Flat wound Question

scottyg11 · Post by **scottyg11** » Sun Jun 26, 2005 6:59 pm

One of the ways that I justified buying A new Rickenbacker was that I could go with a different sound on my other bass. My other bass is a Schecter C-4. I was using Rotosound roundwounds on this it sounded pretty good A little to much on the trebly side but pretty good. I put a set of Rotosound flat wounds on it. I liked the sound right away. Brighter than I expected. Will the brightness fade after much use? After a couple of hours of play I noticed that the intonation was way off on the G string. I tried setting the intonation today and I could not get it right. I think I might of gotten a bum string. Should I try another brand? Is having to adjust the intonation normal when making the switch from one type of string to another? I did try a set of GHS bright flats before this and the E string was dead no life. I like the Idea of having flats on this bass but it is starting to become a pain. On the plus side Bass NW said I should expect my new Jetglo 4003 anytime now. It would be nice to have it for the show that we have on the fourth that way I could post a picture playing it live.

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Sun Jun 26, 2005 8:55 pm

I bought two sets of Roto flats several years ago and the G strings were dead in both of them. The best ones I've tried have been Pyramids Golds(expensive) and TI's flats (also expensive but cheaper than Pyramids. Pyramids are mid tension and TI's are light. Both last a long time. TI's are bright out of the box but lose it quickly and become nice and warm sounding with a pronounced midrange, Pyramids keep their same tone for a very long time, years in my case, they are more traditional sounding flats. I think Rots are one of the worst strings going and there are many people here who will disagree with me but I've had trouble with their round wounds years ago also.
4003's sound great with flats BTW.

edski · Post by **edski** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 2:17 am

I use Fender 9050 ML's. they are pretty bright when forst strung, then fade to the normal thud-thud I expect. Takes about 2 weeks for them to quiet down. From what others say, most flats have that "break in" period.

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 2:53 am

I had a Schecter C-5 ... it was a wonderful bass ... when I played by myself it sounded great ... but it didn't cut through the mix when I played with a band ...

4003360man · Post by **4003360man** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 4:05 am

Great.

I hear McCartney used Rotosound flats on his Rick. That's what I was going to go with. But not now.

I'd buy Pyramids, but I want to make sure I want to stay with flats before I "invest" in Pyramids.

I'm probably in the minority among Rick players, but I don't like the Geddy Lee/Chris Squire "plingy" treble sound. I'd rather have the sound McCartney and Royston Langdon (Spacehog) get with flats.

I just have to find a good starting brand and go from there.

iamthebassman · Post by **iamthebassman** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 4:29 am

Entering my 14th year as the bass player in a Beatles trib band that gigs a lot, I have been thru more than my share of flats. My thoughts:

Chromes-good thump, good treble when needed, smooth feel, kinda high-tension.
Rotos-normal treble, very smooth, normal tension.
Pyramids-good thump, no treble, kinda ruff, low tension.
GHS Precision Flats-good string, does it all well, smooth feel, normal tension.
TI-similar to Pyramids.
Fender-very high tension.

4003360man · Post by **4003360man** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 5:13 am

When you talk about tension, what is the effect?

Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

edski · Post by **edski** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 6:27 am

Personally I like the high tension of the Fenders. A lot of people don't. And some old 4001's don't like the tension either.

My 75 4001 did have a neck issue when it was about 8 years old (I had it for about 2 years at that point). The fingerboard lifted up at the nut - some say that was possibly the result of using strings with too high a tension, some have suggested that it was a bad truss rod adjustment. I don't remember the TR getting tweaked back then, but hey, it was 22 years ago!

Anyway, the crack was fixed by a very good Luthier, and I've never had any problems since. I've had the bridge cables on for a few years, no ill effects.

As for the effect of high tension, all I can say is that it takes a little more effort to play, and if you are into bending your notes a high tension string like the Fender 9050's will restrict that part of your playing. I'm not sure that tension will have any notable effects on tone, sustain, and things like that.

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 7:19 am

Ronn how long has it been since you've used TI's and Pyramids? I think Pyramids are much higher tension than TI's at least on Rics. TI's are the lowest tension string I've ever used, I have to raise the action on any bass I put them on. Pyramids are closer to Fenders to me than many others as far as tension goes. I think the higher tension specifically translates into thump. I like the thump of Fenders but I also like to bend notes and as you say it is very hard with Fenders. I think Pyramids are easier to bend notes with and have a better midrange tone and are easier on your bass, although I will use Fenders sometimes as you can play the hell out of them when you are in a rambunctious mood.

iamthebassman · Post by **iamthebassman** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 7:40 am

Pyramids, probably a year. TIs, the set before the one on now(on the 4001S I use with the Eggs) The 4003 for the Rutles band has TIs and they work fine for Rutle-music, and my 4001CS has Roto RWs. My main problem with Pyramids on the Egg-Ric, was lack of brightness, on some tunes, especially from the White Album, I need a bit of bite, the Hofner has always had Pyramids, and will continue to do so. Your mileage may differ.

edski · Post by **edski** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 8:11 am

I will use Fenders sometimes as you can play the hell out of them

And sometimes they go snap!

The only 2 bass strings I've broken while playing have been an A and a D from a set of those Fenders (not the same set - years apart)...but both have been on my Jazz bass. So you can't beat the **** out of them with impunity. There is a limit to what they take.

But then again, might just be an issue with the bridge of my J...both instances the string core broke at the saddle. Or maybe me getting ridiculous with how hard I was playing...

4003360man · Post by **4003360man** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 9:57 am

When you guys are saying "TI's" is that an actual brand as in "T.I." or is it an abbreviation?

I'm seeing a lot of great advice on this site, but some of the lingo is new since I've been away from the Bass for such a long time.

incubus2432 · Post by **incubus2432** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 10:24 am

Thomastik Infeld is the brand.

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 11:05 am

Ed what do you pluck with? A hammer? haha! I thought I was bad, and I've only broken two strings in my life also and that was because the bridge on my Tele bass had a burr in it, they were both Rots too of course. this was somewhere around 1975 BTW.

Ronn I know the TI's are brighter at least when new but I've always found them to be very light gauge also especially compared to Pyramids which I would say are on the higher tension side if anything. I think they're great strings for that Jamerson sound, not so good for a bright flat sound. McCartney must have used Rot flats on the White album maybe? Did they make them back then? I know they started making SS flats a few years ago, where they re-introduced or new strings? I think new Fender flats would also give that crisp sound especially with a pick.

iamthebassman · Post by **iamthebassman** » Mon Jun 27, 2005 11:36 am

Maybe I'll have to try some Fenders again, my memory of them is not a good one but I'm always trying to find the perfect string for my gig. Of course my problem isn't always the string, we've lately been playing some huge holes...err, halls and they are fracking with my bass tones in a very frustrating way.
I'm pretty sure Roto made flats(Jazz Bass)before they added rounds(Swing Bass).