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first post: flatwound or roundwound?


boy.chutney

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hi epiforum members,

 

a big hello to all epiphone bassists around the world -- this is not quite my first post to the forum (i had a query about my ft150) . . . but by way of introduction i play an ebony jack casady signature bass, a c.1972 epi bard ft150 6-string, similar vintage eston 12-string and a 1980's dominant double bass.

 

anyhow, i'm thinking of trying flats on my jack casady bass -- i'm seeking a meatier thump for 60s britrock numbers and find the rounds too bright. any suggestions? can the jc stand heavier strings? and does anyone still use nylon-coated strings?

 

would appreciate your thoughts/experience . . .

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Man, I hate nylon coated strings! I don't know why anybody used them.. Sure, they're less susceptible to corrosion, but what good is that if they feel sticky and sound dead?

 

I like D'Addario Chromes, or Rotosounds for flats... Thomastic Infelds and LaBellas are good, but they're real spendy.. I think $35 for a set of strings is quite enough...

 

Heavier strings on a JC? What gauge are you using now? It's a long scale bass, so I reckon it can handle your average .045-.105 strings.. You looking to go heavier than that?

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hey lerxst, thanks for that.

 

sticky and dead? hmm, that sounds bad, though adrian, friendly bass shop guy, said they can feel responsive and flexible . . can't say i've ever played nylon for any length of time.

 

bought the jc bass 12 months ago, and current set is from the factory, so would be .045-.105's -- medium-light I guess. looked at thomas infelds and la bellas today and yep they were pricey. tony, a mate, suggested fenders -- the 9050s go from .05 to .065, .085 & .100, ie heavier G & A than existing but lighter bottom E.

 

thanks for your other suggestions - will let you know how it goes. the worst case is having to shell out for another set of strings . . .

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The RotoSounds I have on my Viola bass are .040-.095... The neck on the Viola is real narrow and thin... I had some heavier strings on it for about a day, but I was afraid I'd be able to shoot arrows with the bass if I left them on there for more than a week!

 

I have to admit, the last time I tried nylon coated strings was over 20 years ago.. So maybe they've gotten better.. Maybe my memory is faulty too.... O:)

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have fitted the fenders i mentioned and they feel good -- much less rattle and squeak. also adjusted action and intonation to the new strings -- i'm no expert but it seems sweeter already.

 

did you try adjusting the tensison rod when your viola neck bowed? i'm reluctant to start messing with that, but what was previously a ramrod straight neck now has a slight concave bow ... will keep an eye on it.

 

and the amped sound? won't know until band practice tomorrow ...

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oh one more thing (apart from wanting to correct the spelling of 'tension' in my previous post here 8-[) -- i noticed a lot of fretwear toward the nut and even of the [plastic] nut itself. i like to bend notes and play quite hard, so maybe the flatwounds will be kinder to the fingerboard ...

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have fitted the fenders i mentioned and they feel good -- much less rattle and squeak. also adjusted action and intonation to the new strings -- i'm no expert but it seems sweeter already.

 

did you try adjusting the tensison rod when your viola neck bowed? i'm reluctant to start messing with that' date=' but what was previously a ramrod straight neck now has a slight concave bow ... will keep an eye on it.

 

and the amped sound? won't know until band practice tomorrow ... [/quote']

 

The neck of my Viola didn't suffer any bowing.. I was just afraid that it would if I kept the heavy, strings on it... I took them off after a day.

 

If you have a slight bow in the neck, that's normal... The neck should have a little "relief" in it... (Keeps the strings from rattling on the frets too much..) But it shouldn't be bowed so much that the strings have uncomfortably high action and the intonation is affected..

 

Adjusting the truss rod is a simple matter, if the bow is too much for you... If you want to pull the neck back some, just loosen the strings and turn the truss rod clock-wise... (clocks run in the same direction in the southern hemisphere, right? #-o ) That will tighten the truss rod (righty-tighty). Just do it in small increments, like 1/8 to 1/4 turn... If you turn it too much, you could end up with "back-bow", and the strings will be too close to the frets, or lying right on them... Or you could damage the neck.. I like to make a small adjustment, then tune it back to pitch and check it... Also, the tension of the strings will pull the neck forward a bit too.. So don't be surprised if you have to tweak it a little the next day, after it's been at full tension for a while... I like to take my time with it and try to get it just right... Then set the intonation, and raise or lower the saddles if needed.

 

If you do end up with back-bow, just turn the truss rod to the left a little to loosen it.. Leave it without string tension for a while to let it "settle".

 

And DO NOT adjust the truss rod with the strings at full tension!

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oh one more thing (apart from wanting to correct the spelling of 'tension' in my previous post here #-o) -- i noticed a lot of fretwear toward the nut and even of the [plastic] nut itself. i like to bend notes and play quite hard' date=' so maybe the flatwounds will be kinder to the fingerboard ... [/quote']

 

Indeed, flats will be much kinder to your frets and fret-board... And your fingers!

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thanks for the advice lerxst -- will tweak the truss rod and see how it goes [and i should know that it's a truss rod and a fretboard . . . that's me being sloppy with terminology, not oz usage]

 

actually time did go backwards here for about 11 years but then we voted howard out of office and now it's going in the right direction again B>)

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played the jc with flatwounds for 4 hours today at practice and i'm happy -- they play beautifully and sound as smooth as they feel with a rounder balanced bass tone. they're much less metallic and trebly than the roundwounds, more so than i expected -- i'd say they have a very restricted tonal range across the jc's three varitone settings, but there's enough for blues and rock. and as lerxst says, they're certainly kinder on the fingers.

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Flats have a nice round' date=' sweet tone... I consider them suitable for jazz, blues, R&B and 60's pop... But I wouldn't use 'em harder or edgier stuff... (or a hollow-body bass for that matter) That's where the ring and growl of roundwounds come in...[/quote']

 

actually, you can get a mean rock sound out of flats... soundgarden did it! [-X and so did iron maiden.

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