Flats - why do many rave about them

[chris_b]

You might roll your sleeves up and service your old Ford, but you wouldn't touch a Ferrari.

 

Same for my basses. I drop them off at the Bass Gallery and they come back playing like a million dollars.

[Linus27]

1 hour ago, chris_b said:

You might roll your sleeves up and service your old Ford, but you wouldn't touch a Ferrari.

 

Same for my basses. I drop them off at the Bass Gallery and they come back playing like a million dollars.

 

How long is the turn around at the Bass Gallery to set up a bass?

[chris_b]

58 minutes ago, Linus27 said:

 

How long is the turn around at the Bass Gallery to set up a bass?

I guess it can vary. Last time was a week. I had them fix a jack socket at the same time.

[Linus27]

6 minutes ago, chris_b said:

I guess it can vary. Last time was a week. I had them fix a jack socket at the same time.

 

Ok that's cool, thanks Chris

[rmorris]

I've had a couple done recently including fret level and it was within two weeks. I don't know exactly as I'm not in London so it was more about when I could get there to deliver / collect. 

[chris_b]

12 hours ago, Linus27 said:

 

Ok that's cool, thanks Chris

 

Thinking about it, this was between lockdown#1 and #2. So I guess they weren't very busy! Maybe give them a call.

[shoulderpet]

I can't speak for the Bass Gallery but for anyone in or near to Croydon needing fretwork done I can highly recommend Feline Guitars, had a couple of basses done there and the work has been exceptional, after there fret dress I was able to get the action on my basses down to 1mm at the 17th fret, they build custom guitars and basses so they really know there stuff

Edited January 28, 2022 by shoulderpet

[chyc]

Jumping in to say I've just replaced my strings with D'Addario Chromes, basically because of this thread. I'm definitely a fan. When it comes to replace them in 50 years' time I'll definitely buy the same again.

 

Best start saving now. Sheesh they were expensive.

[Reggaebass]

20 minutes ago, chyc said:

Sheesh they were expensive

That’s what I said in 1982 when I bought my labella’s 😁

Edited January 28, 2022 by Reggaebass

[Linus27]

On 27/01/2022 at 10:22, EssentialTension said:

 

Well, I'm not a lutherie expert but the rule of thumb (which I get from Lakand's setup video) is suggesting that buzzing at fret positions 7/8/9 means the neck tension needs to increase presumably because the string tension has increased.

I imagine this logic applies equally to a fretless bass.

So just an update, I turned the truss rod a quarter turn clockwise (looking at the truss rod face on) which seemed to tighten and it made things worse with most of the frets (or lack of as it's a fretless) and open strings buzzing. So I turned the truss rod anticlockwise a quarter and then a quarter again which felt like it was loosening and now no more buzzing on any of the frets and the bass plays beautifully. 

 

So I guess that as I had to loosen the truss rod for the Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats, they are actually a looser tension string over the Rotosound flats, even if under the hand they don't.

 

With my new found confidence, I'd always thought the action on my fretless Stingray could do with being a little lower so I turned the truss rod wheel clockwise a quarter on it and it improved it so I gave it another quarter turn which improved it even further. Much lower action higher up the board and its  playing much better than it did before.

[EssentialTension]

2 hours ago, Linus27 said:

So just an update, I turned the truss rod a quarter turn clockwise (looking at the truss rod face on) which seemed to tighten and it made things worse with most of the frets (or lack of as it's a fretless) and open strings buzzing. So I turned the truss rod anticlockwise a quarter and then a quarter again which felt like it was loosening and now no more buzzing on any of the frets and the bass plays beautifully. 

 

So I guess that as I had to loosen the truss rod for the Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats, they are actually a looser tension string over the Rotosound flats, even if under the hand they don't.

 

With my new found confidence, I'd always thought the action on my fretless Stingray could do with being a little lower so I turned the truss rod wheel clockwise a quarter on it and it improved it so I gave it another quarter turn which improved it even further. Much lower action higher up the board and its  playing much better than it did before.

 

Sounds like a result one way or another.

[EssentialTension]

3 hours ago, chyc said:

Jumping in to say I've just replaced my strings with D'Addario Chromes, basically because of this thread. I'm definitely a fan. When it comes to replace them in 50 years' time I'll definitely buy the same again.

 

Best start saving now. Sheesh they were expensive.

 

They'll be subsantially more expensive in fifty years time.

[rmorris]

13 hours ago, chris_b said:

 

Thinking about it, this was between lockdown#1 and #2. So I guess they weren't very busy! Maybe give them a call.

for info mine were in there (separately) in Nov / Dec just gone.

