5 STRING the advantage

[Woodinblack]

I play almost exclusively 5 strings for everything, but I do have an ibanez prestige SR1000 because it is the one I bought first, a P bass because it was a present and a thunderbird, because, well, thunderbirds look so cool. Oh and an iceman which I am thinking of converting to a 5 string, or selling.

Yesterday I took the thunderbird out, because, it just looks really cool, and there doesn't seem to be a decent 5 string thunderbird without something expensive and custom.

It has to be said though, after feeling smug because I didn't mess up Poker Face, Baker street and Black Magic woman, where I remembered I relied on the B string, I completely forgot about moondance and cocked up the first few choruses, until I remembered how to do it on a 4 string for the last ones! Oh yes, one of the others I messed up by playing a string up.

It has to be said though, if I want to play RHCP higher ground, it is easiest on the SR1000, without the B string to hit.

[Mog]

The main advantage is pissing off narrow minded bassists.....................

[gjones]

I have just purchased a 5 string and am getting used to an extra string and the narrower string spacing. 

This post is very useful in persuading me to stick with it.

[jonnybass]

I have played 5 strings on and off since 1993. I have found the biggest difference is the lack of shifting for my left hand. To me a bass designed as a five string tends to perform better than a bass designed as a four but with an extra string..for example I think a musician V has a better sounding and feeling low b than a jazz bass V.

[uk_lefty]

Have had a five string for about seventeen years, for a long time it was my only bass. For the way I play letting an open B ring while I go to another note on the E or A string has an advantage, as does getting a thundering low D in here and there, also found having that lower Eb useful.

I've just yesterday received my first ever fretted fiver, a Sire V7 vintage. I love my four string jazz bass with drop D tuner but I wanted to have more options for hand position and think more about that aspect, than just playing it as a four with a low D when needed. Also I need to keep a bass in standard tuning for playing along with mp3s but my band plays down half a step. I might try to keep the Sire in standard tuning and adjust my hand position, but that could throw off the other guitarists!!

The only thing that has put me off a lot of fivers in the past is narrow string spacing. That's put me off a lot of fours too to be fair  The Sire just feels very comfortable though for string spacing and neck width.

[chris_b]

1 hour ago, uk_lefty said:

I might try to keep the Sire in standard tuning and adjust my hand position, but that could throw off the other guitarists!!

Errr. My thought here is, if the guitarists are watching you and your finger positions they're not focusing on their job.

You do what you have to to get the best bass job done. If that messes with the guitarists heads, you need better guitarists.

[uk_lefty]

1 minute ago, chris_b said:

Errr. My thought here is, if the guitarists are watching you and your finger positions they're not focusing on their job.

You do what you have to to get the best bass job done. If that messes with the guitarists heads, you need better guitarists.

True, but with well over fifty songs we can all have a mental block from time to time! Can't remember a gig where one of us hasn't had to ask what chords for a particular song.

[Woodinblack]

4 minutes ago, chris_b said:

Errr. My thought here is, if the guitarists are watching you and your finger positions they're not focusing on their job.

The guitarist in my band does that.

So much so that now I turn my TC RH450 so that he can see it as it has the full time tuner!

[6feet7]

I only play 5's now (2 Patrick Eggles, 1 'converted' Epiphone Zenith and a 3/4 double bass). Only because it makes my life easier by playing pretty much everything between the 5th and 8th fret - very little moving around (which for someone who isn't the best player in the world is a godsend . As far as weight goes, my Eggles both only weigh about 8 1/2 lbs, so a 2 hour gig is easy on the shoulder.

Edited August 29, 2018 by 6feet7