Best 5-string bass for small hands

[Bassamatic]

If you are not afraid of playing a sub-short scale on stage - I must say that the Ibanez miKro 5 is amazing - it sounds and plays great, and is so easy and comfortable to play! (And low-cost).
I have no problems gigging with mine.

 

[Phil1]

Yamaha BB735A is my vote 1.69 at the nut and a thin profile. A fabulous active/passive P & J with a lot of very good features. Unique bridge with a 45 degree angle string thru and the saddles have an option to flip over to a angled profile which helps the B string Punch on 34 inch scale. Pick ups and 3 band EQ is top notch. Yamaha got it right with this baby.View attachment 3512996

@brocco , Thanks for the reco! The BB735a looks like a fantastic option. How were you able to locate this one in red? I'm only seeing black and dark brown sunburst options online.

@everyone-- Thank you for all of these suggestions; this is quite the community.

Phil

 

[I-play-bass]

Don't worry about the neck size... or scale length. Most overestimate the importance of hand size. Here is an example of a player with small hands doing pretty good on 35" scale fiver with pretty wide spacing and a not so thin neck.

I just played and American Lakland 55-94 and that thing had the thinnest neck on a 5 I've ever seen, and I've seen a lot. Are the vintage J's that different? The website lists the necks as the same depth, so if that's the case, it certainly helps for tiny hands on a wide neck.

I agree hand size is not as important as most people make it out to be, but there's definitely some basses out there that even I have trouble with, and my hand span is 9.5" and length is 8.25"

 

[Spidey2112]

Mine plays like a dream, narrow at the nut. Thin fingerboard-to-back. And mine had low, low action. It plays like a dream.

It does not, however, sound like a P-bass.

Everything he said, but add SR805 to the suggestion list.

 

[Nephilymbass]

Hi all,

First post on the forum! I've been out of bass guitar for ~10 years, but have decided to jump right back in and am planning to buy a 5-string bass. I'm most interested in a P-bass sound, but am concerned a 5-string P-bass may be a little bit too thick in the neck on low notes (e.g., nut width).

I much prefer the feel of the J-bass neck; but again, am more interested in the P-bass pickups. I searched online for a 5-string PJ bass and it seems there is no such thing currently on the market.

Appreciate any reco's you all are able to throw my way of basses that might fit these specs of having a manageable neck and P-bass pickups. My max budget is <$2k, and I'm not married to Fender either. My hands are not huge so any little advantage I can get here and there is helpful.

Cheers

ESP makes a modern take on a 5 string p. I’d give that a try. https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...MI_7zV6dqP5AIVCp6fCh3VWgrhEAQYASABEgKvFPD_BwE

 

[Joelc73]

Fender P5 or a Musicman would work.

 

[Ohabanero]

Hi all,

First post on the forum! I've been out of bass guitar for ~10 years, but have decided to jump right back in and am planning to buy a 5-string bass. I'm most interested in a P-bass sound, but am concerned a 5-string P-bass may be a little bit too thick in the neck on low notes (e.g., nut width).

I much prefer the feel of the J-bass neck; but again, am more interested in the P-bass pickups. I searched online for a 5-string PJ bass and it seems there is no such thing currently on the market.

Appreciate any reco's you all are able to throw my way of basses that might fit these specs of having a manageable neck and P-bass pickups. My max budget is <$2k, and I'm not married to Fender either. My hands are not huge so any little advantage I can get here and there is helpful.

Cheers

Just curious... Why a 5? Do you have any time in on a 5? If not may want to troll the music stores for a while and get a feel for what a 5 is all about. Or borrow a friend's? Or just buy the cheapest squier or Ibanez you can get your hands on to try out the whole 5 thing. I own and play 4 5 and 6 . I like 4's the best. There's so much you can do on 4 strings and just my opinion... So little you really get from the 5 weighed against the neck size, bass weight, and especially having to deal with keeping an extra string quiet when you're not playing on it.

