High "e" on a six string...very hard to search for

cadence · #1 08-05-2011, 06:52 PM

Every search field entry I am coming up with is yielding no useful results, there is no way I can string the words together to make them search for what I want. I found one thread here but with not much usable info.

Please tell me about high E strings on a six string bass tuned an octave below standard guitar. I am assuming that they are wound strings. I have a D string from a guitar set on mine tuned up to E (just barely reached, it is a 35" scale bass, the winding doesn't even reach the tuning peg so just the core wire is holding it). It sounds fine I guess but the tension is off and there are a couple of dead notes. (sounds like a wolf tone on an upright, written (not bass notated) middle C dies instantly, which is a problem).

Any suggestions? I have the bottom 4 strings as flats and the top two as rounds. I don't know if I will keep that setup or not in the long run. I also have string 2 in an unideal situation - it is just the high C string tuned down to B...so a replacement for that too might be good.

SLaPiNFuNK · #2 08-05-2011, 07:07 PM

Like a Major 3rd above a Standard 6 string bass C string?

Are you wanting a .020?

MTD makes a .020 that is Wound.. for a 35"...

Both in Nickel and Stainless Steel...

There are others in .018 and .020 but are Plain Steel...

kb9wyz · #3 08-05-2011, 07:09 PM

The tension requirements for rounds and flats is different, and I'm not sure about how healthy mixing the two is.

As for your question, I'm not sure what you're getting at. A 6 string bass is usually BEADGC. I know some people do EADGBE on their 6ers. Is that what you're doing?

As for wound, your high E, if you are tuned like I think you are, will be wound. I have never heard of an unwound string in the gauge you would need for a high E. A good place to get some bearing on gauge and tension would be D'Addario. They have all sorts of happy info there. It will be only for their strings, but it will generally carry over to other brands. (By generally, I mean if you stick with the same gauges, the relative tension between the strings should be similar, but not identical)

SLaPiNFuNK · #4 08-05-2011, 07:13 PM

Oh, , I missed the part about Flats...

Sorry about that...

Ill have to look around... Ill look at some other instrument strings as well...

Maybe a plain steel string would do the trick though? afterall, it is "flat"

Have you tried one?

cadence · #5 08-05-2011, 07:39 PM

SLaPiNFuNK - yes, that would be the pitch. a M3 up from the standard C that comes in 6 string sets.

kb9wyz - I was thinking that it would be ok to mix the flats and rounds in this case since the flats are TI's. The tension difference was fairly close judging by the small change in the neck relief that was done after switching from all round to this config. Yes, this is EADGBE, one octave down from guitar. Thanks for the info on D'Addario - I'll head over there and see what they have going on.

Thanks for the info so far guys. I assume the .020 is for round wound? Also, would anyone happen to know the standard gauge for sting 2 (B, half step below the standard C string for 6 string sets)?

cadence · #6 08-05-2011, 08:08 PM

Just threw whatever the C string was from my 6 string flat set (TI) and it seems to take the B better than the round, so seems string 2 is ok for now. Still wondering if there is a standard gauge there.

String 1 (high E) I have put on a .017 gauge plain steel string (G string from a guitar set). The tone is actually pretty nice. A bit loose tension wise of course, but not terrible. The main issue is that the volume is too much, being a steel string against the nickle TI's I guess...

knuckle_head · #7 08-06-2011, 12:57 AM

You are likely better served with a plain that thin, though there are some wounds. You just won't get more than 20-22 pounds on them as they're rather fragile.

And you intend to tune as a guitar - not in 4ths, yes?

For E and B you could go with a .020 and .033, for more tension consider a .021 and .035.

ixlramp · #8 08-06-2011, 01:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cadence

Just threw whatever the C string was from my 6 string flat set (TI) and it seems to take the B better than the round, so seems string 2 is ok for now. Still wondering if there is a standard gauge there.

SInce it is tuned only a semitone down to B, using a C string is fine, the tension will drop a little but that is a good thing since many C strings are fairly tight.
For the high E you can use a plain steel guitar string with an old bass ball-end threaded onto it. You may want to try an even lower gauge, such as .016, for a darker tone and possibly less volume.
You can buy plain steel strings for bass here: Circle K Strings - Single Strings - All tensions,scales, gauges