4 and 5 string players

[roccobass]

I've played 4's predominantly over the years. Sound and comfort are what I look for. I've had a few 5's (Warwick, Fender,Birdsong) but always gravitated back to my 4s. Never been in a situation that really really had to have a 5 string so I play what I like, which is a 4. My choice based on my selfish wants!. But play what makes you happy, is what say.

 

[Seth DuSith]

I prefer looking for 5 strings, but I won't turn down a nice 4 string. Most of my future purchases are 5 string but I still plan to get a nice 4 string P Bass

 

[lomo]

Question for those that play 5 strings and BEAD 4 strings. Which one is harder to switch to back and forth from a standard tuned 4 string? How much do you miss the G string when playing BEAD? I need to play some lower notes for some songs with my band. I've been saving up for my dream 5 string that hasn't come out yet and not sure when it will come out. I have a rogue series 3 that I am looking to upgrade from; I don't like how it preforms with louder, heavier music and I'm still not as good on it as I am with a 4 string. I do have some quality 4 strings that I could put BEAD strings on. So I am trying to decide if I should give up on the dream bass and buy different bass of comparable quality, stick with the Rogue for now, or use BEAD tuning.

I'm a hobbyist...been playing for 21 years....started on a 4.....went exclusively to 5ers after 5 years....then early this year after 15 years of only 5s I tried BEAD on a 4 and loved it. I tried it in order to force myself to think about lines in a different way, but now I play the BEAD 4s about 90% of the time. I almost never miss the G, and I never NEED it, but there are still some tunes I enjoy playing a little more on the 5. If I had to choose only 1 format, at this point it'd be BEAD because it's easier to mute and makes me less likely to wank and more likely to play supportively (just my choice).

 

[NocoLaw]

I have others, but am using 4 and 5 string Fender Am. Pro II Jazzes. When I’m playing out, I want an old school sound for country, Americana and Texas guitar rock.

I have primarily played the 5 for the last couple of years +\-, and I find it easier for most of what we play; particularly lead-in notes below, because I stay pretty low on most of it. I also use it if I’m going to be jamming, because of the range and ease of transposing on the fly - especially since some people can’t accurately give a progression, or even key, sometimes.

That said, I’m still faster and more comfortable with the rock that requires faster moves and bigger jumps on the 4, so I’ll use it for those if I can make that work. I’m less likely to get timid about where I am in a move on 4 - I’m sure that’s a practice/skill issue. The BEAD 4 is intriguing - I haven’t tried it.