A good ol’ “how many strings” thread
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My main 5 string is a Dingwall NG2 and the fan fretting and extra scale length on the lowest string sounds awesome. Another point is when singing it's easier to move down to low E, D etc by skipping across rather than down. If that makes sense?
jpfamps said:
If he hadn't come along then the Precision bass would probably have been a 3 string too.... and still good enough for 99.9% of punk players! :DThe top string on most basses, in my view, doesn't really sound like the other strings.To quote John Entiwhistle: "you don't really have a 4 string bass, you have a 3 string bass and a one string guitar."I recently did a gig with a 5 sting electric bass player (he also used a 5 string double bass), and what I found interesting was that the low B string didn't really sound like the other strings either.
The thing is, none of the strings sound exactly like the others and there is always a progression in timbre from one to the next, though it's often more pronounced between the B and the E. Multiscale/fanned-fret instruments are meant to address this issue to some extent, though I've never played one so can't comment on how successful they are.
When I did have a 5-string, I found the solution to the different-sounding B was to use a nickel 4-string set and a stainless steel B - that sounded much closer to the same on all five than the very soft-sounding nickel B or clangy stainless high strings did.
Of course if you weren't so dead set against Warwicks, you wouldn't have had that problem in the first place .... :-)
It feels like only yesterday that we last discussed this. The point of a five string is only partly the extra range.
A big part of the appeal is that you can play lines over two octaves without having to change your hand position much. You can choose to, but you don't have to. And you can control timbre by playing stuff you would usually play on open strings at the fifth fret instead.
If you play in a basic rock band, you may be thinking "So what"? And in a basic rock band, it's a fair question. You will probably get a four string precision with flat wounds, and you will be very happy together. I wouldn't criticise your choice of spouse either. Well, not out loud.
A big part of the appeal is that you can play lines over two octaves without having to change your hand position much. You can choose to, but you don't have to. And you can control timbre by playing stuff you would usually play on open strings at the fifth fret instead.
If you play in a basic rock band, you may be thinking "So what"? And in a basic rock band, it's a fair question. You will probably get a four string precision with flat wounds, and you will be very happy together. I wouldn't criticise your choice of spouse either. Well, not out loud.
Yes. That would be my reason for having another low string, so I could reach the lower 5th from the second string. I prefer to stay on one string so that the notes don't overlap.JCA2550 said:My main 5 string is a Dingwall NG2 and the fan fretting and extra scale length on the lowest string sounds awesome. Another point is when singing it's easier to move down to low E, D etc by skipping across rather than down. If that makes sense?
Re Bottesini and earlier double bass, it's actually the low rather than the higher string that was missing from the three string. Tuning varied by country, but ADG in fourths or GDA in fifths are both documented. I think they didn't go lower at that time because plain gut strings are quite limited down at E, and wire wound on gut was only just coming into common use.
(I know some modern slap bassists use a plain gut E, but they're hopeless for much else than heavily amplified rockabilly slap).
I now have what amounts to synthetic gut - nylon/kevlar core - on my double bass - and yep, unless amplified to heck and back the E is fuck useless :-) Does go 'ticky tacky' nicely though.MartinB said:Re Bottesini and earlier double bass, it's actually the low rather than the higher string that was missing from the three string. Tuning varied by country, but ADG in fourths or GDA in fifths are both documented. I think they didn't go lower at that time because plain gut strings are quite limited down at E, and wire wound on gut was only just coming into common use.(I know some modern slap bassists use a plain gut E, but they're hopeless for much else than heavily amplified rockabilly slap).
I tried someone's 5 string once, and handed it back a couple of minutes later, with a big "Nah" from me.
Most of my existence in bands has been as a bass player and have never felt the slightest need for a 5 thing. I've done a few down tuned things on odd occasions too, down to drop C type territory anyway and just tuned the thing down to suit.
As someone said earlier you see a lot of them that never use the low string anyway, suppose it's a handy thumb rest it you're that way inclined.
Most of my existence in bands has been as a bass player and have never felt the slightest need for a 5 thing. I've done a few down tuned things on odd occasions too, down to drop C type territory anyway and just tuned the thing down to suit.
As someone said earlier you see a lot of them that never use the low string anyway, suppose it's a handy thumb rest it you're that way inclined.
If I could only have x1 then it would be the five. Fours are most comfy and a six is good for song writing, but the five is the most practical in a band setting.