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Round wound strings on a Hofner?

#41
I brought a set of La Bella stainless steel round wound bass strings (760RHBB) because of pimpernel smiths' recommendation for my CT 500 and they sing!! Nice tension and I can maintain low action. Intonates perfectly up board. Really pleased. Cheers mate! :)

Had some short scale rotos I there before, so it just goes to show the right strings are really important
 
#42
El Pelusa:

Good to see that you liked the strings. Yes, round wounds make Hofners sing. Well put.
My favourites are still the Thomastic-Infeld Jazz round wounds; they are very expensive and the lowest tension bass strings I've ever played.
If I could get them free, that's all I'd play. But such is not the case. Hofners react massively to the kind of strings on them. You get the McCartney sound with Hofner/Pyramid flats and a much wider tonal spectrum with the right wound wounds. To each is own according to his tastes, needs and budget. Sometimes I simply want a change of sound. My Jack Casady bass is the same way, very responsive to the type of strings. Just knowing this allows us more flexibility with our instruments. I can make my Casady sound very close to a huge Hofner by putting Thomastic-Infeld jazz flats on it, and vice versa, I can make the Hofner sound close to the Casady by putting Labella stainless steel round wound on it.
Hofners don't have to be limited in sound.
 
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#43
So true!!

With rotosound short scale strings I found it very difficult to keep it in tune. I was always fiddling with the floating bridge trying to get it close enough to make it playable. With these La Bella's I have none of these problems. Easy to intonate and stays in tune very well. With rotos I was hesitant about using this bass at a gig. Now I can't put my Höfner down!! It's awesome!!

Thanks for the heads up!
 
#44
I've had a Hofner 500/2 that did great with the LaBella BB strings. I now have a new HCT Club Bass and I'm gonna try D'Addario Half-Rounds on it. The half rounds, I have been using for one bass or another since c.1992. The semi-center-sustain-whatever block in the HCT makes me wanna try this. Also, I'm installing Gotoh tuners in black; this bass is a player, and not intended to look anything like an original. Of all the short-scale basses I've tried over time, the Club Bass is my fave. We'll see. Anyhow, I'm trying the D'A half rounds.
 
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#45
I've been wanting to change strings on my CT Club from the TI flats it's had for the last 2 years to some roundwounds. Started reading this thread and thanks to it contacted Jason at BSO for some Jazz Rounds. He cut me a great deal off his advertised price for which I thank him profusely! I just put them on and I believe I've found the perfect string for any Hofner bass.
 
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#46
Of course you can put roundwounds on your Hofner. Those of us who prefer flatwounds are just trying to inject a little humor; without much success, apparently. Most of my hollowbodies have flats on them; in my case, I want that old-school, one-trick-pony thump from them. The music I like to play with them requires it. I don't need or want them to be versatile. I have other basses for other sounds; simple as that. However, one of my violin basses has tapes on it, and the other one does have rounds. They're pretty old, and weren't good ones in the first place. I really need to change them; but the new strings will probably be rounds, too. I find the sound...interesting. If rounds give you the sound and versatility you want, you don't honestly think anyone here is going to fault you for that, do you? :eyebrow:
 
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#47
I would get the White Nylon Labella for the CT Hofner since the action is a lot higher than the German Hofner.I tried the the Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Round wound strings for less tension for the Ct Hofner but they have that metal clangy roundwound sound which ruins any chance of that vintage sound which you buy the Hofner for in the first place..Regular Flatwounds are too hard to play and you will be fighting with the tension but they sound great.The White Nylon is less tension and still give you that smooth tone.....
 

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