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Reccomend me a Professional 5 String bass

T

thesneakyjesus

Sep 17, 2006
214
1
Richmond VA
zandthejungleb.bandcamp.com
#1
Hello all.
I'm interested in buying a new 5 string bass. This bass needs to be even sounding across the neck in all positions and versatile. I want this bass to be able to play big fat round gospel tones and even rich quarter note walking lines for jazz. My budget is about $4,000. I'm assuming that I'll need a bass with active EQ.

I'm attracted to warwick due to their stability and their looks, but I know there is a million boutique and larger companies out there, so I was hoping some professional guys could recommend me and instrument I can invest in and consider making a living with.

Thanks
 
#9
thesneakyjesus said:
I'm attracted to warwick due to their stability and their looks....
Click to expand...

Sticking with this comment, I'd suggest a Streamer. Traditionally speaking, they've got the smoothest tones of the Warwick line, which would fit your criteria nicely. If you need, I'd be happy to toss up some clips of my LX, just tell me what you're looking for.
 
#16
+ 1 on the MTD 535. I played Warwicks for years and they don't even come close to the sound (not to mention construction quality and, for me, playability) of a 535. And for contemporary gospel? Look no further - the MTDs are THE basses for that bag.
 
#17
With THAT budget, you could get youself a couple of excellent basses. :bassist:

On the true boutique side, try:
Tom Clement: www.clementbass.com
Nino Valenti

On the slightly more production-oriented side try:
Sadowsky
Lakland


I own a Clement and I LOVE it. I've also played a couple of Valenti's, and a few Laklands and Sadowskys and they are all great basses. Even the Lakland and Sadowsky budget lines are great instruments.
 
#18
thanks so much for all these quick replies.



As far as the specifics go...
the last 5 string that I owned had a 35" scale neck. I'm an upright player, so that isn't too crazy for me at all. I have big hands. I can deal with large string spacing also if it's part of the build. So I really have no preferences. I just want an instrument that is comfortable. I play sitting mostly, but really really heavy basses are generally a pain for me.

The warwick streamer looks great. The MTD so far seems the most exciting to me and the most beautiful.

For those of you that have these basses, do you play jazz? I'm not really a slap pop player, but much more of a finger style and pick player.

I'm mostly a jazz musician myself. The sound in my head is deep and rich and clear and also capable of sitting well in a mix. Often times I find active modern basses to not be very recordable.

Do you guys know of any players/records I could check with these basses on them?
 
#19
sounds good on the specifics, if you don't slap all that much I would think that wide spacing would be something you don't need. I like wide spacing but that only matters when I am slapping, but that is me. Warwicks have narrower spacing, and I feel like they tend to have thicker necks, being an upright player you might dig that?

But there is no substituting having some experiences on how different basses feel. Maybe you can check out Jivesound and Chuck Levin's to see if you can get your hands on some killer basses?

I agree on the active sound some basses have. I tend to feel like MTDs do well recorded, not really that into how Warwicks sound in the studio. That is just how I feel.
 

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