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4 or 6 to start with

#41
From a feel and silent practice standpoint, it shouldn't make much of a difference at all. I wouldn't chalk up the guys with 4-bangers hating on or not being skilled enough to use a 6, there are just different things that are important to individual players. Extra strings can mean fewer string options (DEFINITELY higher string cost to move from a 4 to a 5 or more), difficulty for your amp + cab to reproduce a low B well, and differences in tension as compared to a 4 stringer. I play pretty hard and have strong hands so I like a little extra tension but don't necessarily want a .115 E string to get that. The absolute lowest we go is drop C#, so I can tune down with adequate strings and setup to get that low at a comfortable tension for me.

YMMV, the 6'er may be essential in your band or just plain feel better to you. Just wanted to give an opinion from the other side of the fence on why I and others may use 4's instead of 5's or 6's. Just some food for thought before you make the plunge :bassist:
 
#42
Start on a 6.

If I was comfortable on a 6 I'd be playing one. I tried it. Wasn't right for me. I'd like to have the extra range for soloing at jazz gigs so I may try a 5 strung E-C someday. I am playing 5's now with a basic jazz bass in the closet - just in case.

Play what you want and be happy.
 
#43
Good luck finding a passive 6, the only passive 6 I can think of off hand is the Dingwall ABZ, which can come in active.

I am passive guy as well, and I gave up finding a passive 6, the closest I have is my Carvin with active/passive.

As others have said, the bass probably does have passive pickups with an active pre-amp, active pickups aren't as common in the entry level but they are out there.

Sounds like you are already set on your 6, whatever you pick there is no wrong answer. I highly recommend you play them before buying though, test out the B string they will vary vastly from manufacturer to manufacturer.
 
#44
TeeZeeMee90 said:
The extra strings can be ignored when not needed
Click to expand...
Not quite - when not being used they will be accidentally plucked, struck, sympathetically resonate, and generally muddy up your sound. Learning to play a 5, 6, or more stringed instrument requires more attention to management (muting) of the open strings as compared to a 4 string.

Depending on your goals, you can start with any number of strings but you will have to do a bit more than ignore the extras...
Just sayin'
 
#46
I wish I had started on a 6, or at least a 5. I played for several years before getting into 5 and 6 strings and could not believe what I was missing. After taking a break for almost 2 years and having only a 4 string acoustic bass with a bowed neck to practice on during that period, I'm jumping back in head first to a fretless 6-string. I figure if I can master that, I'll be pretty set.

Like someone else said, it doesn't really make sense starting off with less and having to learn more. Why not start off learning more so that when you need less you'll already have that knowledge covered?
 
#47
A 6 string bass gives tons of tonal range. For a player who wants to play solo stuff I´d say a 6 would be a good choice. Theory and scales are the same on a 4 or 6 string, you just have more room on the fretboard. As you have large hands you can´t go wrong. But persons with small hands can play a 6 string bass too of course if the hand positioning is done in a proper way. ;)
 
#48
TeeZeeMee90 said:
They have said they're active... unless its false advertisement. I guess what sets me off from active is the whole on board EQ and then ANOTHER one on the amp itself.
Click to expand...

Just set everything "flat" on the onboard preamp. They can come in handy as you can make quick EQ tweaks on the fly without having to reach for your amp. They can also be set at different frequencies that may not be adjustable on your amp, for extra tone shaping.
 
#49
JamesGoodall said:
I say if you like six, start with a six. The argument that one should start with a four and from there move up to five, then six, etc. is IMHO flawed. Someone already gave the analogy that a pianist wont start with a 49 key, then a 66 key and then finally get up to an 88 key piano. That is my perspective, but I in no way view fours as inferior. I sometimes wish I had one to trade out with my 6 every once in a while.
And though you may spend most of your time on the EADG strings, after a while you learn tasteful applications within your technique for the higher and lower notes.

My 2 cents.

*cough*Jaco only needed four*cough*jazz bass with flats forever*cough*
Click to expand...

The problem with that analogy is that an 88 key piano is the standard. Like a 4 string bass is the standard.

The 49 and 66 key analogy would be like claiming you should start on a 2 or 3 string bass :D

Why would a pianist start on a standard 88 key piano when they can start on a 97 key!

Though I do agree that you should just start on what you feel most motivated to play. If you are more motivated to play a 6, you'll probably play it more and learn faster.
 
#50
In my opion, you should begin with a 4 string bass. This way it's the best and easiest to learn to play bass properly. If you want to have more strings when you have build up some experience, then you could make a jump from 4 to 6 strings, if you prefer that :)

Good luck! :p
 
#52
Start on a 5, active/passive preamp with NORMAL passive preamp.
So many choices and many of them "traditional" models.
Going from a 5 to 6 is an intuitive 3 day learning curve.
Going from 4 to either 5 or 6 was traumatic for me, and I eventually got rid of almost all my 4 strings as unplayable.
 
