The Best Electric Bass Strings 2022: A Comprehensive Guide

By Gus O'Neil (The NOLA Know It All)

I've been playing bass for 35 years at the time of writing this article. I've owned countless bass guitars, amplifiers, and have gone through many different brands and types of bass guitar strings. Fender, La Bella, GHS strings, Ernie Ball, DR Strings, Rotosound's classic bass strings, Rotosound jazz bass and more. What are the best bass strings and brand? That's a question as old as the electric bass itself. Roundwounds? Flatwounds? Tapewounds? You have acoustic bass guitars which offer even more options and tonal possibilities. Then there's the fretless basses. So the real question should be what type of bass are you playing and what type of music? Keep in mind what I cover today applies to 4, 5, and 6 string basses. But sadly, there is no be all, end all answer to this question. So let me string you along for a little while (see what I did there) and by the end of this article I hope to have steered you in the direction you need to be to make the decision on what the best bass guitar strings are for YOU. So let's begin...

Flatwound Bass Strings

Flatwound strings are constructed of two parts. There is an inner "core" wire and an outer flat wrap wire which makes the string smooth to the touch. If you’re looking for a bass guitar string that has a smooth, mellow sound, then flatwounds are the way to go. Their generally balanced tone makes them suited for jazz and blues music, as they have a warm, rounded bass tone. Flatwounds are also great for beginners, as they are easier on the fingers than roundwound strings. If you play a lot of slap bass or pop music, however, flatwounds might not be the best choice for you, as they lack the brightness and high end that is necessary for those styles.

Without a doubt La Bella 760FS Stainless Steel Bass Guitar Strings are the "go to" bass guitar string set for those who like their bass to thump and strive for that classic Motown, R&B, and 70's bass tone. The pros and cons of flatwound bass strings are:

PROS:

  • Smooth "slick" feel.

  • Easier on your fingertips if you don't have calluses.

  • Less finger noise (which is a benefit when recording)

  • Less fret and string noise.

  • Richer low end and mids and reduced high end.

  • Deep warm tone.

  • Balanced tone suitable for (but not limited to) Blue, Jazz, and Classic Rock.

  • Sounds good playing with fingers or a pick.

CONS:

  • More expensive than roundwound bass string sets.

  • Have a higher tension than roundwound strings so a neck adjustment may be necessary.

  • Lack of brightness, high end, and increased tension makes slapping and popping pretty much impossible

  • Less harmonic overtones.

Famous bass players who use(d) flatwound bass strings:

  • Peter Cetera (Chicago)

  • Paul McCartney (The Beatles)

  • Donald "Duck" Dunn (Blues Brothers, Eric Clapton, Booker T. & the M.G.'s)

  • James Jamerson (Motown Records)

  • Johnny Cal'fornia (various artists)

Roundwound Bass Strings

Roundwound bass strings are also constructed of two parts. There is an inner "core" wire and an outer round wrap wire. Roundwound strings are best suited for rock and pop music, as they have a bright, dynamic sound but are of course not limited to those playing styles. These strings are also great for beginners, as they are cheaper than flatwound strings. If you play a lot of jazz or blues music, however, roundwounds might not be the best choice for you, as they can sound thin and tinny without proper equalization. Ernie Ball Regular Slinky bass strings have a modern tone ideally suited for funk and metal bass players. The pros and cons of roundwound bass strings are:

PROS:

  • Cheaper than flatwound bass string sets

  • Lows, mids, and highs are more equally balanced.

  • A very bright and dynamic tone sometimes referred to as "piano like".

  • A must have if you do any slapping on bass.

  • More harmonic overtones.

  • Sounds good playing with fingers or a pick.

CONS:

  • Rougher on your fingertips if you don't have calluses.

  • Can be problematic when recording or playing at loud volumes because of finger noise.

  • Increased fret and string noise.

  • High end may need to be rolled back to "tame" the brightness.

  • Can sound thin and "tinny" without proper equalization.

Famous bass players who use(d) roundwound bass strings:

  • Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers)

  • Michael Anthony (Van Halen)

  • Cliff Burton (Metallica)

  • Geddy Lee (Rush)

Tapewound Bass Strings

For the ultimate in mellow tone you have tapewound bass strings. Tape wound strings are similar to flatwound strings except that instead of a flat metal wrap over the core wire, a nonmetal wrap (in most cases nylon) is used. These are just as fast and "slick" as flatwound bass strings but the string tension is much less. Rubber bands may come to mind but that's a but of an exaggeration. Using tapewound strings on a fretless bass and played with the fingers can produce very convincing upright style sounds. Very mellow, and full of harmonic overtones. I personally like the way they sound on an acoustic bass, but the most famous use of them is probably by Paul McCartney during the Beatles rooftop performance and during the Abby Road sessions.

Coated strings?

