Jaco only needed 4 strings ..... and a bunch of other stuff.
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4 to 5...5 to 6...Does It Ever End?
- Thread starter Discount Bassy
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- bass five string gas gould six string
ps. your gould looks just like my Q6
Once I got to 6 I went and bought a 4 string Jazz bass and love the simplicity.
Keep your 5 and pick up a 6 to try it out. The way I see it every bass has it's own song and voice. It's nice to have different options and see what takes your fancy each time you go to pick up a bass.
Keep your 5 and pick up a 6 to try it out. The way I see it every bass has it's own song and voice. It's nice to have different options and see what takes your fancy each time you go to pick up a bass.
I went straight from 4 to 6 on electric and never looked back. I only bust out the 4 which is, of course, the passive P bass with flats (hold the tort), when I can't bring my upright instead.
Be prepared to go back at some point too. I played 5 string for 17 years and now always play 4 string. I do miss the B string for resting my thumb though.
It's not a big deal to me. 5 or 6 if you want or need them. I prefer a 4 string as a main bass, mainly because I don't have much use for a low B. I prefer the clanky sound of drop D if I need to play metal and don't really like the sound of the low B below the E-flat. 4 strings are also better for slapping for me. The low B helps more if you play in the upper register but I prefer a high C because I prefer the sounds of notes fretted lower in the fretboard. For fretless I do prefer extended range (24 frets and a high C) because I don't feel there are any compromises but it's a different story for me fretted.
Lets give this some context. Do string players want more strings? horn players want more valves? The cool thing in drums now is one up two down plus BD...bare minimum...small tight and tasty.
Guitars want 8 instead of 6? I think the answer is a resounding no. And lets not forget, out in the audience bass is just a mushy drone....
My take. Four string P bass and practise like my life depends on it. I sound pretty darn good....The audiences certainly seem to think so.
Guitars want 8 instead of 6? I think the answer is a resounding no. And lets not forget, out in the audience bass is just a mushy drone....
My take. Four string P bass and practise like my life depends on it. I sound pretty darn good....The audiences certainly seem to think so.
It just depends on the player and context. Most jazz saxophonists play more than one horn. Did Coltrane and Wayne Shorter want more range and different timbres? Yes, that's why they picked up soprano as well. Other string instruments were designed for the classical context where you'd generally be encroaching on another instrument's space by extending an instrument's range. But with electric and contemporary music outside of an orchestral context this is less of a concern. Guitarists generally prefer 6 because of chordal fingering, but plenty use extended range because it suits what they're trying to achieve. There's no need to be dogmatic about it either way, it's just personal preference. For me? I'm with you, I generally prefer four but not for the reasons you stated. And bass is only mushy drone live if you play a P bass
(only teasing of course).
That's how it starts I recently got my first 7 and now I'm hooked
I started on 4, quickly went on to 5, was happy for about 15 years, then began wondering about 6.
I had not one but two very nice 5 strings that I liked a lot. I thought about getting a cheap 6 to try out the concept, but realized that I would have to get a nice 6 string, one that can transport the feeling of playing a good bass as well as having 6 strings. With a custom made 5 string bass and a cheap clunker with 6 strings, I could see myself gravitate towards the better bass, regardless of string count.
I ran across an Ibanez BTB single cut 6 string that I happened to like a lot. It was significantly cheaper than my other basses, but it quickly became my main player. So when I made my attempt at buying the "pry it from my cold, dead fingers" bass, I chose six strings.
This only has been a couple of years ago, but I am very confident that I've reached the end of the line in terms of string count. I have zero interest in anything extending further than 6 strings. I have no use for anything below the low B or above the high C - and with the string spacing I prefer, I can play the entire neck, but I'm at the maximum of what my fingers can reach with comfort.
There is a reason that the traditional string count is 4, there are a ton of 5 string models, a lot fewer 6 string models (did Fender make any beyond the Steve Bailey sig model?), and then there's a steep drop, and only the adventurous companies offer a single model with even more strings.
