Geni Swing Guitars

Rotosound Jazz

The character of a bass guitar string is primarily based on the winding (roundwound, flatwound, etc.) and the material used. We will explain the most common materials and windings, which probably account for 95% or more of every bass sound you have ever heard.

Roundwound strings have a bright, clear, often metallic sound with longer sustain. They are the most commonly used today, capable of producing
a wide range of tones that are distinctive to many styles of music.

Roundwound strings are critical to the clear, percussive effect of slapping and popping in players like Wooten, Marcus Miller, Larry Graham, etc. Note that roundwound strings *can* be tougher on frets and particularly on fretless, due to the textured metallic wrapping.

Roundwounds are typically made of either stainless steel or nickel. Stainless steel are the brightest, clearest strings, which also produce the most amount of "finger noise" and buzzing sound against the frets. This is desirable in many styles.

Nickel feels a little softer on the hands and has less of the metallic high end treble in the sound than steel strings. This also equates to less finger noise coming through and a smoother, mellower sound than steel while still falling on the bright/clear end of the spectrum.

Flatwound strings are very smooth, with a much darker, muted or "dead" sound, and generally more low-end "thump."

Halfwound or groundwound strings are a nice compromise between round and flat. Halfwounds are essentially roundwounds that are partially ground-down and smoothed out, to providing a middle ground between brightness vs. deadness in sound, and metallic roughness vs. smoothness in feel.

Much less common these days than flat or roundwound, a few companies including Fender and Rotosound make a "tapewound" string out of Nylon- they are darker, warmer and softer than roundwounds. If you have ever seen black strings on a bass, that is Nylon.

More specifics, and organized lists of the various types of strings by manufacturer are available at the Bass-Strings.com Bass String Guide

Bass-Strings.com

Rotosound RS77EL Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings $42.95 Rotosound RS77EL Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings

Rotosound RS77M Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings $30.69 Rotosound RS77M Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings

Rotosound RS77S Short Scale Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings $32.57 Rotosound RS77S Short Scale Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings

Rotosound JBL130 Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound .130 Single String $12.99 Rotosound JBL130 Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound .130 Single String

Rotosound Rs77el Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings $42.95 Rotosound RS77EL Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings

Rotosound Jbl130 Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound .130 Single String $12.99 Rotosound JBL130 Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound .130 Single String

Rotosound Rs77m Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings $30.69 Rotosound RS77M Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings

Rotosound Rs77s Short Scale Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings $41.95 Rotosound RS77S Short Scale Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings

Rotosound Sm77 Jazz Bass Monel Flatwound Strings $30.79 Gauges 40-60-80-100. Flatwound. Rotosound Jazz Bass Strings are the original monel flatwound bass guitar strings.One of the original Rotosound sets from the early 1960s. These strings can be heard on many famous albums, used over the years by Sting, Phil Lynott, Steve Harris and John Deacon.Rotosound makes the world's most famous and highest quality electric bass strings.

Rotosound Jbl30 Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound .030 Single String $9.99 Gauge 30. Monel flatwound. Part of one of the original Rotosound Jazz Bass string sets from the early 1960s. These strings can be heard on many famous albums, used over the years by Sting, Phil Lynott, Steve Harris and John Deacon.Rotosound is famous for their high quality electric bass strings.

Rotosound RS77LD Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings $32.49 Gauges: 45-65-85-105. Flatwound. Monel. One of the original Rotosound sets from the early 1960s. These strings can be heard on many famous albums, used over the years by Sting, Phil Lynott, Steve Harris, and John Deacon. Rotosound makes the world's most famous and highest-quality electric bass strings. Outstanding brilliance and superb tone. Long scale.

Rotosound Rs77ld Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings $32.49 Gauges: 45-65-85-105. Flatwound. Monel. One of the original Rotosound sets from the early 1960s. These strings can be heard on many famous albums, used over the years by Sting, Phil Lynott, Steve Harris, and John Deacon. Rotosound makes the world's most famous and highest-quality electric bass strings. Outstanding brilliance and superb tone. Long scale.

Rotosound Rs77le Heavy Gauge Jazz Bass Monel Flat Wound Strings $41.95 Gauges 50-75-95-110. Flatwound. Monel. Long scale.One of the original Rotosound sets from the early 1960s. These strings can be heard on many famous albums, used over the years by Sting, Phil Lynott, Steve Harris and John Deacon. Outstanding brilliance and superb tone.Rotosound makes the world's most famous and highest quality electric bass strings.

Rotosound RS4000 Superb 3/4 Size Double Bass Strings $139.99 Rotosound RS4000 Superb 3/4 Size Double Bass Strings are great flexible strings ideally suited to jazz and rockabilly styles. All Rotosound Double Bass Strings are made using specialist materials and every string is tested for the correct harmonic sequence. G and D strings are nylon on nylon. A and E strings are flatwound metal on nylon.

Rotosound Rs4000 Superb 3/4 Size Double Bass Strings $139.99 Rotosound RS4000 Superb 3/4 Size Double Bass Strings are great flexible strings ideally suited to jazz and rockabilly styles. All Rotosound Double Bass Strings are made using specialist materials and every string is tested for the correct harmonic sequence. G and D strings are nylon on nylon. A and E strings are flatwound metal on nylon.

Rotosound RS66LF Bass Strings $19.95 Rotosound RS66LF Bass Strings

Rotosound RS665LB Bass Strings $29.95 Rotosound RS665LB Bass Strings

Rotosound Rs665lb Bass Strings $29.95 Rotosound RS665LB Bass Strings

Rotosound Rs66lf Bass Strings $19.95 Rotosound RS66LF Bass Strings

Rotosound Rs665lc 5Str Bass Str $29.99 In Store Clearance ROTOSOUND RS665LC 5STR BASS STR

Rotosound RS665LD Roundwound 5-String Bass Strings $22.97 Rotosound RS665LD Roundwound 5-String Bass Strings

Rotosound Roto Yellows Electric Guitar Strings $4.95 Rotosound Roto Yellows Electric Guitar Strings

Rotosound Nexus Polymer Light Coated Bass Strings $32.56 Rotosound Nexus Polymer Light Coated Bass Strings

Rotosound Roto Greys Heavy Electric Guitar Strings $5.95 Rotosound Roto Greys Heavy Electric Guitar Strings

Rotosound Roto Orange Hybrid Electric Guitar Strings $5.95 Rotosound Roto Orange Hybrid Electric Guitar Strings

Rotosound Superia Pro C3 Classical Guitar Strings $7.95 Rotosound Superia Pro C3 Classical Guitar Strings