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5-string or BEAD?
- Thread starter mini-milli
- Start date
Warwick used to but as far as I know they don't anymore and nobody else has one that's not custom.
If that's a bit of a road block, then by all means, give BEAD a whirl. It's not like it's irreversible.
I’m trying out BEAD right now for the 1st time……I haven’t play it enough to give you an honest opinion. Just buy a 5 string set and give it a go.
Since you like SR’s I suggest you skip the 5 and get their entry SR6’r.
I got a GSR206 from Sweetwater for three bones with tapes and it’s is absolutely amazing.
I like the EQ and p/u’s on the 306 a bit more but it’s another $150 and they aren’t easy to find.
I got a GSR206 from Sweetwater for three bones with tapes and it’s is absolutely amazing.
I like the EQ and p/u’s on the 306 a bit more but it’s another $150 and they aren’t easy to find.
Get a 6 string, that way you have a 4 string, a 5 string and a high C for good measure. One bass covers all the bases (or basses).
I’d miss the doink doink of my G. Get a 5.
Other reason to get a 5 is you can make sure you find one with a taut B.
Other reason to get a 5 is you can make sure you find one with a taut B.
This can’t hurt. I like your reasoning.
In a way a 6 string is like 5 2 strings. Let’s Go!
But either way if you have a 4 learn something new.
Ric5
Inactive
- Jan 29, 2008
- 29,772
- 30,452
- Disclosures
- I like 5, 8, 10, and 12 string basses
I would do all three. Gdae, daeb, and gdaeb. :-D
me… i am going gdae, gdaeb, and gdaebf# >_<
More like 3 2 strings, or 2 3 strings, or 6 1 strings. I don't believe in limiting myself to just 4.
I like tactile familiarity. I mean you're talking about going Ibanez to Ibanez, so I'm sure that isn't an issue as much. Honestly didn't consider the money savings when I chose BEAD, just based it on how poorly I played on 5's. White one is BEAD (65-125). Black one is standard (45-105). I'm biased but this is really working for me. Highly recommended. You'll just end up with extra g strings around, but those are all I ever break anyway, so not a total waste.
I like the idea of a 6-string but I haven't found one that the neck is comfortable for me to play, they're just so fat!
I'm in the BEAD camp for a few reasons....
Neck comfort, personally I prefer the feel of narrower necks.
Weight, a 5 will generally weigh more than a 4.
You can easily revert the bass back to EADG if you don't like it.
Less investment to try it out.
I have owned and gigged a 5 in the past so I'm not just saying this because it's a preference. I'm also not saying there are not positives to 5ers. With that said, there is a negative to a BEAD bass in that you may not play it often and might miss playing the bass you convert. This happened to me.
Neck comfort, personally I prefer the feel of narrower necks.
Weight, a 5 will generally weigh more than a 4.
You can easily revert the bass back to EADG if you don't like it.
Less investment to try it out.
I have owned and gigged a 5 in the past so I'm not just saying this because it's a preference. I'm also not saying there are not positives to 5ers. With that said, there is a negative to a BEAD bass in that you may not play it often and might miss playing the bass you convert. This happened to me.
Playing BEAD and higher on the fretboard rather than move down to a G can be fun and interesting. There's an entire half of a fretboard that someone like me would ignore if I had an extra string. Keeps things interesting and fun. I tried to force myself to like 5, but eventually gave up on it and realized it's not for me. With that being said I've seen these 5+ string bass players do AMAZING things, and it's fun to hear and admire, it's just not why I personally play bass.
I've been playing a 5 since 1993 but, what do you have to lose converting to BEAD? Nothing more than the price of a set of strings. If you don't like the way it sounds, go for a 5.
If you just want to try out a 5 string on the cheap try one of these. They are a poor person's Ibanez.
Glarry GIB 5 String Electric Bass Guitar SS Pick-up Burlywood Transparent Yellow Sunset Brown - Glarrymusic
Glarry GIB 5 String Electric Bass Guitar SS Pick-up Burlywood Transparent Yellow Sunset Brown - Glarrymusic
This question comes up frequently, and the logic to coming to a reasonable conclusion is straightforward:
1. If you want a B string, and don't want a G string, then go BEAD.
2. If you want a B string, and want a G string, then get a five string bass.
That makes up 90 percent of your decision.
Basically, all you have to do is know what range you want/need, and you have your answer.
I started out with a hand fabricated extra long scale BEAD bass, specifically for playing in a friend's metal band that played in C# standard drop B, and wrote every song in B. Not my cup up tea, but I was helping him out (ended up being for about 18 months), and didn't want to set up any of my regular basses as BEAD basses. I didn't need the G, and I liked the feel and look of a classic 4-string. So I made the circa 36" scale BEAD bass.
I got my first five string largely because I am a G&L collector, and it was a very rare and very cool L-5000 that happened to come up. I strung it up EADGC, because the bass felt terrible in BEADG, with its 15mm string spacing and 1 11/16" nut width: all five strings crammed in to a normal width G&L bass neck. Basically, I turned the L-5000 into a G&L version of the Fender Bass V from the '60s...and it's now a great instrument, with the exact opposite functions of a typical 5-string bass.
I got my "normal" five string, again, primarily because it was a rare G&L, and it happened to come up. L-5500. 17mm string spacing and 1 7/8" nut, so it could easily accommodate BEADG tuning, and feel pretty much normal. I find myself using it not so much to extend my lower range, but to allow myself to be really, really lazy by shifting my positioning five frets higher. My 36" sale BEAD bass sounds a lot more firm in the lower range. But I do use the the L-5000 on material on which I want the lower range or the higher left hand positioning, and also don't want to lose the G.
1. If you want a B string, and don't want a G string, then go BEAD.
2. If you want a B string, and want a G string, then get a five string bass.
That makes up 90 percent of your decision.
Basically, all you have to do is know what range you want/need, and you have your answer.
I started out with a hand fabricated extra long scale BEAD bass, specifically for playing in a friend's metal band that played in C# standard drop B, and wrote every song in B. Not my cup up tea, but I was helping him out (ended up being for about 18 months), and didn't want to set up any of my regular basses as BEAD basses. I didn't need the G, and I liked the feel and look of a classic 4-string. So I made the circa 36" scale BEAD bass.
I got my first five string largely because I am a G&L collector, and it was a very rare and very cool L-5000 that happened to come up. I strung it up EADGC, because the bass felt terrible in BEADG, with its 15mm string spacing and 1 11/16" nut width: all five strings crammed in to a normal width G&L bass neck. Basically, I turned the L-5000 into a G&L version of the Fender Bass V from the '60s...and it's now a great instrument, with the exact opposite functions of a typical 5-string bass.
I got my "normal" five string, again, primarily because it was a rare G&L, and it happened to come up. L-5500. 17mm string spacing and 1 7/8" nut, so it could easily accommodate BEADG tuning, and feel pretty much normal. I find myself using it not so much to extend my lower range, but to allow myself to be really, really lazy by shifting my positioning five frets higher. My 36" sale BEAD bass sounds a lot more firm in the lower range. But I do use the the L-5000 on material on which I want the lower range or the higher left hand positioning, and also don't want to lose the G.
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I have an Ibanez Prestige neck that is nice and thin.
This
EDIT
You need to file your nut for strings of bigger diameter. It takes time and patience and some dexterity. I broke OEM nut, then one spare and finally made it with third one.
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