• 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.

Extended Range Basses (Bassists)

How many strings does it need to be considered "Extended Range"?

  • 6 strings

    Votes: 189 70.8%

  • 7 strings

    Votes: 66 24.7%

  • 8 or more strings

    Votes: 12 4.5%
  • Total voters
    267
  • Poll closed .
#104
For me, four strings are the norm. Anything above that is extended.

I bought a 5 string a couple of years ago and am still getting used to the difference of it.

6 string basses baffle me completely - I can go for the 5 lower notes idea, but why does anyone (unless they play endless middly bass solos) want to stray into guitarist territory?

12 string bass is merely a way of reinforcing the sound, as per 12 string guitar, but in spades!

I do really fancy one of those Dean 10 string basses, however...

:bassist:

Must say I've never ever stood near a 7 string guitar from fear of inadequacy!!!!
 
#105
12stringbassist said:
6 string basses baffle me completely - I can go for the 5 lower notes idea, but why does anyone (unless they play endless middly bass solos) want to stray into guitarist territory?
Click to expand...

It has very little to do with those extra 5 note tones at the top of the C string. That extra string allows you to play chords that you can't on a five-string, have them sound cleaner as the C string is generally more articulate than the G string, and move in patterns across the neck instead of up it, so you can play the same line that requires lots of jumping up and down the neck on a five-string much more easily and without having to jump around on a six because more note tones are available in one position.

And as I always say, if you play any note above the Eb on your D string, you're playing in guitarist territory, as a guitar starts just one octave higher than the low E on a bass.
 
#106
good point bryan!

i dont think its about the range of bass vs guitar, but more about the timbre of a bass. a nice string bass playing guitar chords has a unique sound, plus the ergonomics of a bass allow for techniques not available to guitar, and vice versa. i actually learn a lot of guitar stuff becuase i listen to guitarists for inspiration just as much as bassists, its about musicianship, not about instrument.
 
#108
Bryan R. Tyler said:
I hope not. Rules are rules, and they should be equal and the intolerances for breaking them should not be greater in one forum than the others.
Click to expand...

ah, but they will be. this forum will be specifically geared towards a segment of the population. derrogatory "opinions" from outside the population will not be tolerated, not only as disrespectful, but also as off topic.
 
#109
Ninestring said:
We will be releasing the Nielsen-Goodman Project CD soon. If you listen, you will see why my bass parts could not be played on a bass with less than 7 strings. I would guess that 80% on the notes i play are in harmonics throughout the CD.Because it is a duo with added percussion (Alex Acuna) the bass has a role of bass line,chordal accompaniment with a percussive approach.It is a very original sound,which is what I would expect from a 7 and 11 string bass.
We 4.5+ octave players ask all bass players to keep an open mind.After all,it's only music.
Click to expand...

cool, garry. i for one can't wait to hear it :).
 
#111
There are some interesting points above, which I fully take on board. I was going to say I 'concentrate on bass parts', but that's probably me having a narrow traditionalist view too!

I see the value of a bass being able to play chords and have a totally different sound to a guitar playing the same notes in the same register, but it's not really what I do. Different strokes for different folks...

:bassist:
 
#112
john turner said:
ah, but they will be. this forum will be specifically geared towards a segment of the population. derrogatory "opinions" from outside the population will not be tolerated, not only as disrespectful, but also as off topic.
Click to expand...

Seriously? I know what Mark was saying was a joke, but that really would be favoritism, as the forum is meant for a specific group of bassists, and treating a group of bassists different than another group on this forum is, well....I won't say. Those who don't play ERBs don't deserve any less protection from disrespect or opinions that are equally derrogatory against them.
 
#113
Bryan R. Tyler said:
Seriously? I know what Mark was saying was a joke, but that really would be favoritism, as the forum is meant for a specific group of bassists, and treating a group of bassists different than another group on this forum is, well....I won't say. Those who don't play ERBs don't deserve any less protection from disrespect or opinions that are equally derrogatory against them.
Click to expand...

I think you make a good point. We spend ages talking about not alienating the small group of extended range bassists...
 
#114
when a large segment of the target population of a discussion forum is not feeling comfortable in the forums available discussing what's important to them, a seperate area for discussion pertaining to their interests is warranted.

any further questions or comments about this, please direct them to me or paul privately.

i asked you to do this before bryan, i'd really appreciate if you would. this is the 2nd thread that's turned "chicken little" over this topic.

if you don't want to see the forum, don't visit the forum. if you don't want to see anything erb-related then ignore the topics in the forum.
 
#115
James Hayes said:
I think you make a good point. We spend ages talking about not alienating the small group of extended range bassists...
Click to expand...

they've already been alienated, trust me. a sadly large portion of the population of erb bassists, which motivated this idea in the first place.

i've been dealing with this since i started playing 7 string in '93. i've been dealing with it here since i started participating at talkbass in '99. i've tried since i've become a mod in 2000 to make this site more friendly towards erb'ers as it's grown, and while i feel i've done a pretty good job, there's so much animosity towards that segment of the population from the less than 7 string crowd that it's pretty much a losing battle for me the way things are now. a seperate forum here geared towards the topic is necessary, in my opinion, and in my experience. folks who wish to play 7+ string basses shouldn't have to listen to some wingnuts pontificating on why they don't need to play the instruments that they choose to play. if i tried to be as draconian as i wish towards that kind of blatant disrespect, i'd have to comb through basses[bg] with a rake for hours.

think of it this way - when a guitar player comes over here to talkbass and makes some disparaging comments towards bassists, he gets booted. when a bg'er wanders down to the double bass side of the board and makes a fool of himself, he get's abused and shamed away. these are all elements of the same concept.

