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Reccomend me a Professional 5 String bass

#61
Really, it's silly debating the "boutique vs working man's" gear here.

I say one fretted, one fretless!

That should cover ground in both areas, like what Snarf recommended. TS has only mentioned "big fat round gospel tones" and "rich quarter note walking lines" which seems pretty vague so all the reputable brands thrown out here can work, can't they? I say he tries out whatever's available to him and based on tone and feel make his own decision. Tone's a personal thing after all, and the usage of different techniques, amplifiers, cabs, effects, strings etc will all change his 'sound'.
 
#63
Yeah Ziltiod, and if you were any good at reading, you wouldn't need more than a comic book. What?:rollno:

Some people just have a little more need in playing, that a 4 string simply can't cover.

Range aside, my hands don't slide quickly up a neck. So should I suffer through on a four string sliding poorly all over the neck to cover the range of the music in my songs? Or should I buy a six string, and happily have all of the notes I need, all in the same position?

Those who can, do. Those who can't just gripe about it.:bawl:
 
#65
kevin newsham said:
Yeah Ziltiod, and if you were any good at reading, you wouldn't need more than a comic book. What?:rollno:

Some people just have a little more need in playing, that a 4 string simply can't cover.

Range aside, my hands don't slide quickly up a neck. So should I suffer through on a four string sliding poorly all over the neck to cover the range of the music in my songs? Or should I buy a six string, and happily have all of the notes I need, all in the same position?

Those who can, do. Those who can't just gripe about it.:bawl:
Click to expand...

I'm a ERB player and I'd play Boutique if I could afford them, you missed the more then obvious sarcasm. :D
 
#69
Ziltoid said:
Looking at my profile would of told you I play an ERB, so it was pretty obvious, to me :D
Click to expand...

I should know to do that, and it would have been obvious at that point, my bad.:rolleyes:

Somtimes the fire burns before common sense gets a chance to escape the inferno.

Will try to remember that in the future, if not I am sure I will be reminded, again. Again, sorry about the flame out.
 
#78
CallowHill will cover all your needs and more and won't break your back or your bank account. It has the best "B" string I've ever played, and I have played or owned most everything mentioned before, including the Mtd's and the Dingwalls(both very nice).
 
#80
I think I have had them all....LOL! If I was starting over I would take one of several different approaches.

1. ONE SINGLE BASS - One bass to serve multiple purposes and cover several different tones. I would suggest a Lakland 55-02 (made in KOREA ONLY from my personal experience of buying and RETURNING 3 different made in Indo basses over the period of about a year). The LH3 Preamp sounds a bit clearer and more present to me than the older Bartolini system and would be my preference. Make sure you get the bass plekked and you would probably be good to go. Save the other $3,000 for a rainy day...or....

Buy a USA Lakland 55-94 - US Quality is as good as anything you can get out there and the consistency is FAR better than the current INDO built 55-02s. One of THE nicest necks of ANY bass out there in my experience. These typically use more choice wood as the building blocks of the bass resulting in a better overall bass (again in my experience of having owned more than 50 Laklands). The Lakland will give you a very good Jazz bass sound, P bass sound, and Stingray Sound. Granted that they are not perfect and not exactly like the original, they are REALLY good and are definitely close enough to pass muster. You can find great deals on them used if you are vigilant and patient. They are on Ebay fairly often. These are in the $3,000 range new and in the $2,000 range used. I would suggest going the used route as every bass I have bought and resold was in close to new condition when I sold.

2. 2 or 3 basses to cover all the "bases" - I would suggest a USED Sadowsky Metro UV70 5 string to give you an aggressive 70's styled jazz tone that could be tamed with the vintage tone control (a treble roll off) an older (again KOREAN MADE) Lakland Skyline Bob Glaub P bass and a Music Man SR5 H or HH (I would likely take the single H if I had multiple basses but the HH if I was only getting one or 2 basses) for that unmistakable Ray tone. Any of those tones will "WORK" in ANY setting in my opinion in the hands of a competent player. However, if you want specific tones for specific things this is the way to go. The cool thing is that if you go the used route you should pay about $1800 to $1900 for the Metro, $800 to $900 for the Glaub, and $1100 to $1300 for the Ray for a total of $3700 to $4100 TOPS! IF you keep your eyes peeled it could likely be less than that.

3. Double Gig bag for all occasions. 2 BASSES to cover them all...IF I could only take 2 basses to cover the most musical ground for me it would have to be a Metro Sadowsky Jazz bass (UV70 5 or RV5 the UV70 has a maple neck and the RV has rosewood. I would likely go with a UV70 5 and make sure it has the Vintage tone control or VTC. The second bass would have to be a Music Man 5 HH (Dual Humbucker) as the HH gives a lot of Flexibiltiy as far as tones go. THESE 2 basses alone can get me ANY tone I would HAVE to have for any given gig I could possibly have to do. You would be looking at about $3,000 to $3,500 TOPS for these 2 basses and likely closer to the $3K mark if you look at ALL to find them.

Granted it would be nice to have fretless some where and I would love to have an MTD or even a Sadowsky Modern 5 but IF I could only take one double bag these would be the 2 I had in there. For the last few years I have been playing Alleva Coppolo, Sadowsky, Lakland and Music Mans to be fair. But I have played many different things over the years and for the money I think these are the cream of the crop in what is out there now.

I know there are those who disagree with my opinions and that is fine but they are MY opinions based on over 30 years in this business and over 25 years of being a professional engineer (and WORKING FOR A LIVING) bassist and I stick by them! If you disagree fine...lets just agree to disagree and let the OP make his own decisions about my opinions please...Good luck and God Bless!

In the end play everything you can and choose the one that speaks to you the clearest!

Peace,

T
 

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