Which first time flat strings?

[Rusco]

I've never used flats but fancy trying some out on my P Bass for a warmer vintage thump. 

I know there are loads which string type threads and equal numbers of opinions... but what would you recommend as a first, nothing too expensive, middle ground just to try?

Thanks!

[Reggaebass]

If you just want a decent sat at a reasonable price I’d recommend these, they are very good for the money 👍

[Supernaut]

Fender 9050s or D'Addario Chromes are always a good starting point. GHS Precision Flats or La Bella DTB for something a little darker. 

[hooky_lowdown]

3 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

If you just want a decent sat at a reasonable price I’d recommend these, they are very good for the money 👍

Totally agree. These are very decent flatwounds, sound good and are very reasonably priced, ideal for first time flatwounds imho. Medium tension too, so they won't feel like you're playing steel rods.

They won't sound or feel as nice as higher priced flatwounds, but an excellent starting point.

[TheGreek]

I used to use the Olympia Roundwounds back in the day without complaint. The flats are less than £20

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/332486029353?epid=15045844741&hash=item4d69b63029:g:Px0AAOSwr5db7W6d

[lownote]

Dunlops for me.

Tension is important to enjoyment and its a very personal thing.  Some are really stiff and unbending, others are floppy.   Personally I can't do Thomastik Infeld - too floppy, others love them.  It's worth asking a good dealer like Strings Direct for their thoughts on tension.

A big tip if you're new to flats.  Some breeds seem impossibly sticky and un-smooth when first used. This goes in a short while if you keep using them and they'll go silky smooth.  If you don't know this it's all too easy to give up in annoyance. Just give them a couple of days. 

Edited May 14, 2021 by lownote12

[ricksterphil]

I have Elite flats on my Lull (came with it). I'm impressed, they're much nicer to play than others I've tried which are Thomastik, Fender and some 'as fitted' on my Maruszczyk

[Killed_by_Death]

 

 

[paul_5]

I’ve tried a few, and here’s what I’ve found:

Ernie Ball and Dunlop - very stiff

La Bella and TI - very floppy

Ernie Ball Cobalts - just right.

[Killed_by_Death]

 

Cobalts are a far cry from Warm, however.

 

[Reggaebass]

I made the mistake of buying fender flats to try, if you like hi tension you will like them, I didn’t 🙂

[PaulThePlug]

Got the Adagio's on my GSR200... as a first try of flats,  Nice... As mentoned, warm, smooth and medium tension. Bargain... offer £13... I got another set for the SR600 but have swaped back to the Roto Solo Bass Pressure wounds on that for a bit - so i got both.

Some more 'Flat' blah blah here...

 

Edited May 14, 2021 by PaulThePlug

[Reggaebass]

8 minutes ago, PaulThePlug said:

Some mord 'Flat' blah blah here

Nice one Paul, I remembered there was a thread but I couldn’t find it 👍

[Owen]

2nd hand. 

[Killed_by_Death]

 

Monel should be 'warmer' than Stainless (Chrome):

 

[chris_b]

GHS Precision Flats feel good and make a great sound.

[Rusco]

16 hours ago, PaulThePlug said:

Got the Adagio's on my GSR200... as a first try of flats,  Nice... As mentoned, warm, smooth and medium tension. Bargain... offer £13... I got another set for the SR600 but have swaped back to the Roto Solo Bass Pressure wounds on that for a bit - so i got both.

Some more 'Flat' blah blah here...

 

Thanks Paul, I didn’t find that one when searching. Lots of love for Adagio’s on there.

Thank you all for the comments and suggestions 👍

[TheGreek]

IIRC Picato used to supply Status. At £10 these should be ideal for a first time buy.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/224464065235?hash=item344319d2d3:g:p10AAOSwQVlgmBME

[Reggaebass]

There’s these too, I messaged the seller and asked what make they were, they replied, This is our house brand, designed to emulate the 60's brands of strings, https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Nickel-Flatwound-Bass-Strings-045-100-34-Scale-/224381324107?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286

[TheGreek]

I bought a set of Wilkinson Clover leaf tuners from this seller. Very reasonable.

At less than £15 a first time buyer can't go wrong .

[Owen]

Probably these

 

[Saul Panzer]

I'll also throw in a vote for the Adagio flatwounds if you want a nice deep even set, they're about the cheapest set of flats on Amazon too which is a bonus.

As a second option I'm also trying out the Ernie Ball slinky flatwounds on my p/j and quite like them so far, the E and A are thicker which may or may not be a bonus for you.
I don't know what you're considering expensive, they're about twice the price as the Adagio ones and honestly for a first/test set those Adagios are just insane value.

[lee650]

I've tried a couple

Labella Deep Talkin - very stiff to play and a very deep, rich thump. Very punchy and warm, no highs at all. Very smooth windings and lovely to play, classic P tone.
They have a low tension set too, which have the same smooth feel and a similar tone, but very pliant and "Bendy" very easy to get about on.

D'addario Chromes- once again quite stiff,and you can feel the wraps under your fingers. They have a very prominent high mid "clank" to my ears,but smooth out to a punchy thump over time. Great strings for rock.

Ernie Ball Cobalts- these have a very low tension and are lovely to play,almost similar tension to the same gauge rounds (slight difference) you can feel the wraps on these,but not as much as the chromes. These are the perfect strings as a gateway to flats, as they have a bright tone, reminiscent of slightly worn in nickel roundwounds. I've recently converted my old jazz to passive/vintage specs and I intend to put a set of these on it.

Thomastik Infeld - my faves! They have a very low tension "loose" feel,that many don't like, but a breeze to get about on.the wraps are fairly smooth so nice under the fingers. They have a very sweet bright tone, but a very tight bottom so initially don't have The thump of other flats, but darken over time. It's a quality tone, as you'd imagine from a company that primarily makes strings for orchestral instruments, I have these on my P bass.

Fender - these have a medium tension and have a fairly smooth feel. Not much in the way of highs, but a decent warm thump, sortve how you'd imagine a flat would sound like with a P bass. There's nothing wrong with these strings at all (I think they are made by GHS or maybe D'addario i could be wrong), but I found the tone a bit "meh"🤣 but they are the cheapest of the bunch (that I've tried, the Adagio may be cheaper), and I'd certainly recommend you try these, to see if you like flats.

A bit like trying Whiskey for the first time. If you like it, then many more flavours of flat avail able😁

[Reggaebass]

4 minutes ago, lee650 said:

Fender - these have a medium tension and have a fairly smooth feel. Not much in the way of highs

You may have had different fender flats to me, mine were high tension and quite bright, they wasn’t for me, I use labella LTFs on everything now 🙂

[wateroftyne]

On 14/05/2021 at 13:19, Supernaut said:

Fender 9050s or D'Addario Chromes are always a good starting point. GHS Precision Flats or La Bella DTB for something a little darker. 

I would counter this by saying Chromes are on the bright side for flats, whereas the GHS and La Bellas are more 'Normal'.

To the OP, the main thing to bear in mind with any flats is to give them time. They feel weird at first until they bed in.

Give them a good old rub with an old t-shirt at first. That helps.