5 string players - any advantage to picking up a 4 string for any reason?

[TheSeagoats]

The only downside I ever had with my 5 string was that I tend to put on really energetic stage moves and since the band I played it with was mostly in standard tuning the fifth string could get in the way (I play with a pick) but a little practice fixed that right up.

 

[Whippet]

Cheaper string sets that you can get anywhere in the world. And weight savings.

I play 4 strings when I am too tired to lug around a 5 string. Also some 4 strings sound better than the 5 string version, which sound better than a 6 string version.

 

[pedroims]

I prefer 4 strings over a 5 but we often change keys and that is when a fiver comes handy by making easier to play the same song in different keys.

 

[eKay]

The only advantage is if you're used to playing certain songs or styles on a 4. Slapping might be one of them. I do some slap on my 5, but doing it on my Jazz (4 string) feels so... right. In fact, I'm setting it up and using it just for slap on gigs. OK, maybe it's a crutch.

 

[Session1969]

My apologies for my wankerness but I find slapping to be more fun on a 4. I play a fiver onstage but have been thinking about using a 4 when I can because I can attack the E string with more emotion. A fiver, like others have already said, requires more finesse when performing on stage.

 

[Ant Illington]

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For a 7 string guitar it's very important to have a 6 string to hand for covers and certain things that you can't do with a 7 string.

Is there anything that the lack of a 5th string makes easier or once you play 5 string is it better to continue to buy 5 strings? Is there more to lose than gain by getting a 4 string?

Cheers

I haven't played a 4 regularly in more years than I want to admit. However, starting about a year ago when I had to learn Michael Jackson's Rock With You (originally played on a 4 tuned to Eb) for a band that calls songs on the fly and allows no time for bass changes, I decided that I would much rather play that a 4 just for the ease of the positions. Of course, I learned it on a standard tuned 5 and can play it well on such but a detuned 4 would sound better (at least the open Eb would- and so would other parts but I won't go into detail). Reason 1) Sound.

Reason 2) Muting. While I have become fluent in floating thumb muting on 5, muting a 4, even though I barely play one anymore, is much easier for me. As an aside, I fret almost exclusively with my fingertips on 5, doing most muting w my picking hand. On a 4, particularly on the E string, I like to lay my finger across the string (my fingertips are actually hanging over the fretboard sometimes, basically the tip is where the B string is on a 5- however when I play the E string like that on a 5, I get too much artifact noise from bumping the B. Also, and this is certainly specific to my finger anatomy and differing string spacing, and probably lack of hard work, my barring doesn't work as well on a 5 as a 4 even though the slightly tighter spaced 5's theoretically should be easier to barre). Laying across muting allows me more freedom for my right hand to pluck.

Reason 3) Slapping. I am no expert and plenty of guys can slap on anything but I am much better on a 4. Again, this could be anatomy.... but also likely a lack of hard work. Plus, to me at least, some things sound better slapped on a 4. Maybe due to string tension differences?

Moral: Have both and play both well. Despite playing a 5 almost exclusively and pretty well, when I think about it, it seems silly to play a 5 for 50 songs when I only need it for one song, and that is merely a detuned 4

As an aside, don't over-value the lowness of a 5. At my church gig, of which I am one of 4 revolving bassists, I get to see recorded videos of us playing the same songs. The other bassists are primarily 4 string players, and educated, full-time pros at that. In some cases they are playing an octave higher than they can and I'm playing even lower than they can. Huge difference on paper. However, when they are playing around frets 7 to 12 on the A and D strings then they drop a low E or even F or G, the impact is great. Seeing these videos that they just started posting, after my doing this for 4 years, has been a real eye opener. Dropping low B is fun but these dudes kill with nothing lower than E, as did dozens of other bassists that we all know and who played the most iconic basslines ever.... almost all on 4 strings.

If I had my druthers, I'd play a 4 except when I need or want to access notes that a 5 will give me. So, yeah, I see advantage in having a 4 in addition to your 5.

 

[7dollarbologna]

I go between both constantly, practicing with a 5 helps with my 4 playing for some reason.

 

[rafitoprtx]

I play both. Use the five string when the sings requires it. But i use the 4string more often because is lighter.

 

[drumsnbass]

For a 7 string guitar it's very important to have a 6 string to hand for covers and certain things that you can't do with a 7 string.

Is there anything that the lack of a 5th string makes easier or once you play 5 string is it better to continue to buy 5 strings? Is there more to lose than gain by getting a 4 string?

Cheers

Ok, so I "was" a dedicated 5 string player, and owned zero 4-string basses. But I really wanted a Kubicki Ex Factor, even though they only come in 4-string versions. So I finally bit and bought one. At first I was a little lost as I usually avoided open strings on the 4-string for fretted notes on the 5-string. But after a wee bit 'o time, I got the whole open note thing down. The 4-string forced me to get better at muting as well. And now the Ex Factor is absolutely my favorite bass. So much so I have not touched a 5-string in weeks.

