Five String Tuning Options

[Swingville]

Hi. I'm new to the bass guitar but have played six string guitar for years. Interested in Blues, Classic Rock, Hard Rock & Rockabilly music. Never played bass before.

Just purchased a five string Schecter Damien-5 bass guitar with two EMG-40hz pickups and a 35" scale. I believe the five string bass guitar will arrive tuned to BEADG.

What's the advantage to BEADG?

I'm thinking of tuning to "one octave below" the six string guitar's tuning to EADGB(E). Is there a problem for this as a bass player? Since I'm a guitar player, it seems EADGB(e) would be easy to follow watching or playing bass with other guitarists. I know I'd need to get proper strings and have them intonated correctly.

What do you think? Thanks. Swingville

 

[willbassyeah]

Normally, bassist tune e-a-d-g-c instead of e a d g b. We tune in fourth. Advantage of having a low b is you need not drop tune your bass when playing in lets say drop c or d. I tune my 5 strings from e to c though. Just didn't use the b string much :/

 

[jabsys]

Advantage of having a low b is you need not drop tune your bass when playing in lets say drop c or d.

That might work for some stuff but not for a lot of riffs that need the open C or D.

 

[Swingville]

Normally, bassist tune e-a-d-g-c instead of e a d g b. We tune in fourth. Advantage of having a low b is you need not drop tune your bass when playing in lets say drop c or d. I tune my 5 strings from e to c though. Just didn't use the b string much :/

Why the "C" instead of "B" on the high 5th string?
Is there a reason?
Seems the string scales would be equally divided,
but yet dissimilar than a six string guitar's EADGBE.

Also, your comments seem to make it OK to tune E-C or E-B (which I am thinking about doing) even though my guitar will arrive B-G for the five strings.

In your opinion, do hard rockers, metal rockers and classic rockers use a low 5th "B" string in a B-E tuning?

Or do they more frequently use the higher "B" String in E-B tuning?

Thanks for your response. Swingville

 

[Swingville]

That might work for some stuff but not for a lot of riffs that need the open C or D.

Thank you.

 

[jabsys]

Why the "C" instead of "B" on the high 5th string?
Is there a reason?
Seems the string scales would be equally divided,
but yet dissimilar than a six string guitar's EADGBE.

Keeps everything in 4ths, you can move patterns around the neck and they stay the same, guitars are tuned strange with the highest two strings a major 3rd apart, I presume to make chords easier.

In your opinion, do hard rockers, metal rockers and classic rockers use a low 5th "B" string in a B-E tuning?

Or do they more frequently use the higher "B" String in E-B tuning?

I can't think of any that play with a high B, most bassist in rock or metal tune to BEADG or lower, occasionally EADGC.

 

[punkjazzben]

Standard five string tuning is BEADG. Next most common standard tuning would be EADGC. There are obviously also lots of drop-tuned variations.

If you know your fretboard, and don't need to 'bounce' off an open string for riffing (a low D for example), one if the above tunings should be adequate.

I haven't really heard of any bass player using EADGb, and this is probably because we mostly learn to play on instruments tuned in fourths, and the low B or high C is the natural extension of this. Tuning EADGb just doesn't offer most of us an advantage over the standard tunings, unless in very specific applications (like a particular composition utilising chords or something).

 

[Swingville]

Standard five string tuning is BEADG. Next most common standard tuning would be EADGC. There are obviously also lots of drop-tuned variations.

If you know your fretboard, and don't need to 'bounce' off an open string for riffing (a low D for example), one if the above tunings should be adequate.

I haven't really heard of any bass player using EADGb, and this is probably because we mostly learn to play on instruments tuned in fourths, and the low B or high C is the natural extension of this. Tuning EADGb just doesn't offer most of us an advantage over the standard tunings, unless in very specific applications (like a particular composition utilising chords or something).

Thank you very much. I will stick to one of the two.

 

[Swingville]

Keeps everything in 4ths, you can move patterns around the neck and they stay the same, guitars are tuned strange with the highest two strings a major 3rd apart, I presume to make chords easier.


I can't think of any that play with a high B, most bassist in rock or metal tune to BEADG or lower, occasionally EADGC.

Thanks. I will keep it with one of the two you suggest.
Keep it simple. Swingville

 

[MarkA]

I remember reading an interview with Tim Bogert years (like 15 or 20) ago in Bass Player magazine. I am almost positive that in it he said that he tuned his six-string bass BEADGB (same Major 3rd between G and B as guitar). Don't know if that's still the case.

I own a guitar and noodle on it from time to time. I can play "Blackbird" and the opening to "Over the Hills and Far Away" and some similar stuff on it, but I don't consider myself a guitarist, partly because I am playing those tunes mostly by rote -- if I go to improvise on guitar, the tuning often throws me off moving between the G and B. In other words, for me playing guitar is 90% applying skills I learned on other instruments -- unless it's "campfire guitar" (easy chords and strumming), I'm translating, phrasebook in hand, from a similar but distinct language.

