When I got my Squier Affinity Jaguar bass about a year and a half ago, I knew that I wanted to get flatwound strings on it to replace the factory-supplied round wounds. I can do the modern active bass thing with my Sei six-string but I was deliberately aiming for a more vintage sound. After a few months, I picked up a set of LaBella ‘Deep Talking’ flats. My choice was a bit limited because the Jag is a medium (32″) scale bass but reviews and videos suggested this was the ideal option for what I was after.

Today, after (erm) several more months, I finally got them fitted. First impressions were good for the sound and, gosh, aren’t they smooth! They are actually the same gauge as the factory strings (105-85-65-45) and they feel perhaps a little tighter but a whole lot slicker. I think I need to put in a decent amount of playing time tomorrow and then fine tune the setup (truss rod and intonation).

I’m particularly interested to see how I get on with the wind orchestra on Sunday evening, which will be their first public outing. First guess is that they should be great but I might end up sliding past some notes if I’m not careful.