How many 5 string players actually use the B?

[FunkMetalBass]

Buy a custom set of Circle K strings that looks like: .142 - .068 - .033 - .015 - .008

Tune it BBBBB.

Then you absolutely will have to use your B-string.

 

[Greevus]

I use BEAD. B is my E now. If you aren't using it, then you are missing out. Booming, thumping lows is where it's at.

 

[eastcoasteddie]

This is the reason I need a fiver, unfortunately I haven't find a bass with a good B , at least on the $1000-s1500 range, in all the ones I have played the notes on the B does not sound good to my ears, I just saw a video for Xotic bass, the B was very impressive but I don't have the money right now.

I never heard a B I didn't like. Even my $180 chinese fretless 6 has an awesome B.

 

[eastcoasteddie]

Buy a custom set of Circle K strings that looks like: .142 - .068 - .033 - .015 - .008

Tune it BBBBB.

Then you absolutely will have to use your B-string.

that's awesome...."just call me 'Capo-fingers'"

 

[perfektspace6]

All the time!

It allows me to play in different positions, provides a nice dynamic shift, an means I don't have to tune down when playing in drop tunings.

I would really miss it if I played a four.

 

[superjaay]

I use the B alot. The type of contemporary gospel that I play at chuch has many songs in Db and Eb. It like playing in the lower register, so it works for me.

 

[Swift713]

I use the B string all the time, usually in 5th or 3rd position. I play far fewer open strings than I used to on a 4 string.

 

[HaMMerHeD]

Well I didn't buy it for my health, so yeah..I use it.

 

[jpTron]

all teh tyme

 

[FunkMetalBass]

that's awesome...."just call me 'Capo-fingers'"

I'm actually considering it now, except A-A. But then it means I have to keep my 5-string. Hmmm

 

[Hoover]

how many of you 5 string players use the low B often ?

I let the situation dictate what instrument I play...so if I need the extended range, I bring the ERB. If I don't need it, I leave it at home and pack the trusty 4-string. If I've got carte blanche (sp?) to define my parts, I think about context and appropriateness before deciding what instrument to bring, and then if I bring an ERB I use as much of it as necessary to serve the music.

 

[dave64o]

Like a million other people who responded already, I may not use it for the lower notes very often, but I use the string a lot to help reduce the need to shift positions. In fact, my instructor often tells me to try playing passages differently so I do use that string when he see's I'm not taking advantage of it.

 

[pbasswil]

I try to let the music dictate the choice of register. If you play straight rock or alternative, a real gut-shaking sub-low note may not sound right.

But in my commercial cover band, there's plenty of repertoire that can use the B string -- everything from dance-club type 4-on-the-floor stuff, to production ballads and the odd latin/salsa, etc. etc.

 

[Hankenstein]

constantly

 

[groooooove]

owen biddle always play high on the neck on the B string.

i use mine a lot too.

 

[bunkaroo]

My B string is in use at least as often as my E and A. It's been that way since I got my first 5-string in 1994. If anything I could lose the G and not miss it too much.

I got my first two 4-string basses in almost 2 decades in September (MIA P and Jazz), and I've already traded the Jazz for a 5-string Jazz. The P will stay since it's tuned DGCF - otherwise I'd trade that too.

And it's not really about laying on the low notes all the time. There are many times in the songs I write and in other bands where a D or C on the A string is more appropriate. But many times the sonic makeup of a song begs for that space to be filled by a lower fundamental note, and I am happy to supply it.

 

[Fuzzbass]

I wonder? How many people play on the B string past the 12th fret?

I do... on my Sadowskys.

Yes, thicker strings (B and E) can be tricky to intonate properly. IME, tapered B strings are easier to intonate, and therefore more usable up high. Not that I need to go up there very often, but it's nice to have usable range up there when I do.

 

[Jaycephas]

The best B string I ever heard past the 12th fret was on a Fender Roscoe Beck V. Something about how those Bill Lawrence pickups were wound that made it sound usable. Otherwise, not so much.

 

[SanDiegoHarry]

I used it frequently - - and 90% of the time, it's *not* for the notes below E.

 

[zeroncali]

I have fairly small hands so it is easier for me to play higher on the neck. Also the lower notes are pretty awesome for blues and country.