Consider flat wounds. No, seriously. Hear me out.
- Thread starter Kiwi
- Start date
CandidPicker
Tone Matters. Use It Well.
shinksma
What? I get a title?
- Joined
- Mar 20, 2014
- Messages
- 5,310
I have flat-wounds on my JA-15 - came that way when I bought it used. No idea what brand. But definitely gives it a jazzier "feel".
I don't have the urge to put them on any other guitar, though, not even my piezo-equipped HBs. Those feel just fine with 11s with wound-G. And I have no issues doing bends on the wound-G.
I don't have the urge to put them on any other guitar, though, not even my piezo-equipped HBs. Those feel just fine with 11s with wound-G. And I have no issues doing bends on the wound-G.
Found this thread while searching for something else. I have TI flats on a Gibson SG and enjoy it quite a bit. Yeah, it's a weird setup, but the guitar is so warm and woody sounding already so taking it in a jazz direction made sense. And the frets are insanely tall, so nice fat flats help me glide right over them. The sound is great and puts me in semi hollow territory. Sounds fantastic for rock and metal too, go figure. Half step bends are fine, whole step not so much. Granted I put the biggest ones on that I could find - Benson .14s. There's something to be said for quality strings, after all they're the foundation of the signal chain. These smoke the Chromes.
Jim Halinda
New Member
- Joined
- Sep 23, 2020
- Messages
- 29
I’ve been tempted to try them ever since I came across this blog post:
https://tonefiend.com/guitar/flatwound_addiction/
https://tonefiend.com/guitar/flatwound_addiction/
Kiwi
New Member
- Joined
- Jul 19, 2013
- Messages
- 432
That's the post (and YouTube clip) that persuaded me to try flatwounds on something other than a traditional Gretsch 6122 Chet Atkins hollerbody.
Joe Gore: "Funny thing about flatwounds: Everytime I pick up a guitar with flats, I react negatively to the dullness of the wound strings. Where’s the shimmer? Where’s the zing?
"But the more I listen, the more I get sucked in. Parts layer over each other more readily. Chords speak more clearly. Fuzz and distortion yield sweeter overtones. It’s easier to get a consistent sound from melodies spanning wound and unwound strings. And the feel? Smooth, sleek and sensual."
If you think you won't like flatwounds but you're still a bit curious - give Joe's YouTube clip a listen.
=K
For the feel alone, I think it's fun having an instrument set up with flats. They're just so slick, react differently to attacks, and make me want to play differently - more "old school", whatever that means. Also makes me listen to what I'm playing a little more intently, because I know there's differences in there and I'm still exploring. For me it's on my SG. On bass guitar, it's on my P bass, while I have rounds on my Jazz bass and my shortie. Lots of good reviews of flatwound strings out there. If you're going to do it, get good ones. Chromes aren't worth the money in my experience, on bass or guitar - just put those funds towards Thomastiks, La Bella Deep Talkin, or other nice, well-respected and well-reviewed sets. On bass, I used this review to try several sets of flats: https://www.guitarworld.com/feature...gs-how-to-choose-the-right-flatwounds-for-you
Moondog Wily
Howlin' At The Moon!
Thanks for this post Kiwi, helped me cross a lot of mental bridges on the flatwound trail!!! I have been thinking about them due to their ability to silence the slides and other string sounds. I know that good technique can take care of a lot of that, but sometimes, you just can't pick the fingers up high enough and move them quickly enough to the next spot to do what you want, so being able to slide to that position without the noise would be a blessing. After a little research, I had read that the flat wounds were the way to go, but that tone is a downer on most of them. Considering I don't have my own "tone", and can modify tone to my satisfaction most times anyway using gear and effects, I think I could get along with these. And if the T I jazz are that good at maintaining a balanced tone, I can't wait! My HBII will love them I am sure! Time to place an order!I have an odd gear recommendation. It may be esoteric, but stay with me. It has to do with strings.
Thomastik-Infeld flatwounds.
Okay, if you're still reading ...
The T-I strings tame the problem children in my guitar collection, then send them off to finishing school, where they then get admitted to top colleges.
1) The Gretsch Setzer 6120 is a wildly idiosyncratic beast. Very bright highs, woofy lows, very prone to feedback, often thin, sometimes just screechy, very picky about amps (it marries Marshalls and spurns Matchless). It is an acoustic guitar with two pickups dropped in. I've used everything from 11 gauge nickel wounds to 11 flatwound D'Adds to regular nickel 10s and 12s. They all sounded varying shades of okay. The D'Add flatwounds just sucked the life out that sparkling guitar. Thorazine for tone.
