Pyramid Flats, will they improve with use?

JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
Just strung my 125T with Pyramid Nickel Flats 11-50 and they sound horrible. They have a banjoesque ring to them that I'm really not liking at all. I put them on approx 16 hours ago; question is - are they going to improve, is there a settling in period?

I had D'Adarrio Chrome Flats on it previously and I really liked them. It was my first time using 12-52 gauge on an electric and it's resulted in a huge change in playing style (and minimum pedals, hurrah!). I should have stayed with D'Addario's but thought I'd give Pyramids a try. I should have learnt from last time - I strung my fretless bass with Pyramid flats and the E was faulty. I thought it was the bass initially as it was an instrument I've only recently acquired but after trying everything else I could think of I contacted Pyramid and they eventually sent a replacement that cured the problem.
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Comments

  • Banjo ring ? Have you tweaked the truss rod since they’ve been on? Sounds like they have less tension than your previous set and the necks bowed .
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    Banjo ring ? Have you tweaked the truss rod since they’ve been on? Sounds like they have less tension than your previous set and the necks bowed .
    The neck hasn’t moved. Banjo might be an exaggeration but they have a percussive brightness when struck - tinny and thin. They have one plus - since I tuned them after stringing up, apart from an initial tweak an hour after, they’ve kept accurate tuning.

    I think i’ll go back to the D’Addario chromes, they not only sound better (richer and fuller with a pleasing nasal quality on the unwound strings that’s lacking in the Pyramid set), they feel better under the fingers - much smoother. Flats are too expensive to make bad choices with,
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  • GagarynGagaryn Frets: 1553
    Try Thomastik jazz swings. They are 11-47 so might be a bit lighter than you are used to but I really like them. That said I used to use the Pyramids you mention and also liked them.
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  • Flats have a very different attack and roll off. 
    I don't think they every really break in as such, they just get duller with time
    The Bigsby was the first successful design of what is now called a whammy bar or tremolo arm, although vibrato is the technically correct term for the musical effect it produces. In standard usage, tremolo is a rapid fluctuation of the volume of a note, while vibrato is a fluctuation in pitch. The origin of this nonstandard usage of the term by electric guitarists is attributed to Leo Fender, who also used the term “vibrato” to refer to what is really a tremolo effect.
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    Gagaryn said:
    Try Thomastik jazz swings. They are 11-47 so might be a bit lighter than you are used to but I really like them. That said I used to use the Pyramids you mention and also liked them.
    Thanks for the recommendation, i’ll put them on my list to try.
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    Flats have a very different attack and roll off. 
    I don't think they every really break in as such, they just get duller with time
    Yes, that’s been my (limited) experience so far. The chromes i’d been using had been on/off the guitar a few times while I experimented with different bridge types and I thought it was probably time to renew them. The Pyramids sound okay through the pickup but acoustically I really don’t like them much at all.
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  • DB1DB1 Frets: 5024
    I've never tried Pyramids, but usually use D'Addario, but 11's. I've found the Jazz Swings a bit 'fibrous' under my fingers. I even put D'Addario 10's on an Epi Byrdland and they work well, being a short and delicate neck. The D'Addario 11's are currently on a '55 ES-125 and a 1938 ES-150 - I've wondered, though, what the original string spec would have been on them and would welcome any thoughts!
    Call me Dave.
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    DB1 said:
    I've never tried Pyramids, but usually use D'Addario, but 11's. I've found the Jazz Swings a bit 'fibrous' under my fingers. I even put D'Addario 10's on an Epi Byrdland and they work well, being a short and delicate neck. The D'Addario 11's are currently on a '55 ES-125 and a 1938 ES-150 - I've wondered, though, what the original string spec would have been on them and would welcome any thoughts!
    Good question, although choice was restricted then, so it was likely a case of what was available in terms of the technology. I'm guessing something like 12 - 60 might have been standard in those days.

    I've gone back to the D'addario Chrome Flats 12 - 52. They work really well with this guitar acoustically and plugged. Using a heavier gauge has been something of a revelation. I'd assumed that a heavy set would require a stronger touch to work - more suited to strumming style but in fact they allow a soft touch and a wide dynamic range.
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  • guitars4youguitars4you Frets: 14034
    tFB Trader
    I like the Kenny Burrell jazz/blues flavoured playing along with the swing/blues/rock n roll era of the 50's - But I can't stand pure flat wound strings - I've settled on D'addario 1/2 wound on love the vibe/character of them - I tried 11 gauge but ended up 10-52
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    I like the Kenny Burrell jazz/blues flavoured playing along with the swing/blues/rock n roll era of the 50's - But I can't stand pure flat wound strings - I've settled on D'addario 1/2 wound on love the vibe/character of them - I tried 11 gauge but ended up 10-52
    Do half wounds stop the 'squeak'? That was my initial reason for moving to flats, though I've come to like them for more than that; they have a smooth, clean sound that suits my style.
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  • guitars4youguitars4you Frets: 14034
    tFB Trader
    JezWynd said:
    I like the Kenny Burrell jazz/blues flavoured playing along with the swing/blues/rock n roll era of the 50's - But I can't stand pure flat wound strings - I've settled on D'addario 1/2 wound on love the vibe/character of them - I tried 11 gauge but ended up 10-52
    Do half wounds stop the 'squeak'? That was my initial reason for moving to flats, though I've come to like them for more than that; they have a smooth, clean sound that suits my style.
    I suppose one mans slight squeak is another mans roar - I don't have an issue with them - i don't use them on all guitars just my PRS Hollowbody, but I use it for such styles as per above - So not pure jazz, but that jazz flavour that the 50's swing/jazz/blues era required - I dare say I play as much unplugged as amplified with this guitar and set-up

    Like you said, less pedals, but I still favour the merest hint of gain - those old jazz recordings are not pure clean anyway as those small valve amps clipped and compressed a touch, which is part of the tone

    I believe jazz players like Martin Taylor use 1/2 wounds
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  • DB1DB1 Frets: 5024
    I must try half wounds then. I've tried 12s and they seem too heavy - it feels like the guitar's buried under the strings, although that's probably saying more about my playing, to be fair. 11s seem about right, but I stuck 10s on an Epi Byrdland and they feel like they were made for the guitar. It's a 'plays like butter' moment. Sorry. 
    Call me Dave.
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