Just got a 5 string Pointers??

[joegeezer]

After 37 years of playing, I just took the plunge to a 5 string. Looking for pointers and advise on helping me get used to it.
Hopefully someone who has switched from a four, after years of playing can maybe give some advise on things they have learned, to help a guy to not fall into bad habits with it. A few of the pro's I have talked with, have said they wouldn't go back to a 4 anymore, once they were used to their 5.It won't be here for about a week, and I ordered a new set of DR Highbeams for it, and will get it set-up and ready to play within a week or so. HELP!!

[JimmyM]

Ya, some love their 5's, and others like me abandoned it almost completely after an initial infatuation. But to get used to it, all you have to do is play it. And remember that your E is no longer the lowest string.

[chaosMK]

Just ease into it. If you have a few favorite practice routines that you'd use on a 4 string, just move them a string down. The rest is musical judgement.

[olaff421]

+1 on remembering the low B.

This next tip isn't for you so much as for any guitarist you play with. If they have never palyed with someone with a 5, and you come up with a line, tell them to ignore the low B. If they are looking to you for the bass line in a new song, that 5th string will mess them up everytime. Niether of the guitar players in my band now had played with a 5 string player. It took me about 2-3 practices to get them to remember that the low E isn't my low note. After that everything started to sound in tune again.

[scottyd]

It wont take long to get used to, I jump from five to four to six ect all the time, the fours the only one that feels a little wierd now.

[Orco87]

My 4 feels like home, on the 5 I can't travel as easy and fast as I can on the 4...

....on the 4 though, I do miss that B string. You do get accustomed to it and start doing more licks on the e-string (I find).

[dave_p]

dont think of it initially as having lower notes at your disposal. think of it as being able to play low E and F stuff in closed positions now. when you get used to it you will start to find a use for those lower notes (like grabbing a fifth but a lower one. or grabbing a low octave etc)
for me at least it was all about extending my range while reducing shifting. and being able to play in closed positions. and never having to drop my E string to D for that occasional oddball song during a gig.
now i tend to be at a loss when i pick up a four.

[ryco]

Originally Posted by JimmyM

But to get used to it, all you have to do is play it. And remember that your E is no longer the lowest string.

+1 on this part of the post

It took me awhile to get used to my 5er. I still have 4s around and love to play 'em, but I really enjoy the 5.

It may feel a little weird having the extra string but play it ALOT. I'd only practice on the 5er and in about a week it started to feel normal. What kinda helped me was to remember the A string is in the middle. I don't know if this helped anyone else or not.

Once in a while I'll have a brain fart, esp when writing, and think the B is the E, even after 7 years!