Then I put in a set of T-I jazz flatwound 11s. It smoothed everything out, restored balance across the strings, kept the essential hollowbody sound and smartened things right up. The 6120 is now a lively conversationalist.
2) The PRS Modern Eagle Quatro (MEQ) is another problem child, the one vanity piece in my collection. The solid rosewood neck is a very different ride. It offers piano-like clear lows, brilliant highs, and so much sustain that it became problematic: Sustaining notes (especially the low ones) would all smear into each other.
I tried everything: up to 11s, downtuned to D standard, 10s, 9s.... till I finally settled on the lowest 3 strings from a 9 set and the top 3 from a 10 set, all nickel wound, to try to tame it. Screwy, but it worked.
This weekend I put on a set of 10-44 T-I flatwounds on the MEQ and again it just completely smoothed out and livened up the guitar. Way more livable (and playable - the low 9s were just wet noodles in my ham fists). All while retaining the sound that made it unique.
The rap on flatwounds is that they can dull down any guitar, and that was my experience ... until I tried the T-Is. They keep the guitar's juiciness, and they even it all out and make it behave. I'm not even sure that if you didn't know they were flatwounds that you could tell from the tone.
Who'd a thunk a mere set of strings would be a Swiss governess for the problem children?
There is, however ... ahem ... <cough> a certain cost to this solution.
T-I flats are not just eye-wateringly expensive. They are knee-bucklingly expensive.
But it's your children. Want them to behave? Want to make them presentable to top colleges? You'll pay what it takes, and you will thank me later.
=K
Happy slidin'!
MW
This thread’s a good read, thanks! The difference a set of strings can make…
T-I’s do last a very long time. Compared to a set of D’Addario .012 flats, the T-I bass strings are slightly slimmer and the set feels slightly more ‘rubbery’ under my fingers (which I like). The T-I unwound strings have a visibly coppery sheen to them, whereas the D’Addario ones seem to be the usual stainless steel. Soundwise, the T-I’s are next-level up. Hard to put into words but the T-I’s really take a guitar to a higher level of tone. D’A is my choice for roundwounds because they’re cheap, available, good-sounding and consistent. For flatwounds, you get what you pay for with the T-I’s.
T-I’s do last a very long time. Compared to a set of D’Addario .012 flats, the T-I bass strings are slightly slimmer and the set feels slightly more ‘rubbery’ under my fingers (which I like). The T-I unwound strings have a visibly coppery sheen to them, whereas the D’Addario ones seem to be the usual stainless steel. Soundwise, the T-I’s are next-level up. Hard to put into words but the T-I’s really take a guitar to a higher level of tone. D’A is my choice for roundwounds because they’re cheap, available, good-sounding and consistent. For flatwounds, you get what you pay for with the T-I’s.
Tucson Thump
Mint Heavy Relic
Anyone ever try flatwounds on a PRS hollowbody guitar with the piezo pickup choice?
AllenTN
General Nobody
Haven’t put them o a PRS yet, but it has been my experience that T-I Jazz Swings are wonderful! Yes, they’re expensive, but they seem to last a long time and have the best-balanced tension I’ve ever felt.
… and I love the no-buzz fuzz on the ends.
Moondog Wily
Howlin' At The Moon!
I tried the D'Adarrio Chrome flatwounds on my McCarty 594 HBII (NO Piezo though) and was frustrated with the g string breaking two days in! Up until then, I was fine with the tone and LOVED the feel of them!! I have some Thomastik's but they are 11's and I am leery to put on because I think the nut on my HBII is made for 10's and lower (it came with 10's). If I am wrong about this, please do let me know. I have some 12's as well from DR but have not tried them for the same reason. I did not think about the nut and it's capabilities when I bought them, and am reluctant to change or modify the nut to try them (or waste them if they do not work out with the stock nut).
Tucson Thump
Mint Heavy Relic
I would take the low E from the pack of the T-I 11's and unwrap it just enough to get the body of the string into the nut slot and move it back and forth to see if it binds. I would try it on the bridge notch too. The fact that it's a flat wound rather than round wound may make a difference. You can always loop the string back up to put in its envelope.
Moondog Wily
Howlin' At The Moon!
Awesome suggestion! Thanks for that!! It makes sense and I will give it a go!!!
I put a set of D'Darrio XL 11's flatwounds on my Heritage H575C ( a carved ES 175) . They are perfect for that full hollowbody jazz box. I tried a set on my 335 just for grins ... hated them .. some guitars need the growl of a round wound ..
