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Wanted: mid-heavy sound for P.

#21
vistacruiser said:
So have you fiddled much with the pick up height? I find that is some thing that needs to be looked after from time to time on my own basses.
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Yes had messed with the pup height some because those exposed poles and I seem to meet up alot. Overall its pretty decent, jus looking for a tad more...

As for the boinging on the TI flats, I dont know. Have bought two different sets now. Hate them on my Jazz. After a month on my P basses they sound, well, boingy.

My MIM P has Fender flats, and they dont suck. Prefer those over TIs. Just trying to set the MIA P up differently.

Currently usin the nylon tapewounds, and they are alright. Really waiting for the Boomers and the Precision flats
 
#22
mrb327 said:
Yes had messed with the pup height some because those exposed poles and I seem to meet up alot. .... Really waiting for the Boomers and the Precision flats
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Looking at my P basses, I see the DiMarzio model P with LaBella flats is about 1/8 inch from the strings. (with strings held down at the 20th fret) The set up has very high output and lot's of "bark".
My vintage Fender P has only been strung with GHS flats for a few days now but I'm really liking them. The P/up is set a bit closer to the strings, about 3/32 to 1/8. (2-3mm) The vintage Fender p/up is strong in bass and mid with the GHS flats, no boinging what so ever.
Of course both pick ups are arched up in the middle to match the crown of the fretboard.
 
#23
JetBlackJazz said:
Rotosound 66's or 77's. Really the only difference between the two is 77's are flats so lose a *little highs. But both of these choices are tailored for-heavy tone.
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I agree with this. I would suggest more the 77s than 66s because they have a little more lows/heft up front and with low action and playing toward the neck (with boosted mids/high-mids) you can get a very chunky/heavy sound (at least I certainly do with my P Bass).
 
#25
Yes the pups are right at 1/8, corrected in the middle to follow the radius of the fret board. Also knew about the Precision flats taking awhile. There was a thread here awhile back about how much they might take. Think i will probably put them on and pick the crap out of them with a heavy pick for a week. That always seems to help the break in process :)

The Rotos are on my list to try if the strings I already have in route don"t make the cut.

Either way, all good suggestions and ideas of things to look for and check.
I will be sure to post whenever I change some strings

Thanks everyone.
 
#26
The DR Sunbeams or nickel roundwounds of your favourite supplier would be my suggestion as they tend to be less zingy than stainless steel but still have good upper register as well as an articulate and defined mid-voice. Roll off the tone a bit and, for me, theres tone heaven on a Precision.

Obviously if you prefer the flatwound sound then I would persevere with the TIs!

Davo
 
#27
mrb327 said:
More so than standard :)

The bass: MIA alder/rosewood with Fender Original P pup
(I do realize this pup is not mid heavy, but thats for another thread).
Have adjusted the amp, looking to get the chunky bark/bite out of the strings in front of the amp.
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I think you'll find what you are looking for tonally in a nickel plated stainless steel roundwound with a hex core.
Both DR LoRiders and D'Addario EXL170BT are excellent. I happen to like the balanced tension set best. What you will get is: a solid taut bottom; aggressive low-mid growl, fat meaty mids with lots of beef, visiously snarling high-mids, and highs that bark and have plenty of bite. Also great string-to-string cosistancy of tone & volume. There's a lot to love here.
 
#33
Davo-London said:
The DR Sunbeams or nickel roundwounds of your favourite supplier would be my suggestion as they tend to be less zingy than stainless steel but still have good upper register as well as an articulate and defined mid-voice. Roll off the tone a bit and, for me, theres tone heaven on a Precision.

Obviously if you prefer the flatwound sound then I would persevere with the TIs!

Davo
Click to expand...

These seem to get a lot of love too.
Will throw a set of these on after the new batch of strings I've procured get tired.
Worst case I have a mini Ray and a Jazz
 
#34
So in the mix, was not as enthused about the Prosteels.
Sounded good at home, but with the band was leaning on the low end of the amp more than I thought I wanted to get a usable tone. I guess thats what you get with Stainless!
Playing against a Teli and a Les Paul for those keeping track.

So after a few songs, I put the P down and finished the night with the Jazz bass wearing Fender 7250 rounds.

Noticed some interesting things. I attack A LOT harder with the rest of the band. So much so was actually getting a real nice bark out of it :hyper:.

Will be moving on to another set o strings, reserve the Prosteels for the lil Ray which I bought them for originally
 
#38
Tried out the GHS flats. Nice thick low end tone, but too much tension. Might try those in the future with a light gauge.


So I put the SIT power wounds on it and took it out to band practice. No problem getting a hearty tone out of it through the mix, without cranking on the low end of the amps.
Hella mother of a bark out of these by digging in, to the point I actually had to back off to make it play nice. Guitarist even complemented on the tone
 

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