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Inexpensive flatwounds


TheGreek

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Lot of discussion in a couple of threads recently about flatwounds - I've only tried them a few times but didn't give them a fair chance TBH. So, due to the prompting in the aforementioned threads, I'm thinking about jumping back in again and giving them a try.

IIRC The Olympia brand strings used to be own/promoted by The Bass Centre a few years ago. They sent me a set of Roundwounds FOC after a deal went wrong. The Adagio I know nothing about, happy to learn more..

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Adagio-Electric-Acoustic-Bass-Classical-Guitar-Mandolin-Banjo-Strings-Plectrums/391406483377?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&var=660617021203&_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Olympia-FLS-4B-45100-Flatwound-Bass-Guitar-Strings-Stainless-Steel/292449283491?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649

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I've no idea the brand but the set I used were cheap and cheerful and to the feel, they played just how I expected! I took them off for a recording gig, but lost them!  DoH! 

 

Remember to factor in how long they last. Pretty much forever! 

 

I'm tempted to get that 15 quid set! 

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Fender flats are good and cheap but Ernie balls are a step up. My favourite flats are Steve Harris signature rotos but they are massive and will put serious stress on your bass neck, and not so cheap. Thomastik flats... Jury is still out for me. Not so keen with them on my p bass but think they'll be better on my jazz.

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1 hour ago, TheGreek said:

Strings arrived today....they don't feel like the flatwounds I had on my ACG - the width of the "grain" (each wind) is much smaller. I'll have to put them on a bass to see how they perform...

I'll let you know...

interested - let us know

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Just had to replace the flats on my Telebass.

They were Fender flats but I had them on and off so many times that the windings  round the post  at the right angle broke on one but I managed to re-fit it when I had Grover Titans on the Bass. then got a set of Shallers with a thicker post. Thicker post meant that less string was available to go around and  I could not string it without it slipping. Had 55-105's  on it but saw some 50-100's Fender Flats for £22.50 so am trying them, just fitted today. Did wonder if the £14.99 sets were any good?

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  • 7 months later...

Just resurrecting this old thread, to say I've just tried some Adagio Flats. I bought them a while back, for about £10 or £11 from an eBay shop
I intended just to give them a whirl. Not really being a fan of flats, I wanted to try them on my fretless bass....
Long story short, I put other strings on the fretless, after much reading of peoples thoughts on here and elsewhere

.. so the Adagios sat, unused for quite a few months.....
So I tried them on a Jazz the other day, and was blown away!
I really like the strings - they are higher tension than the TI flats I use on another bass, but not overly high tension
I'm aware that some players prefer higher tension, but I found strings like the Steve Harris sigs too high a tension for me

Anyhow, I was so taken with the sound of these Adagio Flats, I decided to resurrect the "Flats on a Jazz" thread too
It sounded much better than I thought this experiment would sound. Even though I had only taken the Jazz along as a backup (yes, I took a backup - as it was a big show)
I decided I liked it so much - I used the Jazz for the first set. That went so well, I opted to use it for the second set too :)

I might just be sold on flats forever! ;)

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I'm pretty sure I recently saw them for sale in an eBay shop, without the outer packing for £8 or £8.99 or something around there....

Just been playing my Jazz now, alongside my P/J with TI flats on - it really does sound great. I fancy swapping the strings over now - see how these compare with the TI's on the same bass.... But I'll be doing another set-up each time, so I don't think I'll do that just yet..... Lol

These are definitely not the highest tension flats I've tried, but they are higher tension than the TI's.

In fact, the TI's now feel a little bit "floppy"

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