Alembic Guitars Club

Connecting => Miscellaneous => Topic started by: tmoney61092 on September 27, 2011, 08:39:31 PM

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: tmoney61092 on September 27, 2011, 08:39:31 PM

I just bought my first fretless bass, it's a pretty wicked looking Wishbass made out of highly figured, red cedar, neck has 2 mahogany, 2 maple, and a single purpleheart lamenant and a purpleheart fretboard. I was just wondering what some good strings would be for it? It's one of the newer ones with a Kent Armstrong MM pickup and am hoping to get a nice warm, bassy sound out of it and also a nice growly tone if possible. I've never tried flatwounds but understand they are good for getting more low end. has anyone tried the D'Addario half wounds? how do they sound? thanks everyone for their help :D should be getting the bass in the next day or 2
 
~Taylor

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: pauldo on September 28, 2011, 06:23:13 AM

I use Fender (?) black tape wounds on my fretless. Running  P/J EMG configuration.
They have been on it forever.  
They do NOT have much of a growl.
 
I used to use GHS Boomers on it and they growled like a Snarling Dog (bad pun).

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: keith_h on September 28, 2011, 12:20:06 PM

I use D'Addario Chromes on mine. They are a flat wound string and very bright when new. I'm still using the original set and they have settled in and sound great. One thing worth mentioning is they are a fairly stiff/high tension string but I like that for this application.  
 
Keith

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: JuancarlinBass on September 28, 2011, 03:34:23 PM

I do use very worn, old roundwound strings on my fretless. Flats didn't gave me the growl I was after (too much of a dark tone) and fresh rounds are just not it for me. So I grabbed a worn old set and voil?.

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: sonicus on September 28, 2011, 04:11:50 PM

For GROWL I use Round Wound strings , I like Dean Markley  round wound , I like XL 2670 . Round wound strings CAN eat your finger board however on fretless, if it does not have an epoxy like finish on it or other synthetic material surface.    
 
      For Flats I like Pyramid Gold or D'Addario Chromes. I have made Pyramids growl on fretted and fretless. I find that I can get GROWL from the proper EQ adjustment on the Bridge pickup. That GROWL is also in your SOUL and your HANDS and can be trained with your mind.______________ Just be sure to kept that GROWL on a leash when not appropriate ! _________
 
 
GROWL !!!!!!!!!!!!! lol ++++++

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: mike13 on September 28, 2011, 08:26:12 PM

Roto flats only way to go

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: 811952 on September 29, 2011, 05:48:30 AM

Always had good luck with the same Rotosounds (swing bass) I used on my fretted basses.

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: svlilioukalani on September 29, 2011, 07:59:53 AM

GHS bright flats are a great comprimize between a brighter sound and not chewing up your neck. Alembic strings are also great on a fretless.

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: mario_farufyno on September 29, 2011, 08:41:58 AM

I've tried Halfwounds in my fretted Rogue once and they didn't sounded much different from a regular nickel set like GHS's Boomer or Rotosound's Swing Bass (what means that they sounded not too bright as steel strings, but not dark as flats).
 
The difference may be that - as I remember - they lost their top end earlier than regular nickel strings and they clearly felt more rough under my fingers. The hard edge from sanding windings makes them as abrasive as steel strings, may be more.
 
Easier on fingers are the presurewound kind. Their  compressed windings should makes them softer to fingers, but - to be honest - I don't remember them being much different from any roundwound. I gave up them because they didn't gave me the open sound I always look for (and the growl effect would be probably attenuated by that too) and seems to deaden too quickly.  
 
Ah, and they will probably eat your fingerboard too (since the problem comes from pressing metal against wood). Thats the compromise effect, not too soft as flats and not articulated as rounds. To me they were somehow disappointing, today I tend to go pick a way and go for it, deep. If you want the softness and get rid off finger noises, go for the flats, don't get stuck in the middle of the way.

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: souza_lima on September 29, 2011, 09:35:47 AM

sorry, wrong profile...
 
(Message edited by souza lima on September 29, 2011)

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: mario_farufyno on September 29, 2011, 09:41:37 AM

While ago I had 2 fretlesses, one strung with rounds and another semi-acoustic strung with flatwounds (I recently sold them to buy a Epifani Cab). The idea was to get one jaco sounding bass (round) and the other sounding more like an upright (flat). Who plays the acoustic knows that we can't get that full tone on an electric, but it fitted my needs...  
 
Although the growl was more proeminent on the one with rounds, both could growl as stated by Wolf (Sonicus). The difference was the higher-mid frequency content you get from roundwounds, and that helps to enhance articulation and definition.  
 
Flats doesn't have more low end, they lack more high end. This means they relatively sound more bassy and the aparent weakness on the growl comes from the softer higher harmonics that makes the change on tone during growling more explicit.  
 
In a Bass with fairly straight neck and action sufficient low you can get the amount of growl you need simply controling your plucking strenght. The string kind will affect how it will sound like (tone) and the way it will feel under your fingers

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: mario_farufyno on September 29, 2011, 09:47:00 AM

If you have doubts on growl, it is obviously good ask for directions to (a) Wolf. Who else?... ha ha ha

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: sonicus on September 29, 2011, 10:31:33 AM

Mario, yes LOL !  I am a Friendly Wolf  and Growl only for effect when appropriate . LOL ! (:    I did the same thing that Mario did ,two fretless  Bass's One with Flats and another with Round wounds, I agree  ;  if you want that Jaco like sound the Round Wounds won ___,  to my ears at least with mind , soul and hands permitting on a good day.

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: 811952 on September 29, 2011, 10:34:05 AM

Especially if your needs are dire!  ;)

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: tmoney61092 on September 29, 2011, 10:50:27 AM

Thanks everyone for the advice! I got the bass last night and she sounds amazing!! After reading peoples reviews my expectations weren't that high. The finish on it is very poor as expected but the sound is amazing as well as the action! I don't know what kind of strings are on it but assuming they are roundwounds bc it has a very Jaco esque sound and I love it! Thanks everyone for the help as always!
 
~Taylor

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: benson_murrensun on September 29, 2011, 03:06:02 PM

+1 for GHS Brite Flats.

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: slawie on October 03, 2011, 10:49:37 PM

I use monel flatwound bass guitar strings by
RotoSound. Seems to be some GRRR in them but then
again that is mostly from technique.
I was using Dean Markley Blue Steels but stopped
due to the fretboard being chewed up by roundwound strings.
 
slawie

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: edwin on October 04, 2011, 10:47:41 PM

I absolutely love DR Sunbeams on my David King fretless 5. Really good growl and every other tone I can imagine out of that bass.
 
As much as I like flats, I'm not a fan for fretless.
 
YMMV, LOL, etc.

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: jbybj on October 05, 2011, 11:34:36 AM

Wishbass and Alembic, the polar opposites in the world of custom basses, but both awesome, in their own fashion.
 
My experience/understanding of the halfwounds is that they are intended to sound like rounds, but feel like flats. I really like the D'Addario halfwounds

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: tubeperson on October 05, 2011, 11:43:30 AM

I use D'Addario half rounds for all of my fretless basses and some fretted basses.  I have lost some high frequency hearing due to tinnitus and I need the boost.  Plus, flatwounds are like pluckng telephone poles!

Title: Fretless bass strings
Post by: adriaan on October 05, 2011, 11:43:14 PM

tubeperson - clearly you haven't tried Tomastik-Infeld Jazz Flats, they're very supple.