Stack Rank Your Three Favorite Flats

[DigitalMan]

Apologies to the OP for the derail....

No apologies necessary. Derailing threads is my speciality.

 

[DigitalMan]

So reporting back here. I just installed the TI Jazz flats and think they are a step in the right direction away from the rounds I had been using (for this particular bass - I am still a rounds guy generally speaking).

Obviously it will take time to have them settle. I was surprised by two things. The first is how bright they are on day one. I guess considering Steve Harris and his perpetually new flats that O shouldn't be. The second is how significant the adjustment is for the tactile difference. If playing rounds is like running on a outdoor track, playing flats is like skating on a sheet of new ice. It feels a little out of control, like you can't pre-load the strings with as much tension before playing the note.

I will report again when they settle down and I start to acclimate.

 

[sunbeast]

So reporting back here. I just installed the TI Jazz flats and think they are a step in the right direction away from the rounds I had been using (for this particular bass - I am still a rounds guy generally speaking).

Obviously it will take time to have them settle. I was surprised by two things. The first is how bright they are on day one. I guess considering Steve Harris and his perpetually new flats that O shouldn't be. The second is how significant the adjustment is for the tactile difference. If playing rounds is like running on a outdoor track, playing flats is like skating on a sheet of new ice. It feels a little out of control, like you can't pre-load the strings with as much tension before playing the note.

I will report again when they settle down and I start to acclimate.

I feel like that is somewhat just the specific feel of the TIs, which are VERY low-tension compared to any other flat I've tried. This is one of the unique contributors to their unique tone though and does make them incredibly dynamic and expressive when you can control them. The brightness definitely wears off and they'll settle into a warm/fat midrange articulation with a little snap. I don't feel like the keep quite the "thumpy" punch of more traditional flats quite as well- they are really their own thing. They fit into a mix really well, but I found I really preferred the punch of the Sadowskys which also retain a nice midrange articulation vs the big mid-scoop that many flats develop when worn-in. I went back and forth between the TIs and Sadowskys and couldn't make up my mind til I started recording my band's album. The higher tension of the Sads just gave me much cleaner takes on days where I would sometimes get way too frustrated to control the TIs properly. The Sads still feel pretty supple compared to most of the other flats I've tried though, so for me they are the best of both worlds!