Bass strings

tourettes5139

tourettes5139

New member
I was at the not so good old GC the other day, and they had this bass there that had these strings on it that weren't wound; they were like upright bass strings. Does anyone know what these are called, or who makes them or anything? Oh and if you guys have a type/brand/model/whatever of bass string that you particularly like, go ahead list that, too.

Thanks!!!!
 
those are called round wound strings.

i love em.

daddario has sets of them, but i have half wounds on right now and it is nice and bassy, but still with a little punch.

so check out daddarios , they are really good.
 
Not wound,
as in you couldn't see any windings?
Were they coated?
Flat wound, 1/2 wound, round wound & coated strings all exist. Though flat & coated are harder to come by. They both give a less toppy sound - lot's of bass & less of that 80's bite.
Coated can be coloured too but the coating can wear of - yuck.
Cheers
rayC.
 
sound like flatwounds to me. good for fretless basses especially. the bass player in my band put them on his fretted bass once and they weren't too great on that. could have been the bass though, if you like the sound go for it.
 
Yeah, that sounds like flat-wound. Flat-wound strings are supposed to not make as much noise when you slide on them. I got some strings right now that I hate on my 5-string. Blue Steel bass strings, medium guage. Never again.
 
Sounds like Flatwound. ALL bass strings were flatwound originally. The roundwound strings that we're all so used to, didn't really get widely used until the 70's.

Flats will tend to give you a warmer thuddier sound, with less high end, less string noise, and less definition. Listen to some Motown (Flats on a P) or some Bob Marley (Flats on a J) or old Sly and the family Stone (slapping on flats) for classic flatwound sound.

Whether you like the feel or the sound is completely taste and depends quite a bit on what you are using em for.

The trade off is that you can't really add that modern, round wound sizzle to a set of flats. Live, i find I can approximate the flat sound fairly well on a set of roundwounds by rolling the passive treble control all the way off on my bass, especially with deader strings. Recording, I don't think there's any substitute for real flats.
 
Ok, cool! Thanks for the help guys. I may try flatwounds, because I kinda liked the different sound that they have, and I especially like they way they feel on the fretting hand. Thanks again!! :D
 
ibleedburgundy said:
Yeah, that sounds like flat-wound. Flat-wound strings are supposed to not make as much noise when you slide on them. I got some strings right now that I hate on my 5-string. Blue Steel bass strings, medium guage. Never again.
Click to expand...

I got some half round strings for my Alembic 5 string, and I find them to be a good compromise. They don't have quite the high end that the set of rounds that I had before, but they also don't squeak near as much when I slide on them. Also, applying some hand lotion to my left hand fingertips before I play helps with the squeaking. Ultimately, though, it's a technique thing.

Flat wrapped strings don't squeak at all, but they sound pretty dull.
 
I'm in the fortunate position of owning 2 basses. One is a solid body & has round wound strings whilst the other is a semi acoustic & has flat wound strings so I have the best of many worlds.
Cheers
rayC
 
sounds like either flats or old cat gut strings... could have been nylon cord( like the ashbory basses from DeArmond)... before you chose a string, you need to decide on what style you play... and what kind of bass you have. i play Yamaha fretted basses thru an Eden 4x10 combo with a 2x10 extension cab. i use Roto Sound Swing bass for 5 string. .135 gauge for the B string. go check out my bands website and see if you like the sound i get from my set up. email me if you want some more info. i would be happy to help.
Jockeybox...
www.jockeybox.com
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top