and that's not the only thing - as i've said repeatedly before, there are a lot of topics that erb'ers wish to discuss among themselves that have very little to do with the more standard bass discussions or the majority of the participants in those discussions. amplifiying the top strings of an 11 string bass, ways to set up an instrument with 8 or 9 or 10 or 11 seperate strings, musical applications in an ensemble environment of extended range instruments, solo bass performances, interracting with band mates and producers, recording with such a wide frequency range from the same instrument, etc...

you may not think that these topics are different enough to warrant another forum, but i say they are, and i have 11 years experience with the instruments to back me up, as well as 5 years here at talkbass (4 years as a moderator) to know that the present set up is not the best it could be. i also have a large community of fellow extended range bassists, some with a great deal more background with the instrument than i do, also backing me up - folks who play bass and yet don't feel welcome at talkbass. that's just wrong.

how about you guys who are skeptical give it a shot before you shoot it down? :)
 
#116
back to the topic of the thread, i think an instrument is extended range when you have to special order the strings for it. once the "range" of the instrument gets "accepted" enough for the string manufacturers to offer packs of strings for it with variety in gauges as a standard product, then it's not "extended" range anymore, since "extended" implies outside the "standard" and if the "standard" expands then it's not "extended" any longer. heh. :hyper:
 
#117
john turner said:
back to the topic of the thread, i think an instrument is extended range when you have to special order the strings for it. once the "range" of the instrument gets "accepted" enough for the string manufacturers to offer packs of strings for it with variety in gauges as a standard product, then it's not "extended" range anymore, since "extended" implies outside the "standard" and if the "standard" expands then it's not "extended" any longer. heh. :hyper:
Click to expand...
In which case a 7-string bass would hardly be Extended Range Bass anymore, as many manufacturers ship 7 string sets.

Yet, if I were to go after what is available in the stores, then at least for most stores here in Norway, 6 strings would be extended range. Most people are aware that 6-string basses exist but only the larger stores in the cities carry strings for them.

I, for one, order custom SIT Conklin strings from America for my 7-string Listerud bass.

Back on topic, I voted for 6 strings in the poll, because around here 4 and 5 strings are the norm; and only on the very odd occasion do we see 6-string players. And I still haven't met anyone who has seen a seven-string bass in person, before seeing mine. I pretend not to bother.
 
#118
elros said:
In which case a 7-string bass would hardly be Extended Range Bass anymore, as many manufacturers ship 7 string sets.
Click to expand...

not in my experience. very few manufacturers have off the shelf pre-packaged 7 string sets readily available strings in stores, at least here in the states, where as 4-6 are available in every store that i've been in other than the small mom and pop shops.

you bring to light, however, my point. i expect the perceptions of the instruments,and what it is to be "extended range" to change as time goes by. when i stared on 7 in '93, i didn't even know anyone else who played one (not saying that there weren't any, just that i didn't know of any, anywhere) other than the other few folks who had received 7 strings from bill already (my first one was serial #16, so there weren't too many).

eventually, a few manufacturers started offering the larger gauges - there wasn't even a low f# string until the late 90's when jauqo pushed to get some string makers to build one at .165". he can tell you more about it, along with his ideas behind the low c#. this stuff just wasn't even around on any kind of reasonable scale just 6 or 7 years ago.

shoot, there was a time in the not too distant past when there weren't any 6 string sets available other than custom order. a lot has changed :).

Yet, if I were to go after what is available in the stores, then at least for most stores here in Norway, 6 strings would be extended range. Most people are aware that 6-string basses exist but only the larger stores in the cities carry strings for them.
Click to expand...

yeah, i can imagine that - it's still a very recent development that

I, for one, order custom SIT Conklin strings from America for my 7-string Listerud bass.
Click to expand...

cool, i hope you like them, you're playing my gauges :). the old snakeskins that were based on the sr2000's were not very well thought out, gauge-wise, and i used gauges that i figured out on my own to be more even across the board, and custom ordered them from dm. i told bill about it a few years ago, and he decided to give my gauges a try from SIT. that's what became the new snakeskin set, at least according to bill conklin and eddie speedy at SIT. :)

Back on topic, I voted for 6 strings in the poll, because around here 4 and 5 strings are the norm; and only on the very odd occasion do we see 6-string players. And I still haven't met anyone who has seen a seven-string bass in person, before seeing mine. I pretend not to bother.
Click to expand...

i have a question - how are you received for your instrument choice? do folks meet it with interest that you meet, or scorn? some of both no doubt, but what's your general impression about how you are perceived? :)
 
#119
John..

Did you ever feel like discouraged when you first started playing 7's from the negative comments? You ever feel like "What the hell am i doing?"

I had to vote 6 too...even though i do agree with your post John. But i think it all boils down to area again. I never seen a 7 in person...nor have the many musician friends i have in some larger cities.(I would love to though..id like to try one) And even 6's are somewhat rare in my area...infact there are none in my city whatsoever. I know in some of the larger cities there are some..like Toronto and Ottawa etc...But usually still not as common as 4's and 5's. But certainly working their way up in popularity as it seems more places every year are beginning to offer them.
 
#120
B'Aces High said:
John..

Did you ever feel like discouraged when you first started playing 7's from the negative comments? You ever feel like "What the hell am i doing?"
Click to expand...

no way, man, although for a while i wore a chip on my shoulder about it. it was humbling after a while, to let my pride go and just accept the fact that some folks will face me with scorn and derision just because of the choices i make. shoot, i've seen a pretty established name in the bass world completely tear apart my instruments right in front of me, and i just shrugged it off. to each his own. i can't let that have any effect on me, except maybe to inspire greater things from me. not to earn respect, i already deserve respect, but to help, in a small way, to educate folks on the possibilities, and perhaps in turn inspire other folks. :)
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back