Flat Chromes query

[dmccombe7]

After reading another thread i noted someone had been converted to using Flat Chromes and they have a Jazz, Precision and Rik basses.

Just wondering what kind of tone they give and why people changed and what were they using before.

Dave

[SH73]

 

[krispn]

It's a worm hole Flat's are great to play and can add a really nice feel but more importantly a nice thump to proceedings from a tonal point of view. There are as many opinions on flat wound strings as brands of flat wound strings. If it's any consolation I do like these brands and you can always fond them on the other musical instruments section in the for sales!

Thomastik INfeld Jazz Flats - pricy but less tension on them than...

LaBella. They have the Jamerson flats which can feel like heavy cables but the Deep Talkin Flats ain't too bad tension wise...

GHS Flats - I used these only branded as Lakland Jo Osbourne flats. Really nice feel and tension too.

I was kindly given some Fender flat's by a friend and they play and feel nice too.

My pref is TI Jazz flats (I've paid full price for them I like them that much (gasp) and then the GHS Flats but there are many to try out.

Ultimately you'll find a set that feel right for you - if you get into the tonal differences from round wounds and like them then you'll find yourself scanning for used sets in the wee small hours.

I'd offer to send you some of my old set but I only have a BEAD set to hand due to the g string breakage.

Good luck!

 

Edited December 15, 2018 by krispn

[SH73]

I use Steve Harris signature flats and Fender flats. Happy with both.

[josie]

I have D'Addario chrome flats on both my fretless basses. When I bought the acoustic (Michael Kelly 5), I decided to put flats on it straight away, and the chromes were the only set of five in the right length in the shop. I liked the sound and feel, so put the same on my fretless electric (GMR 4). I'd describe it as a warm clear sound that works well with slide, which is what I wanted. Flats of some sort are pretty standard for fretless basses, partly because they're not as harsh on the fretboard as rounds. 

My Epiphone Jack Casady came with Elite stainless steel flats (they call them "groundwound") which feel more slippery and somehow fatter to my fingers. The sound is, I think, a bit brighter than the chromes, but it's hard to be sure because the basses are so different. Again I think flats are pretty common on hollow-bodies. 

I'm planning to put tapewounds on the acoustic and move the flats to the fretted acoustic (I really dislike the phosphor bronze rounds that are standard for acoustics: harsh and rattly in feel and sound). I'm not, at the moment, about to put flats on any of the solid-body electrics, but I am very tempted to try half-rounds. 

[dmccombe7]

I've used flats on fretless basses many yrs ago but was more curious as to using them on a fretted bass.

Do they reduce fret noise on fretted basses ?

I play mainly rock music Glam Rock at the moment so not sure they will work well in that environment.

Think i might give them a try out. I'm a fan of D'addario nickel strings so might try theirs first.

 

[dmccombe7]

Do people change because of the feel or is it the tone that attracts people to them on fretted basses

Or is it because they last longer ?

Dave

[SH73]

I use both flats and rounds. Rounds and flats  on my jazzes and flats on my p basses. Purely as I'm a Maiden fan. Flats feel good when played and as far as I'm converted they help to achieve that typical p bass sound. Rounds on my jazz sound more growly. I found however that flats lose the brightness quicker.

[krispn]

Flats do tend to go for that  thumpy tone so while initially they can sound ‘bright’ most brands of flats will tend to have that duller middy thump which is the appeal I guess. It’s worth trying a set and having a go. You’ll not get any feet noise and it might be more ‘period correct’ for the glam stuff. 

[Reggaebass]

I have flats on 7 of my jazzes and rounds on my p basses , I prefer the feel and the mellowed sound of the flats for reggae , but a few months ago I put  a set of  Picato halfround 45- 100   on a jazz and the sound is great  they have a smooth feel , no fret noise , but the clarity of rounds, I took the mids down on my amp and still got nice deep lows ,  really nice tone 😀

[John T]

15 hours ago, dmccombe7 said:

Do people change because of the feel or is it the tone that attracts people to them on fretted basses

Or is it because they last longer ?

Dave

My reason for flats - I wanted to get rid of the string noise generally associated with roundwound strings,  i also liked the idea of a smoother feel under my fingers. Although i like the Rotosond RB50'S which i seem to go back to on all my basses, i am at the point where i rarely go over 10/20% treble gain. I decided against the stainless option to minimise fretwear and bought a set of Rotosound RS77LD's. I knew i'd have treble in abundance to tweak for a slightly brighter cut without too much of the added noise of roundwounds.... They seem to be working well.... i've only had them on for 2 days and have pretty much dialled in an aggressive growly tone with a bit of top which is great for my predominantly rock style. Tension is good for a standard set which are lighter than my regular heavies to compensate for the flats being wound slightly tighter. They feel pretty slick too.

In conclusion the change has forced me to re-invent my sound which makes me appreciate the quality and flexibility my Sandberg jazz has to offer.

