Old rounds rule!

[petermuca]

Hi gang. Maybe I am kind of wierd, but I really love the sound and feel of old roundwounds. I have a set of 2 and a half year old DR hibeams on my main bass, I did a tour with them last year and all the practise sessions (a lot)ect... Now we are going to do another tour and I decided to not change them, they sorta are the part of the bass, you know what I mean, maybe I am too sentimental I am just wondering if anybody has the same experience. Btw I dont slap and always roll the treble off on the preamp ps sorry for my english

 

[jamersonburton]

1) what music do you play?
2) do YOU like how the sound fits in the context of the music?

 

[Precision101]

I did this once. I kept the fenders on my first bass for about 8 months that it came with. and loved the broken in feel. Whatever's comfortable and sounds good for you is what matters.

 

[Pilgrim]

I have a couple or three basses with old rounds - most of them 2-3 years old at least.

Once they get old enough to lose that annoying "zing" that new rounds have, I'm OK with them.

I usually like 10-year-old flats best, but there are some basses where the slightly brighter sound of 10-year-old rounds is better to my ear.

 

[petermuca]

Yes that zing ennoys me too with new strings. I saw a video where ed friedland plays his jazzbass with some 10+ years old rounds, it sounded right to mee.

 

[adamsmatthewj]

Yeah I HATE new strings. No "zing" for me. This is a BASS not a piano! Lol! Drives me crazy when people want "piano-like" tone from their bass. That works for solo bass artists and superstar bassists/bandleaders but does NOT WORK for us bass players that actually play bass lines in rhythm sections behind a singer/lead instrument.

That said, i do appreciate having some articulation up high. Not zing or snap, but some articulation. Therefore, I really love old nickel roundwounds. I have flats on one of my basses and really love them, they make a bass a BASS, but they inherently don't have the same clarity on the top end, which is a good thing they're engineered for a different type of sound, but there's a middle ground of "bass" and "articulation" that I've found I can only achieve with broken-in nickel rounds.

I'm a fan of MTD nickel rounds, they're fantastic, but I've been hearing grey things about Dunlop nickels I might try them for the sake of value they're like half the price of MTDs

 

[halfjackson]

I love old, worn in rounds, especially stainless DR's. Meat without the zing.

 

[jay tay]

I had the same rounds on my p-bass for nearly 15 years... I cried when one snapped, it's had the same set of flats on it since then (3 years).

 

[Precision101]

I love old rounds but I still love zing in my playing so I changed my strings. I love piano tone sound 😎

 

[bigsnaketex]

old rounds are just like new flats........that's why I play flats!

 

[Ric5]

Years ago I bought a used Rickenbacker 2030. It had old rounds on it. It really copped the flatwound type tone.

I prefer slightly broken in rounds. To get the flat tone I palm mute of thumb pluck.

I will leave strings on a bass anywhere from a few days to a couple years.

 

[Charley Umbria]

I've found that GHS Compression Wounds or Ken Smith Compressors give me the "old rounds" sound on my P/J, without the wait. Win!

 

[eukatheude]

I do it sometimes. Old DR's sound great.

 

[Mktrat]

I bought a used Warwick Corvette 15 years ago with, what I was told, 2 year old rounds. NEVER been changed. Love the growl and smooth treble. Just wish I knew what brand they are. I also have a probably 10 year old set of plain old tan label Dean Markley's on my favorite beater bass. Took them off tried new ones, and back on they went!!

I hate hate HATE new strings. YMMV etc.

 

[zon6c-f]

Unless I plan to record, I don't buy new rounds.

All of my round-strung basses..matter of fact..all of my basses together.. 2 strung with flats...have old strings..flats last forever, anyhow.

Also, I am not gigging. No gigs.. no $$ for new strings.

If it ain't broke..don't fix it...and I have never broken a bass string..NEVER ..EVER.

 

[Mystic Michael]

Apparently numerous people here are fond of old roundwound strings. I am not one of them.

If your old Hi-Beams haven't yet become impossible to intonate, they will. And if they haven't yet begun to generate all kinds of unpredictable harmonics and "wolf tones", hang on for awhile - they will.

MM

 

[billgwx]

That's exactly why I like GHS Boomers. They lose their zing pretty quickly, so while I wouldn't call them dead at that point they mellow out enough to be very versatile. Dial out the tone and I get a flat-like sound...dial it back in and I can get enough brightness for rock or slapping.

 

[rarbass]

I have a couple or three basses with old rounds - most of them 2-3 years old at least.

Once they get old enough to lose that annoying "zing" that new rounds have, I'm OK with them.

I usually like 10-year-old flats best, but there are some basses where the slightly brighter sound of 10-year-old rounds is better to my ear.

annoying "zing"

Interesting, I love the "zing".


I guess the problem with liking 10-year-old strings is that you have to wait 10 years to get them

 

[Precision101]

Interesting, I love the "zing".





I guess the problem with liking 10-year-old strings is that you have to wait 10 years to get them

Not the only one. I love zing too.

 

[GK Growl]

Apparently numerous people here are fond of old roundwound strings. I am not one of them.

If your old Hi-Beams haven't yet become impossible to intonate, they will. And if they haven't yet begun to generate all kinds of unpredictable harmonics and "wolf tones", hang on for awhile - they will.

MM

+1

Not a fan of old roundwounds at all. The beauty of DR rounds for most of us though is that they last a long time.