Reassessing the 6 string

[rollie 55]

I've got a 6, and I like it, but I don't use it much cause if I'm going for extended range I tend to grab my 8 first.

I don't quite understand how a 8 string bass extended range works

 

[Altitude]

I love my six string. It's the obvious tool for any situation where I get to play solos, but maybe not for a party rock cover band. Since that's most of what I do now, my six doesn't get out much.

I did just record a new tune where I used the six for the solo and also an ornamental track:

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[JohnArnson]

I prefer my 5 string tuned E-A-D-G-C, I really have no need to go lower than the low E.

 

[Beej]

I prefer my 5 string tuned E-A-D-G-C, I really have no need to go lower than the low E.

That's what I did for years until I started playing with a keys player who wrote almost everything on the "black keys". There's just so much more to having a bass that is flexible in Eb...

 

[Thumpin6string]

I went from a 4 string player to playing a 6 and will never go back. I do have a 5 string fretless, but that is just to get by until I get my fretless 6 built. Besides having the high C string adding to chording and having a certain sweetness to it, I just love, love, love the low B. Any tunes that are in B, C, D or even E, I play on the low B. It adds a ton of girth and the B string can make fingering easier on a lot of tunes. Now if I pick up a 4 string and play it, I find it disappointing in the low end.

 

[ole Jason]

I've owned up to 7 strings but the 6 seems to be the sweet spot for me with any kind of music where I'm asked to play solos or chords. For rock band stuff I prefer a P bass but I almost always use a 6 string for jazz gigs.

 

[Eric Swaim]

I played two Ken Smith B.T. 6 string basses from 1995-1997 and I drew the conclusion, (17 years developing my techniques for 4 string bass), the 6 string was just in the way. Some people may not agree, but at heart I was a 4 string player and very happy with that. Since 1997 I have owned a few 5 string and another 6 string Ken Smith, however my small collection of 7 basses are all just 4 strings.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

I have owned a 6 string for decades, but at heart I am a 4 string traditionalist.

Six strings never seemed as intuitively comfortable as a 4 or 5 and muting and string spacing were an issue. For chords, I grab a guitar or keyboard.

The last two years I have dug into guitar and sax solos on the bass. The 4 with 24 frets will cover a lot of the territory,, but often way up in the neck where access is hard.

The 6 solved that. I got home today and retrieved my 6 string out of the closet.
Pure joy playing the high register stuff and covering more stuff in one position.

Your thoughts on the 6?

I've heard some beautiful work on a 6 string over the years. Most of that in usage was more like a classical guitar like approach as opposed to whomper stomp 1/4s and 1/8th on the root style of playing.

The bottom line is always, is it a useful tool for the music you are playing. In a tool box, there is no point having a chisel if all you do is pound nails.

That said, sounds like you like the upper range, but you are going to have to work on your technique for string muting.

 

[ArtechnikA]

"There is a 4-string bass in the middle of every* 6-string bass..."
_____________
* Assumes 'standard' B -> C tuning...

 

[nostatic]

It took me about 5 different tries to get the 6-string to work for me. Part of it was mindset, part of it was ergonomics. I tried various bridge spacing and scale length, as well as 5-strings strung E-C (and B-G). Eventually I found that wider string space actually was better for me (19mm), and now am finally happy with a couple of go-to 4-strings and a 6'er. For me, if I want extended range for a gig, I want it in both directions. For other gigs, 4-string works just fine. A 5'er is an odd-man-out for me, no reason for it.

Totally depends on what you're trying to do with the instrument. For some gigs I absolutely want a 6'er as I'm comping chords and soloing. Other gigs I'm playing lines that were originally done on a 4, and I'm completely comfortable (and prefer) playing them on a 4. 4-string and 6-string are different geometries, give different options, and I approach them somewhat differently.

No single best was of doing things...

 

[Manticore]

I've been playing a 6 almost exclusively for going on thirty years now. Although I love zipping around on a four from time to time, I simply prefer a six for its expanded options. I use them for all types of gigs...

 

[Ric5]

I have owned a 6 string for decades, but at heart I am a 4 string traditionalist.

