Froggy Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Cheers Stoo, I'm going to have a play with it before I put my money down for sure. That little nugget of information is handy to know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roceci Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Well-timed topic, my SR5 is getting Picato flats installed this very evening. Pretty excited to see/hear the results. I've got the same strings on a Squier P & they pop well with a lovely old skool sound, so hopefully will sound the bomb on the Ray Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenjames Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 I've had my Ray (EBMM 4H, 2EQ) for about a year, and I recently moved to flats. Previously I had DR Hi beams, and now I have d'Addario chromes. They're completely awesome - I'd never go back. I play fingerstyle funk/pop/rock with a tiny bit of slapping. I just love the clean thump that you get - it's unbeatable and cuts through the mix so easily without needing to be loud. As commented earlier, you _will_ need to adjust the setup - flats are denser than rounds and therefore you'll need more tension for the same note. I had to tweak the truss rod a little (about a half turn, from memory, but obviously YMMV). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drTStingray Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 (edited) [quote name='No. 8 Wire' timestamp='1447678358' post='2909411'] Have you also tried TI flats? How do they compare tension wise if so? I really like the low tension of the TI flats but I'm interested in trying out the cobalts. [/quote] I have TI flats on a Classic Ray and EB cobalt flats on a fretless 3 band Ray. The tension is very similar IMO. The TI flats with the 2 band Ray can get a decent slap sound - indeed the band I play in has a couple of songs with slap - one has a solo and I've used the Classic Ray without a problem, simply tweaking the onboard EQ. The fretless with the cobalt flats is quite interesting - the sound is quite unique it's closer to having rounds sound wise but the feel is as per flats. I've wound the mutes on slightly on the E and A strings to get more thump and take the mwah a little - leaving the D and G to sing freely - which they do very nicely. I've played a couple of gigs with it and am very pleased. Well worth the added expense in both cases for me. That said I also have a Ray or two with zingy rounds so can get that fix if desired!! Interesting to see the Nile Rodgers tweet. I read somewhere that Stingrays were shipped with flats until 1978 when they changed to rounds. BEs Ray was a 77 so will have come with flats and he was famously interviewed stating his strings were the ones which came on the bass - I'm guessing that was around 78. Also, as a BE fan trying to emulate his sound with a Stingray from around 1980, the one element i could never get to sound right was the popping on We Are Family - until I played it on my Classic Ray with TI flats. So I think that song was played on the Stingray with flats. I wonder what point he actually changed over? Edited November 18, 2015 by drTStingray Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
No. 8 Wire Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 That's great info. Which gauge of cobalt are you using on the fretless? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 [quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1447668855' post='2909302'] Fortunately Nile Rodgers isn't trying to make Jerry Barnes play like BE. Full marks for letting JB be his own man. [/quote] 100% Currently my fave live bass player Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 [quote name='discreet' timestamp='1447754313' post='2909959'] Yes. Apparently he used the stock flats that came with the bass and never changed them, a la Jamerson. But I don't know if that's a fact or a myth. [/quote] Not sure they came with flats.. mine didn't. Around 82-ish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drTStingray Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1447836785' post='2910733'] Not sure they came with flats.. mine didn't. Around 82-ish [/quote] They came with GHS flats up to circa 78 when they changed to GHS rounds. Mine also came with rounds in 1980. BE's was a 77 bass. IMO flats on a Stingray make the biggest difference to the timbre of popped notes and perhaps enable a bit more thump. If you bought yours new JTUK, 1982 is quite a late pre EB and well into the Jackson made period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drTStingray Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 [quote name='No. 8 Wire' timestamp='1447807754' post='2910665'] That's great info. Which gauge of cobalt are you using on the fretless? [/quote] The cobalt flats are 100 80 65 45 (pink pack). They're packaged as Slinky Flatwound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 [quote name='drTStingray' timestamp='1447846470' post='2910854'] They came with GHS flats up to circa 78 when they changed to GHS rounds. Mine also came with rounds in 1980. BE's was a 77 bass. IMO flats on a Stingray make the biggest difference to the timbre of popped notes and perhaps enable a bit more thump. If you bought yours new JTUK, 1982 is quite a late pre EB and well into the Jackson made period. [/quote] LIttle local store and it hung around I believe so anywhere around 80-82, I could probably date it by the music shop owners...but yes, new and with rounds. I believe it predated Music Mart in Canterbury...or certainly the end of that shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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