Have you tried a Fender 9050L set? They’re 45-100 and after break in are pretty even to my ears.
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LaBella Olinto Flatwounds - Stunning!
- Thread starter MIJ Fender Guy
- Start date
I got a rehearsal in with the Olintos. I'm pretty pleased. As long as the clarity remains after full breakin, these will fill the thump lane in my line up..... a spot previously filled by an old set of Sadowsky Black Label Flats. The high mids of the Olintos feel not quite as high as the Black Labels. But I think that's what gives the Olintos that thump with some aggression thing I'm hearing. They are fairly comfortable for me to play... I said earlier they felt maybe a bit more flexible than the black labels..... I'll step back on that a bit and say from a feel perspective they are about the same.... and still more flexible than the 760FS's..... and they certainly sound better to me. Anyway, fingers crossed these stay thumpy aggressive through and after full break in!
Another week in with these, and they keep getting better..... however, I pulled them off of my sb1 and installed them on a 2015 am std p with an A string stealth retainer. The open A on the sb1 was not sounding right.... not really buzzing, but you could hear it ping.... but only on the A. Moved it over to the P with the retainer, and it cleared it up. I tried stringing it without the retainer (in the name of science) and the ping was full on buzz/rattle. Rotated the retainer back and got the string under it and all is well. Side note.... I wonder if this is why you see odd sized A strings on some strings.... like the smaller A on TIJF's???
Anyway, the Olintos sound really good.... I'm hearing shades of Phil's Blow by Blow tone in there!
Anyway, the Olintos sound really good.... I'm hearing shades of Phil's Blow by Blow tone in there!
You are not alone, my friend also back to lighter set, but LTF4A.
I'm sticking with them. The additional high mids helps keep some clarity, especially on the E string..... something I've always had trouble with on the FL's and FS's (but not with the M's). The tension is serviceable for me.... again, really no worse than the 45 -105 Sadowsky Black Labels and slightly better than the FS's. I might feel different if these were on my primary player..... but they are just filling a lane I lost when I had to toss the Black Labels.
Played my first gig with the Olintos last night..... I had picked up a beautiful 2015 Fender Am Std Pbass a couple of weeks ago with a Fralin loaded into it. I took my CS'59P with an old set of Sadowsky Blue Label Flats too..... I played that one for the first set, and then switched over to the '15 P and Olintos on the second set..... I was going to just play it the one set, but ended up playing it the rest night Super fun!.... not sure if it was the new bass, or the strings..... but no matter, because the tone was killer and you could feel the strings loosening up as the night went on. These strings are so much more punchy and aggressive sounding than the FL's or FS's. And there is an immediacy in them that I didn't get with the LTF's (not to mention better mids). I'm digging them!
Would anyone know how the tone of the Olintos compares to the TI Jazz flatwounds which are described as very mid-frequency focused?
They are not as mid focused as the TIJF'S. Well broken in TIJF'S have more going on between 500hz to 1000hz.... without getting nasal. The Olintos, so far, have more going on between 1k and 2k.... just enough to add some more clarity than you get with lighter gaged DTF's. I prefer the sound of TIJF'S to the Olintos, but not the feel.... which is why my primary bass sports a set of Sadowsky Blue label flat.... all the mid focusb of TIJF's, but a touch stiffer. However, the Olintos thump aggressively (again, so far), which is a good sound to have in the arsenal.
Thanks for the Sadowsky info, I’ll be looking them up. The Olintos do have a snappy brightness that I would happily trade for mids.
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Thanks for useful info share. Curious how Olinto Flat sound on jazz bass since you mention it tone more going between 1K-2K . Cobalt flat has that range too but modern vibe.
I think these (again, so far) are reminiscent of the old Sadowsky Black Label Flats, they probably sound killer on a jazz. I ran those Black Labels on my jazz for a long time, and I loved them on it.
Agree, the old shadow blk flat with silver silk sound nice on my Jazz bass.
Not sure how long you've had the Olintos on, but that brightness is wearing away on mine..... I just don't want them to lose too much of that 1 to 2k range.... that is where they maintain the clarity I always find lacking in the DTF's (... but not the M's). One of my all time favorite bass tones is Phil Chen's on the Blow by Blow album..... these on my Pbass sound an awful lot like that.
I noticed that about the 760M 1954 Vintage, this pleasant warm subdued clarity. I prefer them to the other DTFs (FS and FL).
If you are on the fence about these strings, I did this review with you in mind. Hope it helps.
