Greggo Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 (edited) I'm a recent convert to flatwound strings and particularly love the smooth feel. But I still sometimes crave the "bite" of rounds. Are half rounds a good middle ground in this sense? I'm thinking of trying inexpensive status halfs. I know people say some flats are bright like rounds (chrome?) but it's more about keeping a flatwound feel but a rounds type of sound and not spending a lot. Plus I'm going to be going to one bass so can't string one with flats / one with rounds. Thanks! Edited March 27, 2014 by Greggo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubit Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 I say leave flats to the decrepit old sods who like a dull lifeless sound. Go for rounds all the time man, 'spechilly if ya want a killer sound! Seriously , I know this will bring out a whole load of disagreements from dudes who love flats. I have tried and I have always gone back to rounds. I just love that zingy twang from new rounds. I know its my opinion and I apologise if I offend any lovers of sh*tty, dull tones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary mac Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 (edited) This decrepit old sod wouldn't dream of disagreeing with a man of your expertise. Edited March 27, 2014 by gary mac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 [quote name='ubit' timestamp='1395946332' post='2408322'] I say leave flats to the decrepit old sods who like a dull lifeless sound. Go for rounds all the time man, 'spechilly if ya want a killer sound! Seriously , I know this will bring out a whole load of disagreements from dudes who love flats. I have tried and I have always gone back to rounds. I just love that zingy twang from new rounds. I know its my opinion and I apologise if I offend any lovers of sh*tty, dull tones [/quote] Flats are awesome in the right context, zingy bass sounds don't fit into every track. Don't feed the troll! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 [quote name='ubit' timestamp='1395946332' post='2408322'] I say leave flats to the decrepit old sods who like a dull lifeless sound. [/quote] Heh. You live in the past, sir. Flats are capable of a lot more than a dull, lifeless sound these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JapanAxe Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 At the risk of returning to topic, I have tried both D'Addario Chrome flats and D'Addario Half-rounds, on both my Sandberg and my G&L, and I didn't find the half-rounds to be much brighter than the flats - they just felt stickier! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Steve Harris uses flats, they can sound great as long as they're fresh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greggo Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 Thanks for replies. Status half rounds are half the price of Chromes so may take a punt on these anyway. I struggle with the feel of rounds having used flats for past few months so hoping the smoother nature of halfs will give me what I'm after. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubit Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 [quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1395963360' post='2408567'] Steve Harris uses flats, they can sound great as long as they're fresh! [/quote] Thats the thing mate, they have to be fresh to get anything other than a dull bassy tone. I appreciate that flats are good for some kinds of music. I think folk are not really getting the irony I had when I typed my statement. I apologise if I have annoyed anyone who loves flats. I just love rounds....stainless steel rounds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 They're good strings, especially for fretless. Brighter than Chromes, but without the tension they have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamtheelvy Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 On the whole, people tend to love either flats or rounds. However, you don't often see much love for half/ground/pressure wound strings. I offer no reason for that, I can see the benefit of them, but don't go for them myself either... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffbyrne Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I've just transferred a set of broken-in Chromes onto my SUB and oh boy, what a tone!!!! Has plenty of bite but no zing - a different thing entirely. Has to be at volume though - doesn't really sound right turned down. I think that's where many make the error when listening to flats. You have to hear the effect up loud. G. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 [quote name='ubit' timestamp='1395998587' post='2408734'] Thats the thing mate, they have to be fresh to get anything other than a dull bassy tone. I appreciate that flats are good for some kinds of music. I think folk are not really getting the irony I had when I typed my statement. I apologise if I have annoyed anyone who loves flats. I just love rounds....stainless steel rounds [/quote] I agree entirely to be fair. I use coated stainless steel strings so that my bass tone stays obnoxious and offensive for months and months Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubit Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 [quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1396009758' post='2408954'] I agree entirely to be fair. I use coated stainless steel strings so that my bass tone stays obnoxious and offensive for months and months [/quote] I tried Elixir strings on my bass and was disappointed. I found them to be greasy to the touch and not as bright as I would have liked. The guitar strings are a totally different beast. They sound awesome and last for ages. I like the thought of coated strings, but aint found any that sound as good as Rotosound stainless , so will have to keep experimenting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 [quote name='ubit' timestamp='1396010086' post='2408959'] I tried Elixir strings on my bass and was disappointed. I found them to be greasy to the touch and not as bright as I would have liked. The guitar strings are a totally different beast. They sound awesome and last for ages. I like the thought of coated strings, but aint found any that sound as good as Rotosound stainless , so will have to keep experimenting [/quote] I like D'Addario Prosteels and found the Elixirs to sound quite similar to those. Never liked Rotos myself so it makes sense why our opinions on the Elixirs differ! I actually quite like the slightly silkier feel to the Elixirs.... took some getting used to but it's much better than the friction burn I'm currently getting from coated DRs!