Which bass to put flats on?

[kurfu]

I've always liked the 70's bass sound - (McCartney & Wings, etc...), and I'm pretty sure those guys were using flats to get that sound. (correct me if I am wrong, please!) Anyways, I was thinking about blowing 40 bucks on a set of flats, but am not sure which bass to try them on - Fender Jazz or Ric? Any advice is appreciated.

[Thumper]

Either would be fine. I've had flats on my '62 Jazz reissue for the last five years or so, and I love the tone and the feel.

 

Flats on a Ric = , as long as you can tolerate the smarm from the 'You Can't Put Flats on a Ric!' crew.

[kurfu]

Either would be fine. I've had flats on my '62 Jazz reissue for the last five years or so, and I love the tone and the feel. Flats on a Ric = , as long as you can tolerate the smarm from the 'You Can't Put Flats on a Ric!' crew.

 

Yeah I know... but didn't McCartney use a Ric for a good portion of the 70's? And to my ear his Ric sounds nothing like Geddy Lee's Ric, so I'm guessing the difference may be flats vs rounds?

[misterhinkydink]

Either would be fine. I've had flats on my '62 Jazz reissue for the last five years or so, and I love the tone and the feel. Flats on a Ric = , as long as you can tolerate the smarm from the 'You Can't Put Flats on a Ric!' crew.

 

It use to be you didn't put anything but flats on a Ric.

[misterhinkydink]

I've always liked the 70's bass sound - (McCartney & Wings, etc...), and I'm pretty sure those guys were using flats to get that sound. (correct me if I am wrong, please!) Anyways, I was thinking about blowing 40 bucks on a set of flats, but am not sure which bass to try them on - Fender Jazz or Ric? Any advice is appreciated.

 

I'd put them on the Jazz first. Then if you like the tone try flats on the Ric. All of my Jazz basses have flats.

[Hopi]

Anything with a good truss rod, because those cables will yank the neck to the bridge!

[Cortfan]

The 70's bass sound was about 90% Fender P or J with flats. Most major studios only allowed P's with flats. Fender brand P's, not clones. Major acts like the Beatles introduced Hofners, Vox, Alembic, etc. and Ric's to the studios. I'm a geezer, so I put flats on both my basses. I put Fender shortscale flats on my Fender Musicmaster, and GHS flats on my Cort. I like both brands of strings. Don't change them until they break.

[isaac42]

Yeah I know... but didn't McCartney use a Ric for a good portion of the 70's? And to my ear his Ric sounds nothing like Geddy Lee's Ric, so I'm guessing the difference may be flats vs rounds?

 

I think Macca used nylon wrapped strings on his Ric for "that sound".

[kurfu]

I think Macca used nylon wrapped strings on his Ric for "that sound".

 

Do you mean like these?

 

[Bernie P.]

I voted for the J.My 75 Ric came with flats.Not bad but...

[isaac42]

Do you mean like these?

 

Something like that, yes.

 

I have a set of those on one of my Rics. Interesting sound, and different.

[EJStrat2Tone]

Flats rule!

[kurfu]

 

Something like that, yes. I have a set of those on one of my Rics. Interesting sound, and different.

 

 

In what way? Do they sound more twangy (Rush, Yes, etc...) or woody/thumpy (McCartney, 70's, etc...)?

[pickinatit]

The 70's bass sound was about 90% Fender P or J with flats. Most major studios only allowed P's with flats. Fender brand P's, not clones. Major acts like the Beatles introduced Hofners, Vox, Alembic, etc. and Ric's to the studios. I'm a geezer, so I put flats on both my basses. I put Fender shortscale flats on my Fender Musicmaster , and GHS flats on my Cort. I like both brands of strings. Don't change them until they break.

 

Have you tried short scale Thomastic Jazz Flats ?? I them

[isaac42]

 

In what way? Do they sound more twangy (Rush, Yes, etc...) or woody/thumpy (McCartney, 70's, etc...)?

 

 

The latter. More like an acoustic bass, to my ear.

[jasper383]

McCartney had the tapewound strings on his Hofner, during Abbey Road and Let it Be sessions.

