Getting that "piano sound"

[oniman7]

I've always been of the group that lusts after a huge, punchy piano sound. I like my upper range warm and my lower range big and growly, like a piano.

While browsing a thread about flatwounds, people kept talking about a piano sound, and it got me wondering...
has anyone ever found it?

Not just something with punch approximate to a piano, but something bright, warm and huge sounding like a piano, with plenty of power on notes below low E (if you have them).

Anyways, I have two basses with active soapbars, a Saga kit bass with a P Pickup, and will be getting an EBMM Ray 5 soon, if it helps.

But just to satisfy my curiosity, what's the biggest piano sound you've managed to get, and what strings were you using?

 

[john_g]

I certainly dont get a piano like tone with flatwounds, that to me is almost synonymous with roundwounds. And, Rotosounds make "piano design" strings:

Invalid Link Removed

 

[mmbongo]

DR Sunbeams with my Spector NS-5, which is custom built with a MM pickup at the bridge. Piano for days. It's actually hard NOT to get piano tone out of a Spector

 

[oniman7]

I certainly dont get a piano like tone with flatwounds, that to me is almost synonymous with roundwounds. And, Rotosounds make "piano design" strings:

Invalid Link Removed

Awesome. I can't seem to find info on scale length, though. I have a 35" scale bass currently, and it's hard to get some strings to fit.

 

[PatentNonsense]

Is a longer scale more likely to give that sound? I see some people here talking about 37" or 38" scales, but those seem to be pretty rare.

 

[SLaPiNFuNK]

Awesome. I can't seem to find info on scale length, though. I have a 35" scale bass currently, and it's hard to get some strings to fit.

Roughly 37.75 of useable winding, give or take depending on how you put the ball on.

 

[oniman7]

This has got me thinking.

I wonder if I could make a 7 string that sounds like a piano.

Big, hot roundwounds on the F#, B, E, and A strings. Then for the top 3 strings, do courses of two, so I guess that would technically make it a 10 string.


Anyways, as long as they don't taper, I can probably get those to fit. They're a bit pricey to put on anything but my main bass. I'll play the Saga P at practice and if that has good tone, maybe I'll try them on that first.

 

[SLaPiNFuNK]

The Piano Strings do taper... They are Exposed Core strings with adjustable ball ends:

I can not link to the installation guide as it would ba a violation of the CUP but I will PM it to you...

 

[soulman969]

Awesome. I can't seem to find info on scale length, though. I have a 35" scale bass currently, and it's hard to get some strings to fit.

I used DR Hi Beams on my 35" scale Modulus and the sound was very much a piano like tone like you describe. Not harsh but just very full, very clear and loaded with harmonics. First time I'd ever gotten close to that out of a bass/string combination.

 

[kevteop]

I guess if you had about a 50" scale for the bass strings and three courses of strings you might get close to the sound of a piano.

Can't say I've ever heard a bass guitar sound like a piano, I've only heard a lot of bass guitarists talk nonsense about it.

 

[cnltb]

I certainly dont get a piano like tone with flatwounds, that to me is almost synonymous with roundwounds. And, Rotosounds make "piano design" strings:

Invalid Link Removed

newtonestrings do them too.

 

[YoMomma]

My 2cents: I took my new-ish 8-string ( 4 pairs of two - octaves) out to a gig last week. D'Addario EXL170-8 string set. Was getting a MONSTER big piano. Those unison octaves were (unexpectedly) the biggest reason. HUGE bass guitar sound. I loved it!

 

[Floyd Eye]

The new (ish) Elixirs. The ones they gave us all free samples of last year. They are exactly like that, which in my case, is why I yanked them and went back to Rotos.

 

[Joe Nerve]

Most piano sounding bass I ever had was a 35" scale american peavey millenium. I wonder though whether the "piano" thing was more in the feel than the actual sound.

 

[One Drop]

I guess if you had about a 50" scale for the bass strings and three courses of strings you might get close to the sound of a piano.

Can't say I've ever heard a bass guitar sound like a piano, I've only heard a lot of bass guitarists talk nonsense about it.

Well, everything is relative, and the expression is a good one to describe a certain metallic and harmonic-laden clean bass tone that some people do get.

Roto rounds, especially the ones linked, do a better job than anything else I've heard.

Entwistle got a very piano like tone live in the mid/late '60s, actually one of my favorite periods to listen to his bass. Absolutely monstrous huge and clear, very cool tone before he started playing with more OD.

 

[BassPlayer900]

I get a piano-like tone with Rotosounds on a Jazz bass with the neck pickup on full and the bridge backed off a bit and the tone on full. Playing near the neck pickup seems to really bring out that "piano" sound. I also got piano tone with a P bass, a pick, roundwounds, and a SansAmp Bass Driver DI.

 

[GLEN18INCHSPICA]

Dean Markley SR2000 strings get quite a bit of that going on, they are an exposed core.

 

[simmerdown]

must have a lot to do with technique too, no?...if it is to sound like a piano's felty hammers....

 

[mpdd]

sb-2 with nickel round wounds, haven't tried the stainless round wound strings yet

 

[millsbass5]

Sure you can get that 'piano-type tone'. How? Use stainless steel strings. And, be prepared to spend some big bucks by keeping a fresh set on your bass at all times. Or,you could just let your bass live in a giant pool of rubbing alcohol.....