How much time should I spend trying to like flats...?

[Deleted member 271037]

LaBella flats are one of my favourite strings but they can be a bit weird when new. Sometimes they sound ok straight out of the box and sometimes the D+G is far too bright and clanky. And I'm not talking about different types of LaBella strings, only Deep Talking Flats. Has anyone else experienced this? I've never seen this kind of inconsistency with any other strings. With LaBellas DTFs it's always a surprise whether I get one of the clanky sets or the ones that sound reasonably balanced and mellow out of the box.

But even the clankiest sets have settled in after 2-3 days. I've never understood why people say LaBella flats require months, years, even DECADES to sound right. 2-3 days of (admittedly INTENSE) playing and they've always been fine as far as I'm concerned. Any change in tone after that is marginal. Which actually makes them one of the strings that break in the FASTEST in my experience. I've got 15 year old LaBellas that sound more or less identical to a set I installed last week. They are different scale though, the former being long scale and the latter being the Mustang set (but both are the same gauge, 43-104).

Anyway, if they're still clanky, give them a chance until they mellow out. THAT's the LaBella sound. If you still don't like them, don't waste another second trying to like them. Use the strings you actually like instead. Maybe re-visit flats in a couple of years to see if your taste/style has changed but don't try to like them if you don't. Flats simply aren't suitable for all styles/genres.

 

[40Hz]

Different basses like different strings. I’ve got different strings on everything I own. Match the string to the bass to get the best out of both. And if one string set doesn’t work for you, pull it off and load something else. No big deal. Life is too short to waste time trying to make yourself like something if you don’t have to.

 

[40Hz]

I've never understood why people say LaBella flats require months, years, even DECADES to sound right.

You don’t understand it because there’s nothing to understand. It’s total BS. As you quite rightly said, 2-3 days of heavy playing or a few weeks of moderate use will break in any flat string set. The whole “seasoned to perfection” thing is right up there with the sonic superiority of PIO tone caps, high mass bridges, brass nuts, and all the other bass myths

 

[Kipp Harrington]

Well - I hope you chaps don't feel I'm wasting your time. I wasted some time worrying about whether it was acceptable to start two completely different threads in the same forum within an hour of each other, but my questing through the world of strings continues and I have a completely different subject to ask for some help with. Hopefully the mods won't mind too much.

I've got a 5-string J-bass onto which I recently put some La Bella flats. They were quite nice on my other "cheapo" bass, but on the Squier, I just don't like them. They feel slippery and imprecise and as much as I really want to like them, they sound pretty crap, no matter what I do with the pots / amp. They're also oddly twangy and noisy, which surprised me - they certainly weren't on the other one. As far as I know, the setup is good, intonation is bang on, everything's adjusted to be comfortable. Except I seem to hate them.

How long do I should I give it to see if they (or I) settle down before I put the heavy-gauge rounds I like for that bass back on it? I mean - I've read that flats are harder to play accurately: do I just need to practice more and ignore the sort of "sickly" tone for a bit? Can I learn to love them? Should I?

I've been entertained and much-informed by your answers previously: I'll hope for a little of both this evening.

With thanks for any thoughts you can offer.

I had GHS Precision Flats on my J. I loved them for a while and they got a nice thump! Then I got into a band where I needed more note "definition", if that makes sense.

Slapped on some GHS Pressurewounds and I am soooo happy with the tone! They are kind of a hybrid between a flat and roundwound. Great thump but with more clarity. I put some on my P and they sound awesome also. If I ever need to get a more "traditional" sound, I just roll back the tone knob on my bass and voila'! Won't use any other strings.

 

[ezstep]

I've been using groundwounds, or semi-flats or half-rounds just recently. Unfortunately, I have not been in a band situation lately (Thanks, Covid!!!) so I cannot comment on that.

 

[Diminishedfilth]

I’d love to have a bass that I could leave strung with flats.
Years ago, I was playing with these one guys, and had a Fender MIM Jazz that I left at our practice space (Guitarist’s basement). We had a few Classic Rock covers, so I brought the bass back home and strung it with Fender flats. Took a few cranks of the truss rod to take the action back down to earth, but I was having a lot of fun playing suddenly familiar bass lines (“Brown Eyed Girl” was the first thing that came to mind). Anyway, I brought it back over to go over some songs with the guys, after a couple go’s, the guitarist offered me a set of longscale Dean Markley strings that he mistakenly bought for his own shortscale bass, thinking I had a set of ancient rounds.
Reminded me of when I wore an expensive, but apparently ugly tie to work, and a lady offered me her deceased Husband’s tie collection.

 

[G On Bass]

Nope - E/A/D/G have been on the other (4-string) bass for maybe 4-5 months though it gets light use, so perhaps they still weren't worn in. The B-string on the 5 is new, but on the basis that I can tell the difference between that and the rest, at least the top 4 are probably worn in.

