Is there really a NEED to own a four string bass?

[Gibenbackerbass]

If you want that Hofner Magic, four is all you're going to get.

 

[5StringBlues]

If you want that Hofner Magic, four is all you're going to get.

These aren't viola basses and they are SUPER rare ,but they are basses:

http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/gallery/bass/bas4.html


http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/gallery/gallery2/gallery11/ga148.html

http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/hofner/basses/bas9.html

http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/gallery/bass/bas63.html


Edit:Holy smoke! I just found one of the semi hollowbody ones on Ebay : http://cgi.ebay.com/Hofner-Vintage-...QQcmdZViewItemQQptZGuitar?hash=item2a034b1319

I am not associated with this listing.

 

[Alexander]

ouch! i've been burned!

no, i believe strongly (and have great evidence) that creativity needs boundaries to flourish and grow. one boundary i've given myself is the use of 4 strings. i have to think about how my tone sits in the mix, and how to best construct basslines to maximize both rhythm and melody in the songs, and in a dense band mix, how to do both without stepping on toes. had i a 5, i could just play everything as low as possible, but that wouldn't be very interesting or creative, would it?
again, different strokes for different folks.

I agree with this and it is my main reason for playing only fours right now (though I'm jonesing for another fiver). Several years ago, I had a really good 4 and a really cheap 5. I played mainly the 4, but would occasionally get out the 5 and try to refigure my lines, but a bit lower. Then I'd want the tone of the 4 and go back. What I learned is that most of the notes I played on the 5 were still available on the 4, just below the root. To that point, I really played mainly from the root up and "below the root" notes only very occasionally - looking back I can easily see how one dimensional my earlier approach was. So I began playing the 4 with lines above and below the root, which really opened up the bass in a new way, was much more dynamic, etc. Told myself I would stick with a 4 in the near term as a boundary to get myself really into this newer (to me) way of thinking.

I realize of course, the same principle applies to 5s as well and my next bass will be a fiver...

 

[Kwesi]

Let me add something real quick.

If you want to be a hired gun for stuff, having a well rounded arsenal will NOT hurt you. That means 4's, 5's fretless.... dare I say upright? Me, I like to get hired for studio work or a couple gigs here and there. I try to keep... or have access to a variety of instruments to fit that artists needs. Oh yeah, and I have a lot of different clothes for certain gigs too.

That's exactly what I was thinking after I made this thread. I would love to get to the point where a well-rounded arsenal is justified by something more than GAS, lol. I guess at that point a 4 would be necessary to make sure that you can cater to the needs of the gig be it looks, tone, or anything else.

It's pretty interesting to see so many different views on the subject. I think a few people mentioned restringing to BEAD and while I understand the concept, I just can't see how anyone would use the G so little as to completely get rid of it. It's a regular part of my playing and every bassist I've ever met. But I suppose for different people there are different needs .

 

[bassbenj]

That's exactly what I was thinking after I made this thread. I would love to get to the point where a well-rounded arsenal is justified by something more than GAS, lol. I guess at that point a 4 would be necessary to make sure that you can cater to the needs of the gig be it looks, tone, or anything else.

Usually I tend to go on and on blasting the "Jaco only needed 4 strings crowd" and telling how I play a "real" bass [all "real" basses have 5 or more strings].

But in fairness I admit that I played 4 strings back when that's all there was. And I'll also admit that playing in horn keys used to irritate a LOT. And the attitude of some 4 string players who seem to be making the point (even if they don't come out and say it) that anyone who plays a bass with more than 4 strings is somehow an idiot, since 4 strings are "all Jaco and presumably YOU will ever need".

For me my first 5 string was like the sky opening up and the sun coming out. "Why didn't anyone build one of these before?" was my timeless question.

But I still have 4 string basses and still play them although not much. I go with the rule that anything you can do on a 4, I can do better on a 5. But the question persists: When is my rule NOT true.

