Carol Kaye used flats on tons of oldies. Cliff Williams used flats in the studio on AC/DC recordings. They sold dozens if not hundreds of records. 
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I just can't get into flats at all...it's a feel thing for me,plain and simple. Flats just feel as though they cause finger drag. It has nothing to do with sound as I have heard some amazing sounding flats (Steve Harris comes to mind). I have tried the ground wounds of half flats and I don't mind them but I still love the feel of rounds. To me rounds also seem to be more responsive to subtle articulation. I use a very light set of SIT Rock Brights (90-30) on all my basses and they just feel wonderful. I have a set on my Sire M7 fretless (which came factory strung with D'Addario Chromes) and they are silky smooth,responsive,and feel great. The Chromes sounded just fine, but as I stated before they just didn't feel right to me.
Having said all that, I would like to try a set of the D'Addario Black Nylon Tapewound on a Wish Bass that I am modding. Anyone have any experience with these?
Having said all that, I would like to try a set of the D'Addario Black Nylon Tapewound on a Wish Bass that I am modding. Anyone have any experience with these?
You need to get the flat unwound kind, aka tape unwound. Great old school sound but you can only make them work if you strike them perfectly vertical and perpendicular.
I use upright when I have to have a flat sound. My son started playing bass and he loves flats. 'if needed, I use a sponge under the strings near the bridge and roll down the tone for that Motown sound. I do not like the G strings with flats and the E string as well but mostly the G.
^ this
I also have 1 P with D’adarrio chromes that I love to play, but most of my gig situations require rounds.
However, the gigs I can bring my P with flats to are my favorite gigs no doubt!
I love flats on short scales, hollowbodies, and P basses. However in my experience it’s easier to make (nickel) rounds sound similar to flats that the other way around.
I only know that I don't like them ( at all ) on my fretless Stingray. They seem to steal away a good portion of it's "bark and bite".
I would really like to try out some EB Cobalt Flats on my fretted Stingray though.
I would really like to try out some EB Cobalt Flats on my fretted Stingray though.
- Jul 3, 2004
- 1,300
- 641
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Ernie Ball MusicMan Guitars
I use the EB Cobalt Flats - pretty much smashes the "dull thud" tone argument
The Ric 4003's came stock with Roundwounds since their release in 1980, I believe to illustrate the point that the frets and neck would stand up to rounds. I have mostly used Dean Markley Rounds on it since I bought it new in 1981 and most recently have NPS. My 1974/75 Jazz bass also has rounds on it. When I had an early 70's P-Bass, it had rounds on it. I just prefer the sound and feel of rounds. Of course, I also have had permanent callouses since 1981.
I use Pressurewounds from either GHS or Rotosound on most of my basses. It’s a happy medium between flats and rounds. I highly recommend them.
La Bella blacks are my 2nd favorite string after copper white tapes. Coppers with the tone knob ccw sound like blacks. Both are low tension for the gauge have a very polished finish and feel like a plastic tube. One of my basses always has flats, tapes for the other two and use rounds only for recording. Especially if a lot of chords are needed I'll string my 5er with daddario nickles, dr crome rounds or borrow my buddy's stingray. Rounds have become a fun novelty.
That is annoying on two levels.
First, roundwound strings weren't widely available for bass until the late 60s, so obviously it took a little time for them to work their way into the mainstream. You are attributing a preference bias that's really an availability bias. Most texts were sent on Motorola phones prior to 2007.
Second, apostrophes always indicate possessive and never plural.
Don't let my avatar fool you - I'm a flats guy. I started off with flats, because I'm old and when I started off, flats was all we had (cue Grandpa Simpson-like rambling: I decided to go to Morganville, which is what they called Shelbyville in those days. So I tied an onion to my belt, which was the style at the time. Now, to take the ferry cost a nickel, and in those days, nickels had pictures of bumblebees on 'em. Give me five bees for a quarter, you'd say...)
I did go through a long period of using Rotosound round wounds. This period was called "the 80s" and, like many bass players, I was into a bright, ringing chorus sound and rounds really made this work. Using the chorus and a phaser in tandem I could also get a nice almost-fretless growl too, which I really liked at the time. And generally I think rounds are more versatile.
About a decade ago I rediscovered flats, and with them I rediscovered the sound that made me want to play bass in the first place (cue wavy visual effect as we dissolve into 1972 and a flashback of me, aged 11, listening to Harry Nilsson's Nilsson Schmilsson, side 2, track 4, Jump Into The Fire, and my head picks up. It's too short, so when the song really kicks off I pick up the needle and play the intro again.) Listen to Herbie Flowers' bass. In fact, listen to the whole song. If (like my daughter's boyfriend) you think drop D tuning is clever, Herb detuning the E string while he's playing it will blow your mind.) It got me, and it still does.
I did go through a long period of using Rotosound round wounds. This period was called "the 80s" and, like many bass players, I was into a bright, ringing chorus sound and rounds really made this work. Using the chorus and a phaser in tandem I could also get a nice almost-fretless growl too, which I really liked at the time. And generally I think rounds are more versatile.
About a decade ago I rediscovered flats, and with them I rediscovered the sound that made me want to play bass in the first place (cue wavy visual effect as we dissolve into 1972 and a flashback of me, aged 11, listening to Harry Nilsson's Nilsson Schmilsson, side 2, track 4, Jump Into The Fire, and my head picks up. It's too short, so when the song really kicks off I pick up the needle and play the intro again.) Listen to Herbie Flowers' bass. In fact, listen to the whole song. If (like my daughter's boyfriend) you think drop D tuning is clever, Herb detuning the E string while he's playing it will blow your mind.) It got me, and it still does.
I couldn't say. I just bought a set of Labella White Tape Wound flats. They are the first flats I've purchased in about 40-years. So far I like them, but I've only had them on my bass for day. Have a rehearsal tomorrow where I'll be able to hear them through some normal bass gear instead of just through headphones on my computer. Looks like the golds are not tape-wounds, but a golden alloy for the flatwound layer.
Too funny. My experience has been exactly opposite yours. I'm having a little problem adjusting to just how slippery my LaBella white tape-wound flats are. I really have to pay attention with hand shifts or I'll overshoot my mark. These things are not sticky at all.
From '85 until yesterday, I'd only used roundwounds on my current Jazz Bass (bought it in 1985 so that's 33-years of roundwounds). I only used flatwounds on my 1965 Fender Jazz from 1966 when I bought it to 1976 when it was stolen. I used regular Fender medium gauge flats on that at first and then switched to the nylon tape wound flats in about 1971. None of those flats felt sticky at all. For me, the roundwound strings feel much stickier.
I laughed at guys who used Flats for years until one of my favorite players told me that they were fantastic. I tried them, and liked them and then started to find out which one was for me. After playing several sets, I tried Thomastik Jazz Flats and was blown away. They’re super smooth and have very low tension plus the sound is phenomenal.
I like Jazz Flats so much that I’ve got then on all my basses except one. For what I play and the basses I have (2 x Rics, 2 x Warwicks, 2 x G&Ls), i love them. They’re super long lasting too, which more than justifies their price.
I like Jazz Flats so much that I’ve got then on all my basses except one. For what I play and the basses I have (2 x Rics, 2 x Warwicks, 2 x G&Ls), i love them. They’re super long lasting too, which more than justifies their price.
