It depends on the situation. I use rounds when called for, but I started out on flats. Loved them when I started out, and they will always be my preference. Still, the rounds have their place.
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Flats or Rounds?
- Thread starter Sam Farnon
- Start date
Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats most of the thump of a flat with more High frequency energy but not exactly Brite. Plus they are a little lower tension than most flats so it is not like playing Bridge Cables under high tension. I loves the sound of LaBella DTF's but they actually hurt to play. Ab]nd GHS precision flats don't have the articulation in the highs although the Brite flats do. I just like the feel and sound of the cobalt flats and they are not very expensive.
Bringing this thread back to life (maybe).
I agree with the statement that there is no right or wrong option here. Both flats and rounds sound good on a P-bass and the quest would rather be finding the right brand and tension that feels good under your fingers. As far as the sound goes I recommend recording yourself (live and studio) and listening back to what really is the practical difference between the two. A lot of times the 'zing' described by round-lovers is something that is mostly heard at home or really close to the speaker... and it often doesn't last that long. If that's what you're after, and I get the idea of liking that sound, be prepared for a life with buying a lot of strings and changing them pretty regularly.
On the other hand there's the alternative of going the 'flats-route', especially popular on a P-bass, that will give you a more relaxed approach...maybe spend a bit more when buying your set but then you often don't have to worry to much about changing strings for a long time. BUT... you won't get the zing and from time to time flats suffer from dead strings as well as rounds and having payed more makes it much more hurting to your economics and mental status.
So is there a middle ground here? I'd say you need to try for yourself because different basses seems to sound very different with different strings (did I mention different?).
Myself I have settled for about 3 different brands of flats where my go to flat is the Ernie Ball group II flats 50-105 because of their consistency and a tension that seems to fit my playing style very well. They are a safe bet if I want my basses to sound clear, warm and not get any issues with weird string buzz. They simply balance my basses up in a really good way. I should note though, that a couple of years ago I had some issues with a batch all of a sudden not being polished enough or simply not finished right. I tried to contact Ernie Ball about this but I was neglected and never got any answer from them. I hope that was a one time issue.
I also recommend La Bella flats for the warm traditional P-bass sound. They have a tendency of not being as even in production quality as the EBs and almost every set has one bad string and that's a shame since once you find 4 good La Bellas they will give you great sound and feel for a pretty long time... it just might take you a while.
GHS traditional flats are also good quality and not expensive but they are very much on the old school, no treble side of the spectrum and sometimes I feel like they just have been polished a bit too much and are very dead, but in a nice thumpy way, from the start. But if that's what you're after it's a good shortcut getting the GHS flats and you don't have to worry about string settling in as with most other flats. You're in vintage-thumpland right from the first tone
Ok. Now roundwounds. It's a different story and even more to chose from so I'll simply just shortly adress my favorite sets here. Rounds tend to die on you faster but what I've found is all three of the brands I'm mentioning here seems to my ears to still sound good even after loosing their initial top.. some of them actually better since the fundamental gets more solid when all the zing & twang is fading out.
Rotosound Swing bass SS 45-105
My favorites for years and I don't get what many refers to as them being so raw and noisy under your fingers. Ok, your fingertips will get black the first day of playing them but that nothing I personally have ever felt physically, I just see it visually. After a couple of days though they give me a great sound and they have that special mid presence that I have not found in any other roundwound (just listen to Jaco). Also they most of the time 'die' in a nice way and you could keep them on for quite a long time... they still give you good solid bass tone, maybe just not the zing.
Two more brands I like that are more elegant and mid scooped than Rotos but with a nice mid and defined body are DR Low riders SS 45-105 and Sadowsky Blue label stainless steels 45-105. Both very good quality rounds that will last longer than most and that has a good balance between zingy top, warm mid, and usable low end.
