Love my short scale and love the Bartolini but I need a good all around string suggestion for my cover band. We do Van Morrison, Motown type classics all the way up to Elvis Costello. Tried D’addario EXL and currently sporting GHS boomers but thinking Chromes might cover the range of tones with less zing and finger noise. What do y’all think?
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Short scale Bronco with Bartolini MM style pickup - need strings for cover band
- Thread starter don21480
- Start date
I really like Ernie Ball Cobalt flats on my Rascal bass. Bright, but smooth flatwounds. Can be tamed with hand position/tone knob/muting.
I don't like Chromes.
I don't like Chromes.
GHS Pressurewounds...I have GHS Precision flats on a Bronco with Lawrence L250 blade pickup but its more traditional flat sound...Pressurewounds more brightness but not much finger noise and smooth for an in between flats and RW string.
I bet the Bartolini MM sounds great!
I bet the Bartolini MM sounds great!
Your Bronco is a real looker as well, where did you get the pickguard?
GHS Pressurewounds are loud strings too because of the alloy and dont flop meaning you can get the action low.
Got the pickguard off reverb - a guy in Arizona and he modified it to my pickup specs and color of tort no charge. Search sonic bronco pickguard and you will find him
I use Chromes on mine and think it does the Fender w flats thing as good as my P basses. I gig with it here and there. I can do a whole night of R&B, Pop and Blues on it, but that Chuck Rainey sound may not be for everybody. Nice job on the bass. I really like the neck size on these, better than other shorties.
can't stop loving labella deep talkin flats light. They feel like liquid metal and sound like velvet.
Cool Bronco!
put D`Addario medium flats on a recent build..sounds fantastic with a SD MM style pickup. But this really my first time using flats, tho the strings lack the high-treble of reg rounds as expected...these do anyway, you can get that classic "motown-nish"tone out of them for sure.
put D`Addario medium flats on a recent build..sounds fantastic with a SD MM style pickup. But this really my first time using flats, tho the strings lack the high-treble of reg rounds as expected...these do anyway, you can get that classic "motown-nish"tone out of them for sure.
And now for something completely different: GHS Balanced Nickels. I have these on my short scale bass that I travel with. The band I travel with does covers of a similar repertoire as the OP. The tone is big, round, not floppy or too tight. As the name, they are balanced in both tone and tension string-to-string and up the neck, and they last a long time. One set survived two week-long trips a year apart to Mexico at Zihuatanejo and Ixtapa, right on the ocean, not succumbing to ocean salt breeze.
Aaahhhh, on that never-ending quest for the perfect sound and feel....... I understand !
I know you've been experimenting a lot lately. I am curious, though - have you tried the EB Cobalt Flats for Short Scale strings yet? I have a set on my Jaguar SS and they sound great, especially for the blues project that I and a few others have just started. Only thing is the green silks look a bit festive for my Fiesta Red headstock, lol. 'Tis the season (almost), I suppose.
And yes, that Bronco looks amazing set up that way. OK, get busy and match the headstock to the body color!!
I know you've been experimenting a lot lately. I am curious, though - have you tried the EB Cobalt Flats for Short Scale strings yet? I have a set on my Jaguar SS and they sound great, especially for the blues project that I and a few others have just started. Only thing is the green silks look a bit festive for my Fiesta Red headstock, lol. 'Tis the season (almost), I suppose.
And yes, that Bronco looks amazing set up that way. OK, get busy and match the headstock to the body color!!
- Oct 22, 2015
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to answer a few questions -
its the standard bridge on the sonic series broncos
I've thought about chromes - had them on my p bass but decided I liked LaBella's better on that bass
TI's - tempting for sure - did not know they came in SS
Pressurewounds and balanced nickels are high on the list!
Have never tried any EB flats and I love a painted headstock but for some reason I only like them on a RW fingerboard neck :>)
The GHS Boomers actiually sound great and have a lot of low mids but still feel like I'm missing something when I do the motown stuff
its the standard bridge on the sonic series broncos
I've thought about chromes - had them on my p bass but decided I liked LaBella's better on that bass
TI's - tempting for sure - did not know they came in SS
Pressurewounds and balanced nickels are high on the list!
Have never tried any EB flats and I love a painted headstock but for some reason I only like them on a RW fingerboard neck :>)
The GHS Boomers actiually sound great and have a lot of low mids but still feel like I'm missing something when I do the motown stuff
Keep in mind the "short scale" by TI is 35.5" in winding length (ball end to taper/silk), which is actually longer than most others' "medium scale".
‘I’ve been covering that material for decades using round wounds. Zero complaint from band mates and or sound techs. As for the zing, that is fixed or mitigated with your EQ. Try rolling back your treble and boosting your low mids around 160-250hz. That should take care of it.
Motown you may need traditional flats and a foam mute...you could do Pressurewounds and a foam mute...im not typically a RW player fwiw.
I play with a pick by the bridge so i get plenty of bite if needed but usually play with thumb for a Motown sound fwiw.
I have a semi parametric EQ on my Eden Metro so i can dial in sounds some amps cannot.
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Selective EQ is everything especially with RWs...the maple necks on Broncos tend to have some bite (great necks btw).
