Thomastik JS111

I decided to try out flatwounds. I have Thomastik flats on all my basses, and I wanted to try these on an electric guitar. I use them on a Les Paul. The sound is less "muffled" than I expected. Definitely usable for R&B and even heavier music. The strings feel somewhat stiffer than 11 roundwounds - bending is harder, but still possible within limitations. I feel chord clarity especially on the lower strings is much better than with roundwounds. Especially recommended for R&B style chunky rhythm playing.

Quality: feels good. One thin E-string however got straight away twisted/tangled beyond use, when unpacking. Might be my mistake, but this never happened to me with other strings. I also broke a G-string while playing - again, it might be a rough edge on my Les Paul's Tune-o-Matic. For these reasons 4/5 in quality.

I have put these strings on my Stratocaster, Eric Clapton signature, because I found it's sound too bright. I was very surprised, the sound of my strat has mellowed out but remains plenty articulate- I really dig the sound I get with these strings. The string tension is somewhat higher but I didn't have to adjust my setup and eventhough the tension is higher these strings play very smooth! Also, i read on the net that some people say you can't play rock or metal with these but that's not true, yes they sound different but I find these very versatile! Yup, you've guessed it, I've become a fan and will be putting these on all of my guitars!!

For as long as I can remember, I've always hated changing the strings on my guitar because of the harsh brightness and overwhelming overtones that new round wound strings have. So, every time I'd change the strings, I'd play through the pain until they got to the sweet spot where all the harshness and overtones would fade, then I would try to keep my strings there by cleaning them up until they'd go dull or I'd finally break one and start all over again.

Then I discovered these beauties. It's like having my strings in the sweet spot constantly, no need to ever change them, they've been on my Schecter Hellraiser for 4 years and I can't hear or feel a difference.
They feel incredible and sound just right to my ears. I found them very versatile no matter what I play, they always are very articulate, even with heavy distortion. Funk, rock, metal, everything sounds great. Sure the EMGs in the Schecter are part of the equation but after years of Fenders, Ernie Balls and D'addarios, I can tell for sure that these beauties are perfect.
I just love them!

I'm no stranger to flats, but I'm using these for the first time and I am very impressed so far. The quality is obvious...very well made, lovely silks, etc. They seem pretty bright and "ringy" for flats (these are both compliments). These are the only strings I've ever used that didn't need to be stretched...they tuned to pitch easily, and just stay there. I came back two days later, and they were only slightly flat. I also went from 11's (roundwound) to 11's, and didn't have to change a thing setup-wise, even the intonation was right on. Very impressive. They are fresh at the moment, but I expect that they will last forever. I will update my review if I am disappointed. A little on the pricey side, but well worth it. Flats don't need to be changed very often, so these are a worthwhile splurge!

Title says it all. These are THE standard for jazz guitar strings (although most jazz players would choose heavier gauges than 011) and also my personal favorite flatwound guitar strings in general.

I know we all have different taste but these strings are in my opinion so far superior to any other guitar flatwound strings that I honestly can't understand why anyone would want to use anything else.

I use these strings both on my archtop and on my 12-string electric. They can do a fat, mellow jazz tone or 60s jingle jangle depending on the guitar and the tone control setting. My only complaint is that Thomastik won't sell these as 12-string sets. I have to buy single strings for the octave strings and make my own 12-string sets.

Apart from that minor inconvenience I love absolutely everything about these strings. Highly recommended!

I've also reviewed the equivalent JS112 flatwound set, and these are very good. At this point I marginally prefer the heavier JS112 to the JS111 as the tone is that bit richer to my ears, but is not a big difference.

The choice of guage will be a personal preference, and other factors may be relevant, such as scale length and how the nut is cut.

But both sets are great, very full / fat / rich sound, and with no unwanted string noise when you slide or move from one position to another.

Delivered fast from Germany to the UK, with useful updates on the delivery. And also very well priced from Thomann.

Summary: recommended highly if you want a rich jazz sound from an archtop (or perhaps other guitars). Not ideal of course for styles where a lot of string bending is needed.