I've been playing on my £200 Aria STB for a few years and recently picked up a used Fender Player P Bass. I have I have Rotosound 77 flatwounds on my Aria and my P bass came with rounds. This might be a stupid question but should i put rounds on my Aria and put flats on my Fender instead? I guess what I'm asking is is there any difference between the better pickups on the Fender compared to the Aria or anything that would mean flats or rounds would sound better on one of them? I was thinking perhaps the higher quality pickup on the Fender gives more crispness to the growl of the rounds and since the flats just make a thumpy deep sound i dont need too much clarity so I could leave them on the cheaper Aria.
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Roundwound or Flatwound Strings on which bass?
- Thread starter Leo2134786
- Start date
Rounds will sound better on both of them. In fact, any bass will sound better with rounds - it's just a fact. Look it up.
I've heard that flatwounds occupy less frequencies and sit better in the mix apparently... What if I'm trying to get a more classic tone? Do I just roll the tone knob off?
I was just having fun with you, it's all a matter of opinion. Still, flats don't sit any better in a mix than anything else. Every mix is different. Jamerson famously lost gigs later on in his career because he refused to change his dead old flats when some producers were looking for bass tracks with a little more "zing". As for occupying less sonic spectrum, that's hardly a plus.
Pretty much. It's easier to get a set of rounds to sound like flats than get a set of flats to sound like rounds. You can always subtract frequencies you don't want, but you can't add frequencies that aren't there, and flats leave a lot to be desired in terms of "top end".
I'm of the opinion that flats can only do one thing well and that's sound like flats. A set of rounds can fill out a rock trio, have plenty of "snap" for funky slap bass, provide enough harmonic content north of 3khz to make chord work sound lush, can hit the front end of a drive pedal to the "djent" thing in concert with distortion guitars, etc etc etc.
The TL;DR? Rounds are more versatile than flats.
The only thing I can say is that if you like how flats feel, you're not gonna get that experience with anything else
The quality of the pickup doesn't mean it has a certain sound. A handmade pickup could be very mellow or very bright, it depends on the choices the pickup builder makes. So, you gotta listen to the Fender and the Aria. If one feels too bright, maybe you put flats on it or vice versa. So, just make choices for the sound you like. It's also a good way to experiment. Strings are the cheapest way to change your tone, so have fun with it.
And yes, rounds can sound very vintage with adjusting your tone and EQ. Learning how to adjust your tone and technique for certain sounds is also an essential skill as a player. You'll learn about your instrument and gear while you're at it too.
And yes, rounds can sound very vintage with adjusting your tone and EQ. Learning how to adjust your tone and technique for certain sounds is also an essential skill as a player. You'll learn about your instrument and gear while you're at it too.
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Exactly, you can’t add bright, but you can dial it out. If feel is an issue, there are always grounds.
Ti flat on Vintera P bass, stock pickups....
She sound no crazy zing, but has Omph!!!
She sound no crazy zing, but has Omph!!!
Try some EB Cobalt Flats 2814. Gives you the best of both worlds.
Bases with flatwound strings are like designated drivers. Having one around can be really useful, but more than that doesn't add anything and can make things a little dull.
Right... I'm not too sure who told me that lie then lol
If I had flats on a bass and really needed it to sound like rounds, could I use a driver pedal or a fuzz or even eq to get the more growly tone?
I think I'll leave the flats on my Aria and put some new rounds on my Fender
I want to be able to get that flatwound sound from time to time so I have no intentions of getting rid of my flats anytimesoon
Depends on your rig, but typically boosting the lows and mids while cutting your highs would be a start. Vintage tone isn’t too bright, but you’ll still want those mids to be heard and present in the mix.
I’m someone who owns both a P with flats and a P with rounds. I’m blessed to be in a position to do this. But if I only had one bass, I’d run it with rounds. It’s easier to approximate the sound of flats with the tone knob set to zero and some foam by the bridge than it is to get flats to sound like rounds. IME. YMMV.
This question is seriously bass by bass.
I have a 5 string 51P that "should have" liked flats. I kept Chromes on her for close to 3 years and she sounded completely anemic in all ways.
About 6 months ago I surrendered and threw on a set of Super Slinkys. Man did that bass light up! All the growl and low end which was missing with the Chromes just came out of nowhere.
It's a case by case bassis...
Or as I said, Bass By Bass.
I have a 5 string 51P that "should have" liked flats. I kept Chromes on her for close to 3 years and she sounded completely anemic in all ways.
About 6 months ago I surrendered and threw on a set of Super Slinkys. Man did that bass light up! All the growl and low end which was missing with the Chromes just came out of nowhere.
It's a case by case bassis...
Or as I said, Bass By Bass.
I love the tone of a P with flats, they just punch well.
In your situation, I'd probably put the flats on the P and rounds on the other, buy that's me.
Another option that can give the vintage punch of flats buy with some muted zing if needed, is nylon tape wounds.
I've had a set on my 2013 Gibson EB4 for years. Every now and then I get the idea to change em to rounds or maybe flats, but I always hesitate as the tapes sound so good.
EB4 with tapes
In your situation, I'd probably put the flats on the P and rounds on the other, buy that's me.
Another option that can give the vintage punch of flats buy with some muted zing if needed, is nylon tape wounds.
I've had a set on my 2013 Gibson EB4 for years. Every now and then I get the idea to change em to rounds or maybe flats, but I always hesitate as the tapes sound so good.
EB4 with tapes
No. There's no way to get a set of flats to sound like rounds. I think DR Chromes can *kinda* get close, but they still fall short.
Again, if a bass strung with flats isn't producing any signal in the (hypothetically) 2khz range, then there's nothing you can do to coax 2khz out of it - it's just not there.
My own opinion, in my experience only, Roto 77 are great classic flats but they "die" and when they do there's this dull percussive thump and nothing else. I like them a lot. But they are not a forever string that I would put on another bass or use indefinitely. Again, that's my preference.
But in general I'd likely put rounds on the Aria, flats on the P but no rules, just preference.
But in general I'd likely put rounds on the Aria, flats on the P but no rules, just preference.
What a distorsion pedal literally does is create content that wasn't there, well past any true or purported threshold of flatwound harmonic content. It's just that the result is not roundwound-like. So yes to the growlier tone part of the question, no to the roundwound emulation part.
