Four bangers on the decline?

[darkstorm]

No decline in world touring pros who play 4 string, nor in internet stores most popular listings that I know of or observe. 5 string basses did go thru a popularity rise but I think that levelled out or peaked awhile back.

 

[zachoff]

I only play 4s.

 

[mazareth]

Here in Central Wisconsin, I only know of one 5 string player. I have nothing against 5ers. I've played around on one, but I don't know that I would ever buy one. If I bought a 5er, I'd have to figure out new parts for the songs the band plays. The group I'm with now does 4-5 songs in drop D. It would be nice sometimes to have that low D.

We did a gig last night. In thinking back over the songs we played, I could have gotten by with only the E, A and D strings on most of our songs. In my playing I tend to move up the neck more than across the strings.

Then again Central Wisconsin is like Iowa (South Park reference), we're 5 years behind the times.

 

[georgestrings]

ask Fender, who sell WAY more basses than anyone

Fender's never exactly been known for making good 5ers, though... I'd say asking Ibanez or MusicMan would be a better barometer...


- georgestrings

 

[guy n. cognito]

I recently got back to basics and switched all my 5ers for 4 strings.

 

[ShirazBop]

I can only play 4's....

 

[jkramer5]

Not at my house, I've got 10 of em and no desire to get a bass with any more than 4 strings.

 

[georgestrings]

Right now, I am between fives, and I only have a four. Frankly, playing a four is a blast. having those low notes can be a crutch, and not being able to use them forces me to take different approaches to songs.

I play alot of modern rock, which makes being able to get down to low B a necessity - there isn't any "different approach" available when covering the song properly calls for notes that low...

FWIW, I play both 4s and 5s - currently, I own (8) 4s, and (3) 5s...


- georgestrings

 

[EricF]

I have owned two 5'ers. They were both sold to fund 4's. I have 7 basses - all 4's.

4's on the decline? Not in my house, ant not what I'm seeing out on the streets.

 

[georgestrings]

This question totally depends on the gig, IMO.

Cover situations including content that routinely goes below low E require some way to get there. D-tuners are great, but somewhat limited. 5's are useful tools for more modern cover situations. 6's are cool for Jazz situations, if the player is covering soloing responsibilities, or for trios where you might want to cover some comping parts.

Just depends; if the gig doesn't call for it, there are some marvelous 4's out there. I don't have any issue with cats using only the middle 4 strings of a six for a gig. Heck, maybe that's the only axe they can afford. Maybe they also play other situations.

Live and let live; play well. Oh and don't waste your time counting strings.

IMO

Exactly - a working pro will bring what they need to get the job done well, and *most* don't concern themselves all that much with what others play...


- georgestrings

 

[-=DanAtkinson=-]

90% of my customers want 4-strings.

 

[Fuzzbass]

Actually, I think the sax comparison is VERY apt! I see soprano, alto, and tenor saxes all quite regularly, why can't it be the same for bass?

If you believe that 4, 5, and 6 string basses have different timbres, then perhaps the sax comparison is appropriate. I don't.

 

[chuck norriss]

No. I shopped around for a six-string for about a half a year & ended up w/ a Gretsch 4-string.

 

[DwaynieAD]

i play a five out of necessity, wish i could play on a four, but we're tuned to low A

 

[Andy Brown]

Life is good (and comfortable) on a four. It's all I own now.

 

[low2groove]

18 years on a 4 string.

23 years on a 5 and 6 string.

The last 5 years back to a 4 string.

My current build for myself is a 5er only because I'm playing some heavier stuff with my son and it really is required.

If it was up to me it would have been another 4 string.

One of those is planned right after the 5 string build.

 

[bass sic]

What's wrong with alternate tuning? I can tune down to B and still walk the neck as far as I need to. I've also noticed most fives I've messed with were just lacking something in the tone department. I'll stick with four string.

 

[John Wentzien]

Here in Central Wisconsin, I only know of one 5 string player. I have nothing against 5ers. I've played around on one, but I don't know that I would ever buy one. If I bought a 5er, I'd have to figure out new parts for the songs the band plays. The group I'm with now does 4-5 songs in drop D. It would be nice sometimes to have that low D.

We did a gig last night. In thinking back over the songs we played, I could have gotten by with only the E, A and D strings on most of our songs. In my playing I tend to move up the neck more than across the strings.

Then again Central Wisconsin is like Iowa (South Park reference), we're 5 years behind the times.

 

[rob2966]

I have four 5-strings and pretty much only played fivers since I started playing bass. However, my last bass was a 4-string and I am really enjoying it. It does have a D-tuner on the E string so I can still get it a bit lower if need be.

I figure 4-bangers will always be around. Also, just go to a GC or similar store and count the number of 4's compared to everything else. Seems most people are still buying 4-strings basses.

Later
Rob

 

[Fuzzbass]

If you check out the history of many instruments, "string inflation" (or its equivalent) is a common phenomenon. So we've had six string violins, 9 string guitars, harps with an extra octave or two and church organs that go down to inaudible low notes. In some cases you get extreme examples of this, maybe because some musicians feel that the difficulty they have expressing themselves would be remedied by a few extra notes, rather than development in other ways.

Anyway, these innovations rarely have real lasting power in the grand scheme of things. Who'd want to listen to Coltrane on a contrabass sax for long? The musical instruments that show real longevity are usually the ones that are deceptively simple but capable of true subtlety. I think history will show us that the four string bass belongs in that category.

Really? Five extra notes (between four and five string) changes the nature of the instrument?? I disagree! I'm not sure that six string is all that different from four, either.

Also -- if you play Freebird (or Havona) just as it is on the record, it doesn't matter whether you've got four strings or eleven.

So, the sax comparison is not a good one.

What this post tells me is that you only need 4 strings and have no idea what a 5 string or more bass is about. You can always tell that when people start saying "five extra notes" is what the difference in a 5 string bass is.

Which is OK. The 4 string isn't going extinct. Cripes, there are people who still play the LUTE for crying out loud. But the advantages of a 5 or 6 string bass are real and useful. Personally the only 4 strings I own are a couple of my old basses that I never play anymore. And I'd never go back unless I suddenly got into authentic "old school" rock or something. Then, sure, you'd have to do it to give the right historical vibe to the music. Otherwise I live in the modern world.
(note I learned on a 4 and played one for MANY years!)

I play 5 string exclusively. I mentioned specifically in this thread that the difference between 4 and 5 string basses is more than just 5 notes, however my post above was in response to bassybill's comparison of basses of different strings to the different saxophones.

Saxophones of different ranges have very different timbres, but that's not true for 4/5/6 string guitars (a few argue otherwise, but any difference that exists is completely unimportant musically). Also, the different saxophones frequently have different musical roles, playing in harmony with each other. That's extremely rare for bass guitar... 99% of the time basses of 4, 5, or 6 strings fill the same musical role, with slight variations in range.

To clarify: the difference between 4 and 5 string bass is far greater than 5 notes from the player's standpoint, but generally not from the listener's.