BEAD instead of EADG?

tim c played that setup with audioslave- and im pretty sure wooten has played a 4 string strung ADGC- so it can definitely be done. no personal experience- but id assume you only need someone to make make you a new nut.

 

That is not an uncommon thing to do. I think all it takes it to reslot the nut. I have been considering that to.

 

I have done this to several basses. It is very common and it is nice to play in a "closed" posistion if you need to transpose a song for a singer's range. Or just to be able to play higher up on the neck.

You will have to slot the nut and check/modify your intonation. (you should be running the lower four strings from a 5 string set)

 

you can actually get away with using your regular gauge strings, i did it for over a year with no problems...well apart from being a tiny bit looser than you would get with a proper low b string. still playable though,

 

I thought of trying that someday [ADGC], but I'm pretty sure you need a 35" scale bass for that - but it does sound intriguing.

 

A year ago I played in a Blues band in which the singer (limited range) sang a *lot* in D - and a bit in G. It was also agreed that the bass should be as 'foundation' as possible, and I also have small hands - I had a Yamaha RBX375 which was giving me hand-pain.

I used both an oldish - but nice) Ibanez Roadstar 2 fretted and a Westone Thunder III Mk2 Fretless 4 strings strung BEAD using the bottom 4 strings of a 5 string set - Roto Flats for the Fretless & Hi-Beams for the Fretted.

You only need to *widen* the nut slots - DON'T make them any deeper. Also, I've put regular EADG strings back on both of these without later problems on the same nut.

The other thing (contrary to most people's expectations) is that there is actually less tension with BEAD than there is with EADG - go to the sites which give you string tensions and do the arithmetic!

I'd say give it a go - I still use the Westone BEAD.

 

Try a warwick corvette Taranis or Vampyre dark Lord, I think they're 5 strings without a G...
http://www.warwick.de/modules/produkte/produkt.php?katID=14432&cl=DE
http://www.warwick.de/modules/produkte/produkt.php?katID=14460&cl=DE

sry, but couldn't find the site in english

 

http://www.warwick.de/modules/produkte/produkt.php?katID=14460&cl=EN
http://www.warwick.de/modules/produkte/produkt.php?katID=14460&cl=EN

There they are in english

 

You could also try DGCF

 

I too am an "ex" 5 stringer because of the neck width. Ever since then ive restrung 4's with BEAD tuning. I just have no use for the g string. Right now I use GHS heavy Boomers on my Geddy Fender. You will probably have to file the E string nut and the intonation is different.

 

Not only do I play in that tuning all of the time(even in 34" scale) but I have a Musicman Sub Bass for sale with that very tuning already set up on it.
Lemme know if youre interested.

 

You can tune a bass any way you want. The tension is the important part, not so much the scale length (although the scale length plays a part in that).

What you need to do is factor in the tuning, gauges of strings you'll need, and the scale length of your instrument to find the "correct" tension (not so loose it's unplayable, not too tight so the strings will break, comfortable to play). You may need to make adjustments to the nut, and a new setup is often necessary.

I recommend this site:
http://www.pacificsites.com/~dog/StringTensionApplet.html

 

Dude this isn't the classifieds, so don't advertise you bass for sale here!

 

When I used to play 4 string basses I had EADG and Eflat and DGCF and BEAD ... All work fine ... but I finally settled on BEADG ... I can play 99.9% of what I do with that tuning.

 

I used to play BEAD before, it's a really handy tuning, and will work fine on a good 34" bass, you just need a decent B string.

Th ADGC that Victor uses is starting at the A of a standard 4 string, or in other words the high 4 strings of a six string.
Its Tenor tuning.
The tuning Solarmist is speaking of is a whole octave lower.

 

You wouldn't necessarily need a 35" scale to tune down to ADGC, just like you don't need a 32" scale to tune up to ADGC.


It is my understanding that scale length plays a much smaller role in determining the string tension as opposed to the gauge, mass, and material of the strings themselves.