Looking for a better B string

[cdaniel]

Currently I have 2 "vintage" Fender American J fives. 10 and 20 years old. Both have weak and floppy B string tone. Although the newer one is better. Both strung with .130 rounds. A new project is demanding more than occasional B string work so I'm seeking something with better definition and sustain. 35" scale? Fatter B string? Different designs?

 

[Katoosie]

Longer scale will usually sound better because of physics of sound.

35 inches and up. I've owned a few 5 strings and a 6 and the 37 inch scale B on my current bass is the best one I've had the pleasure of playing. The note definition is great from the very first fret to the last.

Are you looking for something totally new to you or something similar to a Fender, but different?

 

[cdaniel]

Open to anything that sounds good. Although I am partial to the J Bass sound. And I know I'm not much of a fan of MM style bridge pickup tone.

 

[bholder]

I finally got happy with my 34" scale B strings when I started using .145 DR DDTs for the low B. FWIW. (Note that it's "up tuning" a string meant for down tuning.)

 

[CoughSyrup]

Lakland DJ5 or 55-60

 

[dabbler]

Longer scale will usually sound better because of physics of sound.

35 inches and up. I've owned a few 5 strings and a 6 and the 37 inch scale B on my current bass is the best one I've had the pleasure of playing. The note definition is great from the very first fret to the last.

Are you looking for something totally new to you or something similar to a Fender, but different?

I don't have an issue with any of my 34" 5 strings, but I will admit that my Brice fan fret 34"-37" has allowed me to see that a 37" B is a wonderful thing.

And since I modded mine to be VVT vice VswitchT and to allow me to play the humbucking pups in series, parallel, inner coils or outer coils mode, it does everything I ask it to.

The Brice Defiant 3437 is no longer in production, and Brice was never a big player one the industry (it was a house brand of Rondo Music) but if you ever run across one used, you should check it out.

 

[pbass2]

Currently I have 2 "vintage" Fender American J fives. 10 and 20 years old. Both have weak and floppy B string tone. Although the newer one is better. Both strung with .130 rounds. A new project is demanding more than occasional B string work so I'm seeking something with better definition and sustain. 35" scale? Fatter B string? Different designs?

IMHO it's Dingwall, hands down. The only fiver I ever owned where the B was truly integrated with the rest of the bass both in tone and feel was an AB1 I had about 12-13 years ago. Passive, and did that "sits right in the mix" thing one usually attributes to a pbass, across its entire range.

 

[Nuage420]

Good B on 35 and up is for the most part a sure thing, but I have also had an amazing 34" B on an LTD AP-5 PJ. that sucker was amazing. I've also string a Stingray BEAD and they took sound great.

 

[Katoosie]

Open to anything that sounds good. Although I am partial to the J Bass sound. And I know I'm not much of a fan of MM style bridge pickup tone.

In the Jazz territory, I would look at basses such as:

- Lull
- Lakland as suggested by someone above
- Sadowsky

I'm not that great with Jazz basses, so I hope other and more experienced members will be able to chime in here.

If you want something modern, then really... The sky's the limit. I would go look thru modern builders and again, ask around. Dingwall makes a killer B, so come to the Dingwall club and ask about a super J

I myself almost ended up with one 5 string super J.

 

[Thumpin6string]

I think you just need to try some different basses. I'm assuming there is something in the design or woods used that make a B sound solid or floppy. Scale isn't the only cause, since there are 32" scale basses with solid B strings. Both my 6 string fretted and my 6 string fretless that I built are 34" scale and both have a very solid B. I've not found a difference using different strings. Both are currently strung with DR Neons.

 

[pbass2]

In the Jazz territory, I would look at basses such as:

- Lull
- Lakland as suggested by someone above
- Sadowsky

I'm not that great with Jazz basses, so I hope other and more experienced members will be able to chime in here.

If you want something modern, then really... The sky's the limit. I would go look thru modern builders and again, ask around. Dingwall makes a killer B, so come to the Dingwall club and ask about a super J

I myself almost ended up with one 5 string super J.

The AB1 I had - the early passive 2 pickup one - while certainly looking kinda modern, actually was great at sounding pretty "classic" and Fender-ish. My understanding is those pickups were like p pickups, so you had essentially a dual p configuration. Recorded so good it was silly.

 

[80jazz]

If you can find one, a Cort GB75JJ may be the ticket.

 

[Dincrest]

I don't think scale length is the end-all-be-all for B strings. I use 34" scale 5-strings with 40-120 strings, and their B's feel and sound solid to me, especially the one strung with DR Lo-Rider steels. I think a big contributor to B-string tightness is how tight and well-constructed the neck joint is. (34" scale 5-strings are what feel best in my hands. I love and respect extended and multi-scale basses, but I gotta go with what my hands like).

