Given up on the B string

[markstuk]

I only play 5'ers now, for pretty much all of the reasons stated above.. I play a low B four times in one song in a 30 song set :-)

Main squeeze is a Dingwall ABZ with a 35" scale Jazzlaklike as a backup..

Edited August 28, 2016 by markstuk

[Graham]

I used my four string for one song last night - Treasure by Bruno Mars.

Not played the four live in about a year, since I got the five last summer. It was easier to play that mainly slapped song on the four, so I plan to keep doing that; but it felt so weird to be playing a light, thin necked instrument and felt like part of it was missing.

I'm definitely more at home on five strings

[chris_b]

I hope you all did the dance moves.

[ambient]

A lot of time, people give up on 5s because they have the wrong mindset from the start.

We tend to think too much, instead of just letting go and playing, we're looking at the bass as a 4 string with an extra string. It's not that, it's a 5 string. I play most of my lines starting at the 5th fret on the B string, so that's my low E note, low F I would play at the 6th fret etc. Bb at the 1st fret on the A string I'd play at the 6th fret on the E string. If I have to play anything high up on the G string, then it's all there under my fingers.

Scale length in my opinion makes little or no difference. I gave up on 4 string basses about 20 years ago, I've since played a myriad of basses, some 34", some 35", even a friends 33" scale 6 string. Again we're thinking too much about the instrument. It just requires a slight alteration of finger pressure to adjust across the strings.

One of my students has an Ibanez 6 string that cost him something like £500 brand new, it's an amazing instrument, cost doesn't really factor in to it too much. A well designed bass is just that. Ibanez and Yamaha make some amazing 'budget' instruments.

We tend to be quite lazy, and also tend to play patterns, get away from playing patterns, and play notes. Know what the notes are in the lines you're playing.

I bought my first 5 string on one Saturday, and used it the following Friday. I'd mentally bought it weeks previously, and had just visualised playing lines on it. It made the whole process a lot easier. Plus I was playing notes on it, not just patterns.

Edited August 29, 2016 by ambient

[Graham]

.

Edited August 29, 2016 by Graham

[Graham]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1472466585' post='3121249']
I hope you all did the dance moves.
[/quote]

Ummm......no, but then I'm not sure anyone wants to see my white-man-dad-dancing-interpretation of Bruno's performance 

[chris_b]

[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1472467868' post='3121263']
A lot of time, people give up on 5s because they have the wrong mindset from the start.

We tend to think too much, instead of just letting go and playing, we're looking at the bass as a 4 string with an extra string. It's not that, it's a 5 string. I play most of my lines starting at the 5th fret on the B string, so that's my low E note, low F I would play at the 6th fret etc. Bb at the 1st fret on the A string I'd play at the 6th fret on the E string. If I have to play anything high up on the G string, then it's all there under my fingers.

Scale length in my opinion makes little or no difference. I gave up on 4 string basses about 20 years ago, I've since played a myriad of basses, some 34", some 35", even a friends 33" scale 6 string. Again we're thinking too much about the instrument. It just requires a slight alteration of finger pressure to adjust across the strings.

One of my students has an Ibanez 6 string that cost him something like £500 brand new, it's an amazing instrument, cost doesn't really factor in to it too much. A well designed bass is just that. Ibanez and Yamaha make some amazing 'budget' instruments.

We tend to be quite lazy, and also tend to play patterns, get away from playing patterns, and play notes. Know what the notes are in the lines you're playing.

I bought my first 5 string on one Saturday, and used it the following Friday. I'd mentally bought it weeks previously, and had just visualised playing lines on it. It made the whole process a lot easier. Plus I was playing notes on it, not just patterns.
[/quote]

I wish we had a like button.

This is exactly right.

[JTUK]

For me, I play on muscle memory an awful lot so by the time I've thought about something, I've done it and we are moving on.
This means everything is to hand in the right place. I haven't got time to worry about spacing... it has been grooved in along with everything else I do..and it took me 18th months to be that comfortable.

If you don't need that, then that is the way you approach things

[dyess002]

If you use a 200 Watt and below that B or the E strings, the amp will not push that low tone out.. A 500 Watt will do it justice.

[Sean]

I've recently installed this set on my 34" Yamaha BBP35. As you can see, the B it's not the floppiest string. I'll concede that the BBP35 is a premium handbuilt bass but there are Indonesia-made Yams that will give you a very very close experience for <£500 used.

 

 

[Sean]

On 14/08/2016 at 17:19, Woodinblack said:

[quote name='bubinga5' timestamp='1471177872' post='3111010'] Hey presto. There you have a great B. Nothing to do with scale length or the string through the body nonsense. [/quote]

+1

I never believed the scale thing makes a lot of difference on its own - 34->35" is less than a 3% change

 

It's a 3% change in scale length but it's >6% change in tension on a 130 and that makes a very perceptible difference.

 

 

On a 135 the difference between a 34 and a 35 is still 6% but on the 35 it gives it more tension than a 100 E

 

 

Edited February 25 by Sean

[Norris]

8 years. That's one of the longest zombie thread resurrections I've seen

[Sean]

7 hours ago, Norris said:

8 years. That's one of the longest zombie thread resurrections I've seen

I didn't notice. I'm so evangelical with the string tension calculator I saw it as an opportunity.

 

IIRC there was a member years ago that used to be a master at reviving old threads.

 

@dyess002 what led you to this old thread? Just interested.