Well Ive owned a set of Chromes now for nearly 15 years and they are wonderfully thumpy and dry but a few days ago noticed when tuning a couple of strings wouldnt tighten up any more....kinda gone solid if you like....backed them off and tried again but nope reckon they've reached the end of their inherrant stretch......a sad day indeed, and now Ive gotta buy a new set? Still, an opportunity to try something different maybe. I like medium tension and mid focused.
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My precious old flats are no more
- Thread starter tvbop
- Start date
That sounds like Fender 9050L flats: they are exactly that with the gauges being 45-60-80-100, and a little bit of mid growl when new that mellows nicely over time. Also underrated are the Ernie Ball stainless flats, which when new have a tone a little more subdued than the Fenders, but when they are settled in have a tone between well settled Chromes and the Fender flats.
I'm both saddened - and a little disheartened - to hear that. Sad for you, although 15 years on a set of Chromes is a good long time. Yeah, this is the perfect time to try something new. Although, if you liked the Chromes enough to make them last that long? I'd say the choices of similar flats are... kinda limited. Or, you could just get a new set, and try for a new longevity record. However...
I say "a little disheartened" because I have a set of Chromes on my '15 G&L Tom Hamilton ASAT Bass. I salvaged them from a project bass about 12 years ago. They were well broken in at the time, and I have no idea how long they'd been on that bass. They stayed in my Big Box O' Strings until 3 years ago, when - out of curiosity - I put them on the G&L. I'm guessing they have about 6 years of play on them. I do like them on that bass, but... the thought of having to wait 9 more years for them to die is... well, at that rate? At my age, I'll probably be dead before they are. And, I don't think I have another bass with flats that I really want to replace with the Chromes - assuming they'd even fit. Just yanking perfectly good flat wounds off a bass, is anathema to my soul...
Send them to OP, and everyone wins.I'm both saddened - and a little disheartened - to hear that. Sad for you, although 15 years on a set of Chromes is a good long time. Yeah, this is the perfect time to try something new. Although, if you liked the Chromes enough to make them last that long? I'd say the choices of similar flats are... kinda limited. Or, you could just get a new set, and try for a new longevity record. However...
I say "a little disheartened" because I have a set of Chromes on my '15 G&L Tom Hamilton ASAT Bass. I salvaged them from a project bass about 12 years ago. They were well broken in at the time, and I have no idea how long they'd been on that bass. They stayed in my Big Box O' Strings until 3 years ago, when - out of curiosity - I put them on the G&L. I'm guessing they have about 6 years of play on them. I do like them on that bass, but... the thought of having to wait 9 more years for them to die is... well, at that rate? At my age, I'll probably be dead before they are. And, I don't think I have another bass with flats that I really want to replace with the Chromes - assuming they'd even fit. Just yanking perfectly good flat wounds off a bass, is anathema to my soul...
Do the Ernie Ball's have more thump than the Chromes? I've been wondering about those.
I'm looking for something between LaBella760/GHS and the Chromes. More clarity than the former (but still pretty dark), and more thump than the latter.
EBSS flats have less new string zing than Chromes, but do not degrade to worthless thump as do Chromes. They have a less growl than Fender 9050's. If you want some presence in the mix, then EBSS flats are great. If you want worthless thump, keep the Chromes on until they are crusty. If you want chocolate smooth dark, GHS. If you want a little articulation, but the big round mellow tone, then La Bella. Remember, you have to play a set of flats for a few months before they start developing their true character. Some players never change their flats; others keep them on until a string breaks. Another choice is DR Legend flats: they start dark and get darker, and darker, and....
Ty so much for sharing your take on this. The Cobalt flats get a lot of talk on here but these, not so much.
Concur completely on GHS, LaBella, 9050's, & Chromes. Never used DRs.
I have a MIJ J with an almost 5 year of set of GHS on it. Sumptuous Dark Chocolate, just love these strings, nuff said.
I have a Player J with Chromes but with probably only <100 hours on them so they haven't gone to crud yet but they have a nice smooth sound that's not bad once the highs have died down some but they aren't very thumpy. This one is Smooth Milk Chocolate.
9050's are hit and miss. Somewhat nasally on the above Player J and my Squier P but nearly perfect for the AmPro J. Not a lot of thump either. Good blues tone on this one. Now thinking about trying a heavier set of 9050's from an AmPro2 J that they were honky on.
I just put a set of 760M on an AmPro P after removing a set of Chromes and yes, after reading so many times about their thump and such, I was very pleasantly surprised by their nice articulation. Now tbh, these have maybe 6 hours of use so it'll probably be awhile before they settle down but love the feel and thump so far. Had to crank up the truss rod nearly a full turn too
but otoh now the setup has never been so low either.So you're saying that the EBSS have more thump than Chromes and 9050's? Could be what I'm looking for.
Yes, the 9050's have a lot of growl, and it depends on the bass. In my experience they work great on the traditional alder body/maple neck/rosewood fret board; good on an ash body; nasal on anything else due to their mid grind.
No, the EBSS do not necessarily have more thump than Chromes or 9050's. They are more like a polite version of the 9050's.
I concur. Said Player J is alder/pao ferro and the Squier P is poplar/laurel. I also tried them unsuccessfully on an AmPro2 J and that one is alder/maple.
Then I tried them on an AmPro J and they're near-perfect. It's alder/rosewood, go figure eh? This has been a good learning experience. This reminds me of using Gibson style humbuckers on non-mahogany bodied guitars and being honky and nasal by comparison.
It does confirm to me that you have to get the right strings for a given bass. I was almost ready to sell the two sets of 9050's that I have here. This doesn't mean that there is only 1 "right string" either.
I bet the other set would sound great on that '03 MIM Std J I have here that has a huge beefy tone to start with.
Ty also for your input irt EBSS. Good to know. I would like to find something like those but with more thump.
Dunlop? DR?
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I'd give the good 'ol Labellas a try at some point--they really do sound classic. I've had Labellas on for over 10 years on some basses and they just seem to get better and better.
