Ernie Ball 5-String Regular Slinky Flatwound Bass Guitar Strings, 45-130 Gauge (P02816)

Do not cut these strings to length! Wrap them per the instructions inside the package. They fit a 34 inch scale Fender bass just fine and they are nearly the size that I would cut them to if I were installing regular strings. This particular bass has smaller diameter posts than a normal Precision or Jazz bass does and I was still able to wrap the full length of the strings easily. The key reason is that the inner wire is much thinner and more flexible than on the bass strings I'm accustomed to using. If they fail or unravel I will follow up this review. The sound is unique and I like it. 2 other bass players also played the strings liked the sound. Not a normal flat sound (which is a great sound). This may change as the strings age. I think these would sound good on a fretless bass and I may try that in the future. The guage is 45-65-85-105 and they feel great. It seems to me that the string tension is high but there is no way for me to measure that. It might be why people hear a brightness in the sound? It does not feel like a stiff string when played. These are smooth strings. The tonal balance between strings was perfect. Very enjoyable to play. I hope they last a good long time. I am looking forward to some sound difference as they age. I'm not sure what that will be but it happens to all strings over time. The best endorsement that I could give is that I immediately thought about buying more for other basses. I feel that the price is just right for these strings. If they were more expensive, I would be inclined to buy LaBella flats or D'Addario Chromes instead. I have used Ernie Ball strings for 20ish years and they always perform well so I'm glad they have flatwound strings.

High quality flat wound strings. They fit rather nicely on my Fender Precision Bass Q: Comparable to TI Jazz Flats? A: Almost. They wrap around the machine heads quite easily. No need to trim them down. They have a lower tension for a hex core then most others. Comparable to most round core strings. Very bright when they're new. If you're looking for a flat wound that has some of the round wound characteristics, look no further.

I absolutely love these strings. The flat wound strings are a lot more gentle on the fingertips than round wound strings. They sound great too.

. . . these are excellent strings IF you like throaty, meaty, articulate in a good way bass tones -- which is also what TIs provide. These are what I think of when I think bass guitar sound. I play solid, up-tempo, catchy, riff-based, melodic, pop/rock/surf/punk. I am NOT nor will I ever be a slapper. These EB cobalt flats are soft to the touch but not too soft, residing in a Goldilocks zone for me. The TIs are a tad softer, maybe a tad smoother but honestly if you didn't have them side-by-side on identical basses, as I did, you might not be able to tell. Coming from a guitar player's perspective who never before played bass beyond casual noodling, who recently auditioned 14 different bass guitar brands, with mostly different strings on each, and who is 90% of the time using a pick (Dunlop Tortex .60 mm), I would be (and will be) happy to continue to use these as my mains on one of my basses. The TIs are on the other bass, and it was my first time using those too. There, instantly, I understood why most bassists regard TIs in such a high stature. They have a certain je ne sais quoi when playing them -- tone and feel. These EB cobalts are not worse, just different, but they ARE in the same category as the TIs, at $25 less. McLaren vs Ferrari. IDK, personally I think if you can swing it, it's worth it to have both. Knowing what I know now, why anyone would ever want to play the stock Fender rounds after playing these EBs or TIs is a complete and utter mystery to me. Yet that diversity is what makes life interesting.

I replaced more expensive LaBella Deep Talking' Flats with these on my fretless bass. The LaBellas are dull, thuddy and lifeless. These strings did exactly what I hoped for, they feel and play like flats, sound warm, lively and keep enough of the high frequency to provide a slight bite to the sound, (but not as much as you get with roundwounds). The only reason I gave 4 not 5 stars is because they stupidly come coated in something that feels like WD40 and leaves your fingers feeling oily after playing. Also I don't want oil (or whatever it is) on my bass's fingerboard. I didn't notice until I had installed the strings, so now I need to take them off and clean them and the fingerboard with denatured alcohol or something. Other than that these are exactly what I was hoping to find sonically.

These strings have the brightness of a roundwound and the feel of a flatwound. I play many genres, so a versatile string is important to me. On my P bass, I can roll the tone all the way off and get some really articulate low mids in my tone. With a mute, they have an excellent Motown thump. They are also fantastic for slap. I only need to turn the tone knob up to 40 or 50% with a fresh pack; they have plenty of room to mellow out and still maintain their clarity. With the tone wide open, you can absolutely shred some rock or metal tunes. I initially purchased the hybrid set (45-105) and after 5 hours of practice in a day I noticed my fretting hand was getting sore. I bought one gauge lighter (40-95) and these have similar flexibility to the 45-105 set of roundwounds I'm used to. The lighter gauge 40-95 set is much easier on the fretting hand. It has a brighter slap and pop tone, as well as a bit more clarity above the 12th fret. The hybrid set is warmer. Both sound really good, it's mostly just down to personal preference. Any tone difference can be dialed out with some EQ.

Ernie Ball Slinky Cobalt Flatwound strings are the best flatwound bass strings ever invented by mankind. Period. These strings are pricey compared to round wound stainless steel or round wound nickel bass strings, but they last 3 times longer and are totally worth the cost. I have EB Cobalt Flats on 4 of my 14 basses.... Sterling Stingray 5 HH, Sire Marcus Miller V5 (jazz bass) Fretless, Fender Player Precision and Fender Vintera 60's Jazz. These strings eliminate finger noise and sound similar to round wound strings with zing and mid-range growl. Not quite a piano-like tone like fresh rounds, but that kind of tone is not needed for classic bass tones. I was always disappointed with average flat wound strings. Thought they were dull sounding and lifeless. EB Cobalt flats are anything but dull and keep their tone even after months of playing. Highly recommended for bassists who want a long lasting string with a much better tone and range than typical flatwound strings on the market. A+++

I was skeptical of EB's marketing, as their claims sounded too good to be true. These sounds and feel incredible! They fit my 35" scale bass top-loaded, but I do not think they would fit through-body. I switched from La Bella DTBs, which were too stiff and dull for my taste. These sound nasty, almost as full as rounds but with almost no string-zing or fretting sounds. I can even get a decent slap tone. They are not nearly as smooth as the La Bellas I had grown used to, which might actually be a good thing. I like to slide into notes, and La Bellas were so slick that I found myself overshooting frets. These are just right. They are pricey, but I will definitely stick with these going forward. 5 stars!

As cordas possuem um timbre super brilhante e com graves bem definidos, proporcionando então um sustem incrivel. Até mesmo nos slaps (que é a preocupação para alguns baixistas com esse tipo de corda), elas me surpreenderam bastante. Só tive um pequeno contratempo para encaixar a corda (E) no meu contrabaixo, mas deu tudo certo.

Nickel. L'alliage des cordes donne un son bien clair. C'est un parfait substitut pour cordes a filets ronds

First time using flatwounds and OMG I’m love with these. I can see why they are so popular and pricey.

Ótimo encordoamento, a um bom preço.

品質管理が出来ていないと思います。弦の一部が黒く汚れてました。音に影響はないので、返品はしませんでしたが、この製品には、このようなコメントが多いですね。