It’s geographical.
Both are excellent.
If you’re in the USA buy labella for the bang per buck.
If you’re Europe based buy Tomastik.
If you’ve a few £$€ to spare try both and choose your poison.
Neither dissapoint.
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TI Jazz flats are awesome. La Bella flats are great. To my ears I really like the 2 cheap ones. Fender and Ernie Ball. They are almost half the price of the mid tier selection at about the same performance, but I’m not a flat kinda guy.
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I would second Fender. They’re a good string, and that teal silk is da bomb.
I have no opinion on EB, never tried them.
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Almost identical
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EB feel a little stickier to me. Just like rotosound. LaBellas are the smoothest I’ve had. Though I have some stainless fender flats are looking for a bass to live on… haven’t tried those yet.
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Yeah, I don’t like the feel of EB slinkies, which why I never tried their flats. Which is completely inconsistent; I don’t like the feel of Fender rounds, but had no problem with trying their flats.
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The EB Cobalt Flats can be de-stickied (?) with a little rubbing alcohol. Then they feel smooth. The Roto 77’s were the roughest, stickiest I’ve tried (and also the highest tension)
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Oliver is one of my favorites for these things because you get tones
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Never knew that! I knew my gold ones could be cleaned that way but didn’t think to do it to those. I’ll try it!!
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They are close to round wound but not as clacky and zingy as new rounds.
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I know it’s been a while but thought I could add to this thread: I needed to replace the strings on my Jazz bass. Decided to give flat wounds a try, mainly out of curiosity and the fact that the store was out of my beloved DR Blues strings and they had some Ernie Ball Slinky Flats on sale.
It seems like my Fender likes these. It sounds like a whole new and different guitar. Plus, the feel of them. Super smooth. Much easier on my fingers. Also, the sound is so radically different. It sounds like the old bass guitars. I love it.
I found myself skipping ahead a bit in my “To Learn” list and started tackling some Carol Kaye songs. It just felt right, considering.
I’m now on a quest to find some flat wounds that will fit my fanned fret bass for when those strings give up the ghost.
I’m now a flat wound boy.
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Just be aware that flats essentially forever. Not much ghost-giving-up in your future.
But more string curiosity in the forecast? Definitely.
In this context…
I have a short scale PJ Mustang and a long scale PJ Precision.
I never use the J pickup on either one.
I have LaBella flats on the Mustang and D’Addario rounds on the p-bass.
The tone with flats on the Mustang is great and the rounds on the p-bass too.
Would you do it the opposite way? (…flats on the p-bass and rounds on the Mustang…)And why or why not?
because… flats! 
(kidding)
I’ve never played a Mustang bass, but I had a Musicmaster for years and I could get some pretty growly sounds on roundwounds that sounded great with hard rock songs. But I actually liked the sound of “dead” roundwounds on that bass. I really miss that bass-I should have never traded it in!
P-bass with flats= amazing sound! You can really get that muscle shoals’ swampers sound. That’s what David Hood played until the late 70’s. (Technically he played a p-bass with a jazz neck and flats)
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@buzzroberts Great first comment! I had D’Addario rounds on the Mustang before and it sounds great! But with LaBella flats really even throughout all strings which has not been the case on the p-bass with Rotosound flats. I have tried a few brands of flats on other basses but what I’m actually really curious about is what this p-bass would sound like with LaBellas. It’s just that they are quite expensive here in Mexico.
BTW, my p-bass has a 39mm/1.5" rosewood neck and I’m a few lifetimes away fromm playing like David Hood. Sorry about your Musicmaster. They are too cool!
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If it sounds good it sounds good. Don’t mess with the gravy as Colonel Sanders used to say.
On the PJ aspect, have you tried bringing in about 10% of the J? I find adding a touch of the J makes a nice tone, mellows the P a bit
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@Wombat-metal That is exactly why I haven’t bought the LaBella’s for the p-bass. But the thought of messing with the gravy keeps popping up.
And yes, particularly when using chorus that 10% J is great! And when using headphones.
Back in December in a moment of GAS induced weakness, I bought Nordstrand 51P4s pickup, a single coil P. I didn’t have a bass to put it in yet, but time would take care of that. Fast forward a couple months, I pickup a custom 54P, with a Duncan quarter pounder single coil. I have never liked the Quarter Pound series, but in that bass, perfection. I still haven’t swapped for the Nordy, because will I like the sound? Almost certainly. Will it be better? Probably not.
Gravy is fine as it is. Try out flats when the rounds wear out
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That’s reasoning vs GAS!!!