Five string basses - Is active better?

[walknbluez]

For me, the scale of a 5-string makes the biggest difference. Sure, there are great 34" scale 5ers out there, but in my experience, 35" scale 5ers just seem to be better all the way around as far as the B string goes (as long as you don't have small meathhooks!). That Fender you're looking at is 34". If I were you, I'd go to GC or Skip's and play every 5er in there, 34" or 35". That will give you a better feel for B strings and the difference between 34" and 35". The B string on my MTD Heir 5 (35") brings down the house, even with the stock electronics which a lot of people swap out).

Also, I'm in Sacramento and I look at Craigslist almost every day. It's crazy how fast basses sell off of Craigslist around Sac. If you don't end up getting the Jazz, you're sure to find something local soon.

Read some other threads i.e. 34" vs 35". Doesn't the choice of string have a big impact more than scale length?

 

[lousybassplayer]

Read some other threads i.e. 34" vs 35". Doesn't the choice of string have a big impact more than scale length?

Big impact? Sure. More than scale length? That debate will probably never be settled. Again I think it comes down to people looking far too much at components instead of evaluating the whole product. The string factor is why you really have to expiriment with a lot to get what you are after, and of course to try a bunch of different strings over time, you have to actually own the bass in question.

 

[LaklandMike]

Big impact? Sure. More than scale length? That debate will probably never be settled. Again I think it comes down to people looking far too much at components instead of evaluating the whole product. The string factor is why you really have to expiriment with a lot to get what you are after, and of course to try a bunch of different strings over time, you have to actually own the bass in question.

+1
Strings are a whole different ball of wax, and there are many many different strings to try. Luckily for us, there are really only two major scale lengths to try when considering a 5 string, 34 and 35. Once you've decided on which scale you like and buy your bass accordingly, you can use strings to fine-tune your sound.

Again, it's only my opinion, but I'd worry more about the scale than the strings when searching for a killer B.

 

[BuffaloBass]

For me, the scale of a 5-string makes the biggest difference. Sure, there are great 34" scale 5ers out there, but in my experience, 35" scale 5ers just seem to be better all the way around as far as the B string goes (as long as you don't have small meathhooks!). That Fender you're looking at is 34". If I were you, I'd go to GC or Skip's and play every 5er in there, 34" or 35". That will give you a better feel for B strings and the difference between 34" and 35". The B string on my MTD Heir 5 (35") brings down the house, even with the stock electronics which a lot of people swap out).

Not to challenge this, but being exclusively a 5 string player, and having both 34 and 35" axes, , man, there is no difference that I can tell. I can tell crappy axes from solid ones is all. Yes, I bought all the Lakland marketing hype, yet when I sit down with no epxectations, you cannot tell if I am playing the 35" B or the 34" B,. In fact, strings make more of a difference. WIth non tapered worn strings on the Lakkie 35", right now the Sadowsky 34" B is the tightness king. Lakland ship with tapered B's, and I think a new tapered B string is their "hype".

So while everyone has a opinion, to me 34" v 35" is a non issue. How your hand handles the 1-5 postion may be more of an issue. Adn I've found B string to be very "iffy" out of the box as well. Dr has sent me a few new ones to replace "duds".

Active basses give you a hit more "headroom" on the strings, and for only that reason may make a better B since you can play with a lighter touch. Otherwise, dont matter NONE. Also most pre amps dont do low Hz all that well either.

In your price range, the G&L 2500 tribute is THE DEAL imho. Followed by a used Lakland 55-01.

MIM J's are way too inconsistent to say. You MUST try them individually. I bought a bum mexi J5 here, so even TB is not a good "filter".

 

[walknbluez]

MIM J's are way too inconsistent to say. You MUST try them individually. I bought a bum mexi J5 here, so even TB is not a good "filter".

Yeah and if you get a bum one, kinda hard to resell and pass it on knowing its a bum one.

 

[LaklandMike]

Not to challenge this, but being exclusively a 5 string player, and having both 34 and 35" axes, , man, there is no difference that I can tell. I can tell crappy axes from solid ones is all. Yes, I bought all the Lakland marketing hype, yet when I sit down with no epxectations, you cannot tell if I am playing the 35" B or the 34" B,. In fact, strings make more of a difference. WIth non tapered worn strings on the Lakkie 35", right now the Sadowsky 34" B is the tightness king. Lakland ship with tapered B's, and I think a new tapered B string is their "hype".