I had not one but two very nice 5 strings that I liked a lot. I thought about getting a cheap 6 to try out the concept, but realized that I would have to get a nice 6 string, one that can transport the feeling of playing a good bass as well as having 6 strings. With a custom made 5 string bass and a cheap clunker with 6 strings, I could see myself gravitate towards the better bass, regardless of string count.
I ran across an Ibanez BTB single cut 6 string that I happened to like a lot. It was significantly cheaper than my other basses, but it quickly became my main player. So when I made my attempt at buying the "pry it from my cold, dead fingers" bass, I chose six strings.
This only has been a couple of years ago, but I am very confident that I've reached the end of the line in terms of string count. I have zero interest in anything extending further than 6 strings. I have no use for anything below the low B or above the high C - and with the string spacing I prefer, I can play the entire neck, but I'm at the maximum of what my fingers can reach with comfort.
There is a reason that the traditional string count is 4, there are a ton of 5 string models, a lot fewer 6 string models (did Fender make any beyond the Steve Bailey sig model?), and then there's a steep drop, and only the adventurous companies offer a single model with even more strings.
That is a purty bass. I am aiming at a color a good bit darker with a grain pattern a bit larger, but that is a fine piece of equipment.
uhh..you have 5 string cellos en violins, 10 string guitars etc. Ever looked at Terry Bozzio's kit? A four string P is so clichee, let me guess sunburst with torts and flats?
I also play a bari sax because my tenor didn't go low enough and an alto when it wasn't high enough. My drum kit is 3 up and 3 down. I like range and options.
Go for it but keep the 5. You might itch for it again and it’s paid for.
I went down the similar journey with a Ken Smith BSR6, only the other way. Started out fretless 6 as I had always played fretless most of my life and wanted a fretted 6. I bought a Clemens 6 but found the fingerboards were to different each time I picked them up. So I found a companion BSR6 fretted. I loved the Clemens and was sad to see it go as he makes a really high quality bass but I love having 2 of the exact same basses to switch back and forth when needed.
Now I play almost exclusively upright. I keep both of the 6’s, a Carvin 5 and a Schecter studio 4, (a great 4 string bass) as there are calls for each of them though I don’t seek them out. Sometimes I just pick them up and put a smile on my face.
Also read all the threads of people wishing they’d never sold there old bass. Tastes and bodies change over the years.
I'm a 5er guy through and through. Made the transition a quarter of a century ago and never looked back.
That being said, I've owned three 6 string basses. The first was my Wishbass fretless which was surprisingly playable.
One day I fell in love with a 6 string fretted Warwick. Turned out to be lust. Too wide. Returned it by the end of the weekend. Was devastatingly heavy and wide. Not my kinda girl.
Then a few years later I bought a TL 6 off of Reverb for short money. Too wide. Too heavy. My slapping popping routine ended up with Tourettes. Sold her for what I paid.
I'd be open to the right fretless 6 but she never quite arrives. I'm ok with that. Like Scott from Scotts Bass lessons says, a 6 makes you want to noodle and not actually play.
That being said, I've owned three 6 string basses. The first was my Wishbass fretless which was surprisingly playable.
One day I fell in love with a 6 string fretted Warwick. Turned out to be lust. Too wide. Returned it by the end of the weekend. Was devastatingly heavy and wide. Not my kinda girl.
Then a few years later I bought a TL 6 off of Reverb for short money. Too wide. Too heavy. My slapping popping routine ended up with Tourettes. Sold her for what I paid.
I'd be open to the right fretless 6 but she never quite arrives. I'm ok with that. Like Scott from Scotts Bass lessons says, a 6 makes you want to noodle and not actually play.
I wish you luck in your journey. Sometimes, more strings and range under your hands is exactly what you need. For the record, I stopped at 8.
uhh..you have 5 string cellos en violins, 10 string guitars etc. Ever looked at Terry Bozzio's kit? A four string P is so clichee, let me guess sunburst with torts and flats?
Ok granted there are some orchestras playing five strings but they are not the norm. Anyway forget all that . You dissing P basses? Go away and come back when uve had a think and done some research. Oh, and get off my lawn too!...... hahaha
