Which Flatwounds?

For help with setups and other technical issues.
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bacca51
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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by bacca51 » Sat Feb 17, 2018 11:35 am

I use the 11 gauge D'Addario flat wounds on a lot of my guitars, no complaints! and their easy to find at your local spot

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PorkyPrimeCut
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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Sun Feb 18, 2018 2:44 pm

StevenO wrote:
Fri Feb 16, 2018 6:00 am
I bought a few sets of the Pyramid flats for my guitars and I did not like them at all, beyond feel. Sound-wise they were OK but the wound strings had less output than the plain strings and made all of my guitars sound weak and soft by comparison. This is something I have never experienced with LaBella or D'Addario. With that said, I love the Pyramid strings on my Danelectro bass. They sound and feel fantastic.
I preferred them over the D'Addario set I bought a while back. Each to their own, I guess.
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DWTish
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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by DWTish » Tue Feb 20, 2018 10:07 pm

I just got a set of Thomastik George Benson .014s, a Mastery Bridge and Trem, and a Fossilized Walrus Ivory nut for my Jaguar.... Taking it in to my luthier to have it set up this week, then I'll report back

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BlueSparkle
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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by BlueSparkle » Fri Mar 02, 2018 2:48 am

I've been using Thomastik Infeld Jazz Swing 111's on my 335s for a couple years now. They're a wound G string and the B&E are brass plated.
I tend to get sweaty fingers when I play a lot and these last longer than the elixirs on my LP, which need frequent changing.

They're a flatwound, so I think they maybe to your liking? - they're 11-47 on size.
What I noticed on the 335 was the clarity difference. The flatwound G string makes a very noticeable difference.

They are not easy to find in Australia, but in the US, plenty of online retailers sell them for about USD25 or less, which is a fair price.
:o)
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Axolotl
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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by Axolotl » Fri Mar 02, 2018 4:17 am

Well, after reading in this thread about half wound strings, I thought I'd give em a try and I put a set on my Jaguar. At first they felt a bit sticky, glissandos took a bit more of effort. But after a few days either I got used to them or my finger grime lubbed them smoother? Ew. The tension feels great and also the sound is beautiful, very singing, and zing/scratch/fret free.

I also got a couple of Thomastik sets. Will try them later this month and report back. Since I've used flats in my 59 and read this thread I've got maybe too many flat sets (I had to make a string bulk purchase since a friend was traveling from the US). I'm really liking the sounds of flats, but as for now I still want my unwound G (I like my bendings, awrite?)

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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by BlueSparkle » Fri Mar 02, 2018 2:04 pm

Axolotl wrote:
Fri Mar 02, 2018 4:17 am
Well, after reading in this thread about half wound strings, I thought I'd give em a try and I put a set on my Jaguar. At first they felt a bit sticky, glissandos took a bit more of effort. But after a few days either I got used to them or my finger grime lubbed them smoother? Ew. The tension feels great and also the sound is beautiful, very singing, and zing/scratch/fret free.

I also got a couple of Thomastik sets. Will try them later this month and report back. Since I've used flats in my 59 and read this thread I've got maybe too many flat sets (I had to make a string bulk purchase since a friend was traveling from the US). I'm really liking the sounds of flats, but as for now I still want my unwound G (I like my bendings, awrite?)
I have no problems bending the G on the 111's. No different to the elixirs on the LP, which are 10's.

The wound G is way cleaner for my playing. and with a blues driver and a mobius into the twin, it can crank some awesome sounds. When I want a really twangy top end I pull out the LP's coil tap on the bridge and schwang away.
:o)
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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by The Dead Ranch Hands » Fri Mar 02, 2018 2:55 pm

Chromes sound lackluster, IMO. GHS have an exaggerated "thump" on the bass strings if that's what you're looking for. Thomastiks sound incredible on the wound strings, but the unwound strings are MUCH brighter and louder, which makes them sound unbalanced. I haven't tried Pyramids.

LaBellas are my favorites, nice balanced sound all around.

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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by StevenO » Fri Mar 02, 2018 3:18 pm

Similar to the above, I actually like D'addario flats because to me they sound like well-worn flat wound strings and yet are still loud! The feel is quite different though, you feel the windings on them more so they're less slippery than pyramids or La Bellas. I'm not a huge fan of La Bellas, but they're great. I'm not a huge fan of the wound vs. unwound differences of the Pyramids, but they're the best feeling flats for basses, in my mind.

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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by micpoc » Tue Mar 06, 2018 6:51 am

Thomastik-Infeld for me as well. I found the D'Addarios can sound good but, over time, I had more intonation issues with them than the T-Is.

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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by parry » Tue Mar 06, 2018 8:21 am

I've a long-standing affection for the feel and sound of D'addario Chromes. I also quite like that they're readily available at nearly every large-ish guitar shop. I've liked other flats I've tried; but I didn't want to get myself in to a cycle of having to order and stock-pile strings I can't get if I'm in a pinch.

They're not without their problems... on rare-occasion, the wrap coming unwound/splitting, or ball ends coming unwrapped...
but I've had that happen with other strings as well. And both times I've contacted D'addario about it being a seemingly persistent issue with a batch or whatever, George in their customer service has been outstanding.
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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by Axolotl » Sat Jun 16, 2018 12:24 pm

So, after a few months of having the d'addario chromes on my 59 Jazzmaster I took them off and stringed a set of Thomasktiks. It's been a couple of days. Guys, the hype is real. The tension feels much looser and the low strings sound louder and brighter.

Ultimately, it's a matter of preference. The Chromes are fine, they do feel considerable tenser and also sound with more of a woody "thunk". The lower strings sound a bit deader, and that's a pretty cool sound to go with. The contrast with the 2 highest strings can be pretty noticeable though.

The Thomastiks feel easier and the sound is a bit richer, halfway close to a roundwound string. Overall, the Thomastiks feel more sonically balanced.

Also, both string sets are .11 gauge but the Thomastiks feel considerable thinner. Most likely the low strings have different individual gauges. In any case, wonderful strings!

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Re: Which Flatwounds?

Post by JVG » Sun Jun 17, 2018 3:55 am

I've only used Daddario Chromes, but reading this thread I was inspired to investigate a few other brands of flatwounds. I was surprised how much variation there is with respect to gauge, then there are the differences in core shape and wrap composition. For a top string gauge 11, the following flatwounds sets exist (and of course there are more brands than I've listed):

Daddario
ECG24 Jazz Light - 11 15 22w 30 40 50
(Hexagonal core, stainless steel wrap)

La Bella
20PL Light - 11 15 20w 28 39 50
(Hexagonal core (?), stainless steel wrap)

GHS
Extra Light Set 800 - 11 14 22w 28 36 46
(Hexagonal core (?), stainless steel wrap)

Thomastik-Infeld
JS111 Light - 11 15 19w 25 35 47
(Round core, nickel wrap)

Pyramid
R411 Medium - 11 15 20w 30 35 48
R416 Medium Special - 11 15 20w 30 40 50
(Round core, nickel wrap)

Based on this, it's no wonder that a Daddario set of 11s will sound dramatically different to a Pyramid or Thomastik - different gauges, different structure, and different metals.

I'm sure many if you knew this stuff already, but i didn't :)

Cheers!
J

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