Fender 9050L's on PBasses?

[hasbeen]

I was going to say I did not like them, but I forgot they went on my PJ and I played it this morning and it sounded pretty good. I just assumed they were the Chromes I have on everything else strung with flats. They did sound pretty wonky out of the bag and it took a while for them to settle, which must have just happened. The Chromes, for me anyways, do not have as dramatic of an issue and I can string them and feel good about going right to a gig.

I designed the 9050Ls and I can tell you they are not Chromes.

 

[Bodeeni]

I designed the 9050Ls and I can tell you they are not Chromes.

I meant to say, I forgot that I had put the 9050Ls on the bass until after I pulled it out. It had been out of rotation for a while and I usually have had Chromes on that bass. They are not Chromes but I did like the sound. Just an impromptu moment play a Fender with flats and digging it.

 

[hasbeen]

I meant to say, I forgot that I had put the 9050Ls on the bass until after I pulled it out. It had been out of rotation for a while and I usually have had Chromes on that bass. They are not Chromes but I did like the sound. Just an impromptu moment play a Fender with flats and digging it.

Got it....thanks for the clarification.

 

[GrapeBass]

Originally, I was going to buy P-Bass to complement my J-Bass (wrapped w/half wounds at the time) and put rounds on it, but that's not what happened. I was lucky enough to have acquired a P-Bass wrapped with old D'Addario Chromes and fell in love. The BARK of the ol'Chromes on the maple board is incredible and got me thinking... after some research, I bought Fender 9050Ls for the J-Bass. The break in period was quite long, I trudged on and eventually found happiness. One day I may search for another P-Bass to wrap with rounds, but I ain't in no hurry. ;-)

Would I put 9050Ls on a P-Bass? I'd definitely consider it but the ol'Chromes (mmmm) are so delicious. What I love about flats are how their attack, timbre and tone, they react so well to my playing style and when you dig in, woohoo!

My next conundrum is whether to put 9050Ls on my Squier VM Fretless J-Bass (w/QP p/ups). I tried LaBella Deep Talkin' Bass tape wounds but they were too boinky so I reverted to half-wounds, which have a nice growl. Problem is, whenever I play the P-Bass or J-Bass with flats I'm always thinking... mmm, how'd I like it if it were wrapped with 9050Ls?

 

[Drzejzi]

I designed the 9050Ls and I can tell you they are not Chromes.

Could you tell us anything more about the design process and the idea for these strings?

 

[sxaxsx]

I have them on both my P and J.

 

[LoTone]

I had a set of 9050ML on a fretless Jazz for about 10 years...

 

[jj4001]

I designed the 9050Ls and I can tell you they are not Chromes.

Thank you because these are the best strings. And somehow the most affordable! How likely is that?

 

[hasbeen]

Thank you because these are the best strings. And somehow the most affordable! How likely is that?

I'm glad you like them. When I designed them, Fender actually was going to stop making flats because sales had been decreasing for years. I informed them that they were getting hot again and we needed them. This was about ten years ago if I recall correctly.

 

[hasbeen]

Could you tell us anything more about the design process and the idea for these strings?

I was basically looking for a string though that had more flexibility and more definition than old-school flats. I went back and forth with prototype after prototype and was basically having them reduce the diameter of the core wire to get the right flexibility. That also gave them a fatter tone.

Full disclosure: I was really the exact opposite of a flat string guy. I came up in the 70's playing fusion and funk. I always thought flats sounded too thumpy and I was never a "meat and potatoes" bass player. This made me want a flatwound that was warm and fat, but still articulate enough.

 

[michael_t]

I was basically looking for a string though that had more flexibility and more definition than old-school flats. I went back and forth with prototype after prototype and was basically having them reduce the diameter of the core wire to get the right flexibility. That also gave them a fatter tone.

Full disclosure: I was really the exact opposite of a flat string guy. I came up in the 70's playing fusion and funk. I always thought flats sounded too thumpy and I was never a "meat and potatoes" bass player. This made me want a flatwound that was warm and fat, but still articulate enough.

Sounds like you did with the 9050s exactly what you set out to do. Congrats!

 

[hasbeen]

Me and Jeff Genzler mugging it up for Fender strings at a NAMM show. That's when I launched these flats:

 

[hasbeen]

Sounds like you did with the 9050s exactly what you set out to do. Congrats!

thank you sir.

 

[Kukulkan61]

Fender Flats are my go to although I did start out with Chromes and still like them too but the Fenders just hit me harder!!

 

[okabass]

There were very good sounding and feeling flats on my '68 Tele when I bought it some two years ago. I had to phone to the former owner and ask what brand they are. They were 9050Ls. Then I bought 4 sets for some of my other basses. ('51 style PB, '57 style PB, '65 PB, JB).

 

[Vintagefiend]

Well I have come to the realization over the last few years that my basses pick the strings they like not me. I play only PBasses any more but they all have different pickups and strings so they have some tonal differences while still sounding like PBasses. I've tried but for some reason I just don't get along with Jazz basses. I'm about to put a set of the 9050's on my American Special PBass and see how they sound on it.

I've been "Pbass exclusive" for the past 10 years, but the Bass VI kind of crept up on me, both with flats and a pick, always...and then I impulse bought a Jbass last week, and I really, really like it. And it has D'Addario rounds, and I'm using my fingers a lot on them. I can't explain it, but it has broadened my palette, both tonally and playing-wise...plus, that skinny J neck is easy on my wrist, and plays so fast...

I'm just saying, I get it. I couldn't find a Jbass that I warmed to for years, and then one found me.

Back on topic - I really like Chromes. The tension, the tone, the feel, they're just..."right" for what I play. That being said, they've went up in price, from $25 to $40, so I have my 62 AVRI P-bass with Chromes and then 2 Pbasses with the flat Fender 9050Ls on them. And my Bass VIs have LaBella DTFs, and the J has D'Addario rounds.

 

[TREYontheBASS]

I’m loving them on my P bass. Similar to chromes but a bit better feel and not as honky. They cut through nicely, and mine are still breaking in. (~2 months)

 

[iiipopes]

I designed the 9050Ls and I can tell you they are not Chromes.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!! I have consumed wayyyyy to much bandwidth over the years trying to convince everyone that Fender 9050's and D'Addario Chromes are NOT the same string!!! Oh, how great it is to finally hear confirmation from the source. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

 

[iiipopes]

Here's the deal with 9050's: they do have growl. They are not your father's round, woody tone flats. Whether they will work on any given bass depends entirely on the resonance of the body of the bass. I have tried them on everything: maple, ash, asian mahogany, alder. To my ears, they work best on a neutral alder body with a bolt on neck, rosewood fingerboard. A bass of these characteristics tends to have a slight dip in the natural resonance of the instrument @ 400 Hz, which gives clarity and definition to the 9050's. Maple overworks the growl; ash and mahogany have tonal signatures that do not seem to be compatible with the 9050's: ash, again to my ears, seems to draw the life out of them, and asian mahogany, having a different midrange resonance, makes them sound nasal to me.

Your mileage may vary. Rock on.

 

[FishDub]

When I tried a brand new set of 9050s on my P bass, I didn't like them because I thought they sounded too bright and even "clangy" for how I wanted my P bass to sound. So, after about 4 wks, I ended up moving them to my J bass and they sounded much better there. There is something about the midrange character of those flats that seem to work better with a J bass somehow.

Having said that, they probably wound have done okay on my P bass if I had kept them on there longer till they were broken in better. The 9050s do take a couple of months to lose that initial clangy brightness.

This^