Is it possible that playing a 5 string is actually easier than playing a 4 string?

[Lee Moses]

First couple of months?? Minutes maybe??

For me, months. Of course, I played nothing but 4-string for almost 30 years before I got a 6. If you can acclimate in less time, that's great.

 

[Toptube]

I like narrow spaced 5ers. Makes even 4 string music, easier to play. But even on a wide 5, I appreciate the often flatter neck profile and the extra space for my thumb.

 

[Old Garage-Bander]

So...totally better than a 5 then?

You should try a 2 string. I bring mine out for a couple of songs a set. It's fun.

That two string have an ash body?

 

[lz4005]

That two string have an ash body?

Nope. Between the laminate neck and body/cap it has at least 4 kinds of wood in it. None ash.

 

[Fender_Bender]

Personally, I enjoy going up and down the neck (horizontally that is) and consider it to be an important skill required to be fully competent. When you get both of your hands working on autopilot it's very easy to mentally prepare yourself for a shift way up the 'board. It's also important to be able to move around while minimizing string noise. I can equate it to learning to drive on a standard transmission instead of an automatic. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Afc70]

I've become acclimated to 5's the past couple of years (I started on 4's back in the 80's as a teenager).. for me it does seem better, indeed there is less 'horizontal' movement, the available note options in any given position are beneficial- so yes, it seems easier for me to play a 5 string..As they say, ymmv.

 

[Old Garage-Bander]

If Flea and Geddy lee only need four strings, then why the hell do I need five?

This is my general thought whenever I think about buying a 5 string bass.

That's it! Being good enough to get the job done with just four strings!
Now I know my problem. I need more strings... lots and lots of more strings.

 

[Old Garage-Bander]

Nope. Between the laminate neck and body/cap it has at least 4 kinds of wood in it. None ash.

Darn!

 

[RyanJD]

Easier? I wouldn't think so.
The only thing that qualifies as "easier" for me (maybe more of a convenience) is that I never have to downtune to drop D with a 5 string.

 

[bobdabilder]

Once i got used to the low b, playing a 4 is more work. I dont play much below that low d but everything i need is right there. Plug in a 2 octave scale (moving horizontally), and i am all set to get up higher on the neck.

 

[Munjibunga]

I am still relatively new to playing the bass, and I have only ever played a 4 string. I have, however, recently considered switching to a 5 string, but I have assumed that it would be harder than playing a 4 string. My interest in playing a 5 string grew stronger last week while I was out bar hopping in Nashville with my wife. Over the course of the evening we went to 5-6 bars and probably watched 8-9 bands. The majority of the bands had a bass player that was playing a 5 string, one was even playing a 6 string. As I watched these guys play I noticed that their left hands were barely moving. One player in particular I watched play 5-6 songs and his left hand never left the 1 or 2 position. He wasn't just playing country either. There was some rock and pop mixed in. That is when the thought popped in my head. Is it actually easier to play a 5 string bass?

For me it's easier. You can play across the fretboard much more easily than up and down it. It seems a waste of the advantage, though, to stay down near the nut. Most of my playing is up near the fifth fret where the frets are closer together.

 

[Felken]

If 5 string basses are harder than 4 string basses, guitar is harder than bass (Strings=difficulty). And don't you even think about touching an 8 string bass, experts only!

I started on a 5 string bass. The first time I tried a 4 string I thought "Oh! This is a breeze!". I still only play 5s to this day.

So no, it's not easier nor harder.

 

[Alivefor5]

I've been playing electric bass for over 50 years, the last 25 or so on 5ers. Last fall I was asked to do a show of only 70's dance music.
I played a 4 for that run because of looks and getting the feel of the original players doing those lines. I found playing a 4 to be liberating and
slightly more accurate when reading charts. I'm playing both now in different projects and enjoying both. Advantages to each and neither is easier for me.
Both are still a challenge.

 

[CarpeBasso]

You can move up and down the neck vertically on a 5 just like you can on a 4, play it exactly the same way if you want, using the B-string as a thumb rest. You just have additional options with a 5. That much is undeniable. I love my EBMM SR5. But I still have 4's, just because sometimes that's what you need.

 

[408shaw]

For me trying to play a 5 sting I always end up hitting the B when I want the E string. But I imagine once you get used to it there are advantages to a 5 string.

 

[oren]

. Also lots of music with horn sections is in B.

IME music with horn sections is likely to be Bb or other keys with flats. 5 string doesn't really help there.

 

[jalapejoe]

I play either one and its no getting use to either, the only difference is string spacing and slapping takes a little bit to find the comfort zone. In the current cover band I'm in we have 30+ songs and only a couple of them I use the B string. I could get by without the 5 actually if I wanted but I like have those lows if I need them even if I don't use them a whole lot.

 

[Mike Sorr]

I assure you, it will not be easier for the first couple of months or so. You will keep wanting that B string to be an E string. But it does allow you to cover a wider range with less shifting. That is perhaps the most underrated advantage of a 5- or 6-string.

I saw a guy playing a 5 string at a club a few months back and he did something pretty interesting. His B string was one of those funky colored strings, I think his was blue, and the rest of them were the usual steel color. I'm guessing that he's either normally a 4 stringer, or in the process of making the conversion to 5s. Anyway, I thought it was a pretty creative work around.

 

[jalapejoe]

I have owned quite a few fivers and now only play fours, and have determined that I'm quite the opposite of this----I far prefer the sound (generally speaking) of moving up and down the neck on a four-banger to camping out in one position on an extended range bass. Maybe because it sounds more "traditional" or whatever, I dunno. In sessions as well, in my experience, producers wanted that 4-string "performance"--that shifting to get to the notes, and how it changes sonically and affects the energy being a huge part of the vibe of the bass part. Of course, technically speaking, you can still play a fiver "like a four string", but for me it just doesn't work--it actually makes me play differently when I get goin'!

You know there is a song our band plays called Power of Love and it sounds so much better and fluid cruising up and down to get the notes rather then one position having a five. I play it as the song is written sliding on the E string to hit that D note sounds so much better. Seems to have more power and groove to slide rather then be stationary.

 

[DuranFanWI]

Easier? I wouldn't think so.
The only thing that qualifies as "easier" for me (maybe more of a convenience) is that I never have to downtune to drop D with a 5 string.

Exactly, having that low D readily available is a big plus, and I am not a fan of alternate tuning. I'm so used to a 5-string these days where playing a 4-string kinda feels weird to me at times.