I don't know why it is, but my strings just LOVE to vibrate. To test, I sat in my room, no AC or fan, amp tuned down just above 0, quiet as a mouse, and played a riff, and my E string just keeps catching the vids and starts ringing. Does everyone have this problem? My string are kinda old, but I don't think boiling em will stop it.

And they are ernie ball pro slinkies.

I should add I'm tuned down to D so I am a bit loose.

I'm the same way - I think it might be my playing style. I have my bass tuned DADGC and whenever I play on the high D G or C strings I get a rumble out of the low A or D unless I palm mute the lower strings

Thats called resonance, and you can control it by muting with your hands. The type and age of strings has no effect on it, it's caused by the physical vibrations of your strings. It is especially likely to happen if your strings are tuned to the same note in different octaves.

Well I guess every bassist has to deal with it, but it's a pain to my style to either keep the heel of my palm on the string, or a thumb.

One more thing, what's the worst about it is that the E (low D) string resonates that G harmonic so much, and I never catch it till I hear it (after it overtakes my sound)

I've never heard any bassist having an issue with it, but I've never kept an eye on whether they continually mute that string.

Pain in the ass it is -.- /yoda

All bassists have issues with it. Good bassists adopt a technique to deal it. There are lots of variations on ways to deal with ringing strings. They typically involve the thumb in some capacity, either anchored or floating.

I think that is something you just have to overcome with your technique. You're going to make the strings vibrate just by touching and moving your bass, so you've got to account for that natural vibration with some well-placed palm muting and/or thumb resting.

Either that or use a "noise-gate" pedal that will keep all tones below a certain volume from getting to your amp.

Either that or use a "noise-gate" pedal that will keep all tones below a certain volume from getting to your amp.That does nothing to help with string noise that occurs while playing, which will make everything sound muddy. And when a person shows up to record some day and has never properly dealt with their ringing string issue, the result is very ugly indeed.

The problem with using a noise gate is that it doesn't filter out specific string sounds (how could it besides MIDI?), but the whole output of the bass. Therefore, if you're getting enough output to let your playing through, you're going to be letting your symapthetic vibations through as well. Your best bet is just to learn to mute the strings.

try a 6 string bass :P

yeah I agree learn to play with a new technique you shouldnt be letting all the strings ring freely anyways unless your playing a chord

When on my 6 string if im on the BEA strings I plant my thumb on the B, if im playing the DGC strings then I use the floating thumb technique took all of about 2 weeks to learn/adapt.

+1 to the comments about technique. You need to damp strings that aren't being played. Otherwise, they WILL ring and you WILL hear them, especially when recording, as Eublet said.

On occasion I find use for these vibrations when I'm playing, but usually I mute them as this case is fairly rare.

Also, bridge designs such as these tend to help too...

https://www.hipshotproducts.com/images/products/222_large.jpg