Last but not least the strings I mentioned has a character under my fingers that I like, both as far as tension goes and also as far as resistance (non-resistance). For instance the very popular D'Addario chromes to me is too sticky and harsh too long and I don't have the patience to wait for them to settle in and become what some describes as perfect. I'd then much rather go for the Ernie Ball flats which is a similar string but without the downsides of the Chromes. Nickel rounds in general to my taste sounds too much like you want them to sound acoustically but as soon as you use them in a band situation they just are too mellow and weak as far as the body of the note you're playing goes. I feel i just get lost in the total sound picture.
All this is of course one opinion among thousands, probably millions and for every theory there is a whole lot of contrary theorys.
I agree with the statement that there is no right or wrong option here. Both flats and rounds sound good on a P-bass and the quest would rather be finding the right brand and tension that feels good under your fingers. As far as the sound goes I recommend recording yourself (live and studio) and listening back to what really is the practical difference between the two. A lot of times the 'zing' described by round-lovers is something that is mostly heard at home or really close to the speaker... and it often doesn't last that long. If that's what you're after, and I get the idea of liking that sound, be prepared for a life with buying a lot of strings and changing them pretty regularly.
On the other hand there's the alternative of going the 'flats-route', especially popular on a P-bass, that will give you a more relaxed approach...maybe spend a bit more when buying your set but then you often don't have to worry to much about changing strings for a long time. BUT... you won't get the zing and from time to time flats suffer from dead strings as well as rounds and having payed more makes it much more hurting to your economics and mental status.
So is there a middle ground here? I'd say you need to try for yourself because different basses seems to sound very different with different strings (did I mention different?).
Myself I have settled for about 3 different brands of flats where my go to flat is the Ernie Ball group II flats 50-105 because of their consistency and a tension that seems to fit my playing style very well. They are a safe bet if I want my basses to sound clear, warm and not get any issues with weird string buzz. They simply balance my basses up in a really good way. I should note though, that a couple of years ago I had some issues with a batch all of a sudden not being polished enough or simply not finished right. I tried to contact Ernie Ball about this but I was neglected and never got any answer from them. I hope that was a one time issue.
I also recommend La Bella flats for the warm traditional P-bass sound. They have a tendency of not being as even in production quality as the EBs and almost every set has one bad string and that's a shame since once you find 4 good La Bellas they will give you great sound and feel for a pretty long time... it just might take you a while.
GHS traditional flats are also good quality and not expensive but they are very much on the old school, no treble side of the spectrum and sometimes I feel like they just have been polished a bit too much and are very dead, but in a nice thumpy way, from the start. But if that's what you're after it's a good shortcut getting the GHS flats and you don't have to worry about string settling in as with most other flats. You're in vintage-thumpland right from the first tone
Ok. Now roundwounds. It's a different story and even more to chose from so I'll simply just shortly adress my favorite sets here. Rounds tend to die on you faster but what I've found is all three of the brands I'm mentioning here seems to my ears to still sound good even after loosing their initial top.. some of them actually better since the fundamental gets more solid when all the zing & twang is fading out.
Rotosound Swing bass SS 45-105
My favorites for years and I don't get what many refers to as them being so raw and noisy under your fingers. Ok, your fingertips will get black the first day of playing them but that nothing I personally have ever felt physically, I just see it visually. After a couple of days though they give me a great sound and they have that special mid presence that I have not found in any other roundwound (just listen to Jaco). Also they most of the time 'die' in a nice way and you could keep them on for quite a long time... they still give you good solid bass tone, maybe just not the zing.
Two more brands I like that are more elegant and mid scooped than Rotos but with a nice mid and defined body are DR Low riders SS 45-105 and Sadowsky Blue label stainless steels 45-105. Both very good quality rounds that will last longer than most and that has a good balance between zingy top, warm mid, and usable low end.
Last but not least the strings I mentioned has a character under my fingers that I like, both as far as tension goes and also as far as resistance (non-resistance). For instance the very popular D'Addario chromes to me is too sticky and harsh too long and I don't have the patience to wait for them to settle in and become what some describes as perfect. I'd then much rather go for the Ernie Ball flats which is a similar string but without the downsides of the Chromes. Nickel rounds in general to my taste sounds too much like you want them to sound acoustically but as soon as you use them in a band situation they just are too mellow and weak as far as the body of the note you're playing goes. I feel i just get lost in the total sound picture.