Six strings never seemed as intuitively comfortable as a 4 or 5 and muting and string spacing were an issue. For chords, I grab a guitar or keyboard.

The last two years I have dug into guitar and sax solos on the bass. The 4 with 24 frets will cover a lot of the territory,, but often way up in the neck where access is hard.

The 6 solved that. I got home today and retrieved my 6 string out of the closet.
Pure joy playing the high register stuff and covering more stuff in one position.

Your thoughts on the 6?

I love 6 string basses … almost as much a 5 string basses

 

[MMiller28]

Not my main bass, but maybe my favorite

 

[Mustang Surly]

I came to bass late in life, after decades of guitar playing. Had an Ibanez SRC6 for awhile: short-scale, narrow neck/string spacing, tuned EADGBE. For me, it was too tempting to unconsciously start reverting to guitar-playing habits (which would then creep into my 4-string bass playing) rather than playing it as a bass. Also, having played 4-string bass exclusively for a few years at that point, the guitar-like string gauges and string spacing felt awkward and "un-bass-like". I tended to stumble with my right hand, finger-style and don't like playing with a flat pick.

Based on that experience, though I have nothing against them in principle, I'm not inclined to play one myself.

 

[rollie 55]

Not my main bass, but maybe my favorite
View attachment 3545608

nice bass

 

[Manticore]

I like 6's a lot. But for the kind of stuff I play, I have no need for the high C. Mostly I'm in trios (no soloing), and when I go higher, the bottom end falls out of the song and it sounds wrong, IME. I play all 5's now, but if given a choice between a 6 and a 4, I'd grab that 6!

I have found a 6 to be particularly useful when playing in a trio. Play the bass line with the left hand while tapping the upper notes of the chords while the guitar, or whatever, is soloing. I've found it the perfect way to keep the band sounding full while the solos are being played.

 

[Wasnex]

Went to a 6er about 8 years ago and fell in love. I far prefer moving string to string across the board than running the length. I use the c string for soloing, chording, and to add an octave up on a note from time to time. Low B string is an absolute necessity for me as my band tunes in drop C and my Low C note is integral to many of our songs.

Downsides are weight (11lb thumb 6 that i can use as a life raft in case of aquatic accidents) string costs ($30 or higher every set) and the extra effort it takes to slap with a 17mm string spacing. Just have to use good technique. All totally worth it.

And the confused, judgemental, slightly scared look in the eyes of the traditionalists when you pull it out of the case? Priceless.
"Man you dont have a 4 string?"
" yeah i have a 4 string bass, it sits right between my B string and C string"

I remember doing a gig where I played my Ric 4001 and a couple of guys kept going on and on about how great I was and how cool it was that I played a 4-string. Lot's of comments like, "If it has more than four strings it ain't really a bass," and, "A real bass players only needs four strings." I just smiled, nodded and laughed all the way to the bank.

 

[MMiller28]

nice bass

Thank you!

 

[UntitledUser]

Not said yet (I think) but also the thin C string (like the thin G also) works very well with strange guitar effects/synths/pedals like single pedals or also something multieffect like pod/zoom/digitech or similar.
While the bigger strings not always produce good sounds through those boxes.

 

[Wasnex]

I love my six string. It's the obvious tool for any situation where I get to play solos, but maybe not for a party rock cover band. Since that's most of what I do now, my six doesn't get out much.

I do think that there are certain types of patterns that are easier on a 4- or 5-string (IMHO so YMMV). But they are fast and technical; not the type of stuff you would come across in a party rock band. Basically rapid jumps back and fourth across non-adjacent strings.

I play 6-string pretty much all the time as I think there are benefits to being very comfortable with one particular instrument. The extra strings rarely limit my playing ability in any way that I can perceive, but I have been playing the same model of bass since around 1995.

I do remember that when I first transitioned from 5- to 6-string, I had to put a lot more effort into muting, and had to learn extended muting techniques that involved both hands. After playing a 6-string for several years the new muting skills became automatic and muting is now rarely an issue. I can even do single and double thumb slap pretty well on my 6-string without using any scrunchies to mute the strings. No doubt I can play highly technical slap patterns slightly cleaner with less strings. But it's generally note a problem to perform music I have been asked to play.