Just when you thought you were getting the hang of this deep dive into bass strings, I'll throw in the proverbial monkey wrench. Coated bass strings. Some people tend to think that tapewound bass strings are the same as coated bass strings, they are not. The most popular coated strings, Elixir Nickel Plated Steel Bass Strings are roundwound bass strings with an epoxy coating that helps keep them sounding newer, longer. If roundwound bass strings are your thing these are some long lasting bass strings! They feel and sound like the roundwound strings mentioned above. Is there any advantage to having your bass strings coated? I couldn't find any. Yes they last longer, but bass strings tend to last long anyway. I have some basses that have bass strings on them that are older than my kid! I'm not exaggerating either. The thing about the Elixers is that the coating helps keep oils, dirt, grime, and God knows what else out of the grooves of the roundwound strings. In turn, this helps keep them sounding brighter for a longer period of time giving you that new string tone.

How to choose the right string gauge and scale length?

That's a good question! I'm glad you asked. Let's start with string gauge. The thing to remember is that the heavier the gauge, the thicker the strings and increased string tension. The gauge plays a vital role in finding your bass strings. Using a thinner gauge is better if you're just starting out. Funk bassists slapping and popping quite often opt for a heavier gauge. You may be looking for lighter gauges for more stability in bass strings. Most bass strings are available in light, medium, and heavy gauge. Individual string gauges can vary between a company's light, medium, and heavy gauge string sets but they are usually very close across brands.

As far as scale length of strings, that depends on the scale of your bass. Most basses like the Fender Jazz Bass, and Precision Bass are 34" scale basses. That means that from the bridge to the nut it is 34". So...you'll need standard or long scale bass strings. Short scale basses are most commonly 30" scale so you will need "short scale" bass strings. There is a 32" scale most often referred to as "intermediate scale" and not as common as the standard 30" short scale bass. At any rate, your string length must coincide with your scale length regardless of the type of string you use.

Important note: Let's not forget about that beloved "Hofner Bass scale". When buying flatwound strings for your Hofner or Hofner copy basses be sure to get "Hofner scale length". Full scale is too long, and short scale is too short. Roundwounds won't matter due to the way the strings are constructed but who on God's green earth puts roundwounds on a Hofner bass? That's downright BLASPHEMY!!!

Do roundwound bass strings wear down my frets faster than flatwound bass strings?

In short no. Well not really. Well let me explain more. If your bass has Nickle frets you will see some wear over time. If you have a light touch when you play, your frets will last longer. If you have an aggressive attack when you play you will see fret wear happen sooner. One solution is Stainless Steel frets. I have one guitar and one bass with stainless steel frets and they are noticeably harder in feel but when polished up, are smooth as glass and last forever no matter what type of string you use. One thing I have noticed on the bass I have strung up with tapewound bass strings is that there is virtually no fret wear at all. I play with a slightly harder attack and I do see fret wear on Nickle frets were I'm using roundwound bass strings but the tapewound bass strings are technically "softer" than the Nickel frets so there is no wear that I can visibly see despite having those tapewound bass strings on that bass for almost a decade.

The possibilities are endless!

I have a used a countless bass guitars and bass string sets over the years. My usual "go to" bass is a Fender Precision strung up with flats. But I have many different basses that I like to use. I'll list the ones I mostly practice and gig with here just to show you the endless possibilities both stylistically and tonally you can encounter with simply using different types of bass guitar strings.

Basses I've use with flatwounds.

  1. Fender Custom Precision Bass - D'addario ECB81 Chrome Flatwounds

  2. Fender 1976 Fretless Precision Bass - D'addario ECB81 Chrome Flatwounds

  3. Squier Classic Vibe 50's Precision Bass - D'addario ECB81 Chrome Flatwounds

  4. Carvin SB4000 - D'addario ECB81 Chrome Flatwounds

  5. Carvin LB90 - D'addario ECB81 Chrome Flatwounds

  6. Squier Classic Player 70's Jazz Bass - Fender 9050 Flatwound Stainless Steel Strings

  7. Ernie Ball Stingray Bass (90's era) - Fender 9050 Flatwound Stainless Steel Strings

  8. Fender Classic Player Short Scale Jazz Bass - La Bella 760FL Short Scale Nickel Strings

Basses I've used with roundwounds.

