Best 4 string for BEAD?

[ToLo]

Try as I might, I just can't get on with a 5 string bass. I'm therefore intrigued to know what people use for a 4 string bass tuned BEAD? Would you consider a multiscale 4 string essential for BEAD, or could you get away with a regular 34 inch scale bass?

I don't really want to have to faff around mod-ing the hell out of the tuning peg and/or nut to take a B string gauge. There don't appear to be many 4 string multiscale options out there outside of Dingwall. I'm not a huge fan of the Dingwall sound - plus they're very expensive!

If anyone has any experience with these I'd be keen to find out more about these:

• Ibanez SRMS800

• G4M 972 Fanned Fret Bass Guitar

 

Let me know if there are any other basses I should check out (preferably on the more affordable end of the spectrum).

 

[ezbass]

Plenty of 34” scale 5 strings out there (‘Ray5 for example) so a 34”, 4 string, tuned BEAD, shouldn’t be an issue. Avoiding smaller tuner capstans will remove any need for alterations there (Fender/MM/etc type). However, widening of the fret slots will probably be required, as all 4 slots will be taking a thicker string than intended, unless you go for a gauge that is light enough to negate this small modification.

[BigRedX]

48 minutes ago, ezbass said:

Plenty of 34” scale 5 strings out there (‘Ray5 for example) so a 34”, 4 string, tuned BEAD, shouldn’t be an issue. Avoiding smaller tuner capstans will remove any need for alterations there (Fender/MM/etc type). However, widening of the fret slots will probably be required, as all 4 slots will be taking a thicker string than intended, unless you go for a gauge that is light enough to negate this small modification.

 

And maybe a slight slackening of the truss rod as the low B is quite a bit lower in tension than the G.

[ezbass]

34 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

 

And maybe a slight slackening of the truss rod as the low B is quite a bit lower in tension than the G.

Good point.

[Doctor J]

Short answer: It's more about having the right strings than a longer scale bass. 34" is fine.

 

Long answers in here

https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/462156-death-core-bass-in-f/#comment-4698604

https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/473406-longer-neck-for-fender-p-bass/page/2/#comment-5369697

 

https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/461893-a-standard-adgcf/#comment-4694130

 

Edited November 15, 2024 by Doctor J

[BigRedX]

It also depends what sort of a low B sound you want. Some down-tuned styles seem to require a loose floppy string, others don't.

 

IME If you want a nice balanced feeling and sounding low B you need the right strings coupled with a stiff neck and a tight well-made neck/body joint (or through neck construction). Also look at lowering the pickups slightly from what is usual with a standard 4-string bass. The fatter the string the more likely it is to be influenced by the deadening effects of the pick up magnets. Finally I always go for a slightly heavier than standard string for low B. 130 would be a minimum for me - ideally 135.

[Skybone]

Best bass for BEAD?

 

A P bass (or variation thereof).

Edited November 15, 2024 by Skybone

[uk_lefty]

I strung up a bitsa P bass BEAD and it worked fine. My head couldn't handle it but the bass could! 

[Bolo]

16 hours ago, Skybone said:

Best bass for BEAD?

 

A P bass (or variation thereof).

STRONG disagree. But forums are for opinions, so there's that.

 

A bridge pup or mm bucker sound tighter when going that low.

[Sibob]

PM’d you.

 

Si

[Kev]

Anything well built and. crucially, well set up will work, preferably with hum buckers.  Getting a "good" B is 99% about making sure the neck and bridge are set up optimally.  String gauge is preference, scale length is a huge 2nd to setup.  

 

I currently use a StingRay and Alpher bass in B.  I left 5's behind back in 2019 in favour of drop tuned 4's, never looked back.  Realised I never liked using a G string and felt much more comfortable on a narrower neck, so made total sense.

[Jackroadkill]

Didn't Sandberg to al Olli Riedel signature that was made for BEAD?

[Grassie]

I had my old G&L Tribute Kiloton strung BEAD for a while. 34in scale plus gurt humbucker style pup near the bridge combo worked a treat. 😊

[Obrienp]

On TalkBass a few people were posting about using a Nordstrand Acinonyx BEAD and that it works. If that is really true, I would have thought any full scale 4 string would be fine, as it is going to benefit from greater string tension than the 30.75” Acinonyx.

[andruca]

I've done it so far with many of my 4 strings: Jazz, my Yamahas (SBV-500, SB500S). I even punked the crap out of a (30.5" scale) Epiphone Viola strung BEAD for years, it just worked. 100% pick,with plenty of crunch and compression.

 

Just pick a 4 string you like and start with that. As others point out, experiment with string gauges for a low B with authority. Just consider a bridge pickup always helps with low B articulation.

Edited November 18, 2024 by andruca

[andruca]

On 17/11/2024 at 00:18, Jackroadkill said:

Didn't Sandberg to al Olli Riedel signature that was made for BEAD?

 

There was also the Ibanez Paul Grey (Slipknot) signature ATK. Basically an ATK-300 with widened nut slots.

Edited November 18, 2024 by andruca

[PaulThePlug]

Ibby SR300, 305, 306...

[Rolf]

I have my parts P-bass strung in BEAD and it works good. I also have a Hipshot d-tuner so I can go down to A, it's a little floppy with a .130, a .135 would be better.

[horrorshowbass]

On 18/11/2024 at 21:32, PaulThePlug said:

Ibby SR300, 305, 306...

@PaulThePlug did you try this with sr300?

Would be interested in the results

[PaulThePlug]

2 hours ago, horrorshowbass said:

@PaulThePlug did you try this with sr300?

Would be interested in the results

Not me, I'll get my Son to BEAD a SR300 with 45-105 and see, He has a SR306 BEADGC

[horrorshowbass]

Such awesome basses if only every bass was like ibanez and yamaha 😆 

[Sibob]

If anyone is interested, I’m selling this:

 

A lot of bass for the money.

Si

[horrorshowbass]

To be honest ihave issues with clarity on my Low B on my 35" yamaha even.

Maybe its all that 37" Dingwall and Neural DSP I've been listening to....

[christhammer666]

any of the ibby sr range

[BigRedX]

17 minutes ago, horrorshowbass said:

To be honest ihave issues with clarity on my Low B on my 35" yamaha even.

Maybe its all that 37" Dingwall and Neural DSP I've been listening to....

 

IME the scale length on its own has little bearing on the how good the low B is until your hit 36" over. There are plenty of luthiers capable of making 34" scale basses with excellent low Bs. It's mostly about neck construction, especially stiffness, and how the neck is attached to the body.

 

If your bass has a bolt-on neck you could try the following: Slacken of the strings and then very slightly loosen the neck screws (no more than 1 turn). Then tune back up to pitch and following than tighten up the neck screws. This has the effect of pulling the neck as tightly into the pocket as possible which should help with clarity.

 

You can also try lowering the pickup(s) a couple of millimetres away from the B string which will reduce the magnetic pull on the string and allow it to vibrate more freely.