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String Growl
- Thread starter Linnin
- Start date
I have never heard it described as "string" growl before.
All great replies. Growl is the tone in my head. Perfect growl is the pinnacle, the holy grail, my white whale. I spent quite a bit of time refining it via string choice (ss rounds), pickup height, action height, amp and cab choice, and playing style. No one right answer, it's a journey to be enjoyed. IMO, the Ox took it a bit too far.
And if you are a fretless player, you go for mwah.
All great replies. Growl is the tone in my head. Perfect growl is the pinnacle, the holy grail, my white whale. I spent quite a bit of time refining it via string choice (ss rounds), pickup height, action height, amp and cab choice, and playing style. No one right answer, it's a journey to be enjoyed. IMO, the Ox took it a bit too far.
And if you are a fretless player, you go for mwah.
As we can see 'growl' is defined differently by different bass players. So some kind of mutually agreed upon working definition is required. I'm going to quote myself yet again
Remembering that this thread is specifically about string growl. Growl lives in the mid-range and harmonic overtones to the second and third order octaves to include thirds and fifths. Roundwound strings are rich in such overtones and the lush richness of tone is exactly why they are so popular. There can be no doubt about it roundwounds growl! There is even a thread "What's The Growliest String?" to which there are many replies.
http://www.talkbass.com/threads/best-strings-for-growly-jazz-bass-sound.1097713/
Remembering that this thread is specifically about string growl. Growl lives in the mid-range and harmonic overtones to the second and third order octaves to include thirds and fifths. Roundwound strings are rich in such overtones and the lush richness of tone is exactly why they are so popular. There can be no doubt about it roundwounds growl! There is even a thread "What's The Growliest String?" to which there are many replies.
http://www.talkbass.com/threads/best-strings-for-growly-jazz-bass-sound.1097713/
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How about flatwounds? Do they growl? The short answer is no, they do not. No? No. Why not? It is their very construction with flat ribbon wrap that negates their ability to growl. They quite simply lack the rich overtones and harmonics of the roundwound string where all the growl lives.
There are a lot of old recordings where Fender basses with Fender flats sure sounded like they were growling so what about that? Easy answer. Tubes. What you are hearing is tube growl pure and simple. Sounds good doesn't it?
It is very artificial to remove the bass player; bass, and rig from the equation to isolate 'string growl'. Yet it is instructive to do so. I picked this next clip to showcase one of the best modern examples of a flatwound strung bass that does indeed have some growl. You really hear it very clearly during the last minute of so. I have no idea what Steve Harris is playing through in the studio. If you know please chime in.
There are a lot of old recordings where Fender basses with Fender flats sure sounded like they were growling so what about that? Easy answer. Tubes. What you are hearing is tube growl pure and simple. Sounds good doesn't it?
It is very artificial to remove the bass player; bass, and rig from the equation to isolate 'string growl'. Yet it is instructive to do so. I picked this next clip to showcase one of the best modern examples of a flatwound strung bass that does indeed have some growl. You really hear it very clearly during the last minute of so. I have no idea what Steve Harris is playing through in the studio. If you know please chime in.
I had my first 78 pbass bought brand new off a rack. I always used Boomers and listening back to old recordings that bass growled. I've played many Pbasses and own a 72, but none have ever sounded like that bass. I do believe it's the bass,strings and player that create the growl in combination with attitude and touch. I miss that bass 
I have a 77 P bass, which I bought brand new in 1977. It has d'addario chrome flats on it and it growls. I've only recently started using flats (about 3 months), only because I wanted to try something other than Rotosounds and I was very pleasantly surprised that flats can growl, and are great for funk. I believe it has to do with this specific instrument and the way I play, which is hard. I like to dig in. My P bass is equipped with the Aguilar OBP-3 preamp which adds active bass, mid and treble. Other than that it's all Fender. I must admit that the E string now seems to be somewhat dead but I like the flats so I think I'm going to give the Rotosound flats a try.
You ever listen to that SNFU song Joni Mitchell tapes? Great tune makes me think of that. Cheers.