Even with strings, simply upping the gauge isn't everything. Different strings are constructed differently. For example, a GHS Boomer 130 will be stiffer than a D'Addario XL 130 because GHS uses a thicker core wire. That's why a lot of heavy rock artists like hex-core Boomers because they get the stiffness of a heavy gauge with the playability of a lighter gauge.

DR's DDT strings are also made with a thicker core wire to handle lower tunings.

And depending on the bridge design, getting the right break angle on a B-string thicker than 120-125 can be tricky, hence why many folks here recommend a taper-wound B, like on the D'Addario ProSteel 43-127 set (which has tapered BEAD strings).

While it's always fun to seek out and buy a new bass (GAS is real and TalkBass enables it), I would try experimenting with strings and setups (including pickup height and all that). Strings are the least expensive mod you can do that makes a world of difference.

 

[Killing Floor]

What strings do you use?

 

[Obese Chess]

I don't think scale length is the end-all-be-all for B strings. I use 34" scale 5-strings with 40-120 strings, and their B's feel and sound solid to me, especially the one strung with DR Lo-Rider steels. I think a big contributor to B-string tightness is how tight and well-constructed the neck joint is. (34" scale 5-strings are what feel best in my hands. I love and respect extended and multi-scale basses, but I gotta go with what my hands like).

Even with strings, simply upping the gauge isn't everything. Different strings are constructed differently. For example, a GHS Boomer 130 will be stiffer than a D'Addario XL 130 because GHS uses a thicker core wire. That's why a lot of heavy rock artists like hex-core Boomers because they get the stiffness of a heavy gauge with the playability of a lighter gauge.

DR's DDT strings are also made with a thicker core wire to handle lower tunings.

And depending on the bridge design, getting the right break angle on a B-string thicker than 120-125 can be tricky, hence why many folks here recommend a taper-wound B, like on the D'Addario ProSteel 43-127 set (which has tapered BEAD strings).

While it's always fun to seek out and buy a new bass (GAS is real and TalkBass enables it), I would try experimenting with strings and setups (including pickup height and all that). Strings are the least expensive mod you can do that makes a world of difference.

I would agree with this - I have a 34" 5-string whose B is probably 95% as good as my Dingwall's unless I'm using lower tunings. In my limited experience, however, Fenders have uniquely weak low Bs.

 

[4StringTheorist]

Agreeing with folks that are saying experiment with strings first.

A DR DDT single B string over your normal fave 4 even, while you're experimenting.

 

[J Wilson]

I got over the 'floppy B-string-itis' long ago, it is what it is. I will say though, for years I used the buy the available anywhere 45-135 set, then went to sets with a .125 or .128 big B, and I do tend to like them better, regardless of brand. No practical difference in sound, but seem a bit tighter.

I always get confused with this, so SOMEBODY tell me I'm right or NO, it's THIS way:

IF I remember correctly, as strings go down in gage, don't they feel tighter?

Or is it the other way 'round?

 

[Thundar]

Lakland DJ5 or 55-60

This! If you want a classic jazz bass tone, feel, and look then Laklands are your baby.
Everyone always recommends EBMM Stingray 5's but I have owned 3 of them and never once was happy with their sound or the B string on them. We can all suggest Dingys or ESP Ltd...and in my case I would recommend a Peavey Cirrus or a Spector Euro 5, but they dont DO what you're looking for...the 35" Laklands nail it...and at a very good price point if you go with a Skyine DJ 5 or 55-60

 

[CoughSyrup]

I got over the 'floppy B-string-itis' long ago, it is what it is. I will say though, for years I used the buy the available anywhere 45-135 set, then went to sets with a .125 or .128 big B, and I do tend to like them better, regardless of brand. No practical difference in sound, but seem a bit tighter.

I always get confused with this, so SOMEBODY tell me I'm right or NO, it's THIS way:

IF I remember correctly, as strings go down in gage, don't they feel tighter?

Or is it the other way 'round?

Generally, as you go from your B or E to G strings, they will sometimes have higher tension as the string gauge decreases, but if you're referring to the same tuning at different gauges, thicker strings have higher tension.

 

[digbass]

Before you go crazy on getting new gear try giving a Fender string retainer a shot. They made them originally for basses with challenged A string. You just replace the B tuner washer with it and it’ll help add to the string break after the nut and some tension. I did something similar with a non fender bass I have and it helped a lot.

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