So while everyone has a opinion, to me 34" v 35" is a non issue. How your hand handles the 1-5 postion may be more of an issue. Adn I've found B string to be very "iffy" out of the box as well. Dr has sent me a few new ones to replace "duds".

Active basses give you a hit more "headroom" on the strings, and for only that reason may make a better B since you can play with a lighter touch. Otherwise, dont matter NONE. Also most pre amps dont do low Hz all that well either.

In your price range, the G&L 2500 tribute is THE DEAL imho. Followed by a used Lakland 55-01.

MIM J's are way too inconsistent to say. You MUST try them individually. I bought a bum mexi J5 here, so even TB is not a good "filter".

I don't feel challenged one bit! That's why I love TalkBass--you can get hundreds of opinions on any topic and you can use them as part of your research before buying something... as long as you know that they are just opinions! I've always sworn by 35" scale 5ers because they just don't feel as "floppy" as 34s to me, but now I'm dying to give those 34s another shot after reading your post.

 

[StuartV]

What other brands do you like in the same price range?

Any US-made Peavey.

There are a couple of TL-Fives on guitarcenter.com's used gear section right now for $400-450, I think. I'd take one of those over a MIM Jazz or a G&L Tribute (or just about any other 5-string in the sub-$500 category) any day. And I wouldn't hesitate to buy one from GC's used gear section, either. TL-Fives have excellent quality and consistency and, if you don't like it, you can always return it to your local GC and get your money back. Or, for another $100 - 200, you could get a US-made Peavey Millennium, which would be even way more better.

 

[P. Aaron]

FWIW I am breaking in a New Fender Precision V. Overall, I really like this bass. Whether the 'B' is good or not, I'd have to own & gig another 5'er which ain't in the budget.

While saving for this bass, I ran the rack on many actives and very few passives. I ended up liking the Fender passive tone more than any other.

Any other 5 owner could play this bass and find fault(s) with it or not. More experienced 5'er owners have the value of experience that I don't. But, I am happy with it.

I saw Ibanez 5'ers that seemed very nice & affordable new, so there's plenty to shop around. It's best to go through as many as possible to get a sense of vibe and what feels good to you. Whether that ends up being passive or active, only you'll know. Just get 'em all in a quiet room where you can hear them.

 

[P. Aaron]

Currently, the Precision mentioned above has D' Addario chromes on it. When they wear out, I'll try some DR Low Riders.

I starting to kinda like the chromes. I have no idea if they're round or hex core as many have said the difference can be crucial to better low B stability.

 

[firefighta115]

The DR low riders are great IMO.... But you may have to wait awhile for those chromes to start sounding bad, they are standard equipment on all my fretless basses.

 

[phillipkregg]

I have not played a Brubaker Brute yet. They look like excellent basses for the money, but they might be hard to find on the used market. There are others which I'm sure that I'm forgetting. But, any of those that I listed are great "bargain" 5-strings IMO/IME.

My Brubaker Brute 5 is 34" scale and has a great B string.

I also have a Lakland JO5. They are passive Jazz basses by default and have great low Bs. But they are also 35" scale.

I find myself playing the Brute more than anything else now.

 

[Munjibunga]

Generally poor (flappy / flabby) B strings are an issue with the physical make up of the instrument rather than the electronics IME.

Wrong. The floppy B is almost entirely a function of the string itself. Stiff strings will feel less floppy than slinky strings. On any two basses with the same scale length and the same strings, the tension in the strings will be identical when tuned to the same note. It's simple physics. So if you don't like a floppy B, get stiffer strings.

Personally, I have basses with both types of strings. I think most complaints of the "floppy B" come from four-string converts who aren't used to the fact that a B string will necessarily have lower tension than an E string. It's just something you have to get used to. Some of the best sounding strings I have are TI Power Bass, which are considerably more slinky than other strings. They just require a lighter touch.

Don't get sucked into the myth of the floppy B.

 

[madfiddler]

+1 Munjibunga

I play both a Fender American deluxe V p-bass and an a/e Michael Kelly Dragonfly 5 string fretless ....the tension of the strings on the later does feel very much lighter but that I no way affects the b string performance. The b on the fender growls just as much as the other strings and is very well balanced imho

I got rid of the very bright sounding bronze strings that came as default on the Dragonfly (they were also very hard on my fingers!) and replaced with thomastik jazz flatwounds and it gives a wonderful natural almost double bass like tone...love it...

So yes, I agree with those who point to the string selection as being key