Do you NEED a 5 string bass?

[DaytonaRik]

5 minutes ago, ordep said:

...I am actually more uncomfortable doing the drop D thing for lower notes (for non drop D songs) hehe

The XT Drop D bridge is very useful for this...but it helps if remember that a) you need to set it to drop D and then b) you need to return it to standard tuning afterwards!!!

 

[OliverBlackman]

3 hours ago, Al Krow said:

Always been tempted by Overwaters - how did you rate it?

That one was an early Jazz model with Ken Armstrong Pups and a J retro. The tone was deep and mellow and the fit and finish was perfect (although a previous owner had taken a few chunks out of it). It was still quite heavy though.
 

Overall it was very very good but it’s when I learned I don’t favour 19mm spacing or 35” scale length, even though the B was tight and resonated effortlessly.

My current Overwater was my own custom build and the guys made exactly what I wanted. Also, as I’m not playing weddings anymore I don’t need a 5 string jazz bass and my next bass will hopefully be something different.

[LukeFRC]

5 hours ago, Al Krow said:

Know what you mean. 1" can make a surprising amount of difference in terms of getting used to the hand-stretch and I don't have particularly small hands. My Spector has narrower string spacing (17mm / 35" scale) which helps in terms of overall stretch, but still took a little getting used to even compared to my Yammys (18mm / 34").

On the flip side I was playing my Lakland 55-94 for quite a while before I realised it was 35”. 
hand stretch Was less than for a 34” Warwick  thumb! 

[Al Krow]

37 minutes ago, LukeFRC said:

On the flip side I was playing my Lakland 55-94 for quite a while before I realised it was 35”. 
hand stretch Was less than for a 34” Warwick  thumb! 

Yeah and I've been having fun with my 41" scale this evening and not being moaning about the stretch at all (but it's only a 4 string) 😁

Edited December 23, 2020 by Al Krow

[bassbiscuits]

5 hours ago, Al Krow said:

Know what you mean. 1" can make a surprising amount of difference in terms of getting used to the hand-stretch and I don't have particularly small hands. My Spector has narrower string spacing (17mm / 35" scale) which helps in terms of overall stretch, but still took a little getting used to even compared to my Yammys (18mm / 34").

Yeah I think the 34” Yammy I have now has narrower string spacing than the previous 35” Yammy. I usually swap between a P and a Mustang so the difference in string spacing is less of a problem for me than the extra scale length and neck width was on the bigger bass. 

[StickyDBRmf]

Whether 4 or 5 string Yammy is stupid sounding. 

Edited December 23, 2020 by StickyDBRmf

[Al Krow]

A term of endearment for us Yammy owners and lovers. 

A bit like Red Sox, right? 

😁

Edited December 23, 2020 by Al Krow

[OliverBlackman]

10 hours ago, StickyDBRmf said:

Whether 4 or 5 string Yammy is stupid sounding. 

Best tell Nathan East, he must have ruined thousands of records with his stupid sound 🙄

[BigRedX]

12 hours ago, LukeFRC said:

On the flip side I was playing my Lakland 55-94 for quite a while before I realised it was 35”. 
hand stretch Was less than for a 34” Warwick  thumb! 

I went pretty much straight from playing a 30" scale 4-string Burns Sonic to a 36" Scale 5-sting Overwater Original, and while I knew the Overwater was longer scale I didn't appreciate how much longer it was until I bought my first set of replacement strings and the standard long-scale didn't fit. As someone who plays lots of different stringed instruments, scale length and string numbers doesn't really bother me until they start getting really extreme.

[bassbiscuits]

28 minutes ago, OliverBlackman said:

Best tell Nathan East, he must have ruined thousands of records with his stupid sound 🙄

Not to mention Billy Sheehan. I mean who’s ever heard of him right?

[LukeFRC]

43 minutes ago, OliverBlackman said:

Best tell Nathan East, he must have ruined thousands of records with his stupid sound 🙄

Erm - I think @StickyDBRmf is referring to calling a Yamaha “yammy” rather than any particular sound the bass makes!! 

(unless Nathan East pops up as a singer in the records singing “Yammy Yammy Yammy”.)

[OliverBlackman]

1 minute ago, LukeFRC said:

Erm - I think @StickyDBRmf is referring to calling a Yamaha “yammy” rather than any particular sound the bass makes!! 

(unless Nathan East pops up as a singer in the records singing “Yammy Yammy Yammy”.)

I hope he’s reading this then, he might have a new number 1 😂

[LukeFRC]

But I thought it could explain this bit of King Kunta by Kendrick Lamar 

“When you got the yams—(What's the yams?)
The yam is the power that be
You can smell it when I'm walkin' down the street (Oh yes, we can, oh yes, we can)
I can dig rappin', but a rapper with a ghostwriter?
What the funk happened? (Oh no!)“

maybe he’s talking about the bass players Yam - Yammy - Yamaha????

but then realise thundercat plays Ibanez so possibly not 

 

[Woodinblack]

1 hour ago, LukeFRC said:

Erm - I think @StickyDBRmf is referring to calling a Yamaha “yammy” rather than any particular sound the bass makes!! 