Edited December 16, 2018 by John T

[Chiliwailer]

9 hours ago, dmccombe7 said:

Do people change because of the feel or is it the tone that attracts people to them on fretted basses

Or is it because they last longer ?

Dave

All three. Smoother feel, softer tone, last for ages or forever depending on taste. 

I use Chromes on my P Bass, had a set on for 18 months and I can’t see that changing. Chromes have a nice bright edge to them, and are a peach once they’ve aged.

But in your position, I’d also consider the EB Cobalt Flatwounds, which I used on an old PJ of mine and now have on my Stingray Special. They are technically flats, but lean more towards the brightness of rounds. As said in an earlier post, flats can start bright, but these have other properties of rounds that’s a nice touch too. 

[dmccombe7]

Noticed that a few people have them fitted on their Jazz basses which is my preferred bass.

I'm liking the idea so gonna try a set. I'll have a look at the EB Cobalts to see what they say about them and then take the plunge. I've only just ut a new set of D'addario nickels on my Jazz bass but my PJ needs a new set so that will be the guinea pig trial run i think.

Thanks for the help and advice. Its what makes BC such a great place to be. There's always someone to offer help when needed.

Excellent

Dave

[yorks5stringer]

Every time I see this Thread title I think of:

 

[dmccombe7]

Think you'll need to explain that one to me ? 

[dmccombe7]

One thing i've noticed with Flatwounds are they generally seem to be 45-105 or upwards.

I generally use 40-100 nickels. I like the tension in them compared to the 45-105's

Is the tension different on the Flatwounds and what would you recommend for someone that currently likes 40-100 nickel tension.

Dave

[Delberthot]

I use D'addario EXL165 strings on my Musicman but have recently changed the strings on my Rickenbacker to Fender 9050L flatwounds as they probably are Chromes in a different package or at least very similar. They are 45, 60, 80, 100 but feel very similar to the EXLs.

I also don't understand the "thump" aspect of flats that is always mentioned. I suppose if you turn the treble down you could go for something that sounded "thumpy" if that's what you're going for but my sound is anything but thumpy. I've got a very punchy, bright and trebley sound just by using the controls on my BDI21.

For me it's the feel of the strings and the fact that I don't get half way through a gig and wish I'd changed my strings the night before as they are completely dead

 

[krispn]

To qualify the thump description I’ve found flats to have less brightness than rounds and an inherent lower mid quality especially with age. A 5yr old set of RW strings will sound that way too I suppose. I don’t mean thump as sounding dead or lifeless. If anything  I FW strings sound better than rounds for almost most types of music up until the heavier genres of rock

Edited December 16, 2018 by krispn

[Chiliwailer]

59 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

One thing i've noticed with Flatwounds are they generally seem to be 45-105 or upwards.

I generally use 40-100 nickels. I like the tension in them compared to the 45-105's

Is the tension different on the Flatwounds and what would you recommend for someone that currently likes 40-100 nickel tension.

Dave

The D’Addario website has links to tension charts (under the red ‘buy’ button) when you check out a set. 

http://www.daddario.com/DADProductDetail.Page?ActiveID=3769&productid=159&productname=ECB80_Chromes_Bass__Light__40_95__Long_Scale

Generally, flats have more tension. The difference between the 40-100 rounds and 40-95 flats doesn’t seem to be too much though.  

[Jay2U]

I strung my Ibanez with Ernie Ball flatwounds, tuned BEAD. This is what this thunderstick can do...

 

Edited December 16, 2018 by Jay2U

[dmccombe7]

Thanks for posting the clips.

Think there's maybe a little too much happening in the clips to really hear the bass sound but it definitely sounds nice in the mix. 

Dave

[dmccombe7]

2 hours ago, Delberthot said:

I use D'addario EXL165 strings on my Musicman but have recently changed the strings on my Rickenbacker to Fender 9050L flatwounds as they probably are Chromes in a different package or at least very similar. They are 45, 60, 80, 100 but feel very similar to the EXLs.

I also don't understand the "thump" aspect of flats that is always mentioned. I suppose if you turn the treble down you could go for something that sounded "thumpy" if that's what you're going for but my sound is anything but thumpy. I've got a very punchy, bright and trebley sound just by using the controls on my BDI21.

For me it's the feel of the strings and the fact that I don't get half way through a gig and wish I'd changed my strings the night before as they are completely dead

 

Now that's what i was hoping as i like to hear the mids and little hi end and don't usually go for a thumpy bass tone either.

So this makes more sense to me

Dave

[Jay2U]

7 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

Thanks for posting the clips.

Think there's maybe a little too much happening in the clips to really hear the bass sound but it definitely sounds nice in the mix. 

Dave

You're right. To me it's the mix that counts. I try to fill the spectrum from 30 to 200 Hz.

[discreet]

18 hours ago, krispn said:

It’s worth trying a set and having a go. You’ll not get any feet noise...

Depends how much you shuffle about when you're playing, really.

[Jay2U]

I suddenly remembered the Chromes on my P-Bass copy. Here's an example with compression only.