Recently put the cobalt flats back on, I wanted to try out a few other strings but came back around to the cobalts. Still digging the tone 
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New EB Cobalt Flats?
- Thread starter king_biscuit
- Start date
Just a quick follow-up to the review I wrote in August. A few weeks after that, I put Fender flats back on my Jazz bass because I just preferred their smoother feel and their thicker, rounder, meatier sound on that bass. Recently, I switched out the body of that bass for a P body and decided to give the EBs another go. Again, the sound is great--very low-mid punchy and focused for flats, but still with good fundamental and just a little bit of top end. But they are still distinctly rougher feeling and grabbier than any other flats. I can't remember any others that gave me noticeable callouses on my plucking fingers, but these do. At a bar gig last night, they sounded great, but my plucking fingers got momentarily "stuck" a few times, slightly messing up the timing. And like the poster above, I think this more likely to happen in more humid conditions, perhaps because humidity affects the skin rather than the strings themselves. If these strings were just a little smoother, they would be perfect (but then they might sound different!). In any case, I am thinking I will probably go back to Fenders or Chromes, mainly because I prefer the feel.
I was surprised how little help the Finger Ease was with the humidity on the Cobalts- I played the Lull with Chromes last time I played with these guys at the same venue in October. If anything, the humidity was worse, and Finger Ease worked perfectly then. I'm wondering what it would take with the Cobalts, Astroglide? WD-40
I find most hand lotion makes things worse. Eucerin is kind of greasy and could work, but in all seriousness, anything thicker than finger ease will quickly defeat the brightness.
I think the only thing that would help is if EB could slightly bevel the edges of the outer wrap so they aren't razor sharp, but I suspect the tradeoff might be slightly less brightness.
The only thing makes these strings less grabby is over time the gap gets filed up with oil, dead skin and dirt- which also makes strings go dead.
Wow, very interesting. I don't find these strings to be rough or grabby at all, especially compared to rounds. Wondering if weather plays a factor. It's pretty dry most of time here in Norcal and certainly even drier in SoCal where they make the strings.
I recently installed a new 5 string set, and they were sticky,
so I just wiped them down with an old sock (clean) well wetted with 90% rubbing alcohol, then let dry for a few minutes,
and sticky no more!
so I just wiped them down with an old sock (clean) well wetted with 90% rubbing alcohol, then let dry for a few minutes,
and sticky no more!
Good to know, I'll give it a try. I hadn't considered the grippiness could be due to something other than the physical edge profile of the wrap wire...
I wiped 'em back and forth a few times to let the alcohol dissolve any manufacturing residue, and that worked.
I'll wipe the next set before installing.
I'll wipe the next set before installing.
All that stuff leaves residue which collects even more. Alcohol (as a solvent) removes the residue and leaves the strings dry, so nothing sticks (except more sticky stuff).
I've had the same set of EB Cobalt flats on my PBass since late October. Everything said here about them is pretty accurate. Tonally, they sound pretty good. Feel wise, not so much. As many have suggested, I cleaned them with rubbing alcohol prior to installing, and have been pretty adamant about using Fast Fret to combat the grippiness. Nothing seems to work and to be honest it's quite off putting. These don't "stick" in the traditional sense that Labellas or TIs might when humidity is high. Perhaps this is just the inherent nature of a cobalt string. Either way these are coming off. I'm "sticking" to my Labellas 
There's a huge difference between 50% and 90% rubbing/isopropyl alcohol when it's used as a solvent for residue removal. 50% may not be good enough- it's half water.
Any applied coating just gets slid/smeared around and accumulates between the windings, which then collects other residue, then gets smeared out over the string's surface while playing.
Any applied coating just gets slid/smeared around and accumulates between the windings, which then collects other residue, then gets smeared out over the string's surface while playing.
I am guessing that this "grippiness" is not something that can be wiped off with a solvent. The issue here is more likely the nature of the wraps and perhaps the "cobalt" material itself. Perhaps it is a situation similar to Daddario half-rounds and GHS Brite Flats, which have a similar make-up and are also quite commonly criticized for "stickiness." I am also guessing that some will notice and care about this issue more than others, depending on skin type/chemistry. All that said, I like the very playable tension on these strings (45-100 set) and the sound is fantastic--as close to the mythical "best-of-both-worlds" (flat/round) as you can get, IME.
My new set was definitely 'sticky' 'til I wiped them down with 90% alcohol. Now, they're near as smooth and slick as TIs.
I know of the 'grabbyness' of Daddario half-rounds, and didn't like it at all when I tried them. These are not like that (for me anyway).
It also may have to do with a person's fingerprint pattern, if the print at the touching point is perpendicular to the wraps or not,
and whether they have smoother surfaced tips like callouses. Fretting pressure may be a factor, as well.
So I cleaning the strings on one bass with 91% isopropyl alcohol. I left the other as they are - having played the instrument for maby 15 hours total- two gigs, one very humid, a few rehearsals and practice sessions. This "unclean" one, the TRBX has seen multiple applications of both finger ease and fast fret (actually both had). The P bass has a hipshot vintage bridge on it, so I chose to clean the songs on that first- it's easy to loosen the strings a bit and pop the ball end free while leaving the capstan wrap in place. I cleaned each string thoroughly with ample alcohol on a clean section of a microfiber cleaning cloth.
Net result? I can discern no immediate difference in grippiness between the washed and unwashed strings. I'll continue to evaluate and report back if my opinion changes.
Net result? I can discern no immediate difference in grippiness between the washed and unwashed strings. I'll continue to evaluate and report back if my opinion changes.
