New string choice for Gibsons

[TBird1958]

It only took one set of those TI Flats.

Rounds forever for this girl 

[Dave W]

Regular nickel plated steel Ernie Ball Slinkys in rounds, La Bella in flats for me.

[uwe]

I'll try anything once, twice if I like it!

[exiledarchangel]

I like the sound of fresh roundwounds. I'd rather change a decent set five times than play one expensive set five times as long, especially nickel which loses tone quicker than stainless. 

Agree. Thats why I'm sticking with webstrings. Their sound may not be "top" lets say like rotos, but they're cheap enough to buy bulk and change 'em often. Their stainless are bright and not so rough as rotos, nickels are good all-around strings, and also their flats are very good. Now where's my free string sets webstrings people?

Also they got good electric and classical guitar sets, their acoustic guitar sets are not so good thru, they die quickly.

[copacetic]

Having an array of basses (as most have here) ranging from long & short scale solids & hollow & semi hollow, I have tried a lot of the strings out there, my preference over the years has been for flats and only in the last couple of years or so have I ventured in the rounds. So each bass has it's possibilities. For example having @ Les Paul Signature basses, one has flats one has rounds. The Epi JC has GHS Flats and the Epi JC Prototype has Roto '66 LDN's as does the Fender 60AV Precision. The FEnder Jazz has La Bella Flat ML's (they are a little less tense). The Hofner's all have Pyramid Flats, except the 500/2 violin varnished critter.
The TI's always required extreme neck adjustment (esp. on the Fenders whose necks are a pain in the something or other to take on and off). Gibson Supreme GHS flats. PRS 4 '86 Dean Markley flats as do the Celinders. My Martin acoustic does have the same set of flats since '95 (not sure what they are). I do love old flat strings. I think with rounds you have to keep them fresh. I do have an old Silvertone with rounds that have almost turned black and that sounds supreme however. So each instrument has it's place in my sound and feel facet.

[patman]

I have gone back to Slinkies for rounds...GHS for flats

[ilan]

I'm using TI Jazz Rounds on my 73 Ric and I love them. I always get compliments on the tone.

[the mojo hobo]

You  can buy much less expensive strings of similar diameters and get good results, for example D'Addario EXL220TP Extra Light .040 .060 .075 .090,  twin packs for $24.98.  They are a smooth nickel roundwound.

Thanks for posting this. I have these strings on my '66 NR T-Bird that has had the head broken many times and I'm scared to use a higher tendion string. The last time I tried to order them they were not available. Good to see they're available again.

[dadagoboi]

Thanks for posting this. I have these strings on my '66 NR T-Bird that has had the head broken many times and I'm scared to use a higher tendion string. The last time I tried to order them they were not available. Good to see they're available again.

You're welcome.  This week was the first time I'd seen Extra Lights Twin Packs (actually Super Light EXL 220TP) on the Strings and Beyond site.  Before that they'd only had Regular Lights, Med and Light top/Med bottom TPs.

[Denis]

Righty tighty - lefty loosy.

Unless you have a pre-1969 Chrysler...

I'm the odd man out with my preference for Labella 760FL Deep Talkin' Flats....and the older the better.  I play the light gauge .043-.104 sets on most of my basses.

You're not! I love LaBella Deep Talkin' flats and have them on 5 of my basses. They are awesome.

[Dave W]

Unless you have a pre-1969 Chrysler...

Yeah, adjusting old Chrysler truss rods was always a problem.

You're not! I love LaBella Deep Talkin' flats and have them on 5 of my basses. They are awesome.

I have them on one bass.

LaBella makes some extra light rounds and flats too, though they're more expensive than D'addarios.

[Dave W]

Anyway, string tension isn't magic. For a given frequency and scale length, it's determined by the weight of the string. There's an exact formula for it: T=(UW x (2 x L x F)²) / 386.4 where T is tension, UW is weight in pounds per linear inch, L is scale length in inches and F is frequency. (h/t D'addario for the formula).

Since the core of a steel string is solid and the windings aren't, if you have two strings of the same diameter and one has more tension than the other, it's usually because of different core weight/size.

I'm talking about actual tension on the neck, not how stiff the strings feel.

[nofi]

labella tape wound strings are the only ones i use. i first discovered them in the early seventies on a used ric that i bought.

[Denis]

Yeah, adjusting old Chrysler truss rods was always a problem.

The lug nuts on the left front wheel of those Chryslers were "righty loosey, lefty tighty". When I got my first '66 Dodge I didn't know that and spent at least an hour tightening those damn things!

[Hörnisse]

I remember those Denis.  Do you know why they did this?  Was it only on the front wheel on the one side?  I thought it was on all of the wheels but I can't remember that far back!