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 (edited) [quote name='ubit' timestamp='1396010086' post='2408959'] I tried Elixir strings on my bass and was disappointed. I found them to be greasy to the touch and not as bright as I would have liked. [/quote] Try Cleartone strings - although these are nickel and it looks like they don't do steel sets: [url="http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/p/921438/cleartone-4-string-nickel-plated-steel-45-105-long-scale-bass-guitar-strings-6445/"]http://www.stringsdi...r-strings-6445/[/url] Edited March 28, 2014 by dannybuoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greggo Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 (edited) [quote name='iamtheelvy' timestamp='1396007682' post='2408904'] On the whole, people tend to love either flats or rounds. However, you don't often see much love for half/ground/pressure wound strings. I offer no reason for that, I can see the benefit of them, but don't go for them myself either... [/quote] I can tell by general wayward drifting of this thread that there is little love/experience of them. Maybe it's that most people just want one or the other (rounds or flats) so these don't come under the radar. I'm still intrigued by them though! Edited March 28, 2014 by Greggo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 [quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1396012258' post='2409001'] Try Cleartone strings - although these are nickel and it looks like they don't do steel sets: [url="http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/p/921438/cleartone-4-string-nickel-plated-steel-45-105-long-scale-bass-guitar-strings-6445/"]http://www.stringsdi...r-strings-6445/[/url] [/quote] Xildxx said that these are the same as Warwick EMP but nickel. Tried the EMPs and they definitely do feel a bit more 'natural' than Elixirs! More emphasis in a low mid growl than the high mid you usually get from steels... But they sound incredible on a low B! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubit Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Cheers, I will try them out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Telebass Posted June 3, 2014 Share Posted June 3, 2014 (edited) [quote name='iamtheelvy' timestamp='1396007682' post='2408904'] On the whole, people tend to love either flats or rounds. However, you don't often see much love for half/ground/pressure wound strings. I offer no reason for that, I can see the benefit of them, but don't go for them myself either... [/quote] The best strings I ever used on any bass were the old Rotosound Superwound 505s. These were taper ends with adjustable ball ends, and were pressure wound. Bright and zingy, sustain for days if you needed it, and smooth. Also quite pricey. But if Jason and his workers started making them again, especially in 40-100, even my beloved TIs would be out the window tomorrow. And being contact core, intonation is a snap - the bridges are almost in a straight line. Edited June 3, 2014 by Telebass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncle psychosis Posted June 3, 2014 Share Posted June 3, 2014 Check out Pressurewounds. The ones GHS do are particularly good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted June 3, 2014 Share Posted June 3, 2014 Getting back to the original question, you'll probably find that half-rounds only scratch half your itch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted June 3, 2014 Share Posted June 3, 2014 (edited) [quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1401779923' post='2466661'] Getting back to the original question, you'll probably find that half-rounds only scratch half your itch. [/quote] Wahey! I bought some half-wound Status Hotwires and I'm loving 'em. They're made by Status, they're not made my someone else and repackaged. They feel like flats but sound like rounds that have been played-in. Boing and growl is available but so is thump. They are now my favourite strings and if you like the idea of half-wounds you should try some! Edited June 4, 2014 by discreet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiltyG565 Posted June 3, 2014 Share Posted June 3, 2014 [quote name='Greggo' timestamp='1395945540' post='2408308'] I'm a recent convert to flatwound strings and particularly love the smooth feel. But I still sometimes crave the "bite" of rounds. Are half rounds a good middle ground in this sense? I'm thinking of trying inexpensive status halfs. I know people say some flats are bright like rounds (chrome?) but it's more about keeping a flatwound feel but a rounds type of sound and not spending a lot. Plus I'm going to be going to one bass so can't string one with flats / one with rounds. Thanks! [/quote] Yeah, it might work. The thing to remember, though, is that half rounds don't have all the feel of flats, and not all the top end of rounds. I had a set of D'Addario half rounds, and they sounded really nice, but I had to really hammer at them to get that nice top end sound. Playing them gently, you could hear that they aren't exactly flats, but they sounded far from rounds IMO. A decent set of strings though. I think they were about £30. I didn't use them a great deal, so I gave them to We Need Strings. Hopefully somebody is rocking out for a long time with them! (I'm sure they last a fair while). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiltyG565 Posted June 3, 2014 Share Posted June 3, 2014 [quote name='uncle psychosis' timestamp='1401779796' post='2466660'] Check out Pressurewounds. The ones GHS do are particularly good. [/quote] I only ever bought one set of GHS strings. A set of nickel wounds. They lasted a couple of weeks with light use, then died the biggest death I have ever witnessed in a set of strings. I actually thought something was wrong with my bass. I'd hope that their pressures and flats are entirely different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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