Half Rounds and the "worst of both worlds" comments

[Crispus]

I use flats, I use rounds, I use tape wounds and I use half-wounds (ground-wound rounds) and the conclusion I have found is that it the bass they're wrapped on dictates what works best. Basically, it's what you hear, what's in your head. In any case, that's my personal take.

I agree; let each particular bass choose the strings. It can take a while.
OP, you might like GHS Pressurewound after they break in. Labella LTFs might give you the sound and feel right off, though.

 

[joebingo]

I've been reading about D'Addario's XL Half Rounds (and GHS's Brite Flats), and the comment that they're the "worst of both worlds" is often repeated without much explanation.

But flats and rounds differ in a lot of ways. For example, I know a lot of people are looking for flat strings with the sound of rounds. What I like about flats is not so much how they feel, but how they sound. In my world, the perfect string would be one that sounds like La Bella's Deep Talkin' with the tension of 40-100 rounds. I don't care if they're rounds or flats.

So, what do people mean when they say they're the worst of both worlds?

Glad that you didn't use chatGPT for this one

 

[MCS4]

La Bella Low Tension Flats?

Yeah, I use these on my P bass, and while I don't think they sound exactly like Deep Talkin Flats by any means, they are certainly much closer to a "classic flatwound sound with less tension" compared to any groundwound/half round option I've tried, if that is the OP's main goal.

 

[Steve Dallman]

I use D'Addario strings on my guitars and basses. For bass Pro Steels are my go-to.

Years ago, I tried a set of half rounds. I love D'Addario Flat Tops (groundwounds) for acoustic. They are not as bright to start with, but they last a long, long time.

My experience with bass half-rounds was not good. The G string was about as bright as a new nickel roundwound. The D was not as bright. The A was into flat territory. The E was a dull thud, and the low B was just an indistinct, extremely dull thud. It was hard to discern the notes being played on it.

I expressed my dismay with the half rounds. D'Addario responded to my complaint with "some players like them like that."

I've used GHS pressurewounds which I rather liked. GHS Brite Flats are not bright, but I've used them on acoustic fretless basses and like their higher tension.

I love bright and clangy and Pro Steels are my favorites.

 

[Just Wrong]

Glad that you didn't use chatGPT for this one

It does read like ChatGPT, but it's not!

I studied journalism and worked as a journalist for a few years. ChatGPT and other AIs were trained on newspaper articles. That could be why.

It could also be that I've been working in communication departments for various companies for the last few years and people are always sending me texts they've written in ChatGPT to communicate. Maybe I've unwillingly adopted its writing style

 

[SunByrne]

I don't really care for flats, but all my fretless basses and my PJ wear Pressurewounds. I've tried groundwounds once and that experiment lasted less than a week. I understand why people are looking for some kind of round/flat compromise and for me (and for @Lo-E), groundwounds do not successfully achieve that and Pressurewounds do (admittedly closer to rounds than flats), but YMMV.

 

[red_rhino]

Tried the ground-wounds once. Couldn't take them off fast enough. Definitely not for me.

I stumbled upon GHS pressurewounds. They don't eat up the frets and fingers, but sound similar to rounds. Give em a try

Yep, a great sounding long lasting string. They start off without all the zing of a new set of rounds, mellow a bit, and maintain that broken-in tone and feel for a very long time. They're also a bit stiffer (IME). A lighter gauge feels and plays about the same as a medium gauge set of most rounds.

If the ground-wound is the worst of both worlds, the pressurewounds are the best of both.

 

[Ignatius]

I stumbled upon GHS pressurewounds. They don't eat up the frets and fingers, but sound similar to rounds. Give em a try

I just removed a set of these from my Lakland HB30. I had them on for a few months and really, really tried to like them but the D string was always too bright and the E string never seemed to intonate correctly.

I put a set of DAddrio EXL 160s on this weekend. Rehearsal tomorrow and a gig on Friday. We'll see how long they stay on.....