(unless Nathan East pops up as a singer in the records singing “Yammy Yammy Yammy”.)

That would certainly be memorable!

[krispn]

“Do YOU need a 5 string?”

Five string basses are funny things. A lot of guys I know who played them felt it made things ‘easier’ in the sense that a player could remain in the one position on the neck and have access to many notes all within that position. An example - If you consider playing in the key of C off the E string 8th fret you’d rarely have to move from that general area to find all the notes for the song. The point those players were making was they felt things could get ‘boring’ as it could be easy to get comfortable in these one position zones but it was also quite handy as some songs could be quite easy to play and require little shifting about. One of my mates is a singer/bassist so he loved the 5er for these reasons - minimal position shifting when singing.

I played with a 5 exclusively for about 5yrs on a gig where most songs were transcribed into different keys (it was with a choir thing) and having the 5 string was great in keeping the bass lines sounding like the originals and being able to keep things ‘low’ and not playing way up the neck to keep the patterns playable! I also experimented with BEAD on a four string and really liked that too. I’m back on a standard tunes four string now and don’t miss the 5’er but that’s not to say I’d never own one again...I might just go BEAD first rather than the classic BC excuse of “I’m in a new band which NEEDS a five string so sell me your bass!”

A tip I learned when moving to the 5er was to play it exclusively and don’t think of it as a four sting with a few extra low notes. Take songs you already know well and shift the starting notes/patterns to the B string or higher up the E string i.e like I mentioned above if the song is in C play from the 8th fret E string and incorporate the B string and the notes in that position. It’s a great way to get familiar with the fretboard as we can sometimes ignore this area up about the 7-12 frets. You might find that having all the notes available in ‘one position’ really opens up the fret board in a way a four string didn’t before rather than it feel like things are boring. 
 

Just don’t fall into the trap of just throwing notes onto the low C and D “just because”... there’s always a time and a place and good tasteful playing will always sound better over “lower because I can”. Another place where a 5er really shines is the slow ballad or going low on a key change when the rest of the band modulates up. That’s where a good player can really make the 5er fit in and work in the band. 

[NancyJohnson]

As soon as any You Tube video starts with the host saying, 'What's going on, guys?' it just makes me cringe.

 

[Dan Dare]

28 minutes ago, NancyJohnson said:

As soon as any You Tube video starts with the host saying, 'What's going on, guys?' it just makes me cringe.

Same as. Can't stand the over-hyped, frantic tone of many YT vid's. No doubt people making them have been told you have to "grab" or "engage" the viewer. Just pees me off and I'm more likely not to watch.

[NancyJohnson]

15 minutes ago, Dan Dare said:

Same as. Can't stand the over-hyped, frantic tone of many YT vid's. No doubt people making them have been told you have to "grab" or "engage" the viewer. Just pees me off and I'm more likely not to watch.

I subscribe to a You Tube channel elsewhere, where the narrator just goes, 'Wassup, guys?' at the start and it just makes me want to put my fingers in my ears and go, 'La la la la la.'

 

[Woodinblack]

1 hour ago, NancyJohnson said:

As soon as any You Tube video starts with the host saying, 'What's going on, guys?' it just makes me cringe.

I presume you mean Scott, as he starts all his videos with that. Mind you, he strikes me as someone who would say that anyway.

[NancyJohnson]

2 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

I presume you mean Scott, as he starts all his videos with that. Mind you, he strikes me as someone who would say that anyway.

Scott?

[Muzz]

Bit late to this one, but nope. I'm OK at playing up and down the neck, and if I need lower notes I have a Helix.

I really, really don't like big necks. And by 'big', I mean pretty much anything over a Jazz.

[Reggaebass]

1 hour ago, NancyJohnson said:

I subscribe to a You Tube channel elsewhere, where the narrator just goes, 'Wassup, guys?' at the start and it just makes me want to put my fingers in my ears and go, 'La la la la la.'

 

Could that be Johnny lee long , he’s got some good videos but he’s a little crazy 🙂

[NancyJohnson]

1 hour ago, Reggaebass said:

Could that be Johnny lee long , he’s got some good videos but he’s a little crazy 🙂

Nope...Jake Williams.  He does some really interesting videos, but man alive, 'Wasssup guys!'  Grrr.

 

[StickyDBRmf]

10 hours ago, krispn said:

“Do YOU need a 5 string?”

Five string basses are funny things. 
 

Just don’t fall into the trap of just throwing notes onto the low C and D “just because”... there’s always a time and a place and good tasteful playing will always sound better over “lower because I can”. Another place where a 5er really shines is the slow ballad or going low on a key change when the rest of the band modulates up. That’s where a good player can really make the 5er fit in and work in the band. 

I like to play the "below E" ONLY when it makes everyone in the band, and hopefully in the audience, go "OHHH" (with a big smile on their face)

AND...I owned a Yamaha 6-string Patitucci Model. And LOVED it. Especially because of the zero radius (it was like my Stick). But I NEVER. Called it a "Yammy".

[chris_b]

Any number of stings on a bass is cool. All basses are cool, full stop!

So, play the bass that makes you happy. That'll make you a better player, no matter how many strings you've got.