Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

This is such a newbie question to ask, but I have to do it...

*sigh*

What are the best strings for a 360/12? I've read a lot elsewhere that recommends flatwounds...are flatwounds necessary? It's not that I don't like them, I just need to know so I can start making friends with online retailers since it's hard enough to find regular electric 12 sets here...

Many like the Thomastik-Infeld flatwounds. Good strings, no doubt, but I've grown accustom to the RIC factory 12 string set.

BTW, flats aren't required. Matter of preference.

Tomastik-Infeld custom 12-string set from Pick of the Ricks are your "Ticket to Ride"

Thanks for the help! Out of curiosity, why do so many prefer flatwounds on a Rick?

loopyreed wrote:Out of curiosity, why do so many prefer flatwounds on a Rick?

They give The Sound!

jps wrote:

loopyreed wrote:Out of curiosity, why do so many prefer flatwounds on a Rick?

They give The Sound!

The Holy Sound?

I figured it had something to do with the finish on the fretboards...

Sadly, you need two twelves.....bummer huh? One should have the TI Jazz Flats and the other should have Ric compressed rounds. They're both great to play and both sound great - but they are quite different. The primary strings of the flat sets from TI are pretty dead-sounding (same with Pyramid flats). What this does, is to bring out the sound of the octave strings more, creating that 60s Byrd-like jangle. The flats are very smooth, easy to play and don't make noise when you slide your fingers. They also last a long, long time. I play my 360/12 usually at least an hour per day and my TIs are over a year old. Since they start with dull tone, that don't change all that much over the months.

The Ric compressed rounds are much more lively feeling and have more twang and a different tone balance. The round-wound primary strings are louder in relation to the octaves, sustain more, and it will feel like a very different guitar. Their sound is somewhat different, maybe not as vintage, but a great sound in its own way. You'll still have plenty of jangle, but it's a somewhat different sounding jangle. Which jangle sounds better? It's up tp you. The Ric rounds are also reasonably cheap and not a bad place to start.

I find that I can switch back and forth between these two brands with little or no adjustment to the guitar, which is quite handy and not the case with some other string brands. I'm sure that there are others that could also sound great, but I'm perfectly happy with the TIs for flats and the Rickenbacker strings for rounds.

You can hear the TI flats here:
http://webpages.charter.net/tbradshaw/M ... 20Rain.mp3

teb wrote:The Ric compressed rounds are much more lively feeling and have more twang and a different tone balance. The round-wound primary strings are louder in relation to the octaves, sustain more, and it will feel like a very different guitar. Their sound is somewhat different, maybe not as vintage, but a great sound in its own way. You'll still have plenty of jangle, but it's a somewhat different sounding jangle. Which jangle sounds better? It's up tp you. The Ric rounds are also reasonably cheap and not a bad place to start.

This has to be the best description of the RIC factory strings I've read. They also last a long time. The compressed round-wounds make for a subtler 12 string effect but you can always run a compressor to bring out more of the octaves.

I like the Rick strings.

Me too. I think the subtlety of the octaves make the guitar more versatile.

There is no "best strings". As you can see, many people like flats or the factory strings, but I think my Ricks really came to life when I replaced the stock strings with D'Addarios. Besides the roundwound vs. flatwound factor, they just sound different. I prefer that sound. Your mileage may vary.

Do you really want to know? Bite the bullet and buy several different sets and swap them. (I know, changing strings on a Rick 12 can be a bit of an ordeal, but persevere.) You'll end up with a set or two of strings you don't want, but at least you'll know which one is your favorite, and if you end up preferring the cheapo D'Addarios to the big-money TI or Rick strings, that experiment will pay for itself pretty quickly. (If you prefer the others...well, at least you'll know.)

chuck_king wrote:
Do you really want to know? Bite the bullet and buy several different sets and swap them. (I know, changing strings on a Rick 12 can be a bit of an ordeal, but persevere.)

Or you can go with Todd's idea of getting two Rick 12-ers and keep one with Rounds and one with Flats...


By the way Todd, that was the best write-up/explantion I've seen on the round-wound vrs. flat-wound subject. Kudos to you.

Regards
Rich F.

chuck_king wrote:and if you end up preferring the cheapo D'Addarios to the big-money TI or Rick strings, that experiment will pay for itself pretty quickly. (If you prefer the others...well, at least you'll know.)

I used Rickenbacker strings for two years and had to change them every 5 weeks because a few days after restringing the guitar the sound was getting worse. Since january I use TI's and didn't have to change them because they still sound and look like new. So for me it's much cheaper to use the TI's although one set is more expensive.

Really? I use RIC strings and I only change my strings about once a year. And I play my 12 string all the time.

Well, of course I also could have used my strings for a year or even longer. It always depends on how demanding you are concerning the sound a few weeks after restringing the guitar.