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Do you have to have a 5?

#101
If you are playing places where you amp is the source of your sound, a 5 is something that you're not going to be able to take full advantage of. Bass guitar cabinets don't reproduce the fundaments low on the E string of a 4 all that well, the notes lower than that on a B string - you'll hear something, but you won't really feel them, and you'll need a high pass filter to avoid the mud a bass guitar cab makes when it's driven hard at very low frequencies - it's not the fundamentals that are mud, it's that your cab can't handle them - that's where the mud comes in.

Anyway, if you play places where the PA is the main source of your sound, things change quite a bit. A capable PA with good subs and a few tens of kilowatts of power behind them is a much more capable rig than your bass amp, and will reproduce the fundamentals on your B string with ease. A 5 through a great PA is glorious.

I'm lucky enough to play places that fit this description regularly. All my gigging basses are 5's. I have one 4 string - a fretless that I'm emotionally attached to.
 
#102
Do you have an 88-key piano? :) (I do...)
But I don't have any 5-string basses - I have owned them before but I found them uncomfortable.
I do have a 5-string Arpeggionne, and a 6-string viola da gamba.
But I like my bass guitars EADG, I think it's a sentimental thing.
If my high school had a five-string acoustic bass on hand for me to borrow then I might have a different preference now!
 
#103
Do you have to have a 5? I do. I started ou ton 4 and have sold them all off. I dont miss any of them. Every time I have a 4 string, I end up wishing it was a 5.

It really depends upon the player and the music that you desire to play.
Really only you can answer that question for yourself.
 
#105
You don't have to, of course.

I played a four for ten years, then dumped it for a five and played that exclusively for fifteen years, then picked up a second bass (four string) after that, and if anything, the five string made me such a good four string player. Way better than I thought it ever could. It's a hidden benefit, and a benefit most people don't mention, but to me, that's what happened.

Now I play my four string basses probably 99% of the time. I just don't write basslines that require the low B string, and I like the added freedom and mobility I feel with the four, even if it means more frequent position changes.

YMMV
 
#106
How is this still a discussion? Let me be the first to speak the truth: yes, you NEED a five string! Otherwise you won't be respected as a bass player, a musician or a human being. You will get laughed at at auditions. Audiences will boo you off stage. You will never be part of the bass players' society - yes, there is a club, with secret headquarters in New York, where there will be a foto of you right next to the door, saying "not this guy". Your family will turn away from you in shame. You will die alone, homeless, a failed existence, leaving behind a life full of regrets and a four string bass, that will be thrown into the fires of Mount Doom by a Hobbit in a hazard suit.
 
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#107
I have one of the first Peavey Dyna Bass 5 strings made and had wanted a five string bass for several years before that but they were either custom made or more than I preferred to spend. Once I got that bass it was my main bass for several years for the tones, playability and the extra options it offered. Playing options for me were the low notes of course but also the option to refinger some riffs as well as use a capo for drop tunings. The bass is a bit on the narrow spacing side, that helped me adapt more quickly. I don't play that bass as much but when needed it always has a voice of authority and that Modern J tone that has kept me from looking elsewhere for that tone.
I also have a Gibson EB 14 5 string with a Hi C that gets a lot of play because I can use it for bass, chords and melody lines and it covers a lot of tones from classic to twang. I have a Dean EABC5 for unplugged things and those low notes really have resonance especially when played like a guitarron in octaves.

I've had a Lo BEAD 4 string and have built several but honestly that never was as satisfying to me as a 5 string and I did not find the tone to be any better than a properly set up 5. YMMV

I have a six string bass that I pull out once or twice a year but have never really felt the need or had a gig where it was necessary so it has not been a priority.
 
#110
The benefits are the lower notes.
You know how a lot of rock songs are rooted in an open E? Well everything I've played for the last 10 years is rooted in C or B. For the last 4 years just B. Why? Be because it sounds cooler. But I still like having the G-string.
So yes, I need a 5 string. I have 3 as a matter of fact. Technically 4 but I'm trying to sell one. If you want to melt faces, E is for chumps.
 
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#111
TheArchitect said:
I like the idea of having that low B string. As a practical matter though, what are the real benefits of it. I'm not sure if the perks of having those couple of notes out weighs the practical advantages of the lighter weight, smaller neck etc that would be in play 100% of the time.

I am considering options for a very "modern" bass. I have a 6 string and that neck is so wide the instrument is a beast to play. It is not really giving me a good read on the value of the low B. I am still leaning towards a modern 4, but I don't want any personal bias' from my experience with that 6 to influence the choice
Click to expand...
I don’t have a 4 … 5 and 6 for the last 15 years at least
 
#113
TheArchitect said:
I like the idea of having that low B string. As a practical matter though, what are the real benefits of it. I'm not sure if the perks of having those couple of notes out weighs the practical advantages of the lighter weight, smaller neck etc that would be in play 100% of the time.

I am considering options for a very "modern" bass. I have a 6 string and that neck is so wide the instrument is a beast to play. It is not really giving me a good read on the value of the low B. I am still leaning towards a modern 4, but I don't want any personal bias' from my experience with that 6 to influence the choice
Click to expand...

Have to? No. It's helpful sometimes sure, but I haven't picked up my 5 in months.
 
#115
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But in all seriousness, In years of playing funk and punk pop, I never needed a five. I joined a fun, party/bar band that did all kinds of 70s 80s and 90s covers. I found myself wanting that B for the ballards. I then started to like that string spacing and found myself just bringing the five to those gigs.

I still prefer the 4, but love the sound of that B.
 
#116
G On Bass said:
And FWIW, a well-seasoned and maintained iron skillet is basically non-stick that lasts forever and you don't have to slowly consume teflon bits...lol
Click to expand...

Yep. That's all we use. Cast iron skillets, enameled coated cast iron and clay pots. The stainless pots are just for boiling pasta. We threw all the Teflon coated and aluminum cookware.
 
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#118
I remember Bass Player Magazine ran an article: "Is The 4-string Doomed?" That was a very long time ago, like 1990?
It's pretty safe to say now that 4-strings weren't doomed - and still aren't.
OTOH, demand for the low B range also endures. And so therefore will these 4 vs 5 threads.
A player's options are:
  1. Play an extended range bass guitar at least sometimes.
  2. Use some workaround like a de-tuner, BEAD or an octave effect if & when the need presents itself.
  3. Avoid or refuse gigs that aren't easily covered with the standard EADG 4-string.
 
#120
TheArchitect said:
I have a 6 string and that neck is so wide the instrument is a beast to play. It is not really giving me a good read on the value of the low B
Click to expand...

Your bass and amp setup may just not be setup to get the most out of the low string. Is your 6 string 19mm or more string spacing and 35 or more scale length. If it is not comfortable to begin with then maybe you did not spend more time with it. I think you need give 5 string a chance but keep it to 34 inch scale and possibly a little narrower at 18 mm spacing. If you say modern you may also like to have 24 frets
 

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