Get Off My Lawn: Downtuning

[Miles_ONeal]

I'm sure lots of fans of drop tunings and newish or older metal with drop tunings may disagree, but I think you're right to focus on a default EADG rather than experimenting with other tunings. Although the different tunings probably would help you learn the full range of the instrument, personally I think it's a good idea to learn that basic tuning inside out before branching out. It is a bummer it keeps you from playing some of those songs, but there are a gazillion heavy songs in standard tuning that can keep you busy in the meantime.

I also know people who swear you have to have a 5-string bass.

Different strokes and all, but i feel like I have a lifetime of learning to do with my measly little 4 strings and boring old standard tuning.

Until I get my BEAD bass finished, I detuned my two players to DGCF (a whole step down). Patterns are the same, just two frets up for songs in standard tuning. Works great with EBCFs on my Thunderbirds. May or may not work well with your strings.

 

[bassGtar]

I don’t want to tune my bass different every time I want to learn a new song.

I want to actually learn and know where the notes are on the instrument.

I feel like different tunings will not help me actually learn the instrument.

As I dig up tabs for songs I like I keep running into different drop tunings starting with Sabbath all the way to the Dead Kennedys. Kinda frustrated. Would love to learn Tool tunes. Don’t really want to drop the tuning and just learn patterns that have no deeper meaning to my learning as a musician.

Any advice or thoughts?

I’ve felt the same way at times. A thought just occurred to me. Should we learn the tunes but play them an octave higher (not on stage, of course)? Would that improve our knowledge higher up the fretboard? I’m gonna try it.

 

[shastaband]

Yes! No downtuning. And no backward baseball hats.

AND GET OFF MY LAWN!

 

[bassGtar]

Yes! No downtuning. And no backward baseball hats.

View attachment 4774552

AND GET OFF MY LAWN!

One day people are going to look at that pic and laugh about how stupid that guy looks. "Imagine he wore his glasses over his nose and not on the back of his head! What a moron."

And get outa my carrot patch if you're gonna make a big deal about how someone chooses to tune their base.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

I’ve felt the same way at times. A thought just occurred to me. Should we learn the tunes but play them an octave higher (not on stage, of course)? Would that improve our knowledge higher up the fretboard? I’m gonna try it.

You should learn a few of them all over the fretboard just because.

 

[JMacBass65]

I do appreciate a p-bass through an SVT and an 810 fridge. But generally I'm not a traditionalist when it comes to my music gear. Show me something new. But there is one modern bass thing that I just can't quite get behind: downtuning.

So many people do it now. It's a mainstay in whole genres of music it seems. But every time I read people's questions about it (what's gauge strings should I use if I want to droptune to A?) I can't help but think don't do that! The instrument wasn't made to be tuned that way! (Although nowadays I'm sure some of them definitely are)

So normally I like new things. I seek them out, even. But the downtune thing is my personal get off my lawn issue. Fess up. What's your get off my lawn thing?

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I'm with you, tuning down any more than a whole step is just dumb.

 

[JAFERD]

A bass is just a downtuned guitar anyways...

/s

 

[Cheryl J]

Joni Mitchell?

50 guitar tunings and then went to guitar synth so she didn’t have to cart around so many axes, still playing.

How?

 

[FirewalZ]

Our original band uses standard tuning, we are usually the only band on the bill that does. Many rooms have a questionable pa and even more questionable sound guy, muddy and boomy lows and washed out bass is the norm. I think down tuning makes it worse, we typically sound better and more clear than the other bands…I often thought that this could be a contributing factor. That and I bring a hp/lp filer for just such an occasion

 

[Cheryl J]

Our original band uses standard tuning, we are usually the only band on the bill that does. Many rooms have a questionable pa and even more questionable sound guy, muddy and boomy lows and washed out bass is the norm. I think down tuning makes it worse, we typically sound better and more clear than the other bands…I often thought that this could be a contributing factor. That and I bring a hp/lp filer for just such an occasion

i sometimes have difficulty tuning the lows. Some rooms have awful modal response, especially with the placement of the subs. But then I only mix in dives so that’s expected. A live person on the sound board isn’t expected but I’ve seen more bands using a wireless mixer control interface lately and sometimes the band leader brings a spare guy for tuning up the FOH

 

[FirewalZ]

i sometimes have difficulty tuning the lows. Some rooms have awful modal response, especially with the placement of the subs. But then I only mix in dives so that’s expected. A live person on the sound board isn’t expected but I’ve seen more bands using a wireless mixer control interface lately and sometimes the band leader brings a spare guy for tuning up the FOH

yes.....subs lined up right under the front of a large wooden framed stage...that's not baffled....turns into a giant vibrating boom. Bands that tune way down and have a lot of heavy lows, seem to exaggerate the issue.

 

[Doug P]

I don’t like Mexican food north of Dallas or east of Tyler.

What about Whataburger??? We did a show in TX and the plane got in late. So where to go at 1am…… you guessed it ! The others have never had the pleasure of the Whataburger menu. Disclosure; we ate there three times until we flew home. Yum.

 

[5StringBlues]

I am not happy with what burger. They have taken the chicken fajita taco off of the menu. That was a decent late night munch that on the surface at least seemed to fairly healthy for 2:00 AM

What about Whataburger??? We did a show in TX and the plane got in late. So where to go at 1am…… you guessed it ! The others have never had the pleasure of the Whataburger menu. Disclosure; we ate there three times until we flew home. Yum.