Music Man flats that sound like rounds

KillerEddie

KillerEddie

Aug 10, 2016
471
476
4,551
Georgia
#1
Before anyone thinks this is another "what flats punch like rounds" thread, hear me out: Recently I heard someone mention that Ernie Ball has a set of flats now that are basically rounds with a flat coating that gets close to the sound of rounds (not quite but close). I want to say he said their called M something-or-other. I've Googled the crap out of this and checked their site and am not finding anything so I'm assuming I've got the name wrong. What strings was this person referring to?
 
#2
Cobalt flats? They're very bright and growly for flats. There's no such thing as the flat coating you mention but you're probably talking about these. They've been around for a while now with favorable reviews.
 
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#4
Most if not all Tape Wound Strings offered by Daddario, Fender, Labella etc. are roundwounds with nylon or other materials on top of it. Nothing new or revolutionary. The coating does influence the sound, more or less. The strings that are "coated" and really sound like rounds but feel a bit like flats are the Elixir strings.
Why do you ask this question? Is it about the feel?
(If I have ignored a new revolution in string making and those MM-strings are really something new, pardon me!)

I play flatwounds on my main basses. The reason that I play tapewound strings, too, is that I like the feel, they sound a bit like flatwounds/upright strings but have more highs and they don't die within weeks as roundwounds do and then just sound horrible and dead.
I have Elixir strings on my Stingray and love them, because they really sound like roundwounds, are basically roundwounds 'cause the coating is very thin and they last for months.

A disadvantage of Tape Wound Strings: your hands don't touch the metal, so if your bass buzzes, it doesn't stop if you touch the strings!

Tapewounds:

labella-bntw03.jpg
 
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#7
Cobalt Flatwounds sound great on my 2016 2 band Musicman Stingray. I use the 45-65-80-100 which are close to the original Slinky's that came fitted with my Bass so no need to adjust the truss rod. A word of warning when fitting the strings "Do not cut them" as this can weaken the strings which can cause them to break which has happened to a lot of users going off various reviews. The strange thing is, is that it does not state not to cut on the packaging but does so on their website which is not very good at all. Obviously not cutting the strings in the usual manner is going to mean more wraps around the posts but EB state to bend the end of string as normal insert into post then do one full wrap then run it down the post slot which eliminates slipping when tuning but you are still left with a lot of wraps which is not a problem for large posts like on a EB or Fender but could cause problems on Bass guitars with smaller posts like an Ibanez or Warwick. Overall I am very happy with them as I have tried every type of flatwound string on the market that supposedly sound like roundwounds but these flats are the closest you are going to get to a roundwound without the finger noise. I am going to buy another set and try them on my P Bass but I think a standard flatwound would sound better on a P Bass but they can always go on my J Bass which is probably going to be the best option.
 
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