LeftyBassist.com

title says it all i'm thinking of buying my first set of flatwound strings for my 75 p-bass i currently use Rotosound roundwound stings 45-105 any suggestions on a good set of flats that arent too expensive?

D'Addario chromes

+1 to the D'Addarios. I think they're a good starting point for someone trying flats for the first time in terms of overall tone and feel. They work great with a P and have a warm thumpy tone when broken in. (I still have a 12 year old set I keep on my '72 J). I know there are fans of the TIs here, but they didn't work for me on my P. Too flabby feeling, IMO, and didn't take well when I dug in, though they do work great on certain basses and if you're looking for a lighter touch/more aggressive tone they might be the ticket. Likewise, I'd also recommend LaBellas. I've got the 1954 originals/Jamerson flats on my P now (.052-.110 gauge), and while they feel like bridge cables at first you get used to them. You can hear them on my Queen video with my P.

I've tried the following...

D'Addario Chromes - These have steel wraps. They sound great, but I had to give my truss rod almost a full 3/4 turn clockwise over the course of 4 or 5 days to compensate for the high tension. Some people dig playing high-tension power lines for strings. I hate it. They feel like they have no give and take to me and after about 30 minutes of playing I took them off and threw them away.

Thomastik-Infeld JF344 Jazz Flats - These have nickel wraps. Sound amazing, but they're really spendy and I had to give my truss rod about a half turn counter-clockwise because of the low tension. This can not be understated... these are LOW tension flats (the A string is only a .070!!!). And that's why a lot of people love them. To me, they were maybe a little too low. I did keep these and I do want to try them again one of these days.

Sadowsky Light Guage Flats - These have steel wraps and are made by LaBella. Some people say they're identical to LaBella flats, even though Roger Sadowsky claims they're made to his "special" specifications or whatever... I have no idea... but, these seemed to be a pretty good balance between the TI Jazz Flats and the D'Addario Chromes as far as tone and tension goes. These stayed on my P-Bass the longest... 2 months... until I took them off and put on a set of DR Sunbeams and was able to smile again.

The Verdict: I spent almost $100 on flatwounds to come to the realization that I simply don't like them that much. When I hear other people playing them, I literally shit myself when I hear how good it sounds. When I play them... ehhh... not so much. They can sound really good if I spend time dialing in my amp... but I just hate how they feel. They have lots of bottom, and the steel flats especially have a nice "tic-tac" on the high-end, but they're lacking the throaty low-mid tones that I crave. The TI flats came the closest to having that tone, but... I still couldn't fall in love with them.

A HUGE plus for the D'Addario Chromes. I have 4 Fender basses strung with these. I like the set with the same gauges you're using, but I do have one P-bass with the heavier gauge on it. They ring almost like a set of rounds when you put them on, and they break in and lose that 'zing' and become a very punchy wonderful feeling string. They remind me of a 1960's LaBella flat- same color silk ends and everything. A GREAT string. The Thomastiks are a beautifully made string that is just TOO light. They are also a great sounding string...but you can get two sets of Chromes from Just strings .com, for the price of one set of Thomastiks.

I currently use chromes and love them. I also have carvin flats on my carvin bass and they're nice too, maybe a little bit more attacky than chromes.

How do people feel about black nylon wound flats? I've wanted to try a pair on my carvin to get an "upright-ier" tone, but i'm using a high c 5 string setup, so I can't seem to find a set.

I've got a set of LaBella tapewounds on my fretless P that thumbslam was kind enough to send to me a year or so ago. I like them, especially if you're going for an upright-ish tone. A lot of fretless players like them for that reason. Note that they're fairly thick gauges, however, and usually require modifying the nut.

thanks everyone for the replies! i think after christmas is over i'll head to my local music shop and see if they have a set of the D'Addario's Chromes they sound like my kind of strings.

A lot of people dislike how high tension they are, but I really liked the Steve Harris signature flats from Rotosound for playing aggressive music. They have more bite than a traditional flat but with the flatwound feel.

I can second this, I do not have a set on a bass now, but I had a set of the "Jazz Bass" RS 77's, (same gauge as the Steve Harris' set) Rotosound flats on my Warmoth P-J, and they are indeed a very roundwound -like bright flat. They are BIG, stiff strings. I play upright, and it was not a difficult set to use on a p-bass. There is one thing- you have to have a STRONG necked bass, with a good truss rod, or you're going to have issues. My bass' neck is maple with those steel rods Warmoth uses. No problem. Matter of fact, that bass with the Rotosound heavy flats was the easiest bass to play in my collection, it had the lowest action with no buzzing! A great set of strings, and they now make those flats in lighter gauges, I'm curious if anyone has tried a set of lighter 'Jazz Bass' Rotosounds.

I have a set of TI' flats on my Squier P. I like the low tension on them (my rounds are 110 gauge DR hi beams), definitely a different feel. I know some people have found them to be middy, I think they are pretty deep, not as deep as the La Bellas. I like them.

Having said that, I think you might want to stay away from them. I tend to play finger style on these strings. IIRC, you play with a pick. I don't think they play well with my very heavy gauge pick. I also don't like the tone they produce. Also, I have folks who have commented negatively on the tone when I play them with a pick. Part of that no doubt has to do with my very, very poor pick technique, part of it I think is the difficulty I have controlling the clack when I play with a pick, and part of it is the tone. These are the same folks who love when I play with a pick on my jazz bass with rounds.

Hope this helps.

I have both TI's and the lighter guage Chromes and honestly I prefer the tone of the Chromes.

I once tried a set of LaBella "Deep Talkin'" flats and did not like them at all. I have also been interested in the Rotosound tapes but haven't had a opprtunity to try them as of yet.

If one is interested in trying flats I feel that Chromes are the place to start.

For Fender-type basses I use GHS Precision Flatwounds(NOT Brite Flats).
For Rickenbackers I use GHS Precision Flatwounds or Dadarrio Chromes.
For my Hofner I use Labella "Beatle Bass" set.
I have also had good luck with Rotosound, and "Detroit Bass" flats from webstrings.com


I don't like:
Pyramids
Ernie Ball
Fender
TI

Labella makes a couple 6-string sets if you don't mind paying for an extra string, plus GHS and Labella will make you a custom set.

I tried a lot of flats and pretty much agree with everything said here except that I really like the TI's. With my P-Bass and the 62' Fender pickups my sound, is incredibly close to Pino Palladino's sound which is what I really wanted. But I agree on the Chromes and the Rotosound for the more aggressive styles of music.