  1. RieMax Custom BassJager IV - DR White Neon Nickel Plated Strings

  2. Custom Kramer EVH Bass - DR White Neon Nickel Plated Strings

  3. Dean Hillsboro Bass - DR Neon Yellow Nickle Plated Strings

  4. Fender MIM Precision Bass - Ernie Ball Regular Slinky Nickel Plated Strings

Beatle Basses

For about eight years I've been playing bass in a Beatles Tribute Band as "Paul McCartney". I currently have two Hofner basses in use. One has LaBella 760FHB2 Nickel Strings, and the other has La Bella 760NHBB Nylon Tapewound Strings. My Rickenbacker 4001 McCartney Model is strung up with Rotosound RS77LD Monel Flatwound Bass Guitar Strings. My 1968 Fender Jazz Bass (yes McCartney used a Jazz Bass) has D'addario ECB81 Chrome Flatwounds on it. As mentioned earlier in this article, Hofner Basses require special bass string length. The La Bella Hofner Bass string sets are clearly marked "for Hofner Beatle Bass" on the front of the package.

Miscellaneous Basses

There are a few bass guitars that I have acquired over the years that I just play at home or bring to practice once in a while. One is a Cort Bass (no model name) made completely of Walnut. It's heavy and has a very warm sound overall. It sounds great with flatwound bass strings but this bass really came to life when I put the Fender Black Nylon Tapewound bass strings on it. It's sound is all it's own and sounds nothing like any other bass I play. Sort of sounds electric, sort of sounds acoustic. It's very fun to play.

What brand(s) is the best?

And I saved this question last for a very good reason. I can't possibly tell you what brand is best for you, but I can tell you what brand(s) I have used for over 30 years of playing live, recording, rehearsing, and personal practice time. So with that, here are my picks in each of the categories I covered above:

Flatwounds - Flatwound strings are the string sets I use the most. They are on 90% of my basses. My favorite brand is LaBella. I've used them exclusively for the past 10 years and they are the warmest, fullest flatwound bass string I have ever used. Labella Deep Talking Flatwounds 760FHB2 are on all my Hofner basses as well as my short scale Fender Jazz Bass. My full scale Jazz and Precision basses are strung up with D'addario ECB81 strings. They have been on the basses for almost 2 decades (17 years) and should they ever break, I will replace them with Labella Deep Talking Flatwounds. Lastly, I do have an Ernie Ball Sting Ray bass that has a set of Fender flatwounds that are 25 years old. Again...if and when they break I'll replace them with LaBella Deep Talking Flatwounds.

Roundwounds - I have roundwounds bass strings on three basses currently. One is a Dean Hillsboro bass with active pickups with DR Neon Yellow roundwounds. The preamp on the bass lets me dial in a nice mellow tone so I never changed the strings. The other two are basses I custom built and have the DR Neon White strings on both. When I do use roundwounds I prefer the DR and/or Ernie Ball Regular Slinky strings in medium gauge.

Tapewounds - I've used two brands of tapewound bass strings, LaBellas and Fender. Both have performed pretty much the same over the years so I have no real preference to either them. Either string sounds great on a fretless bass and as I mentioned above, I prefer the tapewound bass strings to the phosphor/bronze strings that most acoustic basses come with. I didn't cover phosphor/bronze bass strings in this article because I wanted to stick to electric bass strings.

Conclusion

You're probably all sitting there screaming at the computer screen. "HE DIDN'T TELL US WHAT THE BEST BASS STRINGS ARE!!!" True, but what I had set out to do was to help you choose the best bass strings for YOU! Taking into account the style of music you play, do you use a pick, fingers, or slap? Do you like a bright, piano like tone? A smooth, more rounded tone? Are you going to play funk, Jazz, Classic Rock, or R&B? It's up to you. To be truthful, you should probably have a bass with flatwounds and a bass with roundwounds. Though I use flatwounds about 90% of the time, there is that 10% of time that I go to a bass with roundwound strings to get a little more punch, clarity, and to blister up the tips of my fingers. I would suggest that if you don't have enough bass guitars to string up with a set of each type of bass string mentioned here, you pickup a set of each (flatwound, roundwound, tapewound) and try them all on your bass and come to your own conclusion on what is right for you. Don't rule out any one type, you may miss out on a sound or tone that you didn't know you liked till you heard it. I guarantee you'll go through moods where you fancy one string for a while then change your mind...only to change your mind again. We as musicians are never really happy and always chasing that perfect amp, guitar, bass, I hoped all this helped. Keep playing, keep experimenting, and check out all the strings mentioned in this article below. Thank you for reading and may all your shows be sold out! ~ Gus

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Click any of the string packages to purchase these and any other strings through my Amazon affiliate links. It costs nothing extra and a little gets kicked back to me so that I can continue to offer free content. Thank you! ~ Gus

About Gus O'Neil

Gus O'Neil is a New Orleans native who knows the city like the back of his hand. Known affectionately as the "NOLA Know It All" and "Arch Duke of the Vieux Carre", Gus has dabbled in many different fields, but blogging, entrepreneurship, and music are some of his favorites. He's written hundreds of blogs on a variety of topics, but he especially loves delving into the history, culture and food of New Orleans. When he's not writing or playing music, you can usually find him eating (the food here is just too good to resist).