Halfwounds vs. Pressurewounds - help please!

[Gilmourisgod]

@roccobass
My fretless has an ebony board I had coated with some kind of bulletproof polyester by Pedulla, back when they still did the occasional custom work, same stuff they used on the Buzz Bass. It's incredibly tough, so maybe not representative of what it would do on bare wood, but it shows very little wear after almost 30 years with pressurewounds.

 

[roccobass]

@roccobass
My fretless has an ebony board I had coated with some kind of bulletproof polyester by Pedulla, back when they still did the occasional custom work, same stuff they used on the Buzz Bass. It's incredibly tough, so maybe not representative of what it would do on bare wood, but it shows very little wear after almost 30 years with pressurewounds.

Yes, my ebony neck is just a normal All-Parts issued piece. No coating.It's a great neck, don't get me wrong, but vulnerable. Pedals is (or was) a great company. Was always partial to the 4 string Rapture The polyester coating sounds like the key. Hmm. Maybe I'll just stick to my Chrome flats. Thanks for the info.

 

[JRA]

if you think your fretless sounds better with rounds = try altering your thinking and technique.

a lot of folks press too hard (the string against the board) in the first place when stopping the note...and then, 'unconsciously', press even harder to make the slide = noise! using the least amount of pressure for stops and slides will reduce squeaks --- no matter your string choice. an effective slide does not require the same finger pressure that most folks apply, so: technique does indeed come into play! of course, dry fingers/hands help, too. like most things bass: it's a combination of factors/variables to get the sound you want (or can live with).

 

[Kukulkan61]

GHS PW !!!

 

[BigBear77]

Not Preasure or halves but,

chromes are nice and bright/smooth.

TI Flats have a nice mid range growl to them.

Optima Flats have a nice aggressive growl to them also.

 

[Passinwind]

I'll +1 SIT Silencers. They're the only pressurewound string I've tried and I liked them a lot. Silky smooth feel and tone.

Yep, I like them on my current #1 fretless more than the GHS PWs, which I also did like a lot on that particular bass.

 

[Altitude]

GHS Pressurewounds sounds like roundwounds with some of the zing dialed back.

D'Addario Half-Rounds sound like Chromes with about 15% more zing dialed in. These are what Patitucci has been using for the last 8 or 10 years.

Both are good products. The half-rounds are a bit sticky.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Currently I have Rotosound RS775 jazz flats on my Warwick Corvette, however I find myself wanting more growl. I really want to avoid rounds as I hate the feel, and I do a lot of sliding so the finger noise is my enemy. Are halfwounds (groundwounds) or pressurewounds the answer? I don't know much about these two string types, so are there differences? What can you suggest as for the best 5 string set for each type?

Any advice appreciated, thanks!

PS. I play 50-50 pick and fingers, if that makes any difference (I know it doesn't too much, usually)

They're the same thing. Different manufacturers use different terminology, but halfrounds/pressurewounds/groundwounds, they're all round wound strings that have been ground and treated. GHS pressurewounds are good strings. But, if you're looking to avoid the noise and feel of rounds, you're going to be disappointed for a good period of time. Especially the d'addarios.They grab your fingers like holy hell til you break them in. Even the pressurewounds grab and squeal. Much worse than any rounda I've ever played on. In fact, as far as feel goes, you can't get anything smoother feeling than a fresh set of stainless round wound strings. But alas, they develop the grip, and squeal worse as time goes on.

 

[Ggaa]

I used to be noisy fingered with flats and single coils. You do get better with the noise. But some strings are just noisier, ime La Bella Supersteps vs Fatbeams(less).

 

[michael_t]

If you're worried about the squeak factor, I would think flats would be the way to go. That or just roll off the treble on your controls.

I went thru a flatwound phase in the past, only to realize they didn't provide the tone I needed. The PWs provide the perfect balance between the smooth feel I want and the roundwound tone I need.

 

[Playbyear]

GHS Pressurewounds sounds like roundwounds with some of the zing dialed back.

D'Addario Half-Rounds sound like Chromes with about 15% more zing dialed in. These are what Patitucci has been using for the last 8 or 10 years.

Both are good products. The half-rounds are a bit sticky.

Mostly agree, but after a while the D'Addario half rounds lose the stickiness. They are definitely too sticky at first, but I was just playing bass with a broken-in half rounds and thinking how smooth and quiet the played.

 

[iiipopes]

And now for something completely different: flats with growl, since the OP is used to flats: Fender 9050L 45-100.

 

[Tony In Philly]

Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats are nice and bright. Pino Palladino apparently used them during his Who tours, so I would assume that would be a ringing endorsement.

 

[nonohmic]

Improving your technique until you don't get finger noise with any kind of string is the answer.

There are few dependable things in life these days. But luckily we can always depend on one of the first 5 comments in a talkbass thread dripping of elitism and not addressing the actual question from the OP.

 

[Clark W]

There are few dependable things in life these days. But luckily we can always depend on one of the first 5 comments in a talkbass thread dripping of elitism and not addressing the actual question from the OP.

Give him a break. He's just here to remind us we all can't be as good as him.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Who does this? Please paste a Youtube vid of an electric bass guitarist playing several position changes on round wounds with no noise.

One of my favorites, Janek Gwizdala has a fantastic Youtube "Practice Room" sub-channel. Lots of love round wound string noise.

Round wound strings equal lots of string noise even in the hands with the most talent and practice.

Not to hijack the thread, but I'll agree after playing them for over 50 years, round wounds will squeak. Period.

That said, while it is extremely annoying when playing without amplification, it tends to mellow out as the volume of the amplifier increases, coupled with a reasonable EQ setting, to the point of it not being noticeable. Especially in an ensemble setting. JMO.

BTW I have some stuff on ITunes (as opposed to You Tube) that we're done with round wounds, and nary a squawk to be heard. If interested, shoot me a PM.

I just hope the OP finds what he is looking for.

 

[juancaminos]

That kind of defeats the purpose of sliding.

Agree...then it wouldn't be called sliding...would it?

 

[beaglesandbass]

I have used halfrounds for a very long time on my Classic Stingray. Just put a set of pressure rounds on. Excited to hear the difference as I've heard good things.

 

[Passinwind]

They're the same thing. Different manufacturers use different terminology, but halfrounds/pressurewounds/groundwounds, they're all round wound strings that have been ground and treated.

Source please? AFAIK neither GHS Pressurewounds nor SIT Silencers are ground down roundwounds.

 

[lz4005]

There are few dependable things in life these days. But luckily we can always depend on one of the first 5 comments in a talkbass thread dripping of elitism and not addressing the actual question from the OP.

If someone asked the question "my volume level is very inconsistent when I play with my fingers and not a pick, what kind of pickup should I get to fix that?" would you suggest a pickup or would you suggest practicing more to eliminate the source of the problem?