That does not mean I will give up all my 5's, but I will probably go down to only one, maybe 2, and stick with the Kubicki's for most of my play time. And with the integrated drop-D "flip", there are few notes on a 5 now I cannot do on a 4-string (low B thru C#).

Would I move off my 5's for any other 4? Prolly not.

 

[Fliptrique]

Lighter weight, cheaper strings, smaller neck, easier muting, ability to play chords using thumb on the E string.

I used to play 5-string basses most of the time. Nowdays I barely have a need for anything below drop-D.

 

[Thumper19605]

I have both, some music and rooms do better with a four.
Some rooms lower than E just rumbles.
Other situations like a group without guitar a five works great, toned different.
Just a tool, use them all where you find they fit.

 

[Bruce Johnson]

I prefer a 4-string because I like smaller rounder fingerboard radiuses. I pluck hard with a rolling motion, like an upright, and a fingerboard radius of 7 1/4" or smaller raises up the center strings so I can be more aggressive on them. 5-string basses are generally restricted to flatter fingerboards, like 12" or more. That limits what I can do with my finger technique.

 

[golower]

I never liked playing 5 with 6 stringers that drop tune . Would prefer a 4 drop tuned then .

 

[jazzyvee]

Not a hard and fast rule but if the songs I'm doing on a gig don't require any low notes below E I will use a 4 string unless it's reggae then I can make more use of the B string to make some of the lower notes PHFATTER!

 

[Medicine Man]

Nostalgia

 

[Stempelloos]

The weight and a thinner neck make a 4 string more comfortable for me.

Besides that, the lowest a 5 string goes in normal tuning is only 5 frets down from a normal 4 string.
I don't play that many low D's, C's or B's that its an absolute necessity and a F or G on the E-string sounds better to me
than the same note higher up the neck of a thicker B-string.

A 5 sting is more comfortable to play in position though, less moving up and down the neck.

 

[calypsocoral302]

I dont own a 5 yet, but I have played a few. I still find the extra string and the spacing awkward, but i imagine i will adapt. I think my main concern about 5's is response in the mid frets- playing that high up on a thick, low-tension string doesn't sound good to me. On my 4-string upright, I try not to play above 3rd position on the E string if I don't have to, as the tone sounds "choked" compared to the same notes on a higher string in a lower position. This seems to be much less pronounced in electric bass guitars than it does on upright, but my experiences on the upright still make me think twice about it.

If i am playing metal, pop, or other modern styles of music, i would probably reach for the 5. For blues, blues-rock, and classic rock, i don't see any 5'er replacing a P or J with flats anytime soon. YMMV...

 

[BPhillips]

For a 7 string guitar it's very important to have a 6 string to hand for covers and certain things that you can't do with a 7 string.

Is there anything that the lack of a 5th string makes easier or once you play 5 string is it better to continue to buy 5 strings? Is there more to lose than gain by getting a 4 string?

Cheers

I have two 5'ers and one 4. Some have already said that certain models only come in a 4 string. I was seeking specific pickups and active electronics. I was leery about switching back to a 4 string after only playing 5'ers for many years. Honestly that was no problem after about a week of playing both of them. I now use the 4 string for my rock cover band and use the 5'ers for church and other styles of music. When playing aggressive (often with a pick) in my rock band, I have found that I play better on the 4 string (string spacing, etc).

 

[Emanuel Apascaritei]

Yes!! I play mostly fivers, but when I take a precision I want it to be four strings. Fours strings of pure thunder!!!

 

[40Hz]

I prefer a 4-string because I like smaller rounder fingerboard radiuses. I pluck hard with a rolling motion, like an upright, and a fingerboard radius of 7 1/4" or smaller raises up the center strings so I can be more aggressive on them. 5-string basses are generally restricted to flatter fingerboards, like 12" or more. That limits what I can do with my finger technique.

@Bruce Johnson - Y'know…I hadn't thought of that, but now that I'm thinking about it, the one thing I really don't care for is the flatter radius on the fingerboard if a 5-string. I never really knew why. Just that it somehow didn't feel completely 'right.'

But after reading your post, I think that nailed why my entire style and feel changes when I play a fiver instead of a four. My roots are in upright bass, not guitar or electric bass. And I think I subconsciously notice the absence of that smaller radius on the fingerboard.

On a four string I definitely play it more like an upright. But on the fiver, my brain says: "This is a completely different instrument!!!" So I evolved an entirely different style and esthetic (for me) when I play one.

Funny thing is, whenever asked about 5-string basses, I always tell people it's really its own thing - and needs to be approached as an entirely separate instrument to get the best out of what it can do. It's not just a standard electric bass with an extra string. (At least not IMO. YMMV. )

So I guess on some level I knew it all along. But it took reading your post for it to finally click just what it is about a 5-string with me that I have a split musical personality whenever I play one.

Many thanks!