-
Hi Guys,
I have just strung my Ibanez Artcore AF105 with flat wound strings for the first time. I know its come up in the forum many times but I couldnt believe the difference in the sound, its made it so mellow and warm. I will never go back to round wound strings on this guitar again. If anyone out there hasnt tried them, treat yourself, you wont look back. I used D'Addario XL Chromes .011 to .050.
-
01-23-2011 10:28 PM
-
Ahhh.. to be young and in love
-
Some guitars really find their voice with flats.
I love when they do--there's nothing more comfortable IMHO.
-
I love gliding around on flatwounds.
On some guitars they work very well. On others, I can't get the balance right between fluffy trebles and too muddy bass strings.
-
I experienced the same thing about a year ago with my AK105. Then I tried Sadowskys 11 - 50 and had the same kick all over again. Enjoy!
Originally Posted by steev
-
Hi Mr. Beaumont, I recall, from comments on another thread, you have a Hofner Verythin Standard (German made), yes? Have you tried flats on that one? Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
I am going for a darker but clear "jazz" archtop sound (as much as I can get with my hofner VTS), with of course the added sustain that the guitar will naturally have. I have this guitar set up with D'Addario round wounds, 12 - 52. I tried flats once but didn't have the patience to wait out the initial results which didn't seem so good to me.
By the way, on this guitar switching out the bridge for one with graphtech saddles and having Kent Armstrong rewire the pickups helped get me a tad closer to my "archtop jazz" intent, as well.
Regarding which guitars "really find their voice" with flats, anyone have any observations or predictions? Or perhaps it really depends on each guitar and each player.
-
I play an AF120 , lam spruce stuffed with foam Originally Posted by steev
Yeah aren't flats cool !
next try going up the guages ........it just keeps getting better man !
I'm onto TI Benson 14s now
I've admittedi ts one step too far for me now
on the hand strength thing
going back a step to 13 TI Jazz swings next time which I had on prior
to the 14s
more metal = more music power
the TIs are pricey but fabulous by the way and last for ages
-
yes, that's what I'm currently using and I love it. Originally Posted by gkorm
-
Steev, I have an Artcore AF85 and recently put D'Addario Chromes on it, .011s. I bought some .013s and they go on next, perhaps this weekend.
-
I use D-Chrome .12's on an AK 100...beautiful tone with the Seth Lover's and .022 caps. Just got some Thomastiks to try...just to see.
-
I put chromes on my cheepo strat copy (only electric I have right now), and it sounds a hundred times better for playing jazz. This guitar with flats sounds jazzier than the more typical "jazz" guitars we've got at the store with stock light-gague rounds.
-
You know, Matt, I wonder why guitar stores string jazz guitars with slinky .009s. They don't sound good on those guitars. I always assumed the stores used the cheapest gauges they could find, regardless of guitar. Is that the real (and only) reason? Originally Posted by matt.guitarteacher
-
That would be my guess, Mark. I'm sure the manufacturer would argue something about ease of play for beginners or neck tension on a not-yet-purchased guitar neck. Originally Posted by markerhodes
The manager of the store where I teach was impressed enough with the difference in the sound of my guitar to go ahead and restring the one archtop we have. I had mentioned reading (here) that the pick-ups on those older-style guitars are really sound better with the kind of strings that were popular when archtops were the thing everybody played..
-
i think flats can be good on guitars mounted PU guitars. on floaters it seems to kind of defeat the purpose a bit.
-
Please let me know how you get on Mark, I would like to go to that size but I think I would have to try them out on someone elses guitar first. Getting the necessary adjustments made to accommodate that size could be a problem as I live pretty much in the middle of nowhere. Originally Posted by markerhodes
-
I play a 1977 Ibanez 2355 (es-175)...with flatwound benson 14's..through a polytone mini brute...
oh the sound...
time on the instrument...pierre
-
Could you elaborate your thinking/experiences on this? Does quality of the wood make a difference (sold tonewood vs. plywood laminate)? Originally Posted by mattymel
Do you differentiate, for example:
FLATS--laminate/plywood with mounted PUP
ROUNDS--carved tonewood with floating PUP
Thanks.
-
That comment scared me! I was gonna put them on yesterday but after reading that, I called a local music store and asked to speak the The Guitar Guy. Turns out his name is Miguel. I've talked to him a few times but we never exchanged. Originally Posted by steev
As it turns, I bought my new set of .013s from him about a week ago. I was gonna get more .011s but I told him I was wanting to get to .013s. So he handed me a set and said, "Time to man up! You'll love them--the .013s, they just wait for you, at the ready."
But he wasn't in yesterday. He only works there two days a week, mainly doing repairs. So I asked The Guy On The Phone about the switch from .011s to .013s. He said that might require a neck adjustment. I didn't want to do that myself--as if I knew how--and he said, no, that wouldn't be the way to go. He suggested I call Miguel Monday (-which is tomorrow) and that's what I'll do. I don't want to give up the guitar for any length of time if he has to adjust the neck. It's winter, which here in South Florida is The Season, meaning he's busy. I could play .011s another couple months until he has more free time and could take care of me in a day or so.