 

[JohnArnson]

The Ibanez GSRM25 5 string 28,6" scale Mikro bass would really be the ideal option for a small 5 stringer, however it got a 2 J pickups, so won't sound like a P.

Don't worry about the neck size... or scale length. Most overestimate the importance of hand size. Here is an example of a player with small hands doing pretty good on 35" scale fiver with pretty wide spacing and a not so thin neck.

Yes, and I have seen YouTube videos of a man missing one arm who still played amazing bass, however that doesn't make me recommend people to chop off one of their arms.

Comments about how preferences for size shouldn't matter cause someone else manage to get by just fine with a more standard size, and you ought to stick to the norm as well cause that is what proper bass players do, tires me endlessly, but yet still seems to be a recurrent feature in just about every thread asking for recommendations on a short scale bass.

No, size of hands is not everything when choosing the right instrument for you, Stanley Clarke for example got quite big hands but still prefers to play a short scale bass, which is also to say that there is absolutely nothing wrong with playing one, and if that is what you truly prefer playing there is absolutely no valid reason not to get a short scale bass instead of a regular 34" scale.

 

[Double E]

I just played and American Lakland 55-94 and that thing had the thinnest neck on a 5 I've ever seen, and I've seen a lot. Are the vintage J's that different? The website lists the necks as the same depth, so if that's the case, it certainly helps for tiny hands on a wide neck.

I agree hand size is not as important as most people make it out to be, but there's definitely some basses out there that even I have trouble with, and my hand span is 9.5" and length is 8.25"

The standard spec is 1.81" at the nut with 19mm spacing at the bridge... wider than most and the thickness at the first fret is .81"... not thick but not desperately thin either especially considering it has a bit of a D shape carve. I play Lakland 5's exclusively and never considered them particularly thin feeling compared to a an Ibanez or even Fender.

 

[Ohabanero]

The Ibanez GSRM25 5 string 28,6" scale bass would really be the ideal option for a small 5 stringer, however it got a 2 J pickups, so won't sound like a P.

Also comments about how preferences for size shouldn't matter cause someone else manage to get by with a more standard size, and you ought to stick to the norm as well cause that is what proper bass players do, tires me endlessly, but yet still seems to be a recurrent feature in just about every thread asking for recommendations on a short scale bass.

No, size of hands is not everything when choosing the right instrument for you, Stanley Clarke for example got quite big hands but still prefers to play a short scale bass, which is also to say that there is absolutely nothing wrong with playing one, and if that is what you truly prefer playing there is absolutely no valid reason not to get one.

That looks like a super option to try out a short 5. Like you said no p style pups but otherwise looks like the real deal.

 

[I-play-bass]

The standard spec is 1.81" at the nut with 19mm spacing at the bridge... wider than most and the thickness at the first fret is .81"... not thick but not desperately thin either especially considering it has a bit of a D shape carve. I play Lakland 5's exclusively and never considered them particularly thin feeling compared to a an Ibanez or even Fender.

Maybe the one I tried is early. It certainly wasn't new, but it was way thinner than the Ibanez's in the shop. I actually liked it quite a lot, and I am a Stingray/P bass guy.

 

[Remoman]

Hi all,

First post on the forum! I've been out of bass guitar for ~10 years, but have decided to jump right back in and am planning to buy a 5-string bass. I'm most interested in a P-bass sound, but am concerned a 5-string P-bass may be a little bit too thick in the neck on low notes (e.g., nut width).

I much prefer the feel of the J-bass neck; but again, am more interested in the P-bass pickups. I searched online for a 5-string PJ bass and it seems there is no such thing currently on the market.

Appreciate any reco's you all are able to throw my way of basses that might fit these specs of having a manageable neck and P-bass pickups. My max budget is <$2k, and I'm not married to Fender either. My hands are not huge so any little advantage I can get here and there is helpful.

Cheers

Hi Phil, welcome to TB! You'll get lots of good feed back here. I gotta think you could find a 5-string PJ, at least a Mitchell TB500 and the Yamaha BB series come to mind. You could also get a nice P or PJ 5-string built at Kiesel Guitars and still be within your budget.

