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Does a 5 make your 4 redundant?
- Thread starter wengr
- Start date
I ditched 2 4-bangers to get a really nice 5 (Stingray). I already had a less expensive 5 (Warwick Rockbass) and had grown tired of switching between the 4 and 5 when we played live. I decided I'd have ONE bass. Now I'm looking to add a 4 again. I find for drop D and some other stuff, it would be nice to have around.
Have both! that's what makes me happy. I went with solely 4s, the solely 5s then back to solely 4s and now I have both....completely happy. I'm in one band where the 4 totally works so that's my main bass. The 5 is for fun and maybe future projects.
But....4s are here to stay (not saying 5s aren't!)
But....4s are here to stay (not saying 5s aren't!)
Not really. For example. You could play Drop C with a five and standard with a four. So you could have one bass which is better suited for 80's metal and most rock, and a bass that is better suited for the xxxx/core and nu metal styles for example.
Personally though, fives are a mixed bag. I like the feel and I can rip on one just as good as a four. But that low B. Irritates me. To no end. The only 5 that I played that had a low B that sounded good was a musicman stingray 5. Those are like 2 grand.
I really have gas for an Ibanez Iceman bass though. 4 string, killer looks, killer sound, decent balance, fast neck, ahh. It's my wet dream of basses ATM.
Personally though, fives are a mixed bag. I like the feel and I can rip on one just as good as a four. But that low B. Irritates me. To no end. The only 5 that I played that had a low B that sounded good was a musicman stingray 5. Those are like 2 grand.
I really have gas for an Ibanez Iceman bass though. 4 string, killer looks, killer sound, decent balance, fast neck, ahh. It's my wet dream of basses ATM.
Some bands insist you have a 4-string to play with them. So, to the extent you want to join those bands, you need a 4-string (or you need to ease whatever fears they have - maybe pinky swear you won't use the B-string?).
I have both and enjoy playing both. Depending on the song/s, I may use my Parker Fly 5 string or my 4003 Rickenbacker 4 string.
I also have a 5 string fretless that I made myself. I don't use it all that much as we don't play much that warrants a fretless - that and it's a pig of a gigantorous heavy great thing
I also have a 5 string fretless that I made myself. I don't use it all that much as we don't play much that warrants a fretless - that and it's a pig of a gigantorous heavy great thing
DougD said:No, not at all
Ha! Had that happen actually, and the really silly part about it is that it really wasn't even at a pro level. But hey, I borrowed a friends P bass, came back, laid it down, and got paid
got paid? then it was at a pro levelHa! Had that happen actually, and the really silly part about it is that it really wasn't even at a pro level. But hey, I borrowed a friends P bass, came back, laid it down, and got paid
I prefer to use fingerstyle on my Modulus 5 string which has a 17.5mm spacing.
I prefer using a pick my Fender Jazz American Standard 4 which has pick tones for days. Just listen to Bobby Vega for examples of that! I do some fingerstyle on the 4 as well, but prefer the tighter spacing on the 5.
That's about as simple as it gets for me. Honestly the 5 gets more stage time because I am playing a lot more modern country these days which has a lot of low B string.
I prefer using a pick my Fender Jazz American Standard 4 which has pick tones for days. Just listen to Bobby Vega for examples of that! I do some fingerstyle on the 4 as well, but prefer the tighter spacing on the 5.
That's about as simple as it gets for me. Honestly the 5 gets more stage time because I am playing a lot more modern country these days which has a lot of low B string.
JimmyM said:got paid? then it was at a pro level
Wow. Don't take this the wrong way, but that's one of the most obviously profound things I've heard in a long time. I guess I've never really considered anything I've ever been paid for as "pro"...maybe it was, maybe is wasn't...maybe I've always been focused on visibility, notoriety, etc., as a measure of "professional" success.
Kinda funny to only realize this @25 years in...thanks for the random eye opener!
It seems like many of the guys who return to the old truncated range basses were viewing the five as a four with an 'extra' string or a few 'extra' notes that they seldom used, but that misses the whole point of position playing across fingerboard. Once you learn to exploit the ease, smoothness, chordal possibilities and wide-interval flexibility of having at least two full octaves under your fingers at all times without shifting all over the neck, you probably won't want to give it up. Returning to a four is like learning to play with a missing finger on your left hand, at least for me.
