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Flats - Do I need to man-up?

#21
I generally do TI Jazz Flats for my main gig. Started using them a few years back after using rounds for decades. I love the way they feel and sound, especially their flexible slinkiness. As others have said, flats may take a bit of time to break in/get used to, but in my experience rounds now feel coarse and a bit crude by comparison.

I don’t know about Fender flats ( I believe JimmyM mentioned them being D’Addario rebrands), but what I like about TIs are the lowered tension (good for my bass) and flexibility (good for me). I’ve got a set of Fender flats I carry for backup, but they’re pretty lonely sittin’ on the bench watching the TIs play through each game.

Maybe someone else mentioned it, but consider an HPF/LPF to help tame boominess as needed.
 
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#22
Different flats have different sounds and feels, even more so than rounds, IMO. If you want a more modern sound, you might like the Cobalt flats. Personally, I like La Bella flats (light gauge); they sound very old-school and remind me of the Motown sound. Duck Dunn of Booker T and the MGs used La Bellas on a P bass; give some of the records he played on a listen. The Fenders are okay, but I'd rather use the La Bellas. I don't like the Chromes; they have a lot of high mids and feel quite high-tension. Definitely not my favorite flats.
 
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#23
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#26
foolforthecity said:
I don’t know about Fender flats ( I believe JimmyM mentioned them being D’Addario rebrands),
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Sort of. They're made by D'addario for Fender, but they're made to Fender's specs so they're not exactly the same thing (the Fender flats sets before D'addario sound fairly similar to Chromes to me, too, but I've picked up on slight differences in both older and newer Fenders).

but what I like about TIs are the lowered tension (good for my bass) and flexibility (good for me). I’ve got a set of Fender flats I carry for backup, but they’re pretty lonely sittin’ on the bench watching the TIs play through each game.
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I love the low tension strings, but couldn't hang with TI's. I know you fans of them love them a lot, but I didn't. I've been using Dunlop flats, which are more dark and traditionally thumpy sounding, they don't have that initial stickiness, and they're almost as low tension as TI's. Now them I love.

Not putting that out there for you since you're sorted with TI's, but for the OP in case he'd like to give a different set a shot.
 
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#27
JimmyM said:
Sort of. They're made by D'addario for Fender, but they're made to Fender's specs so they're not exactly the same thing (the Fender flats sets before D'addario sound fairly similar to Chromes to me, too, but I've picked up on slight differences in both older and newer Fenders).


I love the low tension strings, but couldn't hang with TI's. I know you fans of them love them a lot, but I didn't. I've been using Dunlop flats, which are more dark and traditionally thumpy sounding, they don't have that initial stickiness, and they're almost as low tension as TI's. Now them I love.

Not putting that out there for you since you're sorted with TI's, but for the OP in case he'd like to give a different set a shot.
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Thanks for the clarification on the Fender flats, Jimmy. I’m always up for experimentation so I’ll probably latch on to some Dunlops and see what they do.
 
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#28
4StringDave said:
Bit of background - I play in a Country Rock band, a 60s band, and a Blues Rock band. All fairly traditional stuff, with not an ounce of slapping in sight, fingerstyle (and palm mute) only..! I normally play a Fender Jazz with old D'Addario nickel rounds on it (45-105), either both pickups or front pickup only, but also occasionally take my P with the same type of rounds. The sound I am going for is deep, defined and muscular.

I decided, as everyone seems to love them these days, and specifically due to the vibe of the 60s band, to purchase a set of Flats - Fender 45-100 to be specific, after a little bit of research on here and elsewhere.

Played a gig with them tonight on the P (as I didn't want to muck about with the setup on my Jazz, which is my baby) - very disappointing..... The bad bits: the feel - they feel like cables, and sticky so hard to move around on. Also felt like harder work to fret; the sound - the boom is there, but almost too much at times. It seems like there is little of the "finesse" that I get with the rounds. It's hard to describe, and could be to do with readjusting my ears.

So, my question is, do I need to just admit defeat and go back to my rounds, or am I missing a trick? All reasonable suggestions considered!
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I can't speak for Fender Flats. But after 40 years I bought my 1st set of flats this year. I went with D'Addario Chromes. And now have two basses strung with them. Yeah they're sticky at first. Play the crap out of em for a day and they'll get slick as butter, at least the D'Addario Chromes do.

I wouldn't give up on them just yet. But I don't know anything about Fender's flats.
 
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#29
I'd say give it more than 1 gigs worth of playing/getting used /working in the Fenders...try 2 weeks of a good amount of playing/practicing before you throw in the towel...I have used Fender flats for a while now, really like them ..the stickiness (which I don't recall) is not there for me...I've also tried with good results, Daddario tapewounds, Dunlop flats and GHS flats...you may just fall in love with the tone and feel...lack of finger zing too!
 
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#30
I wouldn’t give up on the idea of flats just yet. It takes a while to find the right ones unfortunately.

If tension is an issue, look at something like the TI’s or LaBella low tension flats.

I’ve found some basses work great with flats, while others just don’t.
It’s worth experimenting with because when you find a good set of flats, they’ll stay on that bass forever.
 
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#31
Been using TI flats over the last 10 years or more but recently strapped some Fender 9050L flats on my 51/55 p bass. Loved the tone and really didn’t didn’t notice much of a difference in feel with the TI's. Ultimately I went back to the TI's cause they just have a little something extra found in no other string.
 
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#32
If you're in a cover band you either need/want that flatwound sound or you don't. I don't understand the need to "experiment".

If you play originals, again, either you need/want that sound or you don't. But there's something about flats that makes you play differently. It feels more percussive and will influence the basslines you come up with.

Ultimately it's about what you want to sound like. People make too much about how flats feel, for better or worse.
 
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#35
I am playing LaBella Low Tension Flats and they are so luxurious. Just easy as butter to play, not stiff at all. They are a much different animal from rounds. They have a velvety thump, but they growl when you slide. So instead of relying on a long sustain, I like to let notes slide away as they decay.

Comparing these to any roundwound would be like comparing a paintbrush vs a pencil... just totally different forms of art. I’ve also tried Chromes a few times and they are my least favorite type of string, hands down. But other people love them, it just depends on feel. Perhaps you could trade the Fenders for a different flat.
 
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#36
4StringDave said:
Bit of background - I play in a Country Rock band, a 60s band, and a Blues Rock band. All fairly traditional stuff, with not an ounce of slapping in sight, fingerstyle (and palm mute) only..! I normally play a Fender Jazz with old D'Addario nickel rounds on it (45-105), either both pickups or front pickup only, but also occasionally take my P with the same type of rounds. The sound I am going for is deep, defined and muscular.

I decided, as everyone seems to love them these days, and specifically due to the vibe of the 60s band, to purchase a set of Flats - Fender 45-100 to be specific, after a little bit of research on here and elsewhere.

Played a gig with them tonight on the P (as I didn't want to muck about with the setup on my Jazz, which is my baby) - very disappointing..... The bad bits: the feel - they feel like cables, and sticky so hard to move around on. Also felt like harder work to fret; the sound - the boom is there, but almost too much at times. It seems like there is little of the "finesse" that I get with the rounds. It's hard to describe, and could be to do with readjusting my ears.

So, my question is, do I need to just admit defeat and go back to my rounds, or am I missing a trick? All reasonable suggestions considered!
Click to expand...
EB Cobalt Flats...flatwounds for people who think they don’t like flatwounds.
 
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