The Group Flats fall in the same spectrum as the Fenders and the Chromes but I'm liking them better than both of those. The Chromes are decent and I liked them a lot more this time around than I had previously. They darkened up a lot upon breaking and seemed to have a more pronounced mid scoop to them... or maybe it's hyped lows and highs creating that perception but they just kinda don't do anything spectacular in a mix for me. I like the Fenders better than the chromes as they have a mid growl to them that's really nice and develop a good amount of thump to them as they break in. There's something about the Group Flats that's kind of hard to pin down. They almost sit between Fenders and Chromes but to me have a better clarity than to them than both sets and not as growly as the Fenders. The top end on them has a sweetness to it without any harshness. Mids are smooth and the low end is plentiful. I know people like to say that these are all three the same strings but having all three sets on hand and comparing them they are actually quite different. I could be happy with any of the sets but my pick for this type of a flat is definitely the EB Groups.
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Flatwound strings - Fender P bass
- Thread starter DomTurco
- Start date
The Group Flats fall in the same spectrum as the Fenders and the Chromes but I'm liking them better than both of those. The Chromes are decent and I liked them a lot more this time around than I had previously. They darkened up a lot upon breaking and seemed to have a more pronounced mid scoop to them... or maybe it's hyped lows and highs creating that perception but they just kinda don't do anything spectacular in a mix for me. I like the Fenders better than the chromes as they have a mid growl to them that's really nice and develop a good amount of thump to them as they break in. There's something about the Group Flats that's kind of hard to pin down. They almost sit between Fenders and Chromes but to me have a better clarity than to them than both sets and not as growly as the Fenders. The top end on them has a sweetness to it without any harshness. Mids are smooth and the low end is plentiful. I know people like to say that these are all three the same strings but having all three sets on hand and comparing them they are actually quite different. I could be happy with any of the sets but my pick for this type of a flat is definitely the EB Groups.
thank you very much for your post and for sharing your opinion and experience! interesting and clear!
D'Addario Chromes or Labella DTFs. I've pretty much settled on those two after wandering about in the wilderness for the past few years.
Consistently good quality products, coupled with superb feel and sound.
I just had a quick look before I responded here with an edit. I've just realized that all my basses now sport Chromes.
In particular, the Fender Precision is wearing ECB81, 45-100 Chromes.
Consistently good quality products, coupled with superb feel and sound.
I just had a quick look before I responded here with an edit. I've just realized that all my basses now sport Chromes.
In particular, the Fender Precision is wearing ECB81, 45-100 Chromes.
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I was inspired to go back and test the 3 brands of strings that I mentioned in my earlier post: LaBella LTF's, GHS Pressurewounds and the TI's I had on the bass. Of the 3 the LTF's are just too "thumpy".. They're great but there's definitely a lack of presence. The big surprise was the P wounds. I hadn't realized what I was missing until I put them back on. Clarity. Presence and a nice punch that I hadn't realized I was missing. All 3 string sets are still worthy of consideration but these P wounds have claimed the top position IMHO. YMMV. Yada, yada . . . 
I was inspired to go back and test the 3 brands of strings that I mentioned in my earlier post: LaBella LTF's, GHS Pressurewounds and the TI's I had on the bass. Of the 3 the LTF's are just too "thumpy".. They're great but there's definitely a lack of presence. The big surprise was the P wounds. I hadn't realized what I was missing until I put them back on. Clarity. Presence and a nice punch that I hadn't realized I was missing. All 3 string sets are still worthy of consideration but these P wounds have claimed the top position IMHO. YMMV. Yada, yada . . .
I feel the same about the Fender 9050L's. I found the LaBella FL760s as you described. Fender's were punchy with good mids.
All depends on what you want from a flatwound.
Thom
I only have experience with DR "Chromes", EB "Cobalt Flats", and LaBella "Deep Talkin 1954s".
- Of the 3, the LaBella "Deep Talkin 1954s" were my favorites - They felt nice, had that super deep/boomy old-school sound, and held a nice action. But had extremely high tension. I'd had no clue about high tension strings potentially hurting your neck before I slapped them on my CV 70's P, but they sounded really nice. I kept them on that bass for a while, but eventually switched them out for the EB Cobalt Flats, out of fear for hurting my truss rod.
- The EB "Cobalt Flats" were really comfortable and had a roundwound zing to them you don't typically get out of flats. But the "feel" was still that of flats. Medium tension and responsive. If you like the feel of flats but want a brighter, more aggressive tone, the EB Cobalt flats are great.
- The DR Chromes were a set I can't really comment on at the moment. When I'd tried them before, I was pretty new to bass and didn't know WHAT I liked just yet. The Chromes sounded nice enough, but were uncomfortable and felt sticky to me at the time. Not a very fair observation, BUT I recently ordered another set to put on my CV 70's P and can actually give them a fair chance. I was inspired to try them again after recently playing around on a PBass in a GC with Chromes that I REALLY liked. Have to give em another shot.
I have no personal experience with the EB III's you mentioned.
Don't know if that that helped any, but I've got a ton of downtime at work tonight lol
- Of the 3, the LaBella "Deep Talkin 1954s" were my favorites - They felt nice, had that super deep/boomy old-school sound, and held a nice action. But had extremely high tension. I'd had no clue about high tension strings potentially hurting your neck before I slapped them on my CV 70's P, but they sounded really nice. I kept them on that bass for a while, but eventually switched them out for the EB Cobalt Flats, out of fear for hurting my truss rod.
- The EB "Cobalt Flats" were really comfortable and had a roundwound zing to them you don't typically get out of flats. But the "feel" was still that of flats. Medium tension and responsive. If you like the feel of flats but want a brighter, more aggressive tone, the EB Cobalt flats are great.
- The DR Chromes were a set I can't really comment on at the moment. When I'd tried them before, I was pretty new to bass and didn't know WHAT I liked just yet. The Chromes sounded nice enough, but were uncomfortable and felt sticky to me at the time. Not a very fair observation, BUT I recently ordered another set to put on my CV 70's P and can actually give them a fair chance. I was inspired to try them again after recently playing around on a PBass in a GC with Chromes that I REALLY liked. Have to give em another shot.
I have no personal experience with the EB III's you mentioned.
Don't know if that that helped any, but I've got a ton of downtime at work tonight lol