Don't feel as if you have to like them because they are LaBella flats. Keep in mind, their reputation is mostly built on 4 string sets. As a someone whose main bass is a 5 string with flats, LaBella (and Sadowsky) flats are off my list of flats I use. For me, it's the B string. It has a taper and has always sounded way off compared to the rest of the set. I use Chromes, TI's and Cobalt flats and they sound great, though better on some basses than others. I have found that a week or so of solid, normal playing will break things in and after that they will continue to be predictable. Some of my sets of Chromes are probably 10 years old and still going.

 

[crabbybassman]

I've only been able to get along with Fender Flats and TI Flats. The TI Flats are superb. Every other flatwounds feel too slick and like plastic. I can not stand playing on greasy bridge cables. I love the sound of flats but not the feel of them at all. I have sandpaper hands and it's like picking up a microfiber clothe....again the TIs are superb from start to........well they've been on my PBass for about 13 years now and still sound great

 

[TGSmusique]

I remember trying flats on a friend's bass as a teenager and having my mind blown. Years later, once I swapped the stock round strings for flats on my own bass, I had the same feeling of the clouds parting and the sun shining through. I wouldn't spend more than a week trying to change your mind about how you feel. Experimenting with setup is definitely a good time, but it sounds to me you already know what you want.

 

[Lowbrow]

I give it about 1/2 hour every 10 years.

 

[michael_t]

I had GHS Precision Flats on my J. I loved them for a while and they got a nice thump! Then I got into a band where I needed more note "definition", if that makes sense.

Slapped on some GHS Pressurewounds and I am soooo happy with the tone!

This makes perfect sense to me.

My first encounter with flats was 13 yrs ago, when I put a set of D'A Chromes (40-100) on a newly-acquired Fender MIM P bass for my son to play in a high school jazz band for the next 3 yrs. As a former acoustic guitar player in my younger years, I had developed an allergy of sort to finger noise and screechy slides. So, putting my fingers on flatwound bass strings for the first time was a case of instant love. "Listen, Ma, no finger noise!"

So, when I decided to get a bass for myself, a Fender Jazz, in 2009, I had it set up with the same set of Chromes right from the beginning. And that's what I noodled on for the next 4 yrs as a casual bedroom bassist.

My "string journey" began in summer of 2013, when I started playing as an active church bassist. Rounds, flats, rounds, flats...back and forth, back and forth. Every time I played flats, I loved the smooth feel but the tone left me unconvinced, and whenever I was on rounds, they sounded better to my ears but I was never crazy about the feel.

I eventually settled on the GHS Pressurewounds as my "can do it all" string. All the roundwound tone I NEED, but with a much smoother feel than any rounds I've tried.

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

None. If you don't like flats, don't use them. Life's too short.

 

[Kro]

It's hard to judge any string out of the context of a mix. With the understanding that live mixes are hard to come by at the moment, do you have the ability to mix them into some bass-less tracks to see how they sound?

 

[JZQuantum]

I like GHS flats more. They aren't as slippery. They just feel right.

Flats on a p bass are like peanut butter and jelly. They can work on a jazz too but p bass is a no brainer.

 

[JRA]

How much time should I spend trying to like flats...?
i think the sweet spot is between 15-20 seconds and several months.
15-20 seconds = impulsive and too quick to judge, properly.
several months = slow...not the shiniest apple (but good for the bar tab!).

 

[Bikingbasser]

For me, the rounds vs flats debate is like flat head screwdriver vs phillips head. They're both tools to have in the ol' toolbox; handy for the right time.

 

[Steadfast]

I tried and failed also.

 

[Koog]

I've been a flats guy for fretted basses for more than 50 years. I've used tapes on fretless for the past 20 years.

My opinion is you spend relatively zero time "trying to like flats", or really anything. You either like 'em or you don't.

For me it's about feel, the sound, and how I'm able to manage technique and expression from my strings. Flats and tapes allow me to get what I want. Rounds and hybrids I've tried don't allow me to get what I want. It's that simple.

So my best advise is to use string types that give you as close as you can get to everything you want, including feel, sound, longevity, the ability to express yourself, etc....

Trying to like something that just doesn't work for you is a waste of time. Make your bass....and overall musical experience. ....as much fun as it can be. I relish the fact that every time I pick up one of my instruments, it brings a smile to my face.

Hope this helps.

Koog

 

[Doner Designs]

Once in awhile I try to like rounds but usually end up taking them off with wire cutters within a week.

I can't stand the feel of rounds or the string noise that my small hands and shifty style cause.

I keep going back to Ernie Ball or TI flats. To get a more aggressive growl I simply cut the low mids and boost the high mids. A little light distortion can help too.

There is a big difference in the tone of various brands. Ernie Ball, Daddario and Roto are bright flats. GHS and Pyramid are extremely thumpy. LaBella are in between but more toward the thumpy side and TI are not like anything else.

 

[logdrum]

TB has now aged and Flats on PBass is the de facto setup. It hasn’t” always been. I think when I first lurked, in 2001.. it was active basses and 6 strings more modern stuff.

I don’t like flats either. Nothing wrong with that.