Yeah, that sounded indeed quite “attack-y” @PeteP … I have never played flatwounds myself, but thought they would sound more “thuddy” 
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Yeah, it sounds a lot like fingerstyle with my roundwounds with normal EQ and pickup settings on the 604. I like the sound 
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Nope, that’s all fingers. In passive, even with flat wound strings, it’s still noticeably brighter than my Peavey. In active mode it’s much softer but still a bit distinctive. I quite like it now as I can get a passable vintage sound AND something similar but modern.
With the round wounds on I put it through the Zoom B1on box and got a really good muted deep tone, so that’s always an option.
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I asked because the flats you put on sound pretty much like the rounds on my 604, when it comes to having a nice bright attack anyway. I expected them to be much less bright. Compare with this:
which was basically flat EQ with the 604.
The EQ makes this a really flexible bass, tone-wise. I am sure you’ll be able to dial in something that floats your boat. And as you noticed, the pickups have great tone and either of them can hold their own all on its own, so biasing towards the neck should not be an issue for you.
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I am a beginner, one of the basses i bought has d’addairo half rounds on it. they are so smooth they feel like they are coated compared to the bass with round wounds. I liked them so much I got a set for my other bass. I get the whole tone thing, but it seems for a beginner the focus is just learning how to play, tone is really secondary at this point, i figure you can always move to round wounds later.
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First off - welcome.
And second, thanks for chiming in with this.
I have never made the move from round to flat, but this half-way house seems like a place I should visit.
I appreciate the point of view!
(And, yes, you can always change strings. No worries there.)
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Welcome @nblucas.
I had a little sniff around a UK bass online store over the weekend and came across “quarter round” strings. I didn’t read much more but they are something like half round but ground a little differently. I’m not sure it they are halfway between round and half round, or half round and flat. I guess they could be called 1/4 or 3/4 depending on your take.
I’m completely sold on flat wound strings simply because I find them so much easier to play. A longer term bonus is that I don’t think they will get as dirty, what with having less groove to fill up. Then again; with my level of playing ability perhaps I should use rounds just to add some ‘groove’. 
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Ha!
Of course there’s a 1/4 round.
Next, 1/8.
We live in the time of options. Cool stuff. I’ll see what my shop can get.
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Can we 3D print our own strings yet? 
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Not only does Steve Harris play flats with Iron Maiden, but with his other band British Lion (1 week until I see them play!!!) he lets his strings go dead on his bass so they sound even muddier/less brite.
I started with flats…but for now I think Im digging the roundwounds. My Ibanez was restrung by my dad with DR Hi-Beams. My Yamaha came with D’Addario Round wound strings and I have to say Im not impressed with them. They feel like wood rasps (files) compared to the DR-Hi Beams. And the Hi-Beams are much much brighter!
Once I get good enough to start playing some Sabbath (Geezer baby!) I will have to …GASP …buy another bass to have flats on for the dirty, blues’y sound Geezer is so famous for.
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What???
Why have I not been told this until now?
This was a shock, let me tell you.
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About half the owner reviews I read when looking into the 304/504 said the first thing they did was change the strings. I don’t know if mine were the originals but I wasn’t enamoured with the sound either - even ignoring my own personal aversion to rounds.
Those are D’Addario rounds, yes. I actually really like their tone. But they are not the quietest strings, no.
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D’Addario make quite a few different bass strings. Roundwounds are their most popular, so I’m not surprised to see them on many basses. They are a great string company, but obviously string preference is a personal choice. Unfortunately for us bassists, it costs quite a bit to keep testing out different strings. I bought some $100 TI flatwounds once and stopped playing bass before I put them on. Ended up just giving them to a street musician that was playing well. Wish I had kept them now! 
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I’m pretty happy with D’Addario. My current bass came with Ernie Ball Super Slinky’s, which were ok but not as bright sounding to me as D’Addario rounds. I changed them out pretty fast though and I have no idea how long the previous owner had been using them. They may have either been brand new or a year or more old, no idea - but they didn’t have the same punch.
Lots of folks love Super Slinky’s. It really is a personal preference thing.
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Yes it is @howard, yes it is… I guess this is why I enjoy some of the threads that have sound files attached so that I can try and hear the differences between the strings and tones. Settings and such also play into the mix so I’ve started making notes on each cover I make as to which bass, strings, and onboard settings I use in order to attain that particular sound. What I find works well for one song may not work as well for another - including strings - well, at least for me… Maybe it’s because I enjoy playing so many different genres of music, but I have changed strings on my bass’s (sometimes twice) in a day in order to get the right tone/feel for what I might be working on. I just wind up the ones I take off, secure them with a zip tie, and mark (identify) them so that I can use them again later if needed.
Keep on Thumpin’!
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If you haven’t already, you might wanna give the D’Addario “Coated” nickel round wounds a try @howard. I took the original D’Addario’s off my SR500 and gave these a try and was pleasantly surprised.
Again, I believe string choice to be a personal thing, but I also tend to think that certain strings work better on certain bass’s depending on the material of the fretboard, nut, bridge, etc…
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Can’t wait to try some new strings - maybe flatwounds, or halfrounds soon! The Elixir roundwounds Josh recommended just last so darn long, and I don’t want to get rid of them when they’re still perfectly good. But I’m ready for some experimentation too. Does anyone who changes strings just keep the set that’s on there as a backup?
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that’s what I do if the strings are not too dead, but in the real world I never needed a backup string on a bass !
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Yes @Vik, I do. I keep every set and use them as needed for different sounds/tone. I have several different sets, different sizes, different types. I have found that what might work well on one bass may not work well on one of the others. All three of mine are strung differently. I use to do the same thing with my guitars, but not to this extent…
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