Flatwounds for 5er

[janmaat]

Loving my Fender Jazz V (hello, Kraken!)

Thinking about a flatwound option.

Does anyone use flats on a 5er?

Any hints appreciated.

Jan

[paul_5]

I've had (and still got somewhere) a set of Ernie Ball flats - felt really good and not a dull sound either, really rich, deep low end. I've gone back to round wounds due to changes in styles, but the EBs were really good strings.

[JimBobTTD]

I'm using D'Addario Chromes on my Jazz V. They sound great.

No experience of anything else with which to compare, though, so take that with a pinch of salt.

[paul_5]

yeah, ditto. The thing with flats is that they'll run forever, so not that many players have experience with more than one brand. That's both a good and a bad thing....

[Delberthot]

For active TI are the business. I used them on my Ibanez SR1016 but for passive I would say Rotos. Sounds exactly the same after more than a year of use as they did out of the packet.

[Machines]

I've got chromes on my Yamaha 5 string and they're ace. Very expensive though as the flat wound B string is about £15 on its own so a set is about £45.

[JimBobTTD]

I picked up my Chromes for £20 off eBay. New and in packet and including postage and packing.

Shop around!

[Beer of the Bass]

I've got an Ernie Ball 4 string set, with a D'addario Chrome B. Chromes and EBs are similar enough that this does not feel, sound or even look mismatched. There was an eBay seller recently who had Chrome B strings for about a fiver, so it was cheaper for me to add a B to a four string set than to buy a set of five.
The B-string is great down low, a much more enjoyable sound than a roundwound B to my ears, but can get a little thumpy above the 8th fret or so. This is not terrible, but it does affect what position I choose to play some lines in.

[Matt P]

I've got the overwater flats on my yamaha rbx 765 and i love them, apparently they're made by Picato and they have a nice bit of tension. the real bonus is they're pretty cheap. i think mine were about 25 with postage and they arrived quick too.

http://overwaterbasses.com/shop-2/bass-strings/

Matt

[foal30]

the EB flats are D'Addario Chromes, they just come in a differnet bag.

I use Chromes and also Sadowsky (Labella made) flats on 5 string basses I own. Check what the spacing is on your bridge.. I could tell you a story about fitting B string onto my MTD 5

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1333916468' post='1608276']
... so not that many players have experience with more than one brand. That's both a good and a bad thing....
[/quote]
There's some truth in this but, nonetheless, there'll be a few of us here who tried most or at least many flats.

Flats vary as much as rounds do and you'll need to try them to find what you like. For example, I like La Bella, Pyramid, GHS, and Thomastik flats but I don't particularly like D'Addario or Rotosound flats.

[fretmeister]

I've tried Roto's (Nice), La Bella's (Nice) and EB (not so nice)

But, then I tried Status Hotwire Half-Wounds.

With the tone backed off a bit - proper old skool thick chewy flat sound. Tone back up - nice and clanky. I love them.