Group III 45-100 Flats

[orpheus55]

I am considering switching to flats on my single H 3-band Stingray, as our classic rock band is taking a more Motownish turn these days; I've read good things about flats on Rays in general, and would like to keep the same gauge so as to minimize neck adjustments. Has anyone tried these or know of something better? And, despite the gauge similarity to my 40-100 super slinkys, would the tension necessitate a truss-rob adjustment (no prob if it does). Other choice might be the new coated super slinky. Thanks.

[oli@bass]

I have Super Slinky sets on every bass, and tried several differen brands of flats. The Group III are the closest in terms of tension and "feel". Soundwise they have a very nice midrange growl that is absolutely fantastic on a fretless and they are not as "dull" as you might expect: There's still plenty of treble, but just not as much "grind" or "buzz".

[kylierider]

I have III's on both my Ray's, one fretted, one fretless. Great playability and tone. Maybe a little higher tension than the Slinky's but the closest match I've found. You should need very little adjustment.

[shakinbacon]

I'm using the equivalent flats on my Bongo5 and love them

check out a thread I started recently on the subject. While it isn't a Stingray I think there are lots of similarities.

Anyway, I think Ernie Ball strings match Musicman instruments extremely well and you cannot go wrong.

[7broccos]

I have group three flats on my SR5,for mowtown,funk they are fabulous. Plenty of top end alsoYou still have to roll the treble off some.Smooth to your hands,very easy to play.

[snowbum]

I use the group III's on my Sterling, they sound great... Like the others said, they are not as "dull" as one might think, but they do sound great for a mellow groove, I switch back and forth between the slinks and these, depending if I am doing a rock show or a funky r&b type gig. Tone settings (on my Sterling) I run the flats, bass and mids flat with a slight roll off of the treble, running my GK1001rb flat as well, contour almost all the way off, and presence at about 10 o' clock.

Get you a set and try them out!! You will know very quickly if you love them or not, but EB strings on any EB instrument seem to be a perfect match every time.

[rizzo9247]

I've gone through a flats period for a few years before seeing the light and returning back to rounds, but the EB flats were very nice. The tension was not nearly as bad as some others I've tried. The lowest tension ones I've played to date would be Thomastik-Infeld Jazz flats, but those do cost a pretty penny.