#53
I see no reason why you couldn't start on a six. I played a 4-banger for about 12 years and a 5 for about 11. I've been a 6-string player for the last year and I have no plans to go back. I still love to pick up the 4-string every now and then but I don't gig with it anymore. The theory and concepts that are important to playing bass doesn't care about how many strings you have.

and if you like passive just change the pickups, if not now, later.
 
#55
Hey everyone, I really want to thank you for your opinions...even the more harsh ones haha...love to you too.

I went by a really neat local place yesterday when I had time after work and tried out all kinds of basses. 4, 5 and 6. I was there for about an hour when I saw IT...it was a preowned MIM Jazz V in a wine red. Absolutely stunning. I had the guy who owns the store play a bit for me because I know he would be able to do much better than me right now and then I did what little I do know. Apparently he said whoever turned it in did some internal work that they checked out just to make sure and it was good. The work essentially swapped out the standard electronics with the American Deluxe ones, but since they didnt have luthier do it they couldnt charge more for it. The head stock had a few chips but nothing major and he even played it next to a standard MIM to show me. I was sold. It felt so great, so much so I went home and played it for about 2 hours. All in all only cost me shy of 450.

I am very happy and I can't wait to keep playing.
 
#56
There's no reason not to start on a 6, but there are some considerations that you might want to think about:

- getting good instruction specific to the 6 is going to be a lot harder if you plan to work with an instructor. Already in this thread as you've probably already noticed, there's some bad information about the 6 being propagated even from instructors themselves. Notions such as playing the 6 is exactly the same as a 4 (no, there are definite technique/stylistic/tone differences), you have to pay a fortune to get a good B string (also wrong) and so on. The pedagogical tradition of the electric bass is already bad enough since the instrument is only about 50 years old. But for 5+ string basses, it's even worse. If you're going to teach yourself, this isn't really a big deal. But if you want to find an instructor that knows the 6 in and out it's going to be a lot tougher than for the 4.
- make sure you'll be able to physically handle a 6 string full-time. I turned out to not be able to, but I was already permanantly injured when I started on the 6. So now I can only play my 6 part time.
- an inexpensive 6 is just fine to start with. I learned on a fretted Washburn 6 that I bought new for $800 or something like that. Nowadays you can get really good 6's for even less and their B strings will be just fine. So don't feel like you have to spend a fortune.
- do, however, make sure the instrument you get is properly balanced. Neck dive is a problem with a lot of 6'ers, even some high end coffee-tables can have this problem. My current 6 is a Carvin Bunny which has decent balance. It's not ideal on the strap, but perfectly serviceable for someone who's not injured like me.
- the fretless 6 is perfectly doable also (my Bunny is an unlined FL), though you may be woodshedding for a bit longer to get used to it than if you start on a fretted. Finding an instructor on the fretless 6 will be even harder, though, and may be impossible unless you can get hold of Steve Bailey :).

So I say go for it and have a good time,

LS
 
#57
TeeZeeMee90 said:
Hey everyone, I really want to thank you for your opinions...even the more harsh ones haha...love to you too.

I went by a really neat local place yesterday when I had time after work and tried out all kinds of basses. 4, 5 and 6. I was there for about an hour when I saw IT...it was a preowned MIM Jazz V in a wine red. Absolutely stunning. I had the guy who owns the store play a bit for me because I know he would be able to do much better than me right now and then I did what little I do know. Apparently he said whoever turned it in did some internal work that they checked out just to make sure and it was good. The work essentially swapped out the standard electronics with the American Deluxe ones, but since they didnt have luthier do it they couldnt charge more for it. The head stock had a few chips but nothing major and he even played it next to a standard MIM to show me. I was sold. It felt so great, so much so I went home and played it for about 2 hours. All in all only cost me shy of 450.

I am very happy and I can't wait to keep playing.
Click to expand...

Are Noiseless (is there Noiseless written above pickups cover?)
the pickups on your brand new bass?
How are machineheads on it? 5 inline Gotoh self lubrificatin' ones or 4+1 oper gear Vinatge tuners?

Enjoy your bass!

Cheers,
Wallace
 
#59
Wallace320 said:
Are Noiseless (is there Noiseless written above pickups cover?)
the pickups on your brand new bass?
How are machineheads on it? 5 inline Gotoh self lubrificatin' ones or 4+1 oper gear Vinatge tuners?

Enjoy your bass!

Cheers,
Wallace
Click to expand...

They have something written on them, I dont recall what though. I would have to look again after this longgggggg day at work. I just wanna be back playing.

I dont know how new they are, they look to be in untouched condition though if used.

The tuners are inline 5's which honestly I like more, visually at least. They tune very well and I will let you know how well in tune they stay after a bit.

I ordered some "Chromes", to get used to playing flats. Cant wait for them to come in.:hyper:
 
#60
Mike in Chicago said:
Get a 4, get all the motown and Jackson 5 stuff you can, learn it and check back in a couple years.

Christ Almighty! Everyone wants to run before they can walk.
Click to expand...

I don't agree. You can learn Motown and Jackson 5 stuff on a 4, 5 or 6. String numbers have nothing to do with ability to groove or rock or chord or solo or...

Enjoy your 5 string.
 

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