New Mike Adler TWELVE STRING BASS????

[mark beem]

Mark those are beautiful....but almost worthless in my world.

Thanks, I'm really pleased with them.

I play mostly corporate gigs where I play a wide range of music: Sinatra and standards one night, Rock, Country, R'n'B (even metal sometimes) on others. The kind of material you're going to encounter on most working gigs.

I am a working / gigging musician as well and keep around a couple of 5ers and 6ers for gits and shiggles. I use these two primarily in the rock/metal band I play in but have taken them out on the occasional country gig. They sound awesome.. Period.

Contrary to what seems to be popular belief, "normal" bass lines _CAN_ be played on basses that have more than the standard number of strings.

I'd challenge you to watch Vanessa Williams live sometime and watch as Al Caldwell lays it down proper on his 9 and 11 string Benaventes and then say they're worthless in all but a few "blue moon" situations..

 

[oversoul]

Now, what could come handy at this moment would be some pikz to calm the angry crowd

 

[john turner]

Oh Myron, I did not intend for that to happen at all with my statement and questions. As I said, I'm an ERB guy myself, and have always supported it. If a nineteen string is needed to express oneself, I say go for it. I know Mr. Goodman does just that. Stew too, and I'm sure the others. But it seems like there is this flow towards playing huge - not big, but huge - basses with a lot of people. I remember a post by a user called Warriorbass or something - he was a spammer - a few years back, talking about two 14 string necks on a single body (that is, doubleneck twice JT's size). Back then, everyone scoffed at the idea and laughed and told him it was physically impossible. Now it doesn't seem far out of reach, and I'm just wondering how good of a thing that is.

heh. hey eric

i think you bring up good points, but i also think that if a builder wants to try and come up with something totally off the wall like that, let'em try. eventually the limit will be reached, the limit of strings, the limit of neck playability, the limit of weight, etc. folks that go past that limit will just make something unplayable for the sake of making it. almost like those car stereo competitions, where they just play test tones, they don't even play music in them.

despite that, real music will continue to be played on real, viable workable playable instruments, regardless of string config. the more common that the super extreme instruments get, the more common the use of the less extreme, but still extreme , instruments will be. eventually folks won't say stuff like "you don't bring a 7 string to a 4 string gig". and that's a good thing, so i think it's all good.

 

[bassteban]

Now, what could come handy at this moment would be some pikz to calm the angry crowd

+1

 

[Don't_Fret]

I'd challenge you to watch Vanessa Williams live sometime and watch as Al Caldwell lays it down proper on his 9 and 11 string Benaventes and then say they're worthless in all but a few "blue moon" situations..

I was wondering who that was! I saw a performance on tv and was like..whoa, he's lucky they let him on the bandstand with that. His playing was actually really great. Three thumbs up!

 

[therealting]

Maybe it's a distant cousin of this:

 

[PhatBasstard]

Now, what could come handy at this moment would be some pikz to calm the angry crowd

Who's getting angry?????

 

[Geoff St. Germaine]

COuldnt you make the higher strings a substantially shorter scal by adopting something similar to the drone string on a banjo? Ie the tuner for the higher strings start about 2/3 of the way up the neck rather than at the headstock. It would look kinda unconventional, but not significantly more than an 11 or 12 string bass does anyway.

In order for the tuning to match up across the strings the tension on these shorter strings would still need to be the same as on the longer ones. If the Ab string started at the 5th fret, it would need to be tuned to the higher pitch of C#, which would require the same tension on a string of the same diameter/construction.

 

[geshel]

In order for the tuning to match up across the strings the tension on these shorter strings would still need to be the same as on the longer ones. If the Ab string started at the 5th fret, it would need to be tuned to the higher pitch of C#, which would require the same tension on a string of the same diameter/construction.

Yeah, but the tension on an Ab at 34" length would be titanic anyway - so it wouldn't match, so you wouldn't *want* to make the shorter one match.

The tension on an Ab starting from the 5th fret (25.5" scale) would still be pretty high if it's a .010 or so. (I have guitars tuned to the G just below that with .011 (acoustic) and .009 (electric) strings on them).

 

[geshel]

However, having a top string tuned to Ab beginning at the 5th fret would be the exact same thing as the string below it fretted at the 5th fret, so that doesn't really fit here.

In other words, it'd be like having the tuning C# F# B E A D G C F Bb Eb Eb

but with the highest string capo'd at the 5th fret.

 

[PhatBasstard]

I'd challenge you to watch Vanessa Williams live sometime and watch as Al Caldwell lays it down proper on his 9 and 11 string Benaventes and then say they're worthless in all but a few "blue moon" situations..

I think the real point is: having heard (and played much of) Venessa Williams' catalog, how many of her songs require a 9 or 11 string bass to play them "proper"?

I never said the few who wield these things aren't fine players.

 

[bryan bailey]

Jaco only needed 4 strings.

But he's dead, so what does that show you?

 

[Dave Grossman]

Jaco only needed 4 strings.

But he's dead, so what does that show you?

If he played a 5 string, he might be alive today! Think about it!

- Dave

 

[PhatBasstard]

And now, the obligatory..

Jaco only needed 4 strings..


Thank you.

Please continue.

Jaco only needed 4 strings.

But he's dead, so what does that show you?

Shows me you shouldn't skim the thread.
<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

 

[andrewd]

i love the idea of the low C# string. would it be possible to string up my conk GT4 with C#F#BE (after bridge and nut upgrades of course)?

too bad it would probably make my ampeg cab explode

 

[bryan bailey]

Shows me you shouldn't skim the thread.
<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

Screw reading an entire thread.

Besides, my comment was better.

 

[mark beem]

I think the real point is: having heard (and played much of) Venessa Williams' catalog, how many of her songs require a 9 or 11 string bass to play them "proper"?

That's your argument???

I guess you consider an 88 key piano overkill on her music also then? Are all 88 keys required to play her catalog "proper"?

Well if you're going to go that far I guess all that would be "required" is a 3 string, huh??

Actually I would venture to say that all that would be "required" for anything would a single E string and 12 frets right? One full octave?

"If you can't do it with 12 notes then you shouldn't do it at all.."

"Two strings is one string too many."

"Less is more."

No PB the REAL point is that it's not about the number of strings on the TOOL but the heart and mind of the person weilding the TOOL.

Some would argue to use the PROPER tool for the job. Well, hey last time I checked there was a B, E, A, D & G string there along with all those others.

 

[groveofbass]

Im all for ERB's but i personally, wouldnt want more strings than i have fingers. But then again, i own a 5 and dont know if i would need lets say 11 strings if i owned a 10 string.

*shrug*

im done.

by the way...i wish i was tooting my fluba right now.

 

[Geoff St. Germaine]

Yeah, but the tension on an Ab at 34" length would be titanic anyway - so it wouldn't match, so you wouldn't *want* to make the shorter one match.

Yeah, that's my point.

 

[j-raj]

Tim Tucker,

I understand tha you need to change the nut on a bass if you are going to change the gauge of strings, do you have to change the bridge as well? Even if you use tapers for the lowest strings?

by the way...i wish i was tooting my fluba right now.

heard that.