 

[MDBass]

I've been reading about D'Addario's XL Half Rounds (and GHS's Brite Flats), and the comment that they're the "worst of both worlds" is often repeated without much explanation.

But flats and rounds differ in a lot of ways. For example, I know a lot of people are looking for flat strings with the sound of rounds. What I like about flats is not so much how they feel, but how they sound. In my world, the perfect string would be one that sounds like La Bella's Deep Talkin' with the tension of 40-100 rounds. I don't care if they're rounds or flats.

So, what do people mean when they say they're the worst of both worlds?

I take it to mean that those strings do none of the things that either flats or rounds excel at.

All compromise without any benefits.

 

[michael_t]

Except that GHS Brite Flats do not have the smooth outer surface your diagram shows. They're closer to the rollerwound illustration.

The Brite Flats are definitely "groundwound", not rollerwould. The Pressurewounds (rollerwound) are slicker in surface feel with no drag or stickiness, not to mention their basic tonal character is a lot more "roundwound" than any half-rounds/groundwound.

When a round wire is ground down, it can still leave tiny little gaps in between. That's what results in stickiness.

 

[PennyroyalWe]

If you like the sound of dead rounds, that's pretty close to what half rounds give, IMO.

 

[Deleted member 271037]

I can totally understand why lots of people don't like GHS Brite Flats. They are... different.

But when I hear the most common complaint, about stickyness, I also understand that most people don't play them long enough to break in the strings properly.

The first time I tried GHS Brite Flats I absolutely hated them. In fact, I though they were the worst bass strings I had ever tried. Worst of both worlds indeed. But I never judge strings by their initial tone out of the box. The only thing that matters to me is their broken in tone. So I kept playing them from time to time. Not very often, but often enough to break in the strings over a couple of months.

The stickyness is now completely gone, they're very nice and smooth. The initial harsh tone is also gone. They're actually darker/smoother sounding than many "modern" flats like Fenders or Dunlop. The best description I can give is a slightly brighter and FAR less thumpy version of GHS Precision Flats.

I really like the tone I get from them now, but I'm not so happy about the stiffness. They are condiderably stiffer than most other strings with similar gauges. This doesn't mean they're hard on my hands at all, because when the bass is set up properly GHS Brite Flats can handle a lower action without fretbuzz than any other strings I've tried except Roto 77 flats. I just prefer string with a slightly more supple feel.

Still, they will stay installed on one of my basses, because they provide a color that NO other strings can give me. I don't do much slapping, but I suspect GHS Brite Flats would be absolutely SUPERB for anyone looking for that darker, kinda "dry" 70s slap tone. They're definitely niche strings, but that's what I like about them.

They're actually very nice strings (for what they are) even though they're utterly horrible out of the box. You just need to give them enough time to mellow out and get rid of that nasty stickyness. Because they really are close to unplayable out of the box.

 

[overit]

GHS description of Brite Flats:

"Similar in feel to a flatwound string, the Brite Flats™ are micro-ground to a smoother flat surface, while retaining a much brighter tone."

To the OP's question - worst of both worlds - completely generalizing here what most people probably comment most about regarding either string :
Flat world "FEEL" - smooth
Round world "SOUND" - bright

Grounds/half-rounds don't capture the best of either the feel or sound - they are neither smooth like a flatwound or bright like a roundwound - so people say the worst of both. That's my take and having tried BRite Flats sometime in the 90s - I remember them being either sticky or rough and just kinda dull sounding.

 

[Rev_Slinky]

I have the D'addario half-rounds on two basses and love them for those instruments! For one, I chose them specifically because it's a string-through setup and I prefer flats, so I needed something that could handle that setup while still giving me a smooth playing feel. For the other bass, they just sounded best out of all the strings I tried. I don't find them to be sticky or bright. They have a nice warmth and a comfortable all-purpose tension.

For the record, I use TI flats on two other basses, DR Legends on one, and some old DR Fat-Beams on another. I like lower tension, not too-bright, smoother feeling strings.

