5 string vs BEAD

[Ricky Rioli]

BEAD just falls between 2 stools

Only if the player opting for it is wanting to *add* notes to their range. If they just want to play a version of their instrument that is a 4th lower, obviously BEAD is absolutely fine.

No one ever said the Trumpet in Bb is falling between two stools just because the option of adding a 4th button to a Trumpet in D existed.

 

[G On Bass]

For me the 5 is not just about the low notes. It's about hand positioning and accommodating the key a vocalist needs to be in. In some bands I rarely if ever touch a note on the B, in others I am there all the time. In all bands I use the G. Either way, the 5 is what works for me.

 

[el murdoque]

Hi all my son keeps on telling me to buy a 5 string bass.
What I was wondering as I own a SX P bass & a Squier PJ bass, would I 1 be better to buy a 5 string bass say SX
Or 2 with 1 of the basses say get a new nut refile it to take the 4 bottom string s of a 5 string set & tune to BEAD ?
I am just wondering is it going to be like a 12 string guitar I bought my son a couple of years ago & gets uesed for 15 mins every 12 months

To me, it sounds like
1. You're skeptical about that whole 5er business.
2. You don't have a pressing need to play a bass with extended range (like in a band where the guitar player has three guitars for E, Eb and D Tuning)

For some people here, extended range is all the rage. I switched from 4 to 5 strings as soon as I started taking bass serious. I bought a cheap entry level bass, learned which way is up and how to make noise with it and when I was ready to buy a quality Instrument I switched to 5. 5 years ago, I switched to 6 strings. I even play a 6 on a 4 string gig (covering oldies where every song has been played on a 4), because I feel most comfortable on it.
Jaco only needed 4, though. As do lots of great players.

A 5 either is for you or it is not. There's only one way to find out. It's not BEAD'ing a bass you already own.
It's getting one (buy a used one for cheap), locking up the four bangers and play that 5er until your fingers feel at home or you give up in frustration.
When you do that (give up) you have your answer. 5s are not for you.
When you managed to pull through and playing the 5 feels natural, you take out one of your 4 bangers and play a bit. You'll know then.

 

[beatdatthang]

Why is your son telling you to get one? Is it because he wants one or thinks you need one? Obviously, you’d know it by now if you need that lower register.

5s are like 4s, they’re a different animal depending on what you get. You might try one out and determine they aren’t your thing. They nut/fretboard is noticeably wider but string spacing is typically narrower.

Many have a slightly thicker neck profile also to handle the extra string tension. Also, there’s the scale length to consider. Some companies can lengthen the scale to 35” without increasing the overall length of the instrument due to bridge placement. Some can’t and that extra inch makes 1st position a stretch.

I have 8 basses. Only one is a 5 string. The only reason I bought it was because in the band I’m in, our singer/songwriter changes keys and capos all the time and it was just easier to use a 5 and a detuning pedal than bring multiple basses in different tunings to practices and gigs.

 

[chris_b]

Only if the player opting for it is wanting to *add* notes to their range. If they just want to play a version of their instrument that is a 4th lower, obviously BEAD is absolutely fine.

No one ever said the Trumpet in Bb is falling between two stools just because the option of adding a 4th button to a Trumpet in D existed.

I think I explained that my post was a personal opinion.

 

[jmattbassplaya]

You really have to try before you buy, too. I loved my Modulus Q5 but couldn’t get on with my Fender J5. My Lakland 55-02 was nice but the Barts didn’t work in a mix. I played an Ibanez 5 in high school that was nice too.

 

[bluesblaster]

I have had a couple 5's that were fine, just not perfect or close to it. I recently got a Devon 5 thats everything I wanted in a 5, 19 mm spacing and 34" scale neck, Nord PU's and pre in an impecably built instrument. makes playing a 5 string a joy, I had resisted getting another for awhile till I discovered the Devon. BEAD is fine but its really not that hard to get use to the 5, I have a much harder time with a six, thats just not my bag.

 

[bassdude51]

Or, buy a drop tuner. I think they make drop tuners with 2 notches now for those low notes.

BEAD might be OK. Especially if you are the type of bass player that likes to stay in the low range.

It's pretty easy to find a used 5er for under $400 on Craigslist. I've even seen some going for around $200.

IMHO, if a person is gonna play a 5er, they should play it exclusively. I get confused playing a five string since I mostly play fours. I look at the 5 string neck and then pluck the wrong string. Not all of the time but often enough.

Also, the 5 string opens up possibilities of changing memorized bass lines from off of a 4 string. So, a 5er means that many of our remembered bass lines can be changed and played lower or differently. That requires more thinking and concentration.

Good luck!

 

[jmattbassplaya]

This thread is making me want a 5 again

 

[gg22]

I find that short of getting a 5 string, the best way to get lower notes is to tune to DGCF. You don't have to modify the nut, in most cases can use the same strings, and get most useable low Eb/D without losing much of the high end range. I even think that DGCF shoould have been the standard bass tuning from the beginning.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

I doubt I will ever own an ERB, unless you count 24-frets as Extended-Range.
The only reason you'd need a 5-string instead of BEAD is if you NEED to have a G-string.