50+-105 flatwounds

[Paolo85]

I was enjoying my La Bella LTF 42-100, despite finding that the G was being extremely low to break in, but then I decided to resume my attempts to study walking bass and in that context the G sounded too thin and tinny. I left it a couple of night soaked in eucerine cream as suggested by somebody in another forum, but while this helped, I came to the conclusion that it was just to thin.
So I jumped to the other extreme and bought in the classfields here some La Bella Jamerson 52-110 for a good price.
I get a good G with  those but
-I could do with less tension for the rest of the set. There was nothing wrong with the sound of the LTF although I marginally prefer the Jamerson
-Surprisingly, even at this size, I find that the sound of the G, to my ear, is a bit alien to the rest of the set...

..i found that to be the case in all strings I have owned. So I thought I need a 50+-105 set. However it seems to me the only available are Fender, Ernie Ball cobalt, and GHS. However:
-EB sound like rounds so not what I need
-Fender I understand they may be less thumpy than labellas, am I wrong?
-GHS it looks to me ball-end to tapered silk is 38 inches which may bee too much for a precision. I heard they could snap. Has anyone tried?
-Is there any other option?
-would there be a downside to buying Labella 45-105 but keeping the 52 G from the current set?

Thanks

Edited October 15, 2022 by Paolo85

[Guest]

4 hours ago, Paolo85 said:

Is there any other option?

 

Daddario Chromes are available in 50-105 set. I have tried both them (in a 45-60-80-105 set) and La Bellas (in a 49-109 set) and found that the Chromes had much more consistency of character from string to string.

 

Here's a demo comparing the 52-110 DTF with the 50-105 Chromes. The bass is an SB-2, not the most obvious choice for demoing flats, but you can hear the differences nonetheless (start at 2'18")

 

(Shame he doesn't use the G string, though!)

[Lozz196]

I just wish that more of the string brands, and for both flats and rounds, would do 50 - 105s. Given the pickup placement on a Precision having a heavier D & G really helps balance this out imo.

[PaulThePlug]

Round Nickels... Dunlop 'Lemmy' 50 70 85 105...

[Paolo85]

1 hour ago, Ricky Rioli said:

 

Daddario Chromes are available in 50-105 set. I have tried both them (in a 45-60-80-105 set) and La Bellas (in a 49-109 set) and found that the Chromes had much more consistency of character from string to string.

 

Here's a demo comparing the 52-110 DTF with the 50-105 Chromes. The bass is an SB-2, not the most obvious choice for demoing flats, but you can hear the differences nonetheless (start at 2'18")

 

 

(Shame he doesn't use the G string, though!)

Thanks, these were off my radar because of their reputation of being bright. They still sound like flats it seems...

[MartinB]

8 hours ago, Paolo85 said:

-GHS it looks to me ball-end to tapered silk is 38 inches which may bee too much for a precision. I heard they could snap. Has anyone tried?

The E looks slightly odd because a small section of the bare string wraps around the post, in addition to the silked part. The A, D, and G look normal. I've never run into any problems.

[Maude]

6 hours ago, Paolo85 said:

Thanks, these were off my radar because of their reputation of being bright. They still sound like flats it seems...

While being at the brighter end of the flats scale, they are far from zingy and sustaining like a round. 

They still have that characteristic flatwound response to playing, so rolling off the tone a bit will give you the 'classic flat' tone, with the option of brightening things up a little if needed. 

They are most definitely still flats. 

[miles'tone]

The Ernie Ball Group II flats don't sound like rounds. Maybe you're thinking of the EB Cobalt flats?

[chris_b]

If you have the same issue with the G on multiple sets of strings I'd say you had a problem with the bass, pickup or electrics.

[Paolo85]

23 minutes ago, miles'tone said:

The Ernie Ball Group II flats don't sound like rounds. Maybe you're thinking of the EB Cobalt flats?

Yes actually! I was thinking the cobalt! How are the Group II in the scale of thumpyness?

[Paolo85]

15 minutes ago, chris_b said:

If you have the same issue with the G on multiple sets of strings I'd say you had a problem with the bass, pickup or electrics.

It could be to an extent, but it also happens with different basses

[miles'tone]

11 minutes ago, Paolo85 said:

Yes actually! I was thinking the cobalt! How are the Group II in the scale of thumpyness?

They're a little bit like Chromes but thumpier. I don't know how else to describe them sorry! 

I'm not really a fan of Chromes but I love the Group IIs. Great balance of tone and output.

All our hands and ears are different though eh? 

Worth a shot 👌 

[chris_b]

56 minutes ago, Paolo85 said:

It could be to an extent, but it also happens with different basses

 

What basses have given you this issue?

[Paolo85]

6 hours ago, chris_b said:

 

What basses have given you this issue?

I have noticed it specifically with 3 P basses (all Squier affinity, one 2008, two contemporary PJ), a Cort B4fl, a Harley Benton JB75, a Harley Benton HBZ2005. This may or may not have happened with other basses now sold (Sire V5, Ibanez GSR205b) I do not remember for sure but I am pretty convinced this is the case because, after playing a P for the first rime after many many years a few months ago, one of the things I noticed the most was how much I preferred the sound of the G, despite the split coil, probably because of the low mids.

I find the problem most marked for notes played close to the nut, which, looking online, seem to be the case for a lot of people.

To be clear, I am not saying the G now is unusable. It's all good for most purposes and for a lot of songs it may be good to have a G that is more snappy. As I am now looking for an almost upright sort of sound, this thinner G has become something I want to look into more