fifths tuning and metal

[wshines1892]

As I've been getting more and more into metal music, I've noticed two common things among bass players.

1. The majority of them play 5 strings, or more
2. A lot of them end up doing these ridiculous stretches to try and span five frets at a time in a passage.

I recently have begun tuning my bass in fifths, and what I have found is that by tuning a 4 string B, F#, C#, G#, you gain a little over the range of a 5 string in a 4 string, and you have more notes available to you in a smaller span of fretboard.

What this means, to me anyway, is that you can play faster because you don't have to stretch your hand as much to reach those far off notes. It does require some shifting, but the pros outweigh the cons in my mind.

I'm just curious why this isn't more popular?

[Pollinator95]

Well, for bassists with poor fretboard knowledge, it would be harder to learn from tabs or from their guitarist. Also, you´ve got to up-tune quite a lot if you don´t want that low B. And if you want a low B, a five-string looks cooler.

[guroove]

Scales and minor thirds are harder to play tuned in 5ths. Also, string tension would be very loose on lower strings and very tight on higher strings with standard available string sets.

[superbassman2000]

IMO BEAD is just as useful

I've been to metal shows, and it's a rare occasion that the bass player would go above the 12th fret on the G string, and when they do, they drop out of the mix. One may think they are trying to do something different by playing up that high, but in that genre, the soundguy just EQ'ed you out. Sure there are the wild cards in the genre, but until you can afford to bring your own soundguy to the show, you are going to find your progressiveness and forward thought being silenced (literally!)

[anonymous122511]

Originally Posted by guroove

Scales and minor thirds are harder to play tuned in 5ths. Also, string tension would be very loose on lower strings and very tight on higher strings with standard available string sets.

You wouldn't use a standard 4ths tuning set. A search will turn up a few threads that talk about 5ths tuning gauges.

[wshines1892]

Yes, I did have to take measures in order to purchase the string set. It just seems that there's far more utility in fifths tuning though.

Also, a minor third is only three frets away from a root? Even if you're talking about an octave up, that's still easily within reach. Like I said, it may take some reworking of the way you play scales, but honestly how often do you use all of the notes in a scale chromatically anyway?

As for a 5 string looking cooler, imagine what tuning in fifths can do when you add extra strings if it can make a 4 string have a wider range than a 5. You could easily at that point have the upper register of a 6 string on a 5 string bass. You'd then tune B, F#, C#, G#, D#. Assuming the two instruments have 24 frets, you've now gained an additional two frets in the upper register when compared to a 6 string with only 5 strings

[jady]

FWIW Double bass is the only Orchestral Stringed instrument to not be tuned in 5ths.

[anonymous122511]

Originally Posted by jady

FWIW Double bass is the only Orchestral Stringed instrument to not be tuned in 5ths.

Unless you're Red Mitchell......