In terms of tone only, yeah, they're a little closer to Chromes than Precision flats, but I wouldn't consider them equivalent to Chromes at all. They really have their own kind of vibe going on.
In terms of playability and tension, they're softer and much less tense than Chromes.
This is spot on. They really do have their own feel and sound. The more I've been playing them with the bass I have them on, the more I like them. Not only have they not gone dead yet, but they haven't lost any of the quality that makes them what they are. They are still just as bright as on day one. And there is a certain sound I get out of the G and D string (a certain kind of zing) that just really turns my crank. For slap, they are, in a way, better than rounds because they don't give you the icepick in the ear high-end, BUT they still give a very defined upper register. I really like that.
Also, for all the years I've been playing, I've HATED the sound of my fingernails touching the strings when I finger-pluck. And with the shape of my fingertips, it's always been a bit of an issue because even if I cut them as short as I possibly can, they sometimes still touch when I dig in. With the cobalt flats I find myself gravitating in the opposite direction: almost going out of my way to get my fingernails to pluck the string. It sounds great. Not nearly as clicky as rounds or "disruptive" as with flats (disruptive to the typical sound I try to get out of typical flats when I play them--think 60s Motown).
Awesome string so far. In an earlier post, I stated that I'm not going to string a bunch of my basses with these. At this point, assuming everything continues as is with the sound, I may well do that (not all, but more). They are honestly giving me everything I want in sound. I don't feel I'm lacking or giving up anything. What they don't have is too much brash, snappy high-end as SS rounds can have for some types of music. And they aren't dead sounding to me as with most flats (the exception being Chromes and maybe TIs). Plus, so far, they seem to have a long life like the stainless steels I generally use (and that's probably the main reason I've been using SS string).
So... the cobalt flats seem to giving me all of what I want and not giving me anything I don't want. I don't know if that has happened, in general, with any string I've ever tried. There always has been a trade-off. Maybe not with these? We'll see. So far, so good. (although I wish EB made them in medium scale specific lengths. But I'm used to that. Can't have everything)
