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5 string with two E's?

Kamrin

Kamrin

Guest
Jun 4, 2014
158
121
Ohio
#1
Okay, so I was setting my bass up a few minutes ago and I felt that my low B sting had a little lower tension than I wanted it to. I didn't use the low b that much so I though "**** it, I'll just tune it up to an E"

So now I have two E's on my bass, one E that's on a b string, and one E that's on an E string.
I've found it kinda fun to have this setup.

However? will this damage or do anything bad to my bass/neck due to tension?
I have a 34" scale Ibanez Sr1305.

Thanks
 
#6
As much as I think it's cool you experimented, I'll say this - if your not using the Low B much why not try a 5 string E-A-D-G-C tuning instead? Like the classic Fender Bass V had. You might like it!! Two Low E's prob will get old real quick bro!! And tuning a 120 and higher string to E will over time tweak your neck for sure.
 
#7
sound's like someone's figured out that low Bs just don't sound or feel as good as the other strings on the bass, and is really a 4-string player like me :D
 
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#10
KOLAD said:
As much as I think it's cool you experimented, I'll say this - if your not using the Low B much why not try a 5 string E-A-D-G-C tuning instead? Like the classic Fender Bass V had. You might like it!! Two Low E's prob will get old real quick bro!! And tuning a 120 and higher string to E will over time tweak your neck for sure.
Click to expand...
I've though about, costed extra money to get a new nut and a set of strings for a sixer, and I'm really broke right now. ( I also like to play primus so having a low b when I need comes in handy)

And also, yes I do actually prefer 4 strings, but I always come across really good deals of 5 strings and figure it'll just give me more experimentation room.
And also, it's currently a D right now, but I might go back to an E. having double e's just sounds cool, the B string E sounds a bit darker and playing the same note together is neat.
 
#11
Kamrin said:
I've though about, costed extra money to get a new nut and a set of strings for a sixer, and I'm really broke right now.
Click to expand...
no need, you can string it up that way without changing the nut. you might even be able to reuse the strings, just moving them all over one slot and buying the hi C, if there's enough length left on them.
Kamrin said:
And also, yes I do actually prefer 4 strings, but I always come across really good deals of 5 strings and figure it'll just give me more experimentation room.
Click to expand...
a good deal on what you don't actually want is not a good deal.

people make the mistake of thinking a 5 is some kind of "upgrade" over a 4 and it just isn't; it's a different instrument with its own pluses and minuses.
 
#12
I tune my conventional low string to C instead of B and it speaks better with the added tension. I don't need low B, but I play with keys, and need the low C; I play with other guitar players and need the low D; I play with horns and need the low Eb; and I play with singers who like to take the occasional song down a key or two to better fit their voice, and this lets me keep the integrity of the bass lines of those songs.
 
#13
It goes without saying that the B tuned up to E has more tension that the normal E. My question to you is - which string do you think sounds better?

I've done this before and thought the B tuned up to E sounded better than the E itself, so I eventually got a set of D'Addario EXL160BTs, 50-120 gauge and tune them to E standard. The A, D, & G strings don't have much more tension than they normally would, but getting the E into the same tension range as the rest of them really makes it sound more alive to me.
 
#14
David Jayne said:
Well, if you'd ever owned a 5 with a crap B you'd understand. Very frustrating. Some have a great B and some just don't. I tried everything to make mine better and nothing worked.
Click to expand...

Sometimes it takes a bit of string type swapping to find a B that works well on a particular bass-
what works well on one may not at all on another, gauge-wise, tapered or not, s/s vs nickel,
and sometimes just plugging into a diff amp/ rig will bring it out.
It seems a couple basses are sort-of known for not having good B's, but I've not had one of those yet...
 
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#15
JustForSport said:
Sometimes it takes a bit of string type swapping to find a B that works well on a particular bass-
what works well on one may not at all on another, gauge-wise, tapered or not, s/s vs nickel,
and sometimes just plugging into a diff amp/ rig will bring it out.
It seems a couple basses are sort-of known for not having good B's, but I've not had one of those yet...
Click to expand...
The last set of strings I had on this bass the low B was pretty good, put I wanted to try lighter gauge strings and got some E.B slinky's, and they have pretty low tension compared to my last set, which I really like for slap and such.
 

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