• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Do You Prefer 4 String, 5 String, 6 String?

#101
spade2you said:
So, my instrument preference is a problem? :eyebrow:
Click to expand...

Only if you say so. Chill, bro. Some people like 4, some 5 and more. Clearly one, if not THE greatest bassist ever, did not feel like he needed any more than 4 strings to do his thing. I tend to agree with that opinion. Peace.
 
#105
Played 4 stringers exclusively for something like 30 years. Didn't feel I needed more than that. Picked up a fretless 6 on a lark maybe 3-4 years ago and haven't looked back. It's now my main gigging bass - I play everything from classic rock to pop to funk to reggae to r&b and what I don't do with it is usually done with 5. I really can't remember the last time I picked up one of my fours but remember thinking the neck felt way too skinny.

The extra strings are a godsend. Much less position shifting.
 
#106
I wish I knew! I've been in a debate with myself as to which I prefer. I love the comfort of a good 4 string bass but I've been playing on 5's for a few years now and have grown so accustomed to having the low B string. I don't use it ALL THE TIME but when I do it hits hard. Also, the B string makes a wonderful thumb rest. I think I need to find a 5'r with a bit narrower string spacing than 19mm.
 
#107
preside said:
Bass GUITAR should have had 6 strings to begin with.
Click to expand...

I disagree. It's called a "guitar" because of its shape and the way it's played (with the instrument horizontally placed in front of the player at chest/belly height), but not because of the number of strings, which is obviously derived from the double bass.
 
#108
Always playing a 5 string now, started off with a 4... I've only been playing for around 2 years, but was fed up of de-tuning for stuff (and wanted to play Death magnetic ;D) so yeh got a 5 string Schecter, and can honestly say that I can't think of a reason why 4's are better than 5's (apart from the more expensive string set ;L)
 
#109
spade2you said:
I guess he was wrong. :hiding:
Click to expand...

Wow dude, how old are you? Twelve? I guess you won that argument! I'm gonna sell all my 4-string bass guitars and convert to 5 now! Geez!!!

Since you have a little trouble interpreting my posts, let me help you a bit: this one is sarcastic.
Look it up.
 
#116
I saw a three string bass once that was tuned B E A. I should have bought it! I also remember having a Musicman catalog from the late 90s and the cover was Tony Levin on a motorcycle with a three string Stingray! That would be cool...

I only own fours but that's because I tried a 5er and my hands were just too small. I've contemplated getting one but always hesitate when I think of hand cramps.
 
#118
gus1894 said:
Sounds to me like Jobosolo answered the question posed by this thread while paying Jaco a compliment. Chill.
Click to expand...

That's not the way it sounded to me. maybe my Sarcasm meter is broken, but it sure seemed to me like he was attributing that old saw to Jaco that he only "needed" four strings. Not only is such a myth clearly confounded by Jaco's constant experimentation with new directions in bass (which are all widely used now...Fretless, extended range through harmonics, etc.) but also by the fact that Jaco owned a 5 string bass.

http://www.jacop.net/gear.html

See 1974. Sure it was tuned with a high C rather than the low B more usual today, but it was clearly an ERB consistent with where Jaco's head was.

So much for the "Jaco only needed 4 strings" myth.

I really don't understand why people are so determined to turn the limitations of a 4 string bass into a religion (Hey, bunkies, check the bass range on a PIANO and then go check the basses at your local symphony! Those C extenders are quite common.)

Sure the "double bass" 4 string thing has been very traditional for many, many years, but how can someone say you don't "need" more than 4 strings when the instrument doesn't even have a low Eb on it for horn keys? If you want to tell us you "prefer" a "traditional" instrument arrangement, well bully for you! But don't tell us "nobody" needs more than 4 strings. Even JACO did on occasion!
 
#120
I played a four string bass for about a year. I picked up a six string, and that was that. Occasionally, I'll pick up my four string because I can play it with a lower strap (and my right arm appreciates the more relaxed position) and mess around with it. I enjoy playing my six more than my four because I prefer the feel of the six string neck, and I have a little more room for tapping.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back