All this is of course one opinion among thousands, probably millions and for every theory there is a whole lot of contrary theorys.
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Couldn’t agree more! Flats for gut punching, thuddy goodness, rounds for twangy, ringing clarityI'm in the (minimum) "one-bass-for-each" camp: one for flats, one for tapes, one for rounds ( to start...)
I think rounds balance the deep gnarly sound of the P bass much better. Flats are better suited to the J bass than a P.
Flats. Cost a bit more but last forever! La Bella DTF’s have wonderful midrange growl and sit in the mix wonderfully!
What?!?
Just kidding. Most folks say just the opposite. I certainly can’t image my P -Bass without flats.
But I do like the sound of RW’s on a P-bass too (Kansas Dave Hope just got a great sound with a P-bass and Rotosound Swing Bass RW’s).
I love the deep gnarly sound of the P-bass, and I prefer it to the sound of the j bass. Still, flats on a P is too much mud for me, whereas rounds balances it out a bit. Overall I prefer rounds.
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I’ve got one with La Bella flats and one (P/J) with rounds. Best of both worlds.
The La Bella’s don’t sound like mud on my P-bass. Played at the bridge (they sound quite clear (especially with a pick). I also really like the sound of the Dunlop flats. Not muddy at all.
I do agree. Nothing muddy about them. I actually think they are a bit too bright sometimes the first break-in period. Same with the Dunlops. Forgot to mention them. Great strings. I have the 50-70-90-110 set on one of my PJs. I challenged a bass playing friend who's swears by rounds on a blindfold test to see if he could spot the roundwound string from the Dunlop flats on my jazz bass... and he couldn't.
A good NPS round. I prefer a hex core a [tad stiffer and present] to round core but for type of music you expressed round core may work better.
For Blues and Blues rock I play over P pickup 90% of the time for certain 'Old School' songs play in front of pickup to varying degrees towards neck with overall excellent results with both positions.
I tried Cobalt Flats and they did sound excellent for classic rock/blues/blues rock but I actually didn't like overly smooth feel. [also stickiness.]
I understand and respect the lure of flats but overtime playing in Musically diverse cover bands NPS served me better.
For Blues and Blues rock I play over P pickup 90% of the time for certain 'Old School' songs play in front of pickup to varying degrees towards neck with overall excellent results with both positions.
I tried Cobalt Flats and they did sound excellent for classic rock/blues/blues rock but I actually didn't like overly smooth feel. [also stickiness.]
I understand and respect the lure of flats but overtime playing in Musically diverse cover bands NPS served me better.
Interesting. What kind of NPS are you using?
To me the feel under my fingers in the long run is what's most important. If the strings are stiffer and feel good they usually end up sounding good as well. I'm all for trying new approaches but nickel strings so far has been to timid and soft in their presence to me. If I could find a reliable NPS I'm not agains softer treble and actually it would make some sense with a warmer sound and less fret-wear. The way rounds work for me now is I prefer stainless steel but usually like them best when they settled in quite a bit because it's not the top zing I'm after, it's the mid and bass fundamental that's most important.
I’ve played rounds for over 40 years now, including a Blues band for a few years. Once in all those years (oddly last week) I played a gig where rounds didn’t fit. But...rounds and a bit of foam worked perfectly. So, my vote is rounds and some foam in the gig bag.
Ernie ball Cobalt flats work for my needs on my p bass . I do have a love for Labella flats as well but the Cobalts are more versatile for me . Try both and find what works best for you and have fun on your tone search !
I generally use flats on the stock 62 reissue and rounds on the American Special with the Quarter Pounder pickup. Those are what seem to suit each bass.
I bought a Precision Bass specifically to put flatwound strings on it. But after a few years, I came to prefer roundwounds. Currently enjoying GHS Super Steels.
