This is interesting. I have a Hamer Chapparal five string that has a reverse headstock (five in a row) and the B is waay at the end of the headstock. It has always had the best B of any bass I've owned. I have always felt this was why.
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Do Fender 5 strings suck? - Whats your opinion
- Thread starter PastorofMuppets
- Start date
This is interesting. I have a Hamer Chapparal five string that has a reverse headstock (five in a row) and the B is waay at the end of the headstock. It has always had the best B of any bass I've owned. I have always felt this was why.
I had a Fender FMT Jazz 5 that I really, really wanted to love...but among its many issues out of the box was the fact that the neck would need to be shimmed in order to get the action low enough. 
Lonnybass
Lonnybass
Doug Parent
Supporting Member
Agreed. a P pickup by itself is a good thing, but the harmonic content of the strings closer to the bridge is very useful to have available. I also think the B string is helped a GREAT deal, by adding the definition a bridge pickup offers.
Without giving away trade secrets, this is a big part of why Mike Tobia's MTD series basses sound the way they do.
I had a Fender Jazz 5 string for a short while. I could never get comfortable with the neck so I returned it. I am much more comfortable with my Spector 5 string. My Stingray 5HH is nice also, but I prefer the 35 inch scale for a tighter B string. I wouldn't say that the Fender 5ers are bad. They just don't work well for me.
Played a 5 string Standard Jazz in a shop once. Seemed fine, played alright. I also played a standard 4 string and the pickups in the 4 seemed a little higher output than those in the 5.
I think what people are missing here are some of the finer details such as string spacing, scale and fingerboard radius. I totally cannot get along with a 35" scale, 17mm spaced 5 string...period. That doesn't mean they suck.
The most important thing seems to be that everyone is different. What some like, others will not. I like Fender basses and own a couple myself. I just don't care for the feel of their five string necks. That doesn't mean they are bad. They just don't work for me.
+1
I own a Spector Rebop and a Squier Affinity J-Bass. I much prefer the neck profile and string spacing on the Squier.
Wider string spacing and a flatter neck profiles just work for me. 35 or 34' scales are fine with me so Lakland suit me too. We all are different and like what we like.
Just bought a 2012 Fender MIA Standard P 5 - love it. Thought the wider nut spacing would cause me issues over my Carvin SB5000 - not noticeable to me. Has the same 19mm string spacing as the Carvin, which is comfortable to my taste. I really love the 9.5" fretboard radius. Very comfortable. More so to me than my Carvin's flatter 14". It's also very light - maybe 9 lbs even?? Everyone raves about the Carvin's B. Overall, the punch and growl of the P bass (across all strings) blows away the Carvin's output, in my opinion. I think the Fender's B string sounds great. The fretted E on the B string and the open E sound very close in tone. I'm no expert - but to my ears, the Fender is a monster (no need to EQ the amp to get more bass tone, like the Carvin) - and the neck fits like a glove. Opinions are like you-know-what's - everybody's got one...
I have owned at least 5 Fender American 5ers. All were great.
The only negative I recall was that the B string wasn't great on the P5.
The only negative I recall was that the B string wasn't great on the P5.
While looking for a five string, i've browsed and tried many. Including a fender jazz American 5 string bass. I had seen a local show and the bass player had one. Sounded good. But when i played similar one in the store, The B string wasn't clear enough. It sounded sloppy/ But it did feel good. But i laid hands on a Yamaha BB1025 bass and it blew me away. Not all 5 string fenders are bad, i just prefer 4 string fenders and 5 string for some other makes.
I think the Roscoe Beck signature 5 string was awesome, the only thing that I didn't like was that they were a little on the heavy side.
I would just like to know what the definitive "best" B string is, since it seems that so many think the Fender B is "meh".
I've owned Spector, G&L and Ibanez 5 strings and played many others, including MM and Wick...none of them had this "amazing" low B I keep hearing about.
I've owned Spector, G&L and Ibanez 5 strings and played many others, including MM and Wick...none of them had this "amazing" low B I keep hearing about.
the only 5 strings I've played were fenders and I didn't like them.
can't get used to the string spacing, feels awful to me.
can't get used to the string spacing, feels awful to me.
A lot of people here are arguing about string spacing, neck radius, baseball bat necks, etc. These are the differences that define every bass out there, 2 strings or 12.
The question in the OP was whether Fender B strings suck. That is about tone and musicality, plus that mysterious floppy quality which we have all experienced. Its not really about the physical relationship you have with a certain style bass.
The B string on my 2012 MIM Jazz bass more or less sucked, while the B string on my 2012 Am Std Jazz Bass rocks! I chose sometimes.
My experience as I already noted is that an older Fender V is "meh" unless you fix it. Late model Fenders seem quite nice but not up to that mythical level you are seeking.
I own three G&L and the B strings are quite good on them. I've got two Ibanez SRs and they are pretty good too. My (fixed) Fender Jazz V is pretty good now too and my Squire P/J 5er is also excellent.
So what is this mythical B string? It's a B string that does not feel floppy. It's a B string where 5th fret E sounds identical to open E on the E string. It's a bass where as you go down the strings from the top to the lowest open B note, the tone and character of the notes stays the same from string to string and sounds like its all the same instrument so you can't really tell if the note is on the B string higher up or another string lower down. All this is the "test" when you buy a 5 or 6 string bass.
I've got exactly ONE bass that lives up to this "to die for" B string. It's my Modulus TBX 6er. And not only is all the above true but there are NO dead spots and the tone simply cuts the mix like a hot knife in butter and I'm not exaggerating about it. It's obviously a carbon fiber neck and also 35" scale.
But let me say also that my Ken Smith and my Alembic 6 are VERY close the Modulus even though they are 34" scales. Hey, my Conklin Bill Dickens 7 string is up there at that level too. All the rest are still very good. My G&L L2500s are my main axes and there are no complaints there, but they are below the "mythical" level. I don't keep basses with "meh" B strings. I either fix them or sell them. Hence my Fender basses now fixed are no longer "meh".
But that doesn't change the fact that for a mythical "To die for" B string Modulus for me is the one. I don't own nor have ever played a Dingwall but I'd guess those would also be great candidates for a "to die for" B string. Also I have played but don't own a Pedulla and in my opinion that one might also reach mythical levels.
Probably there are some more, especially in the high dollar range.
I think this is one of things where you need to try it out at a local music store for yourself rather than buying it online and hoping/assuming you'll like it.
It depends mostly on the strings. The B string on my American Deluxe Jazz FMT V sounds every bit as good as the ones on my Foderas.
That's what I'm talking about. If I felt a B string was too floppy, etc, I changed it. When I was using fives I was playing DR exclusively and I would buy 5 string sets of Sunbeams, then a single Lo-Rider from my local place for the low B. It more than made up for any perceived issues...but then again, none of my 5's were Fenders!
