Purchasing a 5 string

[phillipkregg]

I've played 4 strings forever and the 5 have peaked my interest. Is there anything specific I should be paying attention to when looking at a 5 string to purchase or is it "just another string"?

I've had five string basses that cost thousands of dollars, and I've had some that just cost a few hundred.

So far, in my humble opinion, the best bang for your buck has been a Lakland 55-01. Especially on the used market, because people often upgrade the electronics and pickups.

That's my recommendation for a more budget minded instrument. The quality is high, the weight is reasonable, and the price is often fairly low.

If your budget goes up, so do your options. At a higher budget level, the best bang for your buck is a used Valenti.

 

[UntitledUser]

Agreed, but by using larger low strings to increase the tension, you reduce the clarity of the notes as you move up the neck. The string will start to act as a rigid structure sooner. Also intonation issues tend to develop. My point was that there are certain trade offs on 5 strings that need to be considered.

Yes, you are right.
However +0.005 step on the B string I don't think is a dramatic loss in clarity, specially with bright strings like new roundwounds. But of course, going too overboard can give problems, and you have more cons than pros.

 

[Nephilymbass]

I've played 4 strings forever and the 5 have peaked my interest. Is there anything specific I should be paying attention to when looking at a 5 string to purchase or is it "just another string"?

I recommend trying as many as possible, even if it requires a short road trip to another town. Get a decent one that sounds good and is comfortable for your hands, don't be too cheap. If you have a nice 4 string and buy a lower quality 5 string you probably won't stick with it.

 

[the_home]

Since the OP never mentioned getting an extended range instrument for an addition the the lower register, I thought I might as well suggest s/he consider a 5 string strung E to C, with the added range at the top. No reason to just boom and thud through every musical piece. A 5 strung to a high C might elicit all kinds of new creativity in melodic play.

If you can do your own set-up it costs you nothing but an extra string (splurge and buy a set balanced for E-C play). Might need to shim the nut slots of a standard 5 with paper or foil for the strings to fit well enough too. Try it out.

 

[joel406]

Of course try as many as possible. I did. That's what I ended up with. B string is perfect. Action perfect. Sound perfect. Neck perfect. Color perfect. 34" scale. Under 9 pounds.

Just perfect.