1. Old school. If you are into classic old school music a modern bass and for that matter even a 4 string with a modern sound just isn't it. The look is wrong. The tone is wrong. If you happen to use some extended range the sound is wrong. Basically if you want to play historical lute music you had better use a lute!

2. Tradition. As someone noted there are basses (Hofner, my 8 string etc,) that simply aren't available in 5 or 6 string versions. 4 string basses as seen by any measure including the polls here are still by for the majority of instruments. And there is a much wider availability of strings etc. for 4 string basses. Lets face it, it's still pretty much a 4 string world out there. And that can't be totally ignored.

3. Slapping. Yes, there are wide spaced 5 strings and people slap 6 stringers but in my experience, you have a much easier time of things if you slap on a 4 string. I prefer narrow spaced 5 and 6 string basses, so for me that is one reason to play a 4.

4. Increasing creativity by restriction. Someone mentioned this and it's valid. There is a trick drummers use when they get a creative block. You just start removing things from the kit! You take away all the toms or all the cymbals even maybe the snare. You go from your huge kit down to maybe some tiny 3 piece and what you find is that creativity suddenly blossoms. Same thing can be used on a bass by similar restrictions. When a "block" occurs just put all the boutique 6 stringers back in their cases and restrict yourself to the P-bass 4 string for a while. VERY educational!

The real bottom line here is not how many strings do you "need". Need has nothing to do with it. What you need to ask is what kind of bass would work best in the music you are currently playing/interested in. It's really all about ART first and what you "prefer" to play second. For example, I "prefer" to play a 6 string. I love the range across the neck and the extended high and low range. My "rule" was: "Better to have it and not play it, than to need it and not have it." But these days the music I'm playing simply doesn't need the extended high end. The C string just sets there. And then I find a 6 string bass "look" is wrong. And the tone of my 6 stringers wasn't quite it either. It just doesn't fit the whole picture. So now I'm playing my 5 strings and things fit much better. Another change of music and I might have to drop back to a 4 or maybe go back to the 6s. It's really all about the music. Not about me.

 

[pdubya]

i have played live situations of all kinds- gigs from 30 to 30000 people.
all with 4 strings.
that´s not to say that i wouldn´t try a 5 string
just don´t know if i need one

Link Removed

 

[MisterMagician]

That's exactly what I was thinking after I made this thread. I would love to get to the point where a well-rounded arsenal is justified by something more than GAS, lol. I guess at that point a 4 would be necessary to make sure that you can cater to the needs of the gig be it looks, tone, or anything else.

It's pretty interesting to see so many different views on the subject. I think a few people mentioned restringing to BEAD and while I understand the concept, I just can't see how anyone would use the G so little as to completely get rid of it. It's a regular part of my playing and every bassist I've ever met. But I suppose for different people there are different needs .

I don't think I have ever willingly played on the G. Mostly because it sounds so drastically different than the other three on my JBass... but that's Fender for you.

 

[anthowl]

I bought a 5 cos I could see some reasons for it but decided after a few days I'd rather be a great 4 player than a mediocre 5 player.
since then I've thought of a ton of reasons why i like 4 strings better.

 

[cnltb]

I
I'm not saying that 4s are no good by any means but as a comfortable 5 string player is there any real need to own one?

Ashborys only come in 4, so YES. There most certainly is a need for everyone to own a 4.

 

[Roy Vogt]

I think and play differently on a four than I do on a 5,6 or 7. I really like the sound of 4s with guitar exclusive bands (Beatles, etc.). Also, if you're going to be teaching bass the 5 can make your students cross-eyed from trying to read the music, watch your hands, and figure out which string you're on as most beginners tend to play 4s in my experience
I played 6s exclusively for a decade, but I'm enjoying my old Alembic.

