(hopefully) useful info on TI jazz flat strings

[ojobob2]

I just bought a set of these, and for those who have not tried them, or were put of by the very high price, i thought id let you know what your missing

Im mentioning these great strings as they are perfect for those of you with old (and possibly quite worn ) Rickenbacker basses like me.

These strings put so little pressure on the neck compared to a "standard" set of roundwound (or indeed flatwound) strings, that the truss rods can be left so much looser. This means that the adjustment nuts no longer bend down into the wood like many tend to do. In fact, with the rods completely loose, theyre is only minimal unwanted relief.

Despite the light guage (43, 56, 70, 100) they can be played hard without any Buzz or fart. They are also the most perfectly balanced strings i have ever seen in terms of both string to string tension and output. - The biggest suprise for me is that they have the same ammount of volume/punch/brightness as Rotosound Swing bass.

They are also totally smooth, and make serious fretwear (which i have) a non issue.

I know im going on and on about these, but i think they are something that owners of older Rickenbackers should be aware of.

Bob Young and Paul Yan gave me some opinions of these strings before i got some - thanks guys - cos they are not cheap!!

[dave4004]

They are very high output strings. The only negative for some people is that their playing style doesn't suit the low tension on these strings.

The initial cost is high but they last much longer than most roundwounds.

[ojobob2]

yeah Dave i know what you mean, but when you play hard way up the neck, roundwound strings (of any gauge) tend you buzz and "clak", The TI's dont do that

[paul_yan]

Hey, glad you like them, Owen.
I think you'll like them even more in a week, after they have settled in and have even better string to string tension and output balance.

[jps]

I have them on my '62 Jazz Bass, haven't tried them yet on the Rick. What I have on the Rick is a very light guage set of D'Addario Chromes (.040, .055, .075, .095) that seem to feel about the same tension as the Ti's do and are even smoother.

Has anybody tried the TI Jazz Rounds? I ordered a set to try on my Zon 5 string fretless but they haven't arrived yet so I am curious what others think of them.

[ojobob2]

they have been on about 4 days. They are great! theres no way another brand of string is going on my 1973 4001 ever.

Also, what is nice is that despite them being very different strings, i can pick up my 4003 strung with roto swings ( i gotta have the growl on that one - it really is something) they dont feel too different/alien suprisingly!

[ojobob2]

Jps - as far as i understand, the Jazz rounds have a lot in common with the flats (same low tension and high output) but simply are rounds that are very tightly wound - as a result are still very smooth

[paul_yan]

The T-I JR Jazz Rounds have even lighter tension than their flats, as far as I know.

In fact, I've been contemplating trying out the 32" scale Jazz Flats on my Michael Kelly acoustic bass guitar. I'm not particularly pleased with the stiff feeling and dead sounding Roto flats that are currently on her. The only thing that stops me is that the T-I 32' flats have a .106" E string which is too big for my liking and proper intonation..

[ojobob2]

short scale instruments often need slightly larger strings to make up for reduced tension?

[bigbajo60]

With a set of TI flats on it, my US-RI '75 Jazz sounds like Macca's bass did on "Band On The Run".

I get a much more "rock" tone from my '82 Yamaha BB1200 P-style bass with a set of the TI "Magnecores" wound on it.

I used to swear by Dean Markley "Will Lee's", and still do like them... but I've gotten such good tone with these TI sets that I've decided to string my remaining basses with TI's when the time comes.

Expensive but GOOD. That's a fair trade-off.

[paul_yan]

Yes that's the correct reasoning, Owen.
I just don't feel "even" when thinking about the "43-56-70-106" instead of the "43-56-70-100" arrangement. I might try it anyway and see if I need to get a luthier to cut a new saddle to match.

In fact, the Pyramid flats on my 30.5" scale Epiphone Viola bass has a .100" E string which sounds very good (in the vintage manner) and does have the tension needed to maintain note clarity...

[cisco]

I have all 5 of my basses strung with TI jazz flats. I even turned on my luthier to them (he's a bass player)and he just raves about them. He now pushes the entire TI string line to all his guitar and bass customers and has received nothing but very positive feedback. These strings require you to start playing with a lighter touch which gives you more tonal variations and allows you to actually play a little faster. And they feel butter smooth with next to no string noise.

Paul: I have them on my 32" short scale Epi Allen Woody bass and the 106 E string is not an issue, even for intonation.

You can purchase the strings from www.juststrings.com for about $36.66 plus shipping. I know this is hard to believe but most folks leave these strings on for many years and claim they just get better with age. It takes about a month of good playing for them settle in and after that they just get better. In the long run they end up being the cheapest strings you'll ever buy!!
I'll admit it - I'm a TI jazz flat fanatic.

[ojobob2]

yes i know what you mean Paul, a friend of mine has a 30" squier Bronco bass (no dont laugh) that has fender nickel roundwounds, guages 40, 60, 75, 95. that plays/ sounds fine.

[dano]

Owen, thanks for your input on these strings. I also prefer Roto's on my RIC's, but my '79 could use a lighter guage. I don't mind spending the extra money if they are good strings and last a long time. I'm going to give 'em a try. I'll let you know soon what I think of them...

[ojobob2]

John i dont find they need a lighter touch, you just raise the action a bit (on my 4001, when i strung up the TI's they were a lot lower physically than the previous strings - smaller diameter perhaps?) so i had to raise to compensate