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4-stringed set tuned down, or 5-stringed set tuned up?

#23
bgavin said:
I'm paying $16 for the GHS heavy set. They get changed out once a month or so.
Click to expand...

That's a tough price to beat, but I might be able to. What do you think about this Fender Super Bass Medium 5 string set:

http://www.stringsandbeyond.com/fe71orstflba1.html

For $3 more, throw out the .105 and here's what her tension would look like:

C# - .125 -40lbs.
G# - .85 - 43lbs.
C# - .65 - 45lbs.
F# - .45 - 38lbs.

Far from perfect, but much more balanced and a much tighter low C# than what she's using now, all for under $20 a set with a .105 string to spare.
 
#25
According to information I've received, UW's of most manufacturers are very similar to what D'Addario has posted in a pdf file on their site. I punch that information into Greenboys spreadsheet tension calculator.

Those numbers for the Fender set may not be dead on, but they'll be close and the uniformity will certainly be better than the GHS set than you're using now. Plus the C# will be tighter and more responsive, with little or no nut modification necessary.
 
#26
Bass Below wrote:
Going back over my numbers, I probably should have gone with 50-65-90-120-175...

The 50 is a bit low, but the 55 is way high, it's almost a 14lb. jump. I admittedly don't play a helluva lot on that string anyway, so the neighborhood of 34lbs is fine.

I could have gone with a 70 in place of the 65, that would still keep me under 40lbs, but still significantly higher than my lower strings and I was more concerned with uniformity, for the sake of my neck..

Going with the 85 instead of the 90 was a mistake on my part, I must have misread my sloppy handwritten charts when I placed my order, the 90 was far enough below 40lbs. that uniformity wouldn't have been disturbed much. The 85 at F# checks in at under 32lbs... a little too floppy. Oh well, I f'd up. Like I said, soon I'll have my Knuckle Quake and this crap will be a nuisance of the past

The 120 is perfect. At C# it sits at around 36lbs.

I would have gone with a 175 in lieu of the 165 for my G#, but I couldn't find it readily available. I was lucky enough to find a place a mile away from me that had the 165's in stock. It was a big upgrade over the 130's. 132's and more recently 145's that I'm used to learning to deal with. It'll get me through the waiting period for the Knuckle.

Anyway, Rolle2k I guess my point is, choose wisely now. Do your research adn you'll save yourself alot of aggravation and alot of money.
Click to expand...

This is all very helpful for me, Because I also play C# Standard tuning. My only complication to this is that I sometimes drop the low string to a B for Drop B tuning.

Any thoughts?


Dan
 
#27
maglor64 said:
Bass Below wrote:


This is all very helpful for me, Because I also play C# Standard tuning. My only complication to this is that I sometimes drop the low string to a B for Drop B tuning.

Any thoughts?


Dan
Click to expand...


In that case I would suggest going with the .175 or even the .195 as your low string, especially if you plan on playing at that tuning for some time. With your low string heavier than what I'm currently using, you can drop it down to B and at least still have some tension. I'm not sure what kind of sound you'll get out of it, but it'll be much better than dropping that far down on a so called standard gauge string.

As I said in the post you quoted, change the 85 to a 90, and would stick with those gauges for the rest of the set. They're working out just fine for me. The only bad thing is that the stainless steel is devouring my fingerboard.
 
#29
Roland, I'm pretty sure you're right. I was going by the quick assumption that he was using a 5 string, tuned the way I do.

I assumed he was talking about dropping his 5th string (which if his standard tuning was C#, would be tuned to G#) down to B -1. Scary, but I would never mock trying new things.

Anyway, my mistake.

Maglor64, I would go with 50-65-90-120, that is assuming you're tuning C# standard on a 4 string. If you're going to be dropping that low string to a B on occasion, a .125 might be better. With a .125, you're still a hair under 40lbs. at C# and around 32 lbs. at B. Not great at B, but you wouldn't want to go much higher otherwise you'll be way too tight at C#.
 
#30
Roland777,

You are correct, I was referring to C# Standard on a 4 string, dropping the C# to a B.

Bass Below
Thank you,

I think your right on with the 125-90-65-50 set.


...however, things have become more complicated...

I play both bass and guitar. I have a home studio where I program drums/keys etc. and play bass and guitar. I have been refining by guitar tuning/string gauges as well as my bass string gauges, as of late.

