exactly. Dude wants flexible strings. Don’t play flats then or learn to love Tis or chromes. But that tone is labella. They deliver. Gotta suffer a little bit for the sound.
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Help me pick a flatwound for my "bright" maple P-bass
- Thread starter Mike Vee
- Start date
exactly. Dude wants flexible strings. Don’t play flats then or learn to love Tis or chromes. But that tone is labella. They deliver. Gotta suffer a little bit for the sound.
Big fan of La Bella’s too! I do get a brighter sound from Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats but they do rust quickly
There's plenty of flexible flats. You have TIs, the light gauge GHS precision flats, light gauge Cobalt flats, light gauge EBMM Group flats, the Fender 9050L, light gauge Dunlop flats, light gauge chromes, labella LTFs, LaBella 760FX, Dogal, Pyramid, on and on.
I vote Rotosound flats I had on two G&L SB2 with Moses graphite necks. Of course bright necks. Still have one. Work great.
The Dunlops are great. Regulars at least. I'd vote for those and not go light. Labella will get you the sound you want. Thats my point. The flexible flats are not getting you the sound, that's why you made the thread.
I've used just about every brand over the last 3 decades since I switched from rounds to flats. My go-to's for a number of years were the GHS Precision Flats. I found Chromes and Fenders to be too bright for my tastes, although I've used Chromes on a number of basses over the years. They sound great after about 9 months, but I'm not wild about them early on.
But when GHS stopped making their flats in the regular Long Scale, I started experimenting again. My go-to's for probably the last 10 years have been the LaBella Deep Talkin' Flats. I still like them a lot. The T.I.'s are very nice, but personally, I like cheaper options just as much (the LaBella DTF's, for one).
But I now have the DR Legends on 3 of my basses. They are my newest favorites. Very similar to the LaBella DTF's, but for some reason, I like the Legends even better. Excellent tone across all strings. Smooth as glass. I just love them. If you've never tried them, they're well-worth giving them a shot. Two of the basses I have them on now are my American Original '60s Jazz and my StingRay Special HH. They sound outstanding on both of them.
But when GHS stopped making their flats in the regular Long Scale, I started experimenting again. My go-to's for probably the last 10 years have been the LaBella Deep Talkin' Flats. I still like them a lot. The T.I.'s are very nice, but personally, I like cheaper options just as much (the LaBella DTF's, for one).
But I now have the DR Legends on 3 of my basses. They are my newest favorites. Very similar to the LaBella DTF's, but for some reason, I like the Legends even better. Excellent tone across all strings. Smooth as glass. I just love them. If you've never tried them, they're well-worth giving them a shot. Two of the basses I have them on now are my American Original '60s Jazz and my StingRay Special HH. They sound outstanding on both of them.
Cobalts will give you that nice mid range P bark. Less stiff than the Fenders but nowhere near being floppy either.
I’ve got a ‘75. It don’t sound like a ‘63 or ‘59 Precision (I’ve done direct comparisons) but it does sound awesome. I think you should do TI, they’re the best for the tone you’re seeking.
Try La Bella Low Tension Flats, less expensive than TI flats, yet plenty flexible.
Or Curt Mangan Flatwounds, they’re just nice strings comparable to GHS flats which I also like.
Or Curt Mangan Flatwounds, they’re just nice strings comparable to GHS flats which I also like.
My MIJ P bass has a ceramic pickup and Fender flats. The pickup reads only 8 ohms or so but it's pretty hot and bassy, no clear treble. With the midrangey Fender 9050s it's a muddy mess. Definitely does not lack booty. My gauges are 50-65-85-100 and the 100 E is floppy.
My other P bass has the 1954 Labella's and boy are those strings loud and bassy. Amazing but I wish the 110 E had more tension. I guess I'm weird.
My Mini P has the fattest low end of them also. 45-100 Chromes. It's the tiniest P bass ever. Such gorgeous contrast between the size and tone.
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I'd say give La Bella Nylon Tapes a try. They're flatwound. They EXTREMELY flexible. Like, bend for miles. They have really rich tone. Super thick and big when you play smoothly by the neck pickup or by the neck. "Speak" when you're down by the bridge. And when you dig in they really bark and bite.
And La Bella has 4 different types of tapes with different brightness:
- Black tapes are the most dark sounding, most like flats with a little more grunt. I really liked them but they were a touch too dark for me.
- Copper Whites are slightly brighter. I have them on a PJ with EMGs. Amazing P + Flat thump, with enough mids to really get the EMGs growling.
- The Gold Whites are a bit brighter still. I have them on a fretless with Delano XTenders usually switched to series mode. Has all the beef down low plus some more mid growl and a bit of bite.
- Whites are the brightest of their tapes. I had those on a bass with with maple neck-through, ebony fretboard, humbucking Js and Bart pre. They had a lot of bite to them, but might be crisper than you want.
