Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Just put my first set of flatwounds on my 330......and im....confused......i dont know if i like them that much.......what are your oppinions of a flatwounds. I guess its more beatley sounding....but idont know....They were D'addario Flatwounds (11) What are the major differences between these strings (Regular and Flatwound.......and are there any other "wounds"

Most ricks come with compression wound strings,which are similar to regular rounds but compressed.They sound brighter to me,and are less noisey when you slide your fingers over them.I personally don't like d'addarios because they are too dead for me.I use pyramid or thomastic infeld flatwounds.I thinks they are a good balance between the other toneless flats and the overly bright round wounds.I would suggest trying out a few different types to find what you like.The flats I suggested are a little bit more pricey,but they will last a lot longer then most round wounds or cheaper flat wounds.

Alex,

Unfortunately the chromes are not very good, IMO, although a good price. I have also tried GHS Brite Flats and Rotosound flats and they are about the same as the Chromes. In my experience, the ones that are the real deal are Pryamid Golds and Thomastik Infeld. Thomastik's have two models that are nice: The "Swing Series" and the "George Benson." I have the GBs on my my Gretsch RHH and they are excellent. The Low E is slightly larger in the 12s than the Swing Series. For a Ric I would recommend either the Swing Series Thomatiks or Pryamid Golds in either 10s or 11s. You can't go wrong and you will get to hear and play the best flatwounds to determine if you like them. Strings are a personal thing as you know. For me, I use flatwounds on my Gretsch, CW-12 and J160E.

I didn't know TI made flats for 12's. Where do you get 'um from?

Cole

All my guitars have flats on. I love em!

It might take a while to get used to the sound of flatwound strings. I first put flats on a t*l*c*st*r and didn't like them that much but I left em on for a while because the strings were relatively expensive. But when I eventually swapped them out for roundwounds, the NEW strings sounded too bright! Kind of crass, you might say. Now all my guitars have flats.

But some people prefer rounds. That's OK, too.

My friend's dog prefers roundworm..........

They have a nice tone when I did daytripper the other day at a show. It took some time getting used to the flats though........Try this to.....for a joke i picked up a bow the other day....It seems to me that flatwounds are much better for bowing a guitar then roundwounds try it and see

I only use flats on my RIC 230, and it made all the difference on that guitar. Before it was too bright and thin, but now it sounds great all around. I use the TI Swing Series, and will try some Pyramids in the future, but I'm very happy with the TI's.

Hey JC I was referring to 12 gauge, sorry for the confusion. I don't know if they make a set of 12s or not but if they did they would be top notch for sure.

I have Pyramids on my CW-12 and they are excellent. I do want to try a Ric 12-string set but no one has them in VA Beach.

Alex, I believe Nigel Tufnel used to use rounds on the guitar AND the violin...for maximum friction.

TI 's do indeed come in .012s.

I tried flats on my Gretsch recently, and am really digging it. Definitley wanna try 'em on other guitars of mine.

Alex, i've been playing bowed guitar a lot lately (Think Sigur Ros, not Jimmy Page) and have found that you're right, a box will work best with flats. With rounds, i'm getting way too much unwanted high-pitched squeaking.

Hey Glen, thanks for the headsup on the TI 12s, I will have to try a set. Do you know who carries them.

BTW, this is somewhat off the subject but has anyone ever tried mixing flat and roundwounds on a 12-string? I have been wondering if the E&A octave strings might ring (sustain) better if they were roundwounds opposed to the falt on Pryamids. I am going to try it. I like the flats on the standard ones for their specific sound but I would like to have the E,A,D sets ring more like the the other three if possible. Any thoughts?