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Has anyone here abandoned their 5 string basses totally for 4 strings?

#21
I do prefer the 4, but the 5 makes the most sense to me as a 'bass.' Having those extra few notes down to b or even A is great.

If I could only have one bass I'd probably have a 5, although I really, really love the 4.

The question for me would be whether I'd abondon my 4 for the 5. The answer would be no. But I could understand someone who started on a 5, sticking with the 5.
 
#23
I went to exclusively playing five string basses about 12-13 years ago. I would occasionally pickup a four, but it would invariably last a month or so before it would go back on TB class.

Last year, I bought on a whim a really nice Lakland 4-string jazz. Don't remember the model but it was natural with a black PG. I LOVED playing a four. I ended up selling it and buying a Sadowsky 4.

Later last year I ended up selling all of my gear for financial reasons, but I do think I will acquire another four at some point. I think I'd like to have Modulus VJ.
 
#24
I gigged a Stingray 5 from the late 80's through the late 90's then quit gigging due to some serious family issues. It was a great bass. As I was then just playing for self-enjoyment, the SR5 felt big and ponderous so I traded it for a Sterling 4H. I couldn't be happier! I rarely missed those 5 extra notes. I started playing seriously again about 18 months ago, so I picked up an L-2500. I tried and tried, but ultimately came to the conclusion that a 5 was no longer for me. I'm now on my third Sterling and there I think I will stay.
 
#25
ga_edwards said:
Yep, been there, done that ;).

Like yourself, I found that I always played my 5 strings like a 4 string with a few lower notes, and used the B string mainly as a thumb rest. Even on my Warwick Thumb which was tight and punchy as hell, I found the B string got too 'wooly' if I played past the 5th fret.

I know play 4 strings again, but with Hipshot D-tuners on the low E for the times I need to reach for a low D (actually, I think I only ever needed to go lower than D on one song, which we don't play any more). Strangely, I find drop tuning more intuitive than having an extra string. Besides, I was never satisfied with playing drop D tunes/riffs on the 5 string, they never sounded quite right.
Click to expand...
+1 While you don't get all the notes of a low B string, I greatly prefer the tone of a dropped E over the same notes played on a low B. I got my 5er when I got into a band where the guitarist played and wrote on a 7 string. Sold it when that venture bit the dust.
 
#26
I bought an SR505 a while back and have made a real effort to bond with it. It is an uncertain relationship at best. Then I decided to tune my four string Jazz to CGDA as an experiment. That too has some issues but on the whole I am bonding with the fifths tuning and I like it better than a five string. It doesn't get you the B of course but for my "work" (as a worship band bassist) the C is close enough and if you really needed it you could tune down a half or whole step. I am sticking with the cello tuning because I am starting to dabble in cello music too, for grins. I'm not sure what to do with the Ibanez: sell/trade it, convert it to a four!!, or maybe tune it in fifths too. For now I have the strings on order to tune it CGDAE, the latter choice. If that does not do anything interesting for me I will probably dispose of it.

In retrospect I would likely have been happier with an SR500 tuned BEAD. The extra four frets over the Fender would have mostly compensated for the missing G string. It doesn't seem likely now but if I were to decide against the fifths tuning for the long run I would certainly give that a try.

Ken
 
#27
Nope - still playing both 4s and 5s... I suppose if my band situation changes where I don't need the lower notes, I'd primarily play 4s - but I don't see that happening any time soon... One side project doesn't requite anything that low, and I only bring 4 bangers for that - and it is kinda nice, I have to admit...


- georgestrings
 
#28
I've had several nice 5's drift through. Love the feel and playing them. I dunno, just something about the sound was "different" I just couldn't quite connect. Very quirky on my part but... I have a P strung bead and it satisfies my B string thunder cravings, and I think that's where I have settled.
 
#29
Evil Undead said:
I liked 5 strings when I had one, but now I'm all about the Fender 4 strings.
Click to expand...

Me too!

I was in a Classic-Southern Rock Band for years the reason I went back to 4 to begin with, and now we have a Super Group with some of those Musicians and others from previous bands I have played with...we play alot of Hip-Hop, Dance and Funk...a lot of songs have that Low Sub sound, but I cant just go for a 5 String again...I have been enjoying my Fender P's and J's too much. :hyper:
 
#30
Presumably you bought a 5 string bass is because you wanted the extended range. If you bought it not knowing exactly why then moving back to 4 strings would be an easy decision.

As I bought my 5 string bass for the extra range, going back is not really an appealing option. I love the low thunder when I hit a low c, d or b. Using them sparingly makes it all the more effective when you drop a sub bomb. Even E on the B string has depth that open E can not deliver.

Some guys never get used to that extra string. I love it!
 
#31
I feel fine with either 4 or 5 strings, but nowadays many artists won't accept that in Eb or D the bass would only sit on the Open D or 5th fret of the A string. That way the bass is sounding only one note lower than a standard guitar. That's fine for any old school rock tunes, but not for some "modern" stuff. I usually ask my clients if they prefer me to use or not use the B string, of course some of them leave it up to me.

When sight reading the B string comes in handy, of course. Although the B string gets muddy when playing in higher positions, for just one eight note I wouldn't change the position...

When it comes to playing Walking Bass, I ask my students to not use or very carefully use the low notes on the B string, since they were not there when Walking Bass was "invented".
 
#36
I am going in this direction now. I have a G&L L2500 that I really like, but it is just too heavy for me to play for more than a few songs comfortably. And, I found that I dont use anything below the low D, lower than that and it just doesnt sound right in my band. Im not sure if Ill get rid of it, but I was thinking of getting a Hipshot for my Ric for the few songs that use the low D.
 
#38
I gave up on 5s for about 4 years after playing 5s for 10 years.

ALWAYS found myself missing the B string. Sometimes for notes below E, a lot for the positional and tonal differences it allows.

Also found 4 string necks, even the widest, to be too small and actually HARDER to play for me.

Went back to wide-spaced 5s only and no regrets - my 5s have everything a 4 has and more. Plus my main 5 sounds better than any 4 I've played.

YMMV

J
 

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