[Supernaut]

Any Cobalt Flats users here? What string is it similar to in tension/flex? 

[Chienmortbb]

On 28/01/2022 at 13:41, EssentialTension said:

 

They'll be subsantially more expensive in fifty years time.

I just looked at the price, I would already need to take out a loan. Tyat said if they last like some other flats then it would not be too bad.

[Reggaebass]

31 minutes ago, Chienmortbb said:

I just looked at the price, I would already need to take out a loan. Tyat said if they last like some other flats then it would not be too bad.

It’s worth keeping an eye out on here for them, lots of people try them and sell them on for whatever reason.   i like my flats when they are played in ,so I’ve got a thing with a few BC’ers here who message me after they’ve had their labella’s on for a while and change them for new ones, so I buy their used ones , which comes in handy when I get new basses 🙂

[Passinwind]

2 hours ago, Supernaut said:

Any Cobalt Flats users here? What string is it similar to in tension/flex? 

I had them on my Crescent Moon fretless for a few years. The lightest gauge are just a little more tense than T-I Jazz Flats IME, I did end up tweaking the truss rod just a very little bit. I liked the Cobalts a lot more than the T-I JFs and may easily put another set on that bass if and when I decide to bail on the current roundwound experiment using DR Sunbeams, which incidentally didn't require any truss adjustment at all from the EB CFs.

Edited February 1, 2022 by Passinwind

[shoulderpet]

And it looks like I am a TI jazz flats fan, I got some Labella low tension flats, fitted them and they sounded immediately broken in, like most flats sound like after a few months but I missed the clarity of the TI's, they sound like flats but they sing in the high mids instead of being a dull thump like a lot of flats, the TI's are back on, it was a pricey experiment but if you don't try then you never know

[chris_b]

I've had TI flats on my PJ for about 5 years. I love them.

 

A few years ago, I did listen to some LaBella flats but the difference wasn't enough to make me want to change over.

[shoulderpet]

28 minutes ago, chris_b said:

I've had TI flats on my PJ for about 5 years. I love them.

 

A few years ago, I did listen to some LaBella flats but the difference wasn't enough to make me want to change over.

The thing with the Labella is they do sound good but they are a one trick pony, with TI's you can get a tone from them that will work in a rock context as well as the warmer tones you would associate with flats

[Bagman]

L2 Steinberger- LaBella double ball are very nice. Really should have done this years back. Very smooth

 

I have ordered another style of LaBella Flats for my old Jazz

 

 

 

[Paul S]

8 hours ago, shoulderpet said:

And it looks like I am a TI jazz flats fan, I got some Labella low tension flats, fitted them and they sounded immediately broken in, like most flats sound like after a few months but I missed the clarity of the TI's, they sound like flats but they sing in the high mids instead of being a dull thump like a lot of flats, the TI's are back on, it was a pricey experiment but if you don't try then you never know

 

Indeed, I have them on all my basses other than an Antoria EB-3 copy that I feel needs the extra zing.  The first thing I do when I get a new bass is stick a set of TI Flats on it.  Anyone who likes the feel of flats but not the 'dull thud' should give them a go, because 'dull thud' they most certainly are not.

[Jonse]

10 hours ago, shoulderpet said:

And it looks like I am a TI jazz flats fan, I got some Labella low tension flats, fitted them and they sounded immediately broken in, like most flats sound like after a few months but I missed the clarity of the TI's, they sound like flats but they sing in the high mids instead of being a dull thump like a lot of flats, the TI's are back on, it was a pricey experiment but if you don't try then you never know

I'd hate to think what I've spent on strings over the years. Always comes back to TI flats though. 

[nilebodgers]

Just a late addition to my experience with flats so far (Roto rs77). It has been going well, but I noticed that the octave G on the E string had an odd effect where the fundamental note decayed very quickly. It was only this note on the E string, no-where else. I wondered if the string was a bit iffy.

 

I fiddled about with tension/untwisting etc to see if I could get any clues and finally when I pressed the E string down hard at the bridge to reinforce the witness point the fundamental note started to decay normally. So, user error, not the string and easily fixed.

 
Odd as I’d already set the witness points in the same way as I have always done with rounds and they all seemed fine. The flats simply appear to need a bit more care on installation than rounds to get them right.

[TheLowDown]

I like them for fretted because they're less harsh on my fingers when string crossing and they're less noisy. On fretless I prefer rougher SS rounds because it gives me more grip to be creative.