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Smoothest feeling (not sounding) roundwounds

#23
DR Sunbeams are a good choice. As are the TI rounds. I've used both and liked them a lot.

If you want to think outside the box however, you could try a set of LaBella White Nylons. Those are roundwounds under a layer of clear nylon tape. They sound nothing like your usual traditional black nylon tapewounds.

They're available in plain white nylon, gold white nylon, and copper white nylon formulations depending on how bright you want them. White is the brightest, and copper the warmest.

I really like the copper white nylon light gauge set. One of my favorite sets of strings. Very smooth feel and some really complex and interesting mids. Highly recommended.
 
#26
I really like DR Fat Beams - smooth and buttery for a round. Once they break in a bit, they’re perfect.

I tried a set of DR Black Beauties and they were quite smooth “feeling” - fairly bright sounding though.
 
#29
the only way a roundwound string will really feel any different is if it is ' Roller Wound ' under enough pressure to change the outer wrap's shape from round to " oval " ... !

such as ; GHS Pressurewounds , Smith's compression wounds , ... or any other Roller wound strings ..!

i use similarly made strings on my guitars also ...

take a look at the very ' close-up ' views of different type strings at BassStringsOnline ...

Invalid Link Removed
 
#31
Iheartreverb said:
hi all,

Any advice on smooth feeling roundwounds? The story is this, I’m usually a flats player and need rounds for a new project. Ive been using Dean Markley Helix which ive been very happy and impressed with in both feel (very smooth) and sound (not that zingy new but they are discontinued and I’ve been using a gauge lighter than I would like.

I don’t understand the science behind the Helix’s beyond knowing they are tighter winds (with this in mind would NYXL be a shout?) and not bright (pressure wound?).

Again, I don’t want something that sounds like flats. Just a nice “played in” rounds sound. If it’s helps, I, using a Ric 4003.
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Experiment with Tapewounds, they can sound like roundwounds with the tone all the way up but feel extremely smooth. and the more you back the tone off the more it starts to sound somewhat like a flatwound, but like I said with the tone all the way up or close to it they sound like rounds, although not as bright and zingy as brand new rounds, but comparable to rounds that were played for a little bit (but not dead or anything)
 
#32
Nephilymbass said:
I’ve tried some strings that felt like sandpaper grinding the skin on my fingertips away. And that’s saying something because I have pretty good callouses on my fingers. I really like DR strings. Hi beams and black beauties in particular.
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You just described Rotosound's steel Swing Bass strings.
 
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#33
Iheartreverb said:
hi all,

Any advice on smooth feeling roundwounds? The story is this, I’m usually a flats player and need rounds for a new project. Ive been using Dean Markley Helix which ive been very happy and impressed with in both feel (very smooth) and sound (not that zingy new but they are discontinued and I’ve been using a gauge lighter than I would like.

I don’t understand the science behind the Helix’s beyond knowing they are tighter winds (with this in mind would NYXL be a shout?) and not bright (pressure wound?).

Again, I don’t want something that sounds like flats. Just a nice “played in” rounds sound. If it’s helps, I, using a Ric 4003.
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The OP did make a reference to Pressuewounds, that's why I recommended them. No, they're not a roundwound. Technically they're Compression-wounds. This being said, tonally IMO they sound more like a roundwound than they do a flatwound.

petrus61 said:
Just to be clear, OP was asking about roundwounds. If OP wants smooth feeling strings, recommendations like Boomers are way off base, and there's a reason why.

OP, feel is subjective, but there's also some facts to lay out:

Pressure wounds are not round wounds, or else they'd be called roundwounds. They have an outer wrap that was once round (or not), but have been compressed into something more like an oval shape. They bridge the gap between roundwound and flat wound. The outer wraps do feel smooth...compared to a traditional outer wrap, particularly in comparison to their namesake brand. Bear in mind that their overall stiffness will play into how you are fretting the strings and how your bass is setup. If you find that your fretting hand is having to apply more pressure to compensate for your preferred setup, it almost cancels out the benefits that type of string offers with regards to feel and friction. They do not sound like a roundwound or a flat wound.

The reason you'll see many recommendations for DR is because they use a unique outer wrap that consists of much smaller windings (and more of them) that ultimately means less friction across the surface area. The windings are tighter, or closer together, and there are more of them. If you were to examine a DR string next to a typical roundwound, or even a GHS Pressurewound, it would be pretty eveident. All DR strings use these same outer wrap dimensions with varying materials. Sunbeams are nickel plated steel wound on a round core. The nickel also typically has less friction than stainless steel (which DR also offers) and DR's (round) core thickness ultimately play into how they feel to the touch. FWIW, there are other companies that also use round cores that fail to capture the same kind of feel, mostly because every company will have a different core diameter, and also because of their particular choice of outer wrap. So one company can have a nickel plated outer wrap, a round core, and still wind up rougher feeling and stiffer feeling because of varying formulas.
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I completely understood the OP's question: "Smooth Feeling, Not Smooth Sounding". I recommended Boomers because, IMO their surface feel is one of the smoothest feeling of the roundwounds that I have experience with. And the OP also stated he was looking for a roundwound with a "Broken-In" sound. IMO/IME Boomers definitely deliver from this standpoint.

I've read that DR uses smaller dimension wrap wire, resulting in a smoother surface feel. I've never tried a set, but I'm very happy with the brands of strings that I use, so for me, I have little interest in buying their strings.

However, your direct experience with DR's strings and recommending them based on their smoother surface, and sound qualities is extremely valid advice for the OP.

Best regards.
 
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#36
Arthur U. Poon said:
The OP did make a reference to Pressuewounds, that's why I recommended them. No, they're not a roundwound. Technically they're Compression-wounds. This being said, tonally IMO they sound more like a roundwound than they do a flatwound.
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Technically they're called "rollerwound"; I call them "ovalwound". Aside from the terminology, I do agree the PWs are more "roundwound" than "flatwound" in terms of their basic tonal characteristics, except for some of the annoying features of typical rounds, ie zingy top end and finger screeches.

Arthur U. Poon said:
I completely understood the OP's question: "Smooth Feeling, Not Smooth Sounding". I recommended Boomers because, IMO their surface feel is one of the smoothest feeling of the roundwounds that I have experience with. And the OP also stated he was looking for a roundwound with a "Broken-In" sound. IMO/IME Boomers definitely deliver from this standpoint.
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I find the Round Core Boomers even smoother-feeling than the regular Boomers, though not quite as smooth as the Balanced Nickels.
 
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#37
ZenG said:
I have GHS Pressurewounds.

I don't know what you people are smoking but they aren't (to me) all that smooth. Certainly not enough to hold them up as an icon of smoothness.

They're not a bad string as roundwounds go...but way over-rated on TB imo.
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The PWs are over-rated only in your mind because you're largely a flatwound guy.

When I first tried the PWs a couple of years ago, I didn't think there was anything special about them as they felt and sounded like normal rounds after being a flatwound user. But now that I'm back using rounds, I'm starting to appreciate the unique qualities of the PWs for both tone and feel even more than before.
 
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#39
Warwick Black Label was harsh for my fingers, Daddario Prosteels is smoother. At first, not much, but after few hours of playing, they are really smooth - big difference compared to Warwicks.
(both stainless steel roudwounds)

If you're into (very) bright sound strings that are not harsh for fingers - Prosteels. Daddario Nickels are one step smoother (not as bright, although, bright sounding)
 
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