Half Rounds?

[trothwell]

I found GHS Brite Flats to sound better than D'Addario Half Rounds. I think the discontinued Labella Quarter Rounds might sound better than either of them, but, they're discontinued, so it hardly matters. I wonder if these are similar to the Quarter Rounds, but I don't know, and have never tried them:

MTD Super Polished Bass Strings — Michael Tobias Design

 

[Chrisk-K]

IME, half-rounds are the worst of both worlds. I like the crisp tone of roundwounds as well as the smooth tone of flats.

 

[Cleezmo]

Don't expect "thumpy" from GHS Pressurewounds; they're more like "mellowed-down rounds with a smoother feel".

This is my same experience. I use GHS Pressure Wounds on my fretless, and have been for several years. Tried Cobalt Flats, Dunlop Flats, DR Sunbeams, then finally landed on the Pressure Wounds. They are, at least on a G&L L-2500, a pretty versatile string, but I agree that you won't get flat wound thump out of them. But I dig them on my fretless because they don't chew up the board as much as rounds do/would, and they can sound *almost* as zingy as rounds, and *almost* as mellow as flats by turning knobs in different directions. Plus tension isn't crazy.

 

[Eric Ryan]

I’m the artist that drew the monkey in your avatar

Well then, your art is also prominently displayed on the lock screen of my cell phone!! It has gotten quite a few compliments.

 

[fretlessman71]

I have them on my second bass - I love them but did not like the way they felt out of the package - too sticky. So I laid them out on a flat surface and went over them with a scotchbrite pad until they were smooth. Now they feel like Labella flats with the advantage of the round wound undertone.

Interesting idea! I prefer SIT Silencers "Semi-Flats" (yes they occasionally ship a DOA string), but I will have to give this a shot next string change.

 

[bigjames]

So I put a set of the D’Addario half rounds on my jazz bass. I have flats on everything else, I really dislike the metallic clack and clank and bright zinginess with new rounds, I like the dead round sound so figured I’d try half rounds.

The good? They sound nice. Nice and warm with just a hint of brightness, almost like dead rounds!

The bad? They feel WEIRD. They feel almost dry. Almost more finger noise and squeak than rounds. Does this ever go away?

This was my experience as well when I experimented with various ground wounds, flats, etc. 20 plus years ago. The ground wounds had a sticky / tacky quality to them that I could not get used to personally.

 

[Swamp_Ronin]

No way!

I am indeed. I made that drawing as a gift for my friend Jose in 2014 I believe. I see it pop up all over the place.

 

[Swamp_Ronin]

Well then, your art is also prominently displayed on the lock screen of my cell phone!! It has gotten quite a few compliments.

Thank you. I’m glad people live it. I’ve had to send cease and desists to companies putting it on merch etc. I’m a comic book artist

 

[Eric Ryan]

Thank you. I’m glad people live it. I’ve had to send cease and desists to companies putting it on merch etc. I’m a comic book artist

I will gladly & humbly use something else if you'd like, but will continue to use it with your permission.

 

[PennyroyalWe]

I’ve had them on a few basses over the years, and have a set stored for a rainy day.

My over all impression, they’re not my favorite. Not quite thumpy enough for flat tones, but they don’t have the aggressiveness of rounds. IMO they’re a lot like dead rounds, which I would typically remove/replace. I think they’re one of those sets that needs to be paired with the right bass, because they’re not a one size fits all type of string.

 

[wncBass]

DR sunbeams feel smoother than any ground or half round I’ve tried. They sound better in my opinion as well.

 

[Tazziedevil]

I will gladly & humbly use something else if you'd like, but will continue to use it with your permission.

myself as well! I can’t remember where I found it but I love it and I’d love to be able to keep using it here

 

[Hounddog409]

Another thing I like about the GHS Brite Flats is the light set is very nicely balanced both tension and feel.

Here's the comparison in tension figures...

D'A Half Rounds (ENR71):

G 045 - 49.6 (lbs.)
D 065 - 48.9
A 080 - 41.1
E 100 - 38.7

GHS Brite Flats Light (L3075)

G 045 - 38.3 (lbs.)
D 056 - 35.9
A 077 - 39.3
E 098 - 38.8

AND.....if you buy the Bright Flat medium scale, they actually fit Fender Basses.

The E string silk does not wrap around the post.

 

[michael_t]

AND.....if you buy the Bright Flat medium scale, they actually fit Fender Basses.

The E string silk does not wrap around the post.

GHS "medium scale" = 35.5" from ball to taper/silk = not long enough for the standard 34" scale Fenders.

No issue with any of the GHS "long plus" strings (38" winding) on Fenders even when the full winding wraps around the tuner post.

 

[boylebass]

I have run pressurewounds on my warwicks from time to time. I love that string, good tone, long life, and not much finger noise, especially at church with DI and IEM only. I’m in agreement with the “nothing beats the sounds of dead boomers”, I’ve got a set on one of my p basses. Now that I think about it, I can’t remember the last time I changed them.

 

[LowendG]

If you want the tone/feel of dead roundwounds you should use dead roundwounds. No half-rounds will give you that.

Same here. I go with nickel rounds, play the heck out of them and then they become super versatile. Well-worked DR Nickel LoRiders FTW--I use them often in situations where I'd normally play flats and no one bats an eye.

 

[Tim Skaggs]

I bought a couple sets several years ago and I concur on the “dry” feel and resistance to sliding my fingertip along the string. To me, they get “deader” than rounds and it’s not a good dead.

I’ll soak rounds in acetone when they get really dead and it will bring back some brightness until the outer windings start showing some deformation where they contact the frets. This does not work with the half rounds. Soaking them in acetone doesn’t change them at all. They stay very dead. I don’t use them on anything any longer.

If I want a warm tone, it’s Chromes and now LaBella 760s. If I want brightness, it’s EB Cobalt flats; they don’t start out as bright as rounds, but are much brighter than any other flat I’ve tried, and they really don’t go dead.

 

[Tazziedevil]

I have:
Thomastik-Infeld Jazz flats on my main Thunderbird,
Cobalt Flats on a second Tbird,
LaBella short scale flats on my EB-3

It’s the Jazz bass I’m changing strings on. Again I really don’t like the bright clacky metallic round wound sound, but I already have the “deep dark and thumpy” well covered, wanting something slightly more lively but not zingy and overly metallic.

Have used Cobalt rounds which I quite liked, but they’re now super expensive and not easy to find in my area.

what’s the consensus on a round that mellows out quickly?

 

[FeltTipPen]

Thank you. I’m glad people live it. I’ve had to send cease and desists to companies putting it on merch etc. I’m a comic book artist

Love your Chris Cornell on your avatar!

 

[Dabndug]

One of the mysteries of life is why I can't get along with D'addario Half Rounds but love GHS Brite Flats. In theory, a similar product. In practice, chalk and cheese.