String growl, in its essential form, is the string vibrating in its overtones, also called partials or harmonics, so it has a more complex character and wave form. That's why rounds, especially stainless steel rounds, are usually considered more growly, since they are more flexible and therefore vibrate in their overtones more freely. This manifests itself as more mids in the overall tone. But it's not just raising the mids on the amp. It's the overall wave form. The Fender Flatwound strings were changed in their formulation a few years ago. The new ones are more flexible, so they vibrate in overtones more freely, and therefore have growl.
The old Fender flatwounds were a less flexible string, and did not vibrate in their overtones as much, so they did not have growl. They were more mellow in tone. Many people miss that tone. It is the tone of many famous recordings of the last sixty years, and is a tone that supports a band well, ancient or modern.
The flatwound manufacturers have made great strides in their manufacturing techniques. For example, the ribbon on a new Fender flat E string, whether 100 or 105, is narrower than the A string ribbon wrap, and is slightly beveled. This contributes to their rough texture, more flexible feel, and their more growly nature, compared to the older formulation.
D'Addario, on the other hand, has a very tight wrap with more chromium in the mix, so they are more shiny, the string is less flexible, and when it loses its new string zing, is very mellow, almost thumpy tone because it is so tight. The upside of this is finger gunk doesn't get into the core of the string, so it lasts a long, long time.
Ernie Ball flatwound string construction is in the middle, so yes, the tone is in the middle as well. If I were to go back to Chromes for any reason, I would use an Ernie Ball E strings to keep a more consistent tonal spectrum. Indeed, when my set of new Fender flats were starting to mellow out, and my E string started going darker than I wanted to play, I also purchased an Ernie Ball 105 to keep tonal consistency. It's just a great flatwound E string: defined, but not overbearing or thumpy. Probably one of the most underrated flatwound strings out there.
GHS seems to have the more rectangular ribbon wrap, but if anything, they are wrapped "looser" than some of the other strings. Ironically, this produces a "hollow" or "woody" tone that many people like, especially on a P-bass. I can only surmise that it has something to do with the core geometry and wrap ratio.
I do not use the TI or Optima (successor to the Maxima) flats because my hand perspiration eats nickel and their pure nickel wrap turns my hands black. I don't want to pay the price for Pyramids, and there are several boutique manufacturers which I have not tried, and probably won't, unless I find a good set used.
The old Fender flatwounds were a less flexible string, and did not vibrate in their overtones as much, so they did not have growl. They were more mellow in tone. Many people miss that tone. It is the tone of many famous recordings of the last sixty years, and is a tone that supports a band well, ancient or modern.
The flatwound manufacturers have made great strides in their manufacturing techniques. For example, the ribbon on a new Fender flat E string, whether 100 or 105, is narrower than the A string ribbon wrap, and is slightly beveled. This contributes to their rough texture, more flexible feel, and their more growly nature, compared to the older formulation.
D'Addario, on the other hand, has a very tight wrap with more chromium in the mix, so they are more shiny, the string is less flexible, and when it loses its new string zing, is very mellow, almost thumpy tone because it is so tight. The upside of this is finger gunk doesn't get into the core of the string, so it lasts a long, long time.
Ernie Ball flatwound string construction is in the middle, so yes, the tone is in the middle as well. If I were to go back to Chromes for any reason, I would use an Ernie Ball E strings to keep a more consistent tonal spectrum. Indeed, when my set of new Fender flats were starting to mellow out, and my E string started going darker than I wanted to play, I also purchased an Ernie Ball 105 to keep tonal consistency. It's just a great flatwound E string: defined, but not overbearing or thumpy. Probably one of the most underrated flatwound strings out there.
GHS seems to have the more rectangular ribbon wrap, but if anything, they are wrapped "looser" than some of the other strings. Ironically, this produces a "hollow" or "woody" tone that many people like, especially on a P-bass. I can only surmise that it has something to do with the core geometry and wrap ratio.
I do not use the TI or Optima (successor to the Maxima) flats because my hand perspiration eats nickel and their pure nickel wrap turns my hands black. I don't want to pay the price for Pyramids, and there are several boutique manufacturers which I have not tried, and probably won't, unless I find a good set used.
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