| Author |
Topic: Is anybody here using flat wound strings? |
Steve Ahola
From:
Concord, California
|
Posted 22 May 2010 10:10 pm |
|
I've always had flat wound strings on the 1939(?) EH-150 that I inherited 35 years ago, and have liked how they sound. So I was wondering if people here were using flat wounds for their lap steels, and if so, then what sort of music would be appropriate for them. I realize that is a very subjective question so it would probably be better to ask which steelers were uaing flatwounds back in the Golden Age. (I'm thinking of using them on another one of my lap steels.)
Thanks!
Steve Ahola
_________________
www.blueguitar.org
Recordings on electric guitar:
http://www.box.net/blue-diamonds
http://www.box.net/the-culprits |
|
|
 |
Ulric Utsi-Åhlin
From:
Sweden
|
Posted 23 May 2010 12:21 am
|
|
I found a few packs of N.O.S. Electric Hawaiian Guitar
strings(Black Diamond label etc)in a store...when
time came for restringing of my -47 Epi Electar
Century,I thought "...why not...",and put them on
there...on that type of guitar,flatwounds feel just
right,so...it might be a good idea to have ONE guitar
set up for retro tone & feel.McUtsi |
|
|
|
Al Terhune
From:
Newcastle, WA
|
Posted 23 May 2010 4:52 am
|
|
I've always wondered the same thing. Just bought some to put on an beat-to-heck Gibson L50 I just got, but they haven't arrived yet. Think I will get some to try out on a steel.
_________________
Al
My equipment:
One heck of a Wife
The ghost of a red Doberman
Several pairs of reading glasses strewn about |
|
|
|
Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
|
Posted 23 May 2010 5:33 am
|
|
| I think you lose some of the "crispness" with flat wound strings. I sure love them on an electric bass, however. Those fat wound string are hard on the fingers. |
|
|
|
Ray Montee
From:
Portland, Oregon (deceased)
|
Posted 23 May 2010 3:12 pm Back in the 1950's I used 'em......................
|
|
Way back when I was a young buck, I used to use them religiously with my C6th tuning. Jerry Byrd told me he was using them so that was good enough for me.
The last time, decades ago, that I attempted to purchase some, the counter guys in the music store stared open-mouth at me as tho' as I said something naugty. I had ALWAYS used Black Diamond strings too. |
|
|
|
Steve Ahola
From:
Concord, California
|
Posted 23 May 2010 7:51 pm Re: Back in the 1950's I used 'em......................
|
|
| Ray Montee wrote: |
| Way back when I was a young buck, I used to use them religiously with my C6th tuning. Jerry Byrd told me he was using them so that was good enough for me... |
That's a good enough recommendation for me! What the heck I am already using his steel so I might as well use his strings, too. I was thinking that they would be great for that really smooth chordal stuff- you know with all of those flatted ninths, augmented fifths and diminished whatchamacallits...
I was just reading in the Rickenbacker book that he really liked playing their Model B bakelite models. Of course I'm sure that the Gibson books would say the same about their EH-150's. 
Thanks!
Steve Ahola
_________________
www.blueguitar.org
Recordings on electric guitar:
http://www.box.net/blue-diamonds
http://www.box.net/the-culprits |
|
|
|
Philip Bender
From:
Palmetto FL USA (deceased)
|
Posted 23 May 2010 8:14 pm Flat wound strings
|
|
Aloha Steve,
When I started toying with the JB 'C' diatonic tuning, Jerry told me not to, but if I insisted, I should use flat wound strings. He said the regular
strings would pick up the sound of the bar moving on the strings not picked, and ruin the chord that you just picked. I now use D'Adarrio Chrome Flats on what ever guitar I am using, but it does get expensive, and they do go dead faster than standard strings.
Phil |
|
|
|
Don Kona Woods
From:
Hawaiian Kama'aina
|
Posted 24 May 2010 8:34 am
|
|
The flat wound strings are more mellow sounding and as Phil says they eliminate the string sound with bar glissing.
I use flat wounds exclusively because they are excellent for Hawaiian music.
Aloha, 
Don |
|
|
|
George Piburn
From:
The Land of Enchantment New Mexico
|
Posted 24 May 2010 10:22 am edit
|
|
edit
Last edited by George Piburn on 23 Jun 2012 11:45 pm; edited 1 time in total |
|
|
|
Twayn Williams
From:
Portland, OR
|
Posted 24 May 2010 11:11 am
|
|
| Erv Niehaus wrote: |
| I think you lose some of the "crispness" with flat wound strings. I sure love them on an electric bass, however. Those fat wound string are hard on the fingers. |
+1
I vastly prefer wound strings on lap steel because (to my ears) the shorter scale makes flat wound strings sound really "thuddy." I do like 'em on bass though...
YMMV
edit: I also prefer round wound strings on my jazz guitar unlike a lot of other jazzers.
_________________
Primitive Utility Steel |
|
|
|
Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
|
Posted 24 May 2010 6:02 pm
|
|
If you look at the magnified cross-section of tapewound strings compared to wirewound, the wirewound look like a rasp. Logic would say that tapewound strings (also known as flat-wound) would allow the bar to slide over them with less friction, and so produce less noise. If Jerry Byrd's practical observations confirm that to be the case, I would go along with it. Who can argue with the master?  |
|
|
|
Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
|
Posted 25 May 2010 6:57 am
|
|
I find that I prefer round wound strings. Flat wound strings tend to sound dull to my ears, plus I like the bit of resistance you get from round wound strings.
Fortunately, experimenting with strings is an inexpensive way to figure out what sounds best to YOU.
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
|
|
|
Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
|
Posted 25 May 2010 10:16 am
|
|
| Jerry liked the flats because he could "get a (((spookier))) sound out of them". |
|
|
|
Mitch Druckman
From:
Arizona, USA
|
Posted 26 May 2010 8:04 am
|
|
The biggest problem I've found with flatwounds is when moving between the wound and plain strings.
Flats are much duller when compared to the plain strings, which have a much brighter tone. On a single note run, the change in tone when moving from a wound to a plain string is noticable. I like my instrument to sound more balanced from low to high.
That said, the smoothness of flatwounds is very seductive and worth a try. |
|
|
|
