Another Fretless Bass String Question

[Linus27]

Would like to get some new strings for my fretless. I quite like the tone of flats but I always find that the E string sounds plastic and thumpy whilst the higher register sound clean and smooth. Is this kind of normal and more a case of me just getting used to the plastic sounding E string/setting the EQ better or can anyone recommend some good flats that offer a lot of clarity across the strings?

Edited November 10, 2010 by Linus27

[Jerry_B]

How many different brands of flats have you tried? Sounds can vary from one to another brand.

[Linus27]

[quote name='Jerry_B' post='1019517' date='Nov 10 2010, 11:29 PM']How many different brands of flats have you tried? Sounds can vary from one to another brand.[/quote]

Ive only tried Elites and Fender 7250L 40 - 100. I was thinking about trying the Rotosound Jazz Bass Monel Flatwound and the Thomastik-Infeld (TI) Jazz flats to see what they were like.

[wrinkleygit]

I've just recently taken TI flats off my overwater, found the tension a little slack for my taste also the 'g' seemed to lack tone on these, replaced them with d'addario chromes & love the extra tension but they seem to suffer woolly E syndrome,ADG sound great to my ears but the E is def a bit duller,I have also fitted another set of chromes on my sterling & the lack of tone on the E is more evident on a fretted bass, my favourite fretless strings to date are d'addario half rounds & I will be going back to these on OV in the near future,sadly the choice of strings is all down to personal taste & an expensive experiment until you find your own holy grail, best of luck ,mike b.

[Jerry_B]

I like D'Addario Chromes as they sound quite zingy and with a bit of a metallic ring, but that doesn't really suit my Jazz fretless. They're also a bit noisy. The best ones I've found are Pyramid Golds, but they're not cheap. They're also very very smooth compared to D'Addarios and Rotosounds.

At the end of the day you really just have to try as much as you can afford and see what suits you in terms of what tone you're after.

[zigmondo]

What everyone has said really. I've just treated mine to some Status Hotwires, half-wound .40-100s, and find these a very happy compromise between doing and thud. I've always found Hotwires to be very classily put together and they last very well. I actually liked the Picato halfwounds that came with my fretless too. The Hotwires are maybe a tad smoother.