As for recommendations, I have a Washburn XB-105 and I'm going to be selling it for just the opposite reason of yours, I have large hands and long fingers. The string spacing is 16.25mm and it's just too tight for me. The width at the nut is 1.75", so wider than a standard P, but as a 5 string pretty decent, narrower than Fender and Squire Jazz 5's I believe. Look around for one, it's a basic P-bass, very affordable as they're primarily a beginner bass, and can easily be upgraded. I have EMG pups in mine and they are working gooood.

 

[iiipopes]

I concur with the Ibanez recommendations. The Mikro is a good bass. If you want a full-scale bass, the Ibanez lower numbers of the SR series have a 1.77/45mm nut and a narrow heel and bridge spacing. The other good think about their basses is that they are absolutely consistent both from model to model and instrument to instrument. I have a 2011 SRA305 and a new BTB845V, converted to B-G, for the same reasons: old injuries, short pinky, trick thumb, etc.

I agree with the OP's assessment that many 5-string basses start at 1.81 and get wider, depending on the model, and some even have the full 19mm-3/4 inch bridge spacing!

 

[pedroims]

Yamaha BBP35, a superb bass made in Japan bass, I own one and the neck profile is what I think you are looking for.

Ed Friendland review: https://www.bassplayer.com/gear/review-yamaha-bbp35-pro-series-bass

 

[basslifter]

I set out on the same mission recently and for the same reason. I was thinking Ibanez all the way, but instead of just buying something, I went to a local store and played a few. Turns out I didn't really like the Ibbys as much as I thought I would. I felt best with Musicman, G&L, Peavey, KSD, and Carvin....so something kind of in the middle as far as string spacing and nut width. Didn't care for the Ibbys tone as much either. Perhaps the one difference being the srms805. That B string is spectacular.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Yamaha BB735A is my vote 1.69 at the nut and a thin profile. A fabulous active/passive P & J with a lot of very good features. Unique bridge with a 45 degree angle string thru and the saddles have an option to flip over to a angled profile which helps the B string Punch on 34 inch scale. Pick ups and 3 band EQ is top notch. Yamaha got it right with this baby.View attachment 3512996

You know, I’d love to try one of those but the music stores here don’t carry them. What sort of price range are these?

 

[bigboy_78]

Yamaha BB735A is my vote 1.69 at the nut and a thin profile. A fabulous active/passive P & J with a lot of very good features. Unique bridge with a 45 degree angle string thru and the saddles have an option to flip over to a angled profile which helps the B string Punch on 34 inch scale. Pick ups and 3 band EQ is top notch. Yamaha got it right with this baby.View attachment 3512996

How is it red? Did you paint it? I've never seen a red one.

 

[GreyBeard]

The one that feels best in your hands.

 

[eddododo]

Hi all,

First post on the forum! I've been out of bass guitar for ~10 years, but have decided to jump right back in and am planning to buy a 5-string bass. I'm most interested in a P-bass sound, but am concerned a 5-string P-bass may be a little bit too thick in the neck on low notes (e.g., nut width).

I much prefer the feel of the J-bass neck; but again, am more interested in the P-bass pickups. I searched online for a 5-string PJ bass and it seems there is no such thing currently on the market.

Appreciate any reco's you all are able to throw my way of basses that might fit these specs of having a manageable neck and P-bass pickups. My max budget is <$2k, and I'm not married to Fender either. My hands are not huge so any little advantage I can get here and there is helpful.

Cheers

If your max budget is that healthy, get a Roscoe Classic PJ

I find low B’s on P pickups can be a little weak- others disagree, still others agree strongly- it depends on what you want but a good PJ pretty much gets it all done no matter what you need.

I’m short with smallish hands and some nerve damage. My Roscoe (century) is a godsend. Slim fast necks, AMAZING B string. Add in the fantastic look and sound of their Classic PJ and boom.

You may have to go used in that case, though, look into it though

 

[Sub-hoo-fer]

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Cheers,
Wallace

Yep