Best Flatwound strings

I finally managed to get a bass and it came with roundwounds and tbh - I don’t really like the sound. I really like the sound of flatwounds, any recommendations?

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@PamPurrs is our resident flatwounds aficionado, I’m sure she’ll have some recommendations for you :blush:

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I have a set of Ernie Ball Slinky flats that I use occasionally, and I do like the sound but don’t care for the way they feel. My go-to strings, and the ones that I use for my covers are the LaBella Deep Talking Bass flats. They are as smooth as glass (great for sliding) and have a nice rich sound to them.

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Thank you very much, since I like sliding, I’ll probably go with the LaBellas. Have a nice day!

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I also have the LaBella Deep Talking flats on my Hofner.

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Did you get the ones that are specific for the Beatle Bass?

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Yes I did.

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+1 on the La Bella Deep Talking flats. I have them on my P bass and my Gretsch Junior Jet and couldn’t be happier with both sound and feel.

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They finally arrived! I ordered these LaBella 1954 vintage strings weeks ago, and I finally have them. These will be the fattest strings I’ve ever played.
You may notice, this is a 4 string set and not a 5 string set. That’s because (oddly) the B string on the 5 string set is 128, which is exactly what I have now, so I’m just going to change the E,A,D, and G strings.

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Beatiful! Enjoy

Also: Can you record the sound of the strings? I’m just really curious (Only if you want)

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I will

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Thank you very much!

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@MiroslavB I am frantically working on a 1950s sounding cover with these vintage strings, and hoping to have it finished and posted in the “Post your Covers” thread before the end of the year.

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Thank you very much!

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Rotosound Steve Harris Monel Flatwound Bass

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Fender 9050L flats 45-100. For me, right amount of punch, tension and balance across the strings in feel and tone. I did try the LaBella’s Deep Talking 43-104 set and found the E string too thuddy and the G and D strings too bright. Plus Fenders are only $28. Cheapest of the bunch for flatwounds. But don’t equate that to quality.

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For the first time since I started playing bass a year and a half ago, I purchased strings that I absolutely hate. I thought I would love these Vintage 1954 LaBellas, but I just hate them. I hate the tone, I hate the way they play, I hate everything about them.
Fortunately, I bought them on Amazon, so I’m taking advantage of their return policy. I put my regular LaBella Deep Talking Bass flats back on and I’m smiling again.

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Sorry to hear that, @PamPurrs!

It might be educational for the rest of us if you could describe a bit more how those two types of strings differ and what exactly turned you off. I know this is not always something really tangible, but it could be good to hear a bit more details :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

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I’m curious too. Was it the heavier gauge and higher tension? Or did they just sound dead?

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@joergkutter and @howard They had a very flat and lifeless thud to them, with hardly any sustain. Also, because of their thickness, I had to put a lot more effort into plucking and fretting. I tried playing “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” with them and had a difficult time keeping up with the 160 bpm tempo.

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