once you've played a 5 string what's the point of 4?

[DDR]

I used to be a 5 hater and now I'm a convert to the point that I'm wondering, outside of the "getting hired" issue (some bands/artists won't like the look of it) why limit your range to that of a 4 string?

[Dad3353]

Just now, DDR said:

I used to be a 5 hater and now I'm a convert to the point that I'm wondering, outside of the "getting hired" issue (some bands/artists won't like the look of it) why limit your range to that of a 4 string?

 

Why not six, then..? 

[tauzero]

Some people just don't get on with fives. Not sure why, but there's always a few in the marketplace being sold by people who tried a five and didn't like it. It's always possible they were just horrible to play and the sellers thought it was because they were fives, not simply because they were shit.

[lozkerr]

1 hour ago, Dad3353 said:

Why not six, then..? 

Well for me, it's the neck width. I've played fives for quite a while now and can't see myself ever going back to a four, but I don't have hands the size of shovels and I'd struggle with a six. And yes, I have tried a few.

[BassTractor]

One point of a four might be that (if true) one never gets "that" low E timbre from a five.
Just throwing this in: I have no idea myself, but this was said by a producer in a well-known studio. Me, I'd imagine that a wider neck's stiffness would indeed change the timbre, but you guys must know a lot more about this than I do.

Edited 3 hours ago by BassTractor

[police squad]

I did 5 string 25 years ago. Did it for a few years and went back to 4. Fretless and fretted, I easily adapted to 5.

I sometimes played a 'd' on the low b. Didn't really like the sound below that

Here's a picture of my custom made 5 string made by my friend Andy Crockett

Edited 2 hours ago by police squad

[Steve Browning]

5 hours ago, DDR said:

I used to be a 5 hater and now I'm a convert to the point that I'm wondering, outside of the "getting hired" issue (some bands/artists won't like the look of it) why limit your range to that of a 4 string?

In my case, because I want to. I don't like the sound of the B string. They never sound 'right' to me. 

 

An entirely personal view, but I will never own a 5 string. 

[Burns-bass]

Scale length, weight, string spacing, design, aesthetics. And the fact that you’ll look like an 80s sideman. I’ve tried playing them and it’s just not needed (for me).

 

5-string basses are like Land Rovers in that 90% if users will never need the extra capabilities. 

Edited 2 hours ago by Burns-bass

[SumOne]

 

'Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication' (Leonardo da Vinci)

 

[Reggaebass]

I played a 5 for about a year to see what it was all about and still do very occasionally if a certain Bassline has any lower notes ,but that’s rare, so 2 reasons for me, I can do everything I want on a 4 and I play vintage basses which only have 4 

[uk_lefty]

A drop D tuner on my 4s works fine for me when I need it. I have owned the same fretless fiver for coming up to 23 years now but never made it stick on any other bass, though I have tried a few times. For the gigs I play a 4 is perfect, so a fiver just is not really needed. 

[odysseus]

I used a 5 in one band where it was warranted, but went back to a 4 after it finished because I didn't really need the extra depth. Another band I was in used D a lot so I just tuned down to D standard on a 4, which worked well in that context.  It's also easier on the hands and forearms... for me, anyway.

[OliverBlackman]

6 hours ago, DDR said:

I used to be a 5 hater and now I'm a convert to the point that I'm wondering, outside of the "getting hired" issue (some bands/artists won't like the look of it) why limit your range to that of a 4 string?

I have both and 99% only need to play a 4 so I make it easier for myself by playing a lighter, thinner necked 4 string.  I play my 5er more than 1% but only really so it’s not totally alien when I need the lower range or if I want that maple neck jazz bass sound.

[franzbassist]

I took a long time to adjust to 5s, but I pretty much play them all the time now. The main advantage I see with a 5 is it makes some patterns easier to play (i.e. you don't have to shift up and down the neck as you do on a 4, you just play across instead).

 

Some 5s have a poor low B tone, which can certainly give a bad impression to a new user.

 

I've tried a 6 multiple times, but it's just too much for me.

 

If I slapped a lot I'd probably stay on a 4, but I like the increased versatility of a 5 overall and won't go back.

Edited 2 hours ago by franzbassist

[Burns-bass]

12 minutes ago, franzbassist said:

I took a long time to adjust to 5s, but I pretty much play them all the time now. The main advantage I see with a 5 is it makes some patterns easier to play (i.e. you don't have to shift up and down the neck as you do on a 4, you just play across instead).

 

Some 5s have a poor low B tone, which can certainly give a bad impression to a new user.

 

I've tried a 6 multiple times, but it's just too much for me.

 

If I slapped a lot I'd probably stay on a 4, but I like the increased versatility of a 5 overall and won't go back.

Solid advice. Play the instruments you like to make the music you love.

[stewblack]

7 hours ago, DDR said:

I used to be a 5 hater and now I'm a convert to the point that I'm wondering, outside of the "getting hired" issue (some bands/artists won't like the look of it) why limit your range to that of a 4 string?

Interesting question. I played 5ers for a couple of years, way back when. It was in the spirit of adventure and discovery and a bit of a pose, as five string bassists were something of a novelty out in the sticks. 

