Flat wound; Round wound? What's the difference?

Read "Tone Loco" in the Bass Lesson section...

-Laz

cheers

Could somebody else just clarify what they are made of and how they sound because the article does not tell much except that different strings produce different tones - which I already knew.

Round wounds are usually made of either stainless steel or nickel wire wrapped around a single wire core. The windings are a round wire, so they are called round wounds. The round windings have some space between them, so the strings are more free to vibrate at higher frequencies, making them sounder brighter, with more high end.

Flat wounds also have a core in the center, but they are wound with a flat ribbon of metal (a little under 1/16th of an inch wide). This makes them stiffer, and they don't vibrate so well at high frequencies. Thomastik-Infield jazz flats, I believe, have some sort of nylon winding inside them, but that's an odd construction. They have a thumpier tone, with less high end. A little like rolling of the tone knob, but not quite the same sound. I believe flat wounds are almost always stainless steel.

Does the fact that they are stainless steel cause a problem with increased fret wear?

The fret wear issue usually comes up with stainless steel roundwounds because it's like having a hard steel file vibrating against the strings. Nickel's a lot softer material which is why most recommend it for lessening fret wear. I mean, you get fret wear either way, and it depends on how much you play, if you use a lot of fretting force, and if you do bends and whatnot. I've got Dean Markley Blue Steels on two of my basses, and haven't noticed any fret wear, though I have to admit I don't play them nearly as much as I play my Turser Beatle, which has Rotosound flats on it.

Take care.

Flat wounds will wear down frets less, since they are smooth and less abrasive. Round wounds will do it a little more. This happens on fretless basses too; round wounds will eventually chew through a soft fingerboard.

Stainless steel will stay brighter longer. I prefer stainless. I recommend using the ones you like the sound of, and fixing any fret wear problems when they occur. It's better than using a string you don't like so much for a long time just because you're afraid to wear your frets a little faster.

I agree with that last. The fretwear, though a real thing, isn't as big of a deal as folks would make out. One just goes and has the frets dressed and then you're good for another however many years. I remember seeing worn frets on old LPs and Strats, and that was way before stainless steel became so popular -- it was happening with regular old nickel.

Just find a sound you like and a string that'll produce it and go for it.