 

He has always had flats on his other basses.

 

I would put La Bellas on the Jazz (imo, the perfect Jazz Bass flats), and Chromes or TI Jazz Flats on the Ric.

[kurfu]

Well... I just ordered a set of these:

 

 

They were pricey, but they got good ratings and they should last basically forever, yes?

 

...looks like the consensus says they I should try them on the Jazz...

 

I I get along well with them I may try some other on the Ric as well.

 

Thanks for everyone's input!

[isaac42]

Well, they say "Jazz" right on the package, don't they?

[jasper383]

Under normal circumstances, those will last you several years. Great strings.

 

Be aware that TI Flats aren't like other flats--they are very middy and are very low in stiffness/tension.

 

If you want to try another set of flats for the Ric, try another brand. I have found flats to vary more brand to brand than rounds.

[Bernie P.]

I've had those on for years.I did not like them when new but after a while they just kept getting better and better.Very different than other flats when new but they evolve into the more conventional flat sound.Now they're by far my favorite.Be patient!

[kpax]

I'd say most 60's bass sound was 99+% Fender with flats. Basically everything except The Who, very early Yes, some Hendrix and the first King Crimson album.

The 70's were a mixed bag. Roundwounds caught on big in the 70's. By the mid to late 70's roundwounds were common, even in pop and jazz (fusion).

I'd say if you want to try flats, put them on the Jazz.

 

The 70's bass sound was about 90% Fender P or J with flats. Most major studios only allowed P's with flats. Fender brand P's, not clones. Major acts like the Beatles introduced Hofners, Vox, Alembic, etc. and Ric's to the studios. I'm a geezer, so I put flats on both my basses. I put Fender shortscale flats on my Fender Musicmaster, and GHS flats on my Cort. I like both brands of strings. Don't change them until they break.

 

[kpax]

Whan I think of McCartney/Wings/Rick/Flats/70's I think of Silly Love Song. I didn't like that tone. That's just me, but something about the mids sounded wrong. I liked his Rick tone better in the Beatles.

I've always liked the 70's bass sound - (McCartney & Wings, etc...), and I'm pretty sure those guys were using flats to get that sound. (correct me if I am wrong, please!) Anyways, I was thinking about blowing 40 bucks on a set of flats, but am not sure which bass to try them on - Fender Jazz or Ric? Any advice is appreciated.

[isaac42]

 

I'd say most 60's bass sound was 99+% Fender with flats. Basically everything except The Who, very early Yes, some Hendrix and the first King Crimson album. The 70's were a mixed bag. Roundwounds caught on big in the 70's. By the mid to late 70's roundwounds were common, even in pop and jazz (fusion). I'd say if you want to try flats, put them on the Jazz.

 

 

The Beatles, too.

[kpax]

Oh, my reference to "basically everything except ..." was to flatwounds, not Fenders. There were a decent number of non Fender recordings in the 60's.

 

The Beatles, too.

 

[kurfu]

OK... I have a confession to make... one of the reasons that I connected with the bass guitar, and THE thing that first got me hooked on the music of the Beatles was this:

 

 

Spare me the jabs, please.

 

To me, the sound of the bass on this album was near perfect - all of the notes were clear and smooth, not lost in the mix... and the playing was very, very cool. Which led me to this guy:

 

 

Here's a little about him:

 

bass player noted as a member of Los Angeles pop-rock band Toto from 1977-1982.[1] Boz Scaggs's Silk Degrees album of 1976 included Hungate and several other future members of Toto. Hungate's tracks featured the "hook" popping bassline on the single "Lowdown," and the lyrical bass fills on "Harbor Lights" and "We're All Alone."

 

Oh.. and digging a little deeper, guess what other soundtracks he played on...

 

 

 

 

 

That's right - the bass hook that opens "You're The One That I Want" is the same guy that played the popping bass hook on "Lowdown" and all of those bass lines that got me hooked on bass in the first place.

 

So here's my point - if this is the sound that I am chasing, do you think he was using flats on most (all?) of these recordings?