 

[GwenOnBass]

I gave Brite Flats two months daily play before I said "enough". The sticky feeling eases up a bit with play. But I play less up around 12th fretland, which means they're still grabby up there when I try and slide into a double stop. No fun for me.

Brite Flats do sound perfect on the 2 band 'Ray, a la Bernard Edwards. Which is my tonal goal when I try Brite Flats. Just run of patience. Also, I find they are a little too stiff for my taste.

Two months play is also the shortest amount of time I ever gave a new set of strings on trial. Eight months play is what I normally give to a set before I decide to keep or toss. Replaced the Brite Flats with EB Group IV flats. They are still on the 'Ray 38 months later ....

 

[Riff Ranger]

I use GHS Brite Flats on my fretless. They're groundwounds rather than half-rounds but IMO the difference is slight.

If you want a bright tone, use roundwounds. If you don't, use flats. If you want the tone of roundwounds and the feel of flats, groundwounds and half-rounds are going to disappoint you because they provide neither.

On the other hand if you want something between rounds and flats in terms of tone or feel, try them. They're actually pretty good for what they are.

I think it comes from a place where many people hope that half-rounds/groundwounds will feel mostly like flats but sound mostly like rounds, or a sort of "best of both worlds," but in reality they are really something different that falls somewhere in between... which can just make it feel like you are compromising on both fronts.

These quotes ring true for me. I think the "worst of both worlds" comments stem from misplaced expectations: if you expect ground/pressure/roller/half-round-wound strings to sound exactly like a round and feel exactly like a flat, you will surely find them disappointing—of course you will. I've found that if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is, so that never struck me as a realistic expectation for these strings. It reminds me a lot of players hating on the PJ pickup configuration because it doesn't magically have every P and JJ sound under the hood—of course it doesn't. However, if you judge these strings (or PJ pickup configurations) as their own thing, you might find you like the unique things they do.

For what it's worth I really like GHS Pressurewounds on a fretless bass, and I really like PJs

 

[joebingo]

It does read like ChatGPT, but it's not!

I studied journalism and worked as a journalist for a few years. ChatGPT and other AIs were trained on newspaper articles. That could be why.

It could also be that I've been working in communication departments for various companies for the last few years and people are always sending me texts they've written in ChatGPT to communicate. Maybe I've unwillingly adopted its writing style

I suppose it is a rather timeless writing style

 

[HaphAsSard]

I have a set from the 70's when they were still "patent pending". Still in box. Tried them, yep, truly the worst lol. Super stiff with finger noise, solid "meh" tone, as if my bass wouldn't make up its mind eq wise (it was a 1960 P bass).

Interesting. Could you share a picture of the package?

 

[Just Wrong]

Yeah, I use these on my P bass, and while I don't think they sound exactly like Deep Talkin Flats by any means, they are certainly much closer to a "classic flatwound sound with less tension" compared to any groundwound/half round option I've tried, if that is the OP's main goal.

I have a peculiar bass. It's a six string (BEADGC) headless short scale. Headless means I can use regular long scale strings, but it also means I can't use round core strings, flats and tapes. Round core strings won't hold at the headstock, and I can't cut flats and tapes before the silk wrap.

I'm looking for warm sounding flexible strings. So no flats.

My favourite round wounds are Sunbeams, but they're round core. I could try the nickel Lo riders, but the 6 string set doesn't have my preferred light gauge and they don't seem to sell a single C. I could ask.

I love tapes, but nobody makes a short scale six string set. I know Pyramid could, but I don't like their tapes. I much prefer La Bella's or D'Addario's.

My favourite flats (on a four string) are actually the La Bella 760FL. I prefer the LTF, but I tried a few sets and the G string was always much brighter than the rest and never died…

Anyway, I'm pretty sure my next set will be the light GHS pressure wound (96 E) with a B and C as per Micheal T's suggestion.

 

[Mastiff_5]

I've switched to DR ground wounds on one of my 5's, and I really dig them. They are like a really broken-in set of rounds, but more even, less dead. I don't like super bright, clicky tone, so they work great. I really like them!