 

[Joe Nerve]

I played only 5s for about 6 years because of bands I was playing in that required it. I'm now back to 4s and since I discovered the D-tuner hope to never have to go back to a 5. I had lots of trouble getting used to the 5, got over that and have no trouble now, but somehow it takes a lot of the fun out of playing for me. I like to hit my strings hard a lot, slap em with an open hand and stuff, and I can't do it with the same abandon on a 5. Have to exercize more control cuz the B string gets in the way of a lot of what I like to do. That dumbass floppy string.

B string only gives me 3 extra notes when I use a D tuner. And thankfully those notes aren't showing up in anything I play these days.

 

[SteveC]

Another thought...just because the "original" version of a tune is done a certain way, doesn't mean you have to play it that way. I used to be more of a "note-for-note" guy an felt if a tune used a B string note I needed to do that, too. I find in our "cover" band especially, that we like/try to put our own "spin" on the tunes we cover.

I've ditched the 5 for a while now and no one is complaining about not hearing low notes. Maybe a better thread is do you really NEED to own a 5 string. Don't get me wrong, I almost pulled the trigger on a nice Sadowsky MV5 this week and I still have my Yamaha/Bartolini 5 string, but I'm finding that I don't really NEED a 5 string...at least right now. I'm feeling it much more with the Sadowsky RV4. The D-tuner also helps. The number of times I NEED a note below D are so rare that I haven't even missed them.

The one place I notice it at all is church. Some of that stuff really benifits from a 5 string and I may start playing my 5 at church more often. I just wished it sounded as good as my 4.

 

[Kwesi]

I don't think I have ever willingly played on the G. Mostly because it sounds so drastically different than the other three on my JBass... but that's Fender for you.

Some how that sounds like more of a string gauge/pickup issue moreso than your bass being a Fender. The G on my FMT V is as solid as any other string even playing on an extra light 120-40 set. I'm sure with a 45-G it would have a little more 'umph' to it though. In fact the only Fenders I've noticed you're particular issue on, is with some MIMs and a few Squiers (if those count) but never an MIA.

 

[tribus]

when I listen to bassists like manring, sheehan, berlin I ask myself the same question.

 

[Ric5]

I sold off all of my 4 string basses years ago ...The low D is the foundation of my bass playing and when I listen to other bands I hate it when the bass player simply turns up the bass to get more low end. I love the sound of the B string in music.

 

[Kwesi]

when I listen to bassists like manring, sheehan, berlin I ask myself the same question.

I really don't understand posts like these. Essentially my question is "As a 5 string player, is there any need for a four?" The choice in number of strings is completely up to the player and no number of other people, regardless of how well known they are or how well they play should change that. Just because they play 4s doesn't mean I have to and theoretically, if I were as great at bass as they are couldn't I do everything they do just as well on a 5? Besides, Manring does use a 5 here and there so I don't think he supports your argument much.

I listen to bassists like Hadrien Feraud, Anthony Jackson, Jaco, Tetsuo Sakurai, Mark King, Adam Nitti and so many others that just reaffirm my belief that we have options for a reason, because there is no benchmark for comfort. Everyone should play what they like and what they enjoy.

 

[Flaked Beans]

every serious bassplayer must own a fender jazz and precision bass!

I have a few nice old fenders.

 

[mccartneyman]

I played 4 and 6 strings for a couple of years and after a while felt that I didn't effectively utilize the range that 6ers would give but I'd find myself missing the B string when I went down to my 4.

Me too. Like I always say -- every 5-string comes with a built-in 4 string. I'm not dissing 4 bangers or saying fivers are superior. I just like the option of the lower notes and the increased positions the fifth string adds. What I don't understand is the number of players who, using a four string, tend to use only the E and A strings and no more than two fingers on the left hand.. Maybe they're self taught, but it sure seems limited.

 

[seamonkey]

I like the string spacing on 4's better for slapping.

 

[cnltb]

I like the string spacing on 4's better for slapping.

The string spacing on all 4 string basses is not the same though.
What specific bass are you basing this opinion on?