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4 String Bass Limitations
- Thread starter Ron G
- Start date
For some songs, for some music ......I like loud and farty
I always play four stringers. Always have. I've never even tried a 5-stringer.
One of these these I'll give it a try. But I have smaller hands, so finding a 5 stringer that will work for me may be diffiecult.
No matter how you try to phrase it or spin it, there are limitations to a 4 string bass. There are limitations to a fretted bass. There are things they can't do that others can so in comparison, they are in fact limited. If that is limiting to the player or music is another debate.
I play a 5 because I use the B string to overcome some of the limitations (for me and my gigs) that a 4 string presents for me - mostly key and fingerings. I do use the extended range, but not all that often, and hopefully with taste.
When I play a 4 string, I don't dislike it at all. I also don't feel limited, but I do feel I can't do EVERYTHING that I want, so I play a 5.
I play a 5 because I use the B string to overcome some of the limitations (for me and my gigs) that a 4 string presents for me - mostly key and fingerings. I do use the extended range, but not all that often, and hopefully with taste.
When I play a 4 string, I don't dislike it at all. I also don't feel limited, but I do feel I can't do EVERYTHING that I want, so I play a 5.
YAMAHA TRB5PII , it's for smaller hand. This model has been made for Abe Laboriel ..But again , it's a 3000$ bass
Not sure how he does it, but I swear he gets a 5th note out of 4 strings somehow.
- Aug 27, 2003
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The only limitation is is in the mind of the player! A great bassist is a great bassist no matter how many strings. I used to play a five string about twenty years ago, but I got sick of it and realized I am a four string guy, I don't even like the sound of a low B string. I like to climb the neck and use the upper registers to add my flavor! Plus I recognized that all the legendary bassists I loved all played four string basses.
There is no right answer, only what is right for you, that is the beauty of music!
There is no right answer, only what is right for you, that is the beauty of music!
Yep, there is no limitation, it's a matter of taste , I don't like the sound of the B string ...but I find the C string interesting .
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I've seen this opinion posted by many and it's just plain WRONG.
A great bassist IS a great bassist no matter what instrument he/she plays. But to then make the logical leap that instruments have no musical limitations is total nonsense!
EVERY instrument has sonic limitations. No instrument does it all. And sonic limitations transfer immediately into musical limitations. To be sure, great players have ways of getting around and covering up those limitations. So as you are going down to low Eb on a 4 string, the last note simply isn't there. There are ways to cover that fact up. You can turn the tuner down. You can take the last note up an octave. You can change the run to something different. But obviously the "greatness" of the player only relates to their ability to "work around" the limitations of that instrument. It in no way implies that the instrument itself has no limitations.
Personally, I learned on a 4 string and played them for MANY MANY years. But it was SO obvious to me that they were seriously limited. When I saw my first 5 string I jumped on it. The sky opened up. A rainbow appeared. unicorns began prancing about sprinkling gold dust. So finally after all those years of playing 4 string I was sick to death of the limitations. And soon after the 5 came the 6 and the 7 string. I agree there is nothing like sailing up the neck! So why suffer with a 4 string classic Fender when a nice 24 fret 6 or 7 string lifts the cap off what you can do?
I just had to realize that all "real" basses have 5 or more strings and I'm a "real" bass kind of guy! And anyway, all the great players I love would never be caught dead with the limitations of a 4 string bass.
This... although IMHO the real question should be not what are the limitations of a 4 but what are the advantages of a 5.. Both are limited by the skill and creativity of the player.. but a 5 basically offers you the ability to play those lower notes from a low B to Eb without altering your tuning and they also give you a little more wiggle room across the fretboard.
I play both a fiver and a 4 string. Like to have the versatility the 5 offers. My 5 string was not that expensive - an Ibanez SR505, and the low B string sounds great all along the neck. Still using the Elixer's on it. But - I don't think it's really necessary, just a personal preference.
A five string gives you two things: 1) 5 notes you can't play on a 4 string, and 2) less hand motion required to play certain patterns. On the other hand, a 5 string may be more costly (including string cost), heavier, and have a wider fingerboard and/or reduced string spacing. I would judge that none of these considerations is particularly serious. Play it before you buy a bass with any number of strings.
5 strings let you play more notes in the same position, It's very interesting, but a good B string is hard to find . It's good to have a wider range of notes but it's better to have a good sounding bass and a good technique/knowledge of theory and creativity/imagination. And nothing can limit that . If you want to be a great bass player wheter on a 4/5/6/7/8 or even with 3 strings (broken G string) do your best with what you have .
I had to finish a gig with 3 strings once , and nobody noticed I had broken a string until I told them. Of course it was a bit harder, it forced me to get out of my comfort, but the basic theory I hated so much : scales, arpegios , etc.. helped me a lot that day , and it forced me to be more creative.
I had to finish a gig with 3 strings once , and nobody noticed I had broken a string until I told them. Of course it was a bit harder, it forced me to get out of my comfort, but the basic theory I hated so much : scales, arpegios , etc.. helped me a lot that day , and it forced me to be more creative.
It's far from difficult to find a good B these days. I have a room full of them. You just can't be super cheap. If cheap, you can't dismiss 35" scale.
Like everything it depends on the music you play. I play Gospel and and contemporary jazz and I'm using my B string regularly so a 4 would not work "for me". If the songs you play don't need a B string then "you" don't need a B string.
