DaveB Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 This may seem a little silly to you all but i've been thinking about this alot recently. Most of us i'm sure started out on a 4 string, I did and was quite happy for 12 years playing like that. Must admit I did buy a budget 8 string for a laugh at one point that was too much (see sig). Then just over a year ago I joined my current band and found for one or two songs I needed a low C# and B, typical. So went out and got a 5 string. When I go back to 4 now, it still feels natural and easy to find my way around but i feel not quite complete and slightly naked. I wouldn't want to do any sort of gig with only a 4 string now, yet I love playing my old 4 string basses still. Kind of felt like i've lost my roots abit here. Odd thing is with guitar. I play to an intermediate standard and dabbed in 7 strings but that did feel like too much and prefered less. Mind you trying to play slide guitar over that wide a neck is bloody hard lol. So my point is, is it bad to feel like your loosing your roots or is it just natural progression? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 If it's right for you then whats to stop you playing more strings? Similarly, if a 4 string bass is right for you, whats wrong with that? I bought a Status Stealth 6 string once when I'd previously played 4 and 5 strings. I shortly realised that it just wasn't for me. I ended up selling that incredible bass to go to a 4 string Spector, which was the right choice for me. Everything since bar one bass has been a 4 string. Don't worry about feeling like you're losing your roots, imagine that you're extending them - after all, the EADG strings are still there! You'll end up back at 4 string basses someday though, everyone always does! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xilddx Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 [quote name='DaveB' post='1037202' date='Nov 26 2010, 12:28 AM']This may seem a little silly to you all but i've been thinking about this alot recently. Most of us i'm sure started out on a 4 string, I did and was quite happy for 12 years playing like that. Must admit I did buy a budget 8 string for a laugh at one point that was too much (see sig). Then just over a year ago I joined my current band and found for one or two songs I needed a low C# and B, typical. So went out and got a 5 string. When I go back to 4 now, it still feels natural and easy to find my way around but i feel not quite complete and slightly naked. I wouldn't want to do any sort of gig with only a 4 string now, yet I love playing my old 4 string basses still. Kind of felt like i've lost my roots abit here. Odd thing is with guitar. I play to an intermediate standard and dabbed in 7 strings but that did feel like too much and prefered less. Mind you trying to play slide guitar over that wide a neck is bloody hard lol. So my point is, is it bad to feel like your loosing your roots or is it just natural progression?[/quote] It's all about your vision old son. I can't stand more than four strings but I need 24 frets and I use a POD X3 LIVe. And I'd love a VB99 Bass Synth. It's when your musical situation demands change but you don't want it that the trouble begins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveB Posted November 26, 2010 Author Share Posted November 26, 2010 [quote name='Chris2112' post='1037206' date='Nov 26 2010, 12:33 AM']Don't worry about feeling like you're losing your roots, imagine that you're extending them - after all, the EADG strings are still there! You'll end up back at 4 string basses someday though, everyone always does! [/quote] I'll look at it this way, i'm abit big round the waist band so i'm like a big oak tree that needs to spread a few more roots lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveB Posted November 26, 2010 Author Share Posted November 26, 2010 [quote name='silddx' post='1037217' date='Nov 26 2010, 12:40 AM']It's all about your vision old son. I can't stand more than four strings but I need 24 frets and I use a POD X3 LIVe. And I'd love a VB99 Bass Synth. It's when your musical situation demands change but you don't want it that the trouble begins.[/quote] Good point, and interesting you mention 24 frets, thats the other thing. even though i don't play alot that high it feels wrong when i've got less than 24. Must be bass OCD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisnameistaken Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 Play what you like, don't worry about it. I must say though I am the opposite to you - when I go back to 4 strings I feel I have a lot more freedom for some reason. It's weird but I suppose I just feel at home on 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubinga5 Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 there is no natural progression... its you and what you feel.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomBassmonkey Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 I started out on a 4, then moved to 6 then back to 5. Now I couldn't manage with a 4 string bass, even in the band that I only really use EAD on, I'd still feel constricted on runs without the B and G strings to start/finish on, even though there's no parts of the set that rely on them. There's so many variations on basses because everyone likes different things, if you find a 4 feels more natural but you like the extended range of the 5, maybe you should look into 5s with a thinner neck or string spacing. Or maybe even wider string spacing so that it's nearer the spacing on a 4 (assuming the 5 is narrower). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 I see bass guitars as just "tools" - you simply select the right tool to do a particular job. Like most BCers I've ended up with a range of different instruments and some are more suited to particular styles than others. I have a fretless JB and a WAV4 upright - different sounds, different feel to them and selected to match particular music types. I have a 6 string - that gives me the option of adding a little more detail but doesn't really suit me for fast and accurate playing. I have a 5 string - that gives me speed and a higher degree of accuracy than I get playing the 6 string. I have a 4 string - that's an old 80's SB900 and gives me a more 'authentic punch' for playin 80's stuff. I have an acoustic 4 string - that gives me the option of a quick practice without the aggro of setting up amps and gives me easier access into the folk/roots scene. I don't see it as "losing my roots" - it's more a case of providing the best possible enhancement to a wide range of musical styles - at the end of the day, whatever instrument we decide to use, it's just a plank of wood with some metal strings stretched across it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 You've just moved on. That's not a bad thing! I agree with JTUK when he said a couple of weeks ago that a 4 string feels like half a bass now. I've tried playing both on a gig but there's nothing you can do on a 4 that you can't do on a 5 and, after 10 years, a 5 just feels more right! My roots are in my head (and the past) not in a piece of wood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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