He might say, "Go ahead, shouldn't be a problem, if it is, get it to me and I'll square you away quick." (-That's how I *want* it to go, but *I* don't know guitars like he does.) I'll let you know what he says once I talk to him.
It seems to me that an Artcore AF85 should handle .013s without a hitch, but again, I'm no expert on such things.
-
I have a Heritage Sweet 16 - carved top with a mounted pickup. Flats just belong on this guitar. Originally Posted by mattymel
-
No need to be scared. We are just dealing with a simple truss rod adjustment here to ensure the neck doesn't have excessive relief with the higher tension of the thicker strings. If you are not familiar with doing it yourself, any guitar technician can do it in less than 5 minutes while you wait. For going from 11s to 13s, I guess tightening the truss rod nut 1/4 to 1/2 turn is all it takes. Originally Posted by markerhodes
-
I've seen Artcores with .009's in shops hanging on the walls for a while. I said at one shop that their Artcore would finally fly off the shelf if they put flats on it. The guy looked at me like I had 3 heads. Originally Posted by markerhodes
I put flats on my Artcore and moved up to .012's. As others have stated, changed the character of the guitar for the better. Just today I put .012's on my tele (rounds though) and I like it better...except when bending.
-
Well, I took my guitar to the guitar store and met Miguel Gonzalez, who does repairs there a couple days a week. He played a beautiful version of "Misty" on my Ibanez Artcore AF85 and told me that the sound and sustain were excellent and that moving to .013s would require an adjustment but that was no big deal; however, the sound would not be any better and it might be "stiffer."
"This guitar sounds really good this way with medium action," he said. "You might try .012s sometime, but this is a good sound, really better than I expected from this guitar." He played it for another five minutes. I could tell he liked the way it handled and sounded.
"If this were mine, I might lower the bridge 1-64th of an inch, but that's it. This is really a nice sound."
The words meant less than the fact that he kept playing it. I don't think he expected to enjoy the feel and sound as much as he did. All the time I'm thinking, "Damn, how do I play like he does?"
To that end, an apropos of nothing, here's an online clip of him playing an original called "Funky Blues." It is just that. He's playing what looks like a Tele, only the headstock doesn't look familiar to me, but it's more of a processed sound than I want anymore. Still, the guy can really play. Gives lessons too---when finances permit, I might take a few from him.
-
I have a Gibson ES 137 strung with Thomastik flatwound 13's I have tried 12's 13's and 14's and settled on the 13's. I have also tried a number of different brands and found Thomastik's to be by far the best string for tone, sustain ease of play and so on; however, in the never ending search for that perfect tone I'm always looking to try something new, so I wonder if anyone has experience with Pyramid flat wounds, in the heavier gauges 12, 13. They seem to be similar in composition and price as Thomastiks, although the string differ somewhat in range size. In any event, I'm interested to hear of anyone's experience. Even though I will likely try a set.
-
I tried Pyramids. FWIW, on my guitar they were VERY unbalanced volume wise from string to string (very bass heavy). Sound wise they were OK, but the lack of balance was a deal breaker, so they lasted less than 24 hours for me. (If my memory serves me well, PTChris had the same experince.) Originally Posted by Rich44
Thomastik and D'Addario Chromes are two safe bets. Both are exellent quality, but different - depending on which sound you prefer. Thomastiks are nickel wrapped while D'Addario Chromes are stainless steel wrapped. Both last a loooooooong time (you may want to buy some extra B and E plain strings as they wear out faster than the wound strings).
Right now I have La Bella 20PH (15-56 flatwounds) on my guitar, but - mind you - from the old batches with the dark blue silk wrapping of which I managed to find some sets from a dealer in Germany. They are bright and ringing - brighter than Thomastiks - but not as metallic in sound as Chromes and they are better balanced. I like them a lot. There have been newer batches of La Bella 20PH (with light blue wrapping) which are much more dead in sound (I'm stuck with 12 sets of those which I don't like at all). I expect to be back with Chromes when my stock of old batch La Bellas has worn out.
-
I tried a couple of sets of Pyramids, which seemed like very high quality, but I found them too stiff (I'm using 12s). I recall liking thomastics, though they did not seem as consistent from set to set as D'Addario round wounds (both in feel and intonation). I might try thomastics again though, just to get a darker sound than the D'Addario rounds -- but I really want that consistency of intonation -- especially if I switch to a wooden bridge (I'd have one cut to match my TOM bridge specs). Hope that all makes sense!
Reply With Quote
Recommandations for Hollowbodies for $600 and under?
Today, 05:20 AM in Guitar, Amps & Gizmos