Short scale, flatwounds, and a pick

[Iridescentone]

Strung with Chromes. Love how it sounds with a pick, seasoned to taste with some palm muting.

 

[ajkula66]

Yes to short scale, no to the other two.

Having said, I love listening to people who know how to make that combo work.

 

[Bodeeni]

I wish I played better with a pick. I am working on it.

 

[1958Bassman]

I’ve been playing bass for 42 years, and while I’m no longer a gigging professional musician, I do still gig out regularly. And pretty every time I do play, I do it on a short scale bass strung with flatwounds and played with a pick.

Yeah, I know, kind of a triple heresy for most modern bassists, but hear me out on my reasons why. These have developed over many years of playing in lots of different bands, in varied styles. But first, a few caveats: I don’t slap or pop much, I haven’t played in a really heavy rock band in years, and I rarely play with distortion. If any of those three exceptions are where you live on bass, this probably won’t be too applicable to you.

Short scale: there is something truly magical about a good short scale bass – strong fundamental, slightly diminished harmonic content, and a lovely bendy feel that makes for easier note shaping. Mostly though, in my many years of experience, the short scale basses simply plop down in a band mix just perfectly. A good Precision Bass will also sit perfectly in a band situation, but for most other long scale basses, I usually had to extensively tweak the onboard EQ and/or the amp EQ to get a tone that worked right. With my short scales, it was pretty much always plug in and go.

Flatwounds: this took me longer to accept, but once I got my first set of TI Jazz Flats, I realized I loved the sound of flats, and the super bendy feel of the TI Jazz Flats was a revelation. Still, I used them on only one bass, and assumed I needed roundwounds for most gigs. It was only after 4 different bands said they preferred the bass with the flats did I finally have my epiphany: great flats simply sound better in most band situations and most duos as well. Unless you’re going for that Chris Squire/Geddy Lee trebly snap sound, flats are going to give you a stronger fundamental and sound bigger at the same volume level in a band setting.

Pick: when I play bass by myself, I much prefer the sound of my fingers. In a band, I can no longer deny that playing with a pick makes the note easier to hear. Something about that attack and midrange emphasis really pushes the fundamental of the note to the forefront, which is especially important when playing parts with strong melodies, countermelodies, or unusual harmonic notes. Even my bandmates who instinctively say they prefer bass played with fingers have told me to play with a pick most of the time. Of course, combined with a short scale and flatwounds, the pick doesn’t produce too much treble.

I hope these insights can assist some of you who may be struggling with bass orthodoxy to find what works best for you. Obviously, these choices aren’t going to work for everybody, and probably not even for most bassists, but they sure will work for quite a few. Feel free to experiment, and don’t let ideas of what you’re supposed to do get in the way of what sounds best for you.

Have you tried half-rounds or ground wound strings? I have an SD Curlee and an Ibanez SR-400FL fretless- have used this type on both, partially because I would prefer that the fingerboard not be dmaaged by round wounds. I like the sound on both- with frets, it can be as bright as I want, or darker-sounding.

Playing a shorter scale with a pick is a lot of fun- definitely lets me play in a different way. I tend to play Dave Edmunds/Nick Lowe, etc style of music when I use a pick.

 

[Ken Morgan]

Big fan of half rounds on my Mustang PJ...rarely use a pick live, even more rare in recorded context.

One thing about half or full flat wounds I 'discovered' years ago is they are very sensitive to where they are plucked, relative to neck and pickup locations. Rolling back to tone control and plucking the strings up on the neck while palm muting can provide some fairly passable upright sounds (attack, timbre, and decay wise anyway) in a live setting..something I couldn't achieve on a Fender scale or with roundwounds.

 

[BuzzVerde]

Have you tried half-rounds or ground wound strings? I have an SD Curlee and an Ibanez SR-400FL fretless- have used this type on both, partially because I would prefer that the fingerboard not be dmaaged by round wounds. I like the sound on both- with frets, it can be as bright as I want, or darker-sounding.

Playing a shorter scale with a pick is a lot of fun- definitely lets me play in a different way. I tend to play Dave Edmunds/Nick Lowe, etc style of music when I use a pick.

Yes, I played D'Addario half-rounds for 10 years and loved them. Now, I just prefer the flats (I got old and set in my ways), but the half-rounds are a great middle ground.

 

[5StringPocket]

I have a long scale Dingwall with rounds that I play fingerstyle and never really considered a short scale until I saw some of Jake Serek's videos. I now have a short scale with flats on order and will need to work on my pick skills because I think that will give a quite different vibe which will provide an excellent complement to what I already have.

 

[BuzzVerde]

I have a long scale Dingwall with rounds that I play fingerstyle and never really considered a short scale until I saw some of Jake Serek's videos. I now have a short scale with flats on order and will need to work on my pick skills because I think that will give a quite different vibe which will provide an excellent complement to what I already have.

Man, between the two of those, you'll be able to achieve almost every bass tone you'd ever need.

 

[DavidEdenAria]

GHS Pressure Wounds are great on SS basses.

 

[c10]

“Seven Nation Army” on headphones at the moment, seems to be flats / pick / short scale?