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Once you go flat, you never go back

#222
mickebas said:
IMO, unless you are making a career out of playing What Is Hip, I wouldn’t recommend flats to anybody. That said, I truly do understand the attraction of flats, especially when playing by yourself. But for ensemble work, live performances, and recording, round wounds blend better, sit in the mix better, sing better, and have a better dynamic tonal range...

Ha, ha. This is what I mean by a ignorant, inexperienced comment from someone who hasn’t even realized the advantages of flatwounds being proved through the bass-music history.
If you’re this one sided in your way of thinking about sound all I can say you may be in for a treat and different experience later on in life.
I love a good set of rounds on my 71 jazz bass with maple fb for it’s clear and percussive attack but to say that my P’s with flats sits less in the mix, has less sustain or has less dynamic range couldn’t be more wrong. If I would try to get that fingered sound on my J with rounds I couldn’t come close. So it’s not a contest.
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Yeah i tried to ignore his comment lol
 
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#224
Yellow Bang66 said:
Im the total opposite, Roundwounds for life, I've adjusted my tone & technique to get the most out of my bass, Strings included!
Personnally I do not get deadening the vibrance of your bass with flat strings, also heavily muting with thickass foam isnt that what the tone knob is for? I play Heavy rock & metal so flats just dont get that growl for me, so cool it with the flats are everything talk!
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I also play rock and metal but still use Ernie ball flatwound strings.
 
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#226
dbsfgyd1 said:
You could not give me a free set of TIs or any other flat wound/half wound strings and expect me to use them on one of my Basses. Of course, feel free to send them, the landfill here could use a little filler... Maybe if you dig them up in 30-40 years, they’ ll be broken in already. LOL.

In over 50 years since my last set of flats came off my Ric 4001, I have never had a sound engineer, sound man, and or fellow musician express what I played would sound better on or with flat wounds.

I have had numerous sound engineers complain about bass players using flats that didn’t exactly make their day quite often. Usually, those conversations happen after I’ve laid down my tracks.

IMO, unless you are making a career out of playing What Is Hip, I wouldn’t recommend flats to anybody. That said, I truly do understand the attraction of flats, especially when playing by yourself. But for ensemble work, live performances, and recording, round wounds blend better, sit in the mix better, sing better, and have a better dynamic tonal range, not to mention a darn sight less expensive.
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You do realize that Rocco played rounds on this right?
 
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#230
Bushrod Johnson said:
.

Which type sounds best on “Ghost Riders in the Sky”?
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I take it that you get the 50+ year connection of this song with the USAF Gunships. It was adopted by the Gunship community (Gunships being AC-47, AC-119, AC-130 Spec Ops aircraft) during the Vietnam War and remains a tradition to play it at Gunship reunions to this day. While it was written long before the first Gunship was ever flown, the lyrics happen to describe the Gunship's mystique and represent the many Gunship airmen who lost their lives in combat. (i.e. "Ghost riders in the sky"). I was an AC-130H/U Gunner for ten years of my Air Force career. Good times.

It's been covered and recorded by many artists over the years since it was written in 1948. Johnny Cash, Marty Robbins, Elvis Presley, Burl Ives, Bing Crosby, Gene Autry, R.E.M.,The Blues Brothers, Dean Martin, The Outlaws and the list goes on and on. The versions can range from traditional country, bluesy, to rock. Wiki has a ton of info - (Ghost) Riders in the Sky: A Cowboy Legend - Wikipedia

It's one of my favorites mostly for sentimental reasons and it's history. Playing solo I'll play the melody instead of a simple baseline. Of course, playing the melody on bass may not work so well in a band setting.

But to answer your question, I prefer to play it using my 2016 Fender Jazz Elite with it's 3 year old TI Flats.



 
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#234
I've tried many flats and think these EB Slinkys sound and feel the best for under $50. Especially if your bass has a lot of top end you need to roll off. These round out the tone evenly.
#2814

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#235
I have a load of basses and have found that having the appropriate string type really emphasizes the bass' attributes.

I love flats and I feel certain basses demand them. My current favorites are GHS Precision Flats. I also like Chromes on certain basses. LaBella's are excellent as well.

The variety of rounds allows for a great fit for others. I prefer Nickels, 50-105. Right now I like Dean Markleys Blue Steel. Also like SIT and Dunlop - great bang for the buck.
 
#236
Recently been experimenting with flats. Bought some rotosound 77 flats and love the sound coming from them but man were they stiff. Have LaBella Low tension on now. Way more flexible but alittle dull sounding compared to the Rotos. So far my favorites are Dean Markley Blue Steel .045 -.100 Rounds.
 

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