Metaphors aside, it seems obvious to me that the guitar tuning facilitates certain chords -- or at least certain chord voicings. Even if the bass fretboard were the same size as that of a guitar, five- and six-note voicings of G Major, E minor, C Major or the more common barre chords seem like they'd be difficult and impractical with an all-4ths tuning. Even when playing six-string bass, I almost never voice a chord with more than 3 or 4 notes. But then...

- I am not that experienced with six string.
- I am not a guitarist.
- You're asking about 5-string, not six.

Bass more often approaches chords from an arpeggiated perspective than guitar does, and often inserts a lot of in-between notes. You also don't have to play everything in the same position that the guitar player does. That being the case, a symmetrical tuning (everything the same) seems, as others have mentioned, to make more sense. I've messed around with tuning the C-string to B, and also messed around with tuning the six string like a giant, dropped guitar (BEADF#B). It yielded some interesting results, but ultimately (for me) made the instrument less flexible.

Enough of my rambling! You sound as if you already know what you'll do. All 4ths is certainly more standard among bass players. As far as low B vs. high C goes, a perhaps simplistic but valid way to look at it might be more options for grooving down low vs. more options for solo-ing and chording up high.

Do what works for you and have fun!

 

[Swingville]

I remember reading an interview with Tim Bogert years (like 15 or 20) ago in Bass Player magazine. I am almost positive that in it he said that he tuned his six-string bass BEADGB (same Major 3rd between G and B as guitar). Don't know if that's still the case.

I own a guitar and noodle on it from time to time. I can play "Blackbird" and the opening to "Over the Hills and Far Away" and some similar stuff on it, but I don't consider myself a guitarist, partly because I am playing those tunes mostly by rote -- if I go to improvise on guitar, the tuning often throws me off moving between the G and B. In other words, for me playing guitar is 90% applying skills I learned on other instruments -- unless it's "campfire guitar" (easy chords and strumming), I'm translating, phrasebook in hand, from a similar but distinct language.

Metaphors aside, it seems obvious to me that the guitar tuning facilitates certain chords -- or at least certain chord voicings. Even if the bass fretboard were the same size as that of a guitar, five- and six-note voicings of G Major, E minor, C Major or the more common barre chords seem like they'd be difficult and impractical with an all-4ths tuning. Even when playing six-string bass, I almost never voice a chord with more than 3 or 4 notes. But then...

- I am not that experienced with six string.
- I am not a guitarist.
- You're asking about 5-string, not six.

Bass more often approaches chords from an arpeggiated perspective than guitar does, and often inserts a lot of in-between notes. You also don't have to play everything in the same position that the guitar player does. That being the case, a symmetrical tuning (everything the same) seems, as others have mentioned, to make more sense. I've messed around with tuning the C-string to B, and also messed around with tuning the six string like a giant, dropped guitar (BEADF#B). It yielded some interesting results, but ultimately (for me) made the instrument less flexible.

Enough of my rambling! You sound as if you already know what you'll do. All 4ths is certainly more standard among bass players. As far as low B vs. high C goes, a perhaps simplistic but valid way to look at it might be more options for grooving down low vs. more options for solo-ing and chording up high.

Do what works for you and have fun!

Thanks so much and great response. I suppose in "art" there are no statements as "always" or "never". Mostly just wondering why or why not the bass tunings can be similar or dissimilar towards the guitar tunings?

I do not see myself playing bar chords on a bass guitar (my bass guitar has yet to arrive). But, I do see myself playing two strings at a time, similar/same towards rhythm guitar leads.

But, being new to bass, I'll play the BEADG for a while and then the suggested EADGC and then the EADGB. That'll be it. No fancy drop C or F# or whatever. Mostly playing blues & several forms of rock.

This thread has been very helpful. Thanks to all. Swingville

 

[MarkA]

At the risk of stating the obvious, make sure that you don't try the low-B and high-C tunings with the same set of strings. A good six-string set will allow you to experiment with both on five string. If you want to try dropping the C to B, no biggie then.

Thanks so much and great response. I suppose in "art" there are no statements as "always" or "never". Mostly just wondering why or why not the bass tunings can be similar or dissimilar towards the guitar tunings?

I do not see myself playing bar chords on a bass guitar (my bass guitar has yet to arrive). But, I do see myself playing two strings at a time, similar/same towards rhythm guitar leads.

But, being new to bass, I'll play the BEADG for a while and then the suggested EADGC and then the EADGB. That'll be it. No fancy drop C or F# or whatever. Mostly playing blues & several forms of rock.

This thread has been very helpful. Thanks to all. Swingville