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*TI Flats MegaThread*

#281
Captain Ray said:
This has interested me. I love the balance and tone of the TI flats, but after 8 months went to Dunlop flats. I had read that they were somewhere in the middle of Labella and TI. While they are nice, and tension is good, they aren't enough of what I love from either Labella or TI and I'm just not digging them. How is the tension of Olinto compared to lighter gauge Labella? Not the low tension, but the one below the standard set?
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The Olinto's feel about the same to me as the lighter (but not LTF set) DTFs.
 
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#282
bwildt said:
It's happens on all basses. It's physics.
1) As you move up the neck, the speaking length of the string gets shorter, changing the amount of overtones. That's the reason that short-scale basses sound a little "tubbier" than long scales.
2) As you move up the neck, the part of the string over the pickup(s) moves closer to the pickup, changing how the string interacts magnetically with the pickup. As the strings get closer, the volume goes up-- up to a point. If strings are too close to the pickup, they can start to exhibit warbly and chorusing effects. To minimize the volume and tone affects as you move up the neck, you could try lowering your pickups into the body a little. You don't need to set pickup height for maximum volume. Let your amp make up any volume reduction.
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Does anyone design strings to minimise the different-tone effect. It really bugs me!
 
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#283
PDW30 said:
Does anyone design strings to minimise the different-tone effect. It really bugs me!
Click to expand...
Even one as powerful as

Samantha-on-Bewitched-Cropped.jpg


can't do that.
 
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#285
telejojo5 said:
I'm sort of new to bass I've been playing for about 3 years and I have seen a lot of talk about TI flats and was wondering who makes these strings I have not seen any.
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"TI" =
Thomastik-Infeld, an Austrian string company.
Especially popular among orchestral string instrument players, where their Spirocore strings (steel stranded core) are the standard among non-gut, non-synthetic core string users. They also make other stuff (e.g. flatwounds for 6-string jazz guitar), some of which quite esoteric like many of their options for classical guitar.

"TI flats" =
Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Flat Wound strings for electric bass guitar. Made of a thin, flexible round-section solid core, a synthetic silk inlay wrapped around it, round inner windings where applicable (i.e. not in G and high C strings), and an outer nickel-chrome flat ribbon. A very supple feel overall. Red silk at both ends, brass ball ends.
- The standard length set is the JF344 (Jazz Flat, 34" scale length, 4-string). The 5-string set is the JF345, the 6-string is the JF346.
- A so-called "short-scale" - more like medium, actually - exist, the JF324 (32" scale, 4-string). A variant thereof, for Beatle-basses is the JF324H (Hoefner).
- The super-long scale sets are the JF364 (36" scale, 4-string) and JF365.

"TI rounds" =
Thomastik-Infeld roundwounds for electric bass guitar exist in three different product lines: the Powerbass, Infeld Superalloy, and the Jazz Round Wound. People here usually refer to the latter: similar to the Jazz Flats, with all the peculiar features listed above - round core, silk inlay - except a fine, pure (read: non plated) nickel round winding on top, instead of a flat ribbon. Also very flexible than other strings of similar gauge; green silk at both ends.
- Available sets are the JR344 (Jazz Round, 34" scale, 4-string, you know the drill by now), JR345, JR346, JR324, JR364.

"TI Acousticores" =
the old nickname of the Thomastik-Infeld Acoustic Bass strings for piezo-pickup bass guitars. Nylon silk core, phosphor bronze round winding.
- Sets AB344, AB345, AB346.


n.b.:
for a given length and no. of strings, no choice of sets with different gauges exists, only the one, as listed above.
 
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#286
I finally decided to try flats on my 78 Jazz. Got the TI and at first it sounded kinda weird. After a week or so, I got used to it. The lighter tension also feels good. I recently added a Darkglass Harmonic Booster and it really helps me get a more defined tone out of the strings.
 
#292
Amazon has the TIs. I have purchased a few sets there. The price fluctuates a lot over time . . . I have seen the price a low as $50 for the regular long-scale set. Right now, its at about $67. . . . maybe available from other sources . . . but, no reason to pay $100 in the US for these. The listing on Amazon says "Thomastik Infeld Accordion Accessory - JF344 " Not sure why and I make no guarantees but I have purchased from this listing and received what appear to be TI Jazz flat bass guitar strings.
 
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#294
I'm going to give the TIJF's another try on the Zon fretless, this time a new set, in case the issues I had were from a used set.
We shall see. I'm wanting to change things up a little, which is not so usual for me.
 
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#296
AaronBass4 said:
Amazon has the TIs. I have purchased a few sets there. The price fluctuates a lot over time . . . I have seen the price a low as $50 for the regular long-scale set. Right now, its at about $67. . . . maybe available from other sources . . . but, no reason to pay $100 in the US for these. The listing on Amazon says "Thomastik Infeld Accordion Accessory - JF344 " Not sure why and I make no guarantees but I have purchased from this listing and received what appear to be TI Jazz flat bass guitar strings.
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Where are you seeing this? I see the 5-string set at $66, but the 4-string is currently $94 on Amazon. Link.
 
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#298
Laughing Hyena said:
Where are you seeing this? I see the 5-string set at $66, but the 4-string is currently $94 on Amazon. Link.
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I just bought some the other day. There is an error in the listing. The buttons for 4 and 5 string go to the wrong string set. The $66 set is the 4-string. If you click on the 5-string button, the price is $66 and it lists the string thickness, showing only 4 strings. If you click on the 4-string button, you get the higher price, and the listing shows 5 strings in the string thickness area. I went ahead and purchased the "5-string" set for $66. A 4-string set arrived in my mailbox.
 
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#299
bwildt said:
I just bought some the other day. There is an error in the listing. The buttons for 4 and 5 string go to the wrong string set. The $66 set is the 4-string. If you click on the 5-string button, the price is $66 and it lists the string thickness, showing only 4 strings. If you click on the 4-string button, you get the higher price, and the listing shows 5 strings in the string thickness area. I went ahead and purchased the "5-string" set for $66. A 4-string set arrived in my mailbox.
Click to expand...
Same with me; ordered 5, got 4, paid $66.
 

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