I never particularly favoured five or four, but returned exclusively to four string basses ten years back. 

Now they just feel more comfortable, more natural to me. I displace the octave where I meet with a note below the E, and I enjoy finding creative ways to navigate the fretboard.

Would I ever go back to a five string? Absolutely, anything is possible. Except slap bass. That is not for me.

[itu]

That B required lots of string changes, before it started to sound similar than the other strings. I found .120 was the best sounding in a 35" neck.

 

I use both, 4 and 5, and they are different animals. 4 feels lighter and easier, but as @franzbassist wrote, 5 offers different patterns, and for me Eb and D are easier than with a 4+detuner.

 

In a band, where 4 singers want to change everything all the time, and winds want to go flat, a 5 works like a tool made for transposing.

Edited 1 hour ago by itu

[Ed_S]

I've mentioned before on here that I spent my first 10 years predominantly playing 5s, then switched back to 4s for 10 years, and now I'm a few years back into exclusively playing 5s.

 

When I switched back to 4s, my reasons were...

 

- I had back problems and lightweight 5s within my budget were happy accidents. To be honest so were lightweight 4s, but there were many more 4s out there to dig through and find a light one. 

- Sound techs at the kinds of gigs we played seemed to be at home with a 4 string P-bass. Playing a 5 string Warlock would reliably get your FoH sound butchered; the low notes weren't worth the aggro.

- I could work around the missing low notes easily enough anyway, and started using a BEAD tuned bass or a Digitech Drop pedal to get round the very few songs that really sounded wrong without them.

- The feel of playing a 4 was more 'energetic'. People rightly point out the economy of motion you can enjoy with 5s, but I actually enjoy playing up and down the neck. Yeah, you can still do it on a 5, and I do, but it's a decision rather than a necessity and the extra width of the neck means it feels different.

- I like to have fresh strings, and sets of 4 are generally cheaper!

 

I've tried 6s a couple of times, and whilst I like them - mostly for the novelty - I don't really need the extra width, weight, expense etc. enough to justify playing them all the time. Beyond the novelty, the one thing I do like is that there's another string between what I'll lazily call the G and the edge of the fretboard. I've just never liked the feel of playing on the thinnest string at the edge of the board, so to have another one that I really don't need, just as a spacer, was kinda nice. Not nice enough, though.

[Merton]

I play both. For a few bands I prefer 4s, for a couple of others I prefer 5s. Mostly due to songs in the set.

I’m slightly less shit on a 4 than a 5 hence a 4 tends to be my preference 

[attackbass]

I play a 5 string for most of my gigs because I need the range and because for one artist, they like the tone and look of my Spector 5. That being said I prefer playing my 64 P Bass and have used it down tuned for some gigs.

 

I'm happy to play both, and there is a slightly different approach to playing both

[casapete]

1 hour ago, Burns-bass said:

Scale length, weight, string spacing, design, aesthetics. And the fact that you’ll look like an 80s sideman. I’ve tried playing them and it’s just not needed (for me).

This.

 

44 minutes ago, itu said:

 

In a band, where 4 singers want to change everything all the time, and winds want to go flat, a 5 works like a tool made for transposing.

But then again, this!

A five string would be beneficial to me in my acoustic duo, where we tackle all sorts of stuff in

all sorts of keys. However, 5 string acoustic basses don’t do it for me, as well as my 50 odd

years of playing 4 strings getting in the way, so I’ll continue with them.

 

Huge admiration for you folks who can swap between the two though. 😊

[RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE]

I think I've mentioned my experience and thoughts previously . However ...

 

Took me sometime to even learn a 4 string. Once I was gigging on a fairly regular basis, all good. 

 

I read long topics in the old Bassplayer mag 🇺🇸 Back in the early '90s . Treating the 4 stringers with baby steps . Very informative , and the thoight of ' if I get really good , maybe I should get one ' . 
 

Fast forward to around 2005 , friend said ' let's go to sound control .' ( new shop at the time in Totttenham ct Rd.

So, I fell in love with a Schecter 5 string Stilletto Elite and purchased it . 
Cue the remarks from band mates in rehearsal ' you don't need a 5 string ' etc.  I received sneering and snide remarks 

They didn't like its sound either . 
 

I managed to get to grips with it: quite easily.  However working long hrs and being in 2 bands at the time , I was not confident of avoiding Les Dawson impressions so it stayed at home . This was due to me moving around on stage energetically . 
 

I just play at home now . I have a fretless which I took to a tech to tune B--E -A-D . I dabble in it now and again. 
I also have a Digitech Bass whammy which I use for effects . TBh, I think 5 strings are great ,and handy if you're confident on stage and less energetic . Having said that, if I were gigging now I'd just use the Bass Whammy and have done with it ! This is if you're not a regular in recording studios , and playing the Dog And Duck where most of the crowd wouldn't be bothered .

[Leonard Smalls]

I've tried fivers and not got on with them - I'd already been on 4s for 20 odd years and didn't like the extra width. 

I knows what I likes and I likes what I know!