The Modified BEAD 4 String Bass Club

[G-Dog]

Love BEAD
Strung with Ernie Ball Cobalt 5 string set (less the high string)

Welcome a new Club number! ​

#131 @emal

I'll be monitoring to add more members as they post here. If I skipped anyone, please let me know. There's still a few numbers left for even more members!

And, you can always find the entire BEAD Club Membership list on the BEAD Club Wiki page.

 

[Prodigus Filius]

Been muckin’ about with round wounds lately in various gauges and tunings. These are the really cheap Alice brand 45-130 in BEAD. The set cost the equivalent of around 12 U.S bucks. Seeing as I’m not fully sold on the round wound detour, I don’t plan of spending much do re mi on them. The Alice rounds don’t sound too bad to be honest. Quality seems fine. B string is not as taught as I’d like. But nothing new about that

 

[Gadgetman6754]

Thanks for sharing - always looking to experiment

 

[Aric Bjorn]

Welcome a new Club number! ​

I'll be monitoring to add more members as they post here.

Hi G-Dog, I'd like to claim a BEAD club membership for my "Close enough for" Jazz that I built from a Solo kit and strung with 65-130 Ernie Ball Beefy Slinkys. Thanks

Thread 'NBD - My "Close Enough For" Jazz'

Nov 15, 2025

It started as a kit from Solo, and now it's one of one. I feel like it has finally "arrived" because I just had it out jamming with some friends and it performed great. It's a real bass now! Wilkinson pickups, Ernie Ball Beefy 65-130s with BEAD tuning, a stutter mute, and a serial/parallel switch

Building it has been so rewarding that I feel like building another one too, but different. I would highly recommend it to anyone out there considering building one of your own. Go for it!

It's a little rough in spots, but it's perfectly imperfect, and it will do nicely. I'm very...

• Aric Bjorn
• Replies: 24
• Forum: Basses [BG]

• 
• 
• 

 

[G-Dog]

Hi G-Dog, I'd like to claim a BEAD club membership for my "Close enough for" Jazz that I built from a Solo kit and strung with 65-130 Ernie Ball Beefy Slinkys. Thanks

Thread 'NBD - My "Close Enough For" Jazz'

Nov 15, 2025

It started as a kit from Solo, and now it's one of one. I feel like it has finally "arrived" because I just had it out jamming with some friends and it performed great. It's a real bass now! Wilkinson pickups, Ernie Ball Beefy 65-130s with BEAD tuning, a stutter mute, and a serial/parallel switch

Building it has been so rewarding that I feel like building another one too, but different. I would highly recommend it to anyone out there considering building one of your own. Go for it!

It's a little rough in spots, but it's perfectly imperfect, and it will do nicely. I'm very...

• Aric Bjorn
• Replies: 24
• Forum: Basses [BG]

• 
• 
• 

View attachment 7393573

Welcome a new Club number! ​

#132 @Aric Bjorn

I'll be monitoring to add more members as they post here. If I skipped anyone, please let me know. There's still a few numbers left for even more members!

And, you can always find the entire BEAD Club Membership list on the BEAD Club Wiki page.

 

[carsonchilders]

Has anyone done this to a short scale bass?

 

[urkel3000]

I haven't but I would assume a 30" bass could go down to c sharp just fine

 

[carsonchilders]

I should probably look at a higher tension string?

 

[urkel3000]

I don't know what's out there for 30" five string sets, but I would anticipate a B string to be pretty hard to gel with

 

[G-Dog]

Has anyone done this to a short scale bass?

Here's my descriptions of BEADing my P-bass, my Jaguar and my short scale Fender Starcaster semi-hollow bass.

 

[OnlyFlats]

Has anyone done this to a short scale bass?

I recommend you do some virtual experiments using Stringjoys string calculator first. I always do that when setting up something unusual.

