYXL on my G&L 5'er and they're great, plus I've used several other sets of their strings over the years with no problems. Am I missing something? :sour:
Click to expand...

Yep, agreed... when I decided to step out of round wound territory, I didn't want to jump straight to flats... figured I'd try the half rounds.. got the D'Addaros too..

Same thing couldn't stand the feel.. E string had no life at all... A, D, G, were just ok... figured I'd do like suggested above... oh, it's different territory.. give it time... well, two months in... they were still horrible..

Got a really good price on some LaBella 760FL's in the classifieds..

BOOM!!! Love at first play... they've been on my Duck Dunn for at least two years
 
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#16
I've tried D'Addario Half-Rounds off and on for years. I too was looking for the best compromise between a brighter sound and a smoother feel. They seem to work well on some basses, not so much of others, and you definitely need to give them time to break in. Also, wiping them down with some naphtha before installing seems to remove that initial stickiness. I like them on my Epiphones, a Jack Casady and a Allen Woody. They seem to sound best on the AW short scale in particular. On my Fenders and a Ric, meh.... Maybe it's the difference in pickups as well.
 
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#18
I had these on my fretless Ibanez for a while.
Rounds were too bright and noisy, but flats were too dead. ENR71s were the sweet-spot for me on that instrument.

Then I was reminded of how much I love the "angry piano" sound of rounds, so... I'll stick 'em back on when I have another 34" fretless in the stable.
 
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#19
skyline_01 said:
The E sounds damn near dead (think 20-year-old muted flatwound) and the A is not much better. I previously had Chrome flats on this bass and they sounded a lot more alive to me. These are also kinda sticky, which I'm guessing will wear off with time - I'm not so much worried about that. :sour:
Click to expand...

Flatwounds are also well known to be 'unbalanced' until they even out.
The sticky feeling does indeed go away.
I love Half Rounds. Great strings, people just have to be patient - they're like a fine vintage port wine needing time to blossom.
 
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#20
It really depends on the bass, your style and your expectations. I'm a fan of the D'Addario Half-Wounds BUT not on all my basses. I've used 'em on my custom made J/P/J Bass for years. It's a heavy bass, dense koa body with a maple/rosewood neck. The Half-Wounds provide a great balance without being too zingy or grindy but have nice growl and a crisp top end when I lean into them. I've tried La Bella Deep Talkin' tape wounds on my Squire fretless Jazz Bass and recently returned to the Half-Wounds... growls like a son-of-a-gun now.

Onto my P Bass, I was lucky enough to acquire it wrapped with D'Addario Chromes, it's got an awesome BARK! I was originally looking for a P to put with rounds or half-wounds on but the Chromes sound so friggin good, they're staying on.

I'm not a fan of the typical clanky and wanky round wound Bass Bass sound so my MIM FSR Jazz Bass got wrapped with Fender 9050Ls... while they took a bit to break in, the tone with growl is amazing.

Good luck finding what you want.
 
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