You can view my guitar progress here:

Link Removed

Anyway, it’s looking like I will be settling around C standard tuning on my 6 string guitar (24 2/4” scale) and my 4 string bass (34” scale), both of which will be drop tuned about half of the time to drop Bb.

With all of this in mind, it seems like the way to go in terms of string gauges for my uses (assuming I don’t change my mind again:hmm: ) would be:
130-100-70-55

[A side benefit of this would be that I occasionally jam with a group of guys that play in E standard, and I could tune this set to B E A D. Standard 5 string tuning with the sacrifice of the G string.]

As you can see, I’m trying to get a lot out of one bass…


Thoughts?
 
#31
maglor64 said:
Roland777,Anyway, it’s looking like I will be settling around C standard tuning on my 6 string guitar (24 2/4” scale) and my 4 string bass (34” scale), both of which will be drop tuned about half of the time to drop Bb.

With all of this in mind, it seems like the way to go in terms of string gauges for my uses (assuming I don’t change my mind again:hmm: ) would be:
130-100-70-55

[A side benefit of this would be that I occasionally jam with a group of guys that play in E standard, and I could tune this set to B E A D. Standard 5 string tuning with the sacrifice of the G string.]

As you can see, I’m trying to get a lot out of one bass…


Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Here's what I came up with as the most ideal set for everything you want to do with one bass, without restringing it:

135-100-75-55

The 135 will give you a tension of about 40.5 lbs at C, when you drop to Bb you'll be at 32 lbs, which is low and a compromise, but still playable. Tuning BEAD to play with the standard tuned band, you'll be around 36 lbs. That is your most difficult string and that all works.

The 100 will give you a tension of about 41 lbs at F and about 36.5 at E (when you're BEAD). Very playable.

The 75 will give you 42 lbs at A# and 36 lbs at A

The 55 gives you 40 lbs at Eb and 35 lbs at D

So with your C standard, you have a tension all across the board that only varies by a pound and a half at the most from string to string. Plus, it's hovering around 40 lbs, which IMO is perfect.

When you drop that low string to Bb, it's gonna be a bit floppy, but that's just a compromise that you'll have to live with.

When you tune it BEAD, your tension only varies by a half a pound all the way across. At 36 lbs, it's still very playable.

I'm in a very similar situation. I messed around with string gauges for a long time with no success. I learned a ton from a member here who goes by the name greenboy. He aided me in two extremely significant ways: he opened my eyes to measuring string tension which helped me find a suitable solution to my tuning issues, and he pointed me in the direction of another member, knuckle_head, who is currently building my ultimate solution.

All of the advice I've given you so far is garbage compared to this: Contact knuckle-head. It was the best thing I ever did. I know you want to accomplish all of your goals with one bass, I did too. I jam with some friends sometimes, playing covers, and I want to tune my bass standard when I do that, but with my gauge set up, I can't. Once I get my bass from knuckle_head, my Stingray will go back to semi-normal string gauges and will be tuned standard. My Knuckle Quake will be my regular bass, tuned G#-C#-F#-B-E. With normal gauges on the 39.5" scale length, I will not only have the ideal tension, but the use of thinner strings to achieve the same low notes will give me a much better sound. The 165 I'm using now does the job, and gives me adequate tension, but all of those heavy wraps on that string audibly deaden the sound. To accomplish that same G# with a much lighter string is a dream.

I know what everyone says, they can't afford another bass, especially a custom bass.... neither can I, but I'm finding a way to afford it because it will be worth so much more to me than the monetary value.

Just my two cents ;) :bassist:
 
#33
I have some concerns about going so heavy:

1. Will the wrapping needed for 135 be significantly more than 120-130 to a degree that would be noticeably sound deadening?

2. Will I have to file the nut for the 135 to the point that it (the nut) would have to be replaced to hold a traditional E standard set?

3. Will I have to file the nut for the 100?
 
#34
maglor64 said:
I have some concerns about going so heavy:

1. Will the wrapping needed for 135 be significantly more than 120-130 to a degree that would be noticeably sound deadening?

2. Will I have to file the nut for the 135 to the point that it (the nut) would have to be replaced to hold a traditional E standard set?

3. Will I have to file the nut for the 100?
Click to expand...

There is not a significant difference between a .135 and a .130, and the slight benefit in tension will likely prove beneficial

It is in your best interest to get a new nut as a thicker string will want to sit higher off of the fret board than a nut cut for a standard E tuning - upside is if you end up wanting to put it back you have the old one to put back in (provided the old one comes out undamaged in the replacement process).
 

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