I just had a play, it's about a 40lbs overall pressure drop going from a 34 to 30in scale, in BEAD (assuming string gauge remains). You'd need strings around .160, .120, .090, .070 to keep equivalent overall pressure. You could obviously shave that down with some neck adjustments but the low b is going to be noticeable if it's only a .135 (I couldn't find anything thicker than that)

I've never understood short scale 5 string basses because of the string tension physics. So I've stuck to 34in scale for BEAD

Maybe some other TBers can chime in to describe the playability of low tuned short scales, including 5ers with equivalent low B?

 

[Prodigus Filius]

Has anyone done this to a short scale bass?

If you’ve Beaded a long scale, tune the B down to A and capo the 2nd fret. You’ll get an idea what that gauge will be doing at 30”.
As G-dog mentions regarding his Starcaster, you gonna have to think beeeeeg gauge increase for a workable B on a short scale.

 

[urkel3000]

^^^ this is the same line of thinking I was using when I said they can probably go down to c#. Capo on fret 2 of a 34"bass

 

[Prodigus Filius]

^^^ this is the same line of thinking I was using when I said they can probably go down to c#. Capo on fret 2 of a 34"bass

Indeed. Can’t recall where I first saw this kind of thing suggested on TB. Numerous places and by numerous members. Gives a kind of ‘try before you buy’ thing I guess

 

[coyoteboy]

Ive been picturing a Sandberg Florence w/ reverse headstock to accommodate a long scale B for a try at BEAD on a shorty.

 

[Prodigus Filius]

Ive been picturing a Sandberg Florence w/ reverse headstock to accommodate a long scale B for a try at BEAD on a shorty.

what are your expectations?

 

[SharpCat]

Sorry if this is a FAQ... haven't had a chance to read through this thread yet. I want to convert a bass to BEAD. All my basses I'd consider converting are 34" FSOs. Do people have better luck with a P pickup? J pickups? Something else?

I can file the nut OK. Any other gotcha's I should know? Planning to use Chromes for the strings.

TIA!!

 

[Prodigus Filius]

Imo, BEAD stands or fall on how the B feels on a particular bass. If it just feels blubbery and inarticulate, than it’s a question of the bass structure itself and the bass string invloved and not what pickup(s) the bass has. No pickup is gonna change the way the B string acts within parameters outside the function of a pickup. Anyhow, that’s my 10 cents

Regarding Gotchas. You may have to open the string hole for the B string on a top loading bent plate. And if thru body stringing you may have an issue with the ferrule not being large enough. I haven’t experienced it but it could happen. And with string thru loading of such a large gauge B string, the break angle can be potentially detrimental to stiffer strings, partic stiff flatwounds. Something to keep in mind

 

[G-Dog]

Sorry if this is a FAQ... haven't had a chance to read through this thread yet. I want to convert a bass to BEAD. All my basses I'd consider converting are 34" FSOs. Do people have better luck with a P pickup? J pickups? Something else?

I can file the nut OK. Any other gotcha's I should know? Planning to use Chromes for the strings.

TIA!!

Hey, there, Sharpie! I've BEADed J p'ups, P p'ups & humbuckers and had good luck with all three. I don't think that's a FAQ here. But, if your research finds it to be so, please lemme know so's I can put it on the BEAD 4 String Bass Wiki page, would ya?

And, like Prodigus said, there are fits at both ends of the strings to be considered, mostly for the B string depending on its thickness for your desired firmness.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

Hey, there, Sharpie! I've BEADed J p'ups, P p'ups & humbuckers and had good luck with all three. I don't think that's a FAQ here. But, if your research finds it to be so, please lemme know so's I can put it on the BEAD 4 String Bass Wiki page, would ya?

And, like Prodigus said, there are fits at both ends of the strings to be considered, mostly for the B string depending on its thickness for your desired firmness.

The only way I can see the pickups being an issue is if they're already weak on the lowest notes on your EADG setup. You might have to adjust pickup heights a bit as the fatter strings will be more attracted to the magnets and tend to generate a bit hotter output.