Drop down requiered...not happy ...dr drop down strings

[Lance Bunyon]

Let's say for example that you've learned Thelonius Monk's "Straight No Chaser" in the key of F. But the night of the gig, the singer has a sore throat, and would rather sing in the key of Eb. I believe @wmhill is simply pointing out that you could detune your bass to DGCF, play the song in F using your regular fingerings, and it will sound in concert Eb. Having this skill means you can accommodate the singer's request, without any mental gymnastics or changes to your technique. Or another skill that many bassists have, is to keep the same tuning, but transpose the music. Either approach is valid in my opinion/experience, and versatile bassists can do both.

I find the need for open notes more on acoustic than electric. I'd like to think I've been playing long enough that it doesn't matter if I open E on the 4th string or close the E on the 5th (on 5 string electric). Upright is an entirely different animal and I'm not a good upright player at all.

 

[Thorny1]

Threads like this make no sense to me. Most everybody here has electronic tuners, multiple basses, or both. If tuning half a step down ruins your experience, I would say your setup sucks more than anything.

I have a 34" scale 5 string. In one home practice session, I'll tune the whole bass 3 or 4 times- EbAbDbGb, DGCF, CGCF, and back up to BEADG. The bass plays differently, sure, but I can get a fine sound out of it, especially playing near the bridge.

Truly this is a forum for gear snobs, if dropping a single string is reason enough to bring or buy a whole new bass. It sounds like many of you have more money than sense.

 

[kcducttaper]

It sounds like many of you have more money than sense.

What about those of us with little money and even less sense? Don't forget about us!

 

[sotua]

What about those of us with little money and even less sense? Don't forget about us!

ONE OF US! ONE OF US! ONE OF US!