I haven't owned a four-string in almost thirty years, and when I do pick one up, it feels completely obsolete. IMO, the electric bass guitar should have been a six-string from the get go; then we bass players wouldn't have been stuck with such a limited and cumbersome instrument for nearly three decades while we waited for it to evolve into something with decent range and flexibility.
I haven't owned a four-string in almost thirty years, and when I do pick one up, it feels completely obsolete. IMO, the electric bass guitar should have been a six-string from the get go; then we bass players wouldn't have been stuck with such a limited and cumbersome instrument for nearly three decades while we waited for it to evolve into something with decent range and flexibility.
i know what you mean...the music business is so screwed that it's tough to see when you've stepped up a level
My question is "why do you see so many pro four string bass players"? You see them in just about any genre. I see a lot of pro players in metal using a four. Then why do they not use a five?
Shaun
Shaun
I'm comfortable playing on any bass 4, 5, or 6 string.
Problems happen when I have to read parts.
Currently my Azola EUB is strung E A D G C. I do pit work, session work, and read off chord changes often.
If I need to play bass guitar on those gigs too, I have one also strung E through C. If I try to double on the same gig with a B through G bass I make lots of mistakes.
Playing with classic rock and country and blues band are no problem for me with any bass because there are usually no charts--get in the right gear and play.
Problems happen when I have to read parts.
Currently my Azola EUB is strung E A D G C. I do pit work, session work, and read off chord changes often.
If I need to play bass guitar on those gigs too, I have one also strung E through C. If I try to double on the same gig with a B through G bass I make lots of mistakes.
Playing with classic rock and country and blues band are no problem for me with any bass because there are usually no charts--get in the right gear and play.
pharaohamps
Commercial User
- May 30, 2006
- 773
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- Owner, Disaster Area Designs / Alexander Pedals
I have been playing 5vers for years and I've gradually sold all my 4 bangers. My only remaining 4 string bass is an Ashbory For the music I play, a 4 string tuned BEAD would work fine, but I would miss the high G.
For ME, a 5-string is a must. I can't imagine going back to 4's.
For the music I play, a 4 string tuned BEAD would work fine, but I would miss the high G.For ME, a 5-string is a must. I can't imagine going back to 4's.
+1 on above post.
When we play out we like our bass thumpin', so I have to have my low end extended or else I feel like I'm playing, well, without a string. I have two 5 string basses that are different manufacturer but similar woods and pickups. The big difference is one is neck thru and the other is bolt-on. It's like the only thing I can't decide on is how much sustain.
When we play out we like our bass thumpin', so I have to have my low end extended or else I feel like I'm playing, well, without a string. I have two 5 string basses that are different manufacturer but similar woods and pickups. The big difference is one is neck thru and the other is bolt-on. It's like the only thing I can't decide on is how much sustain.
That's very well said! When I play my 5 I hardly ever look down at it on stage because my hands and ears know where to go. The range of intervals are way easier to groove with. There is nothing like playing the low E fretted and not have to worry about open strings. I tend to think less when on the 5.
On the 4 however I change into a more rockin' open string pickstyle type of player and I tend to think a little more about what notes I am playing. Guess that's just the gemini in me to still want to do both. I've actually not got a gig or two because I didn't own a 4 before. Stupid I know, but sometimes people prefer that. I can't imagining Tool replacing Justin Chancellor with a 5 stringer that won't play in Drop D for example.
it's funny because I went through a few months with some 4-strings after playing nothing but 5 for the past 11 years. I was able to adapt to the 4s, but then found that I was taking my brain out of 5-string mode, and when I'd pick the 5 back up I was playing it like a "4+1" instead of integrated. Decided to ditch the 4s. That said, I find I'm kinda wanting a 4 again as I find them to different instruments. Plus I play with a floating thumb and it is a lot easier to play up the neck and on D/G on a 4 without having to worry about cocking my wrist to damp the B.
feh...in the end I can play whatever on whatever. The question becomes what I *want* to play rather than what I *need* to play. Just looking for the inspiration...
feh...in the end I can play whatever on whatever. The question becomes what I *want* to play rather than what I *need* to play. Just looking for the inspiration...
