I did so much research to try and find the perfect flatwound for my fretless, and everything pointed to TI Jazz Flats. However, I was very apprehensive to try them because of the high cost, and how many people I’ve seen complain that they’re so low tension, it’s like playing rubber bands.
Well, I finally decided to just pull the trigger… I figured if they were super low tension, then at least they’d be going on a fretless where that is desirable (at least for me).
They came in today and I am shocked at just how normal the tension is. They’re definitely lower tension than other flats and I need a little more relief coming over from Chromes, but they aren’t nearly as floppy as I was lead to believe. They feel like a normal gauge roundwound, in my best guess, and I’ve definitely played with lower tension/looser strings than these. Personally, I’ve always hated the stiffness of most flats, so these are perfect for me.
They sound great too. Tonally, they seem to be a lot more versatile than Chromes (at least on my Ibanez Portamento SRF705), and they seem to have more body and sound more natural.
As mentioned, I will have to add relief (and it’s probably wise to do a full setup), but I can’t wait to do that and for them to settle in. I’ll add my thoughts later.
One thing to mention is that they feel a bit rougher than my Chromes, but maybe that’s because I wiped them down with isopropyl before installing. Not sure if that will improve with more playtime, but it’s not a hindrance or anything - just thought I’d mention it.
Well, I finally decided to just pull the trigger… I figured if they were super low tension, then at least they’d be going on a fretless where that is desirable (at least for me).
They came in today and I am shocked at just how normal the tension is. They’re definitely lower tension than other flats and I need a little more relief coming over from Chromes, but they aren’t nearly as floppy as I was lead to believe. They feel like a normal gauge roundwound, in my best guess, and I’ve definitely played with lower tension/looser strings than these. Personally, I’ve always hated the stiffness of most flats, so these are perfect for me.
They sound great too. Tonally, they seem to be a lot more versatile than Chromes (at least on my Ibanez Portamento SRF705), and they seem to have more body and sound more natural.
As mentioned, I will have to add relief (and it’s probably wise to do a full setup), but I can’t wait to do that and for them to settle in. I’ll add my thoughts later.
One thing to mention is that they feel a bit rougher than my Chromes, but maybe that’s because I wiped them down with isopropyl before installing. Not sure if that will improve with more playtime, but it’s not a hindrance or anything - just thought I’d mention it.
