Thoughts on 5 string after 3 months.

[MOEBASSPLAYER]

Before you do that, consider tuning one to B-E-A-D and give that a whirl. You get to keep a bass you love but still have the flexibility of that B string. I took up fivers back in '90 and found I can live without the G string and its extra five notes at the top, but I find it difficult to live without the extra real estate of the B string above the fifth fret.

I have always been a traditionalist (E-A-D-G), so a question I have is: do you need different strings to tune B-E-A-D, or can I just use the set I have? Or, does it mean buy a 5 string set and only use the B-E-A-D strings? Thanks for the knowledge. Hopefully his old dog can learn new tricks.

 

[Wisebass]

a 5 string set and only use the B-E-A-D strings?

Yes you got it

a string meant to be E will not have the tension you need to have a good sound (even tuned down to D it does not sound like it should IMHO) tunig down to B is not possible.

so its allways a B-string to get down to B (and the g-string for the jewels)

may the bass be with you

Wise(b)ass

 

[MOEBASSPLAYER]

Yes you got it

a string meant to be E will not have the tension you need to have a good sound (even tuned down to D it does not sound like it should IMHO) tunig down to B is not possible.

so its allways a B-string to get down to B (and the g-string for the jewels)

may the bass be with you

Wise(b)ass

Thanks for the wisdom.

 

[Runnerman]

Someone said the 4 string is missing a string. I feel that way about BEAD. I play in a classic rock cover band and there are many, many songs that require the G. So to me BEAD is missing a string. I could not do without the G. I have a 5 but it sits in the case. I tried the conversion and although I ended up feeling comfortable with it I missed my thin neck 4's. Hipshot drop tuner and/or multiple tuned 4's are what I prefer at this point for stepped down songs.

 

[Wisebass]

Thanks for the wisdom.

you are welcome

may the...

Wise(b)ass

 

[SteveC]

So now I'm looking outside the Fender brand (forshame!).

I have never played a Fender B string that I liked so go ahead and look outside Fender.

Don't do anything rash (like selling your beloved 4s)!

Keep your P bass, at least for now.

That would leave me with a Squire jazz, P and my beloved Ibby.

I think this is a good plan - as long as you like the Squire 5. Sometimes a good B string is hard to find.

 

[SteveC]

Looks like a nice 5 string P bass option......
For Sale - '16 Fender American Precision 5 string w. Nordstrand NP5F A3. Killer!

 

[City]

When you transition from a four string to a five there's no need to rid yourself of the fours. You may wish to consider retuning / restringing them to BEAD and retain similar fret positions to your five or you may just wish to keep playing them as they are. As all hoarders will confirm, there is never a good reason to get rid of your basses.

I like keeping mine, although my G&L does seem like a waste, since I hardly pick it up. I think it depends on the genre. In my rock/classic rock band that five is handy. I have joined an additional project with classic rock dance type songs. I foresee playing a 4 most of the time and having my five as back up and for a couple tunes only. The B has been stagnant on the new band project pretty much.

 

[petrus61]

Squier Vintage Modified P Bass V - Olympic White

Good suggestion. I own one and it's fantastic. Got it as a backup and to cover some songs that needed a low B for the gig and it's become a staple, my American p4 is getting much less use right now.

On the issue of versatility, I suppose it depends what style/styles you primarily play. While the P5 (or any P for that matter) isn't going to do sizzling Musicman or snappy Marcus Miller tones, it certainly makes up for it by easily being able to fit and adapt to 90% of what most gigs require, at least in my world. All that said, it's still a Squier, so try before you buy would be the ideal scenario. I got lucky with a very nice specimen from Sweetwater that is virtually flawless in every way, but most big retailers have very liberal return policies so it wasn't a huge risk.

 

[madbass6]

Hey if it becomes a bit to much for you just keep your 4 string and try different tuning you'll get the best of both worlds! The sound & comfort!
Here it is From top to bottom .
Tuning down you'll get this!

E=. "low B"
A=.E
D=.A
G=.D
Hope this helps .. good luck !!

 

[DreadyDiggs]

My two 4 string basses haven't been played in years. I should really just toss them in the trash. They aren't together to be playable or sellable, and if they were they aren't worth anything. I planned to keep my favorite of the 2 but I see no signs of playing either of them. The last time I played a 4 string was almost a year ago. I forgot a bass and had to do a practice borrowing a 4 string MM copy. I can go back and forth, but I see no need for that with what I play.

 

[lfmn16]

What I think I'm going to need to do is sell both my MIM P bass AND the new Squire 5 and buy a Fender MIM 5 string P. Cover both basses, so to speak.

Have you had your Squier professionally set up? I would start there before you sell it. Also, I don't think going from a Squier to an MIM is going to be much of an upgrade. You would probably do better to keep a lookout for a used Carvin. You can usually find one in the $600 range.

 

[QweziRider]

do you need different strings to tune B-E-A-D,

Yep, just as Wisebass replied. You may also have to file the nut slots a tad wider (not deeper!) to accommodate the wider strings.

 

[MOEBASSPLAYER]

Yep, just as Wisebass replied. You may also have to file the nut slots a tad wider (not deeper!) to accommodate the wider strings.

Good point - never thought about that. Thanks!

 

[ObsessiveArcher]

When you transition from a four string to a five there's no need to rid yourself of the fours. You may wish to consider retuning / restringing them to BEAD and retain similar fret positions to your five or you may just wish to keep playing them as they are. As all hoarders will confirm, there is never a good reason to get rid of your basses.

I had my backup four string restrung to BEAD. This let me play alternative rock much easier without having to buy a five string

 

[barry irwin]

Thought I'd post this here and see if my conclusions are validated by other tbassers.

About 3 months ago I started playing a Squire 5-string jazz bass that I was given. I wanted to stick with it to get used to playing a 5er and have done so. One song in particular really requires a 5er, and it happens to be one I particularly like too.

So here's my thoughts on it.
1. I have come to love a 5 string. Unfortunately that leaves me with 3 basses that I may never play again! I like them too, a lot - but I do find the versatility of that extra string is damned easy to get used to.

2. I think I need a better 5er. Honestly the Squier sounds awesome. I get complements on it often. But there's something about the neck that's bothering me. In particular the top edge of it. It's certainly wider than my 4s (of course) but the top edge just seems kind of harsh. Like maybe the frets in the others are routed inwards a bit but this one isn't. So it's not as comfortable to finger as my Fender and Ibanez for my thumb primarily.

This week I'm going to try going back to my Ibanez at practice and see if that little pencil-necked thing can still cut it. I'm almost afraid that it won't. But I can never sell it, too much history there.

What I think I'm going to need to do is sell both my MIM P bass AND the new Squire 5 and buy a Fender MIM 5 string P. Cover both basses, so to speak.

Just ending with a warning to anyone who hasn't yet tried a 5 string. You may get hooked. That's not necessarily a bad thing. If you play both, more power to you! I'm not that versatile I fear. I'll find out later this week.

Sell all your basses and buy the best 5 string you can for the money.Many bass players on this site can assist on what they like.

 

[SteveC]

Sell all your basses and buy the best 5 string you can for the money.Many bass players on this site can assist on what they like.

Only do this if you are POSITIVE that you don't want your 4 string any more. But yeah, if you like the 5 get a really nice one. There are many nice 5 strings that won't break the bank. I love my Roscoe and you can find used ones for $1,800. I also liked the Lakland 55-02's I've had. You can find those for less than $1,000 and they are a killer bass.

 

[Plutonium244]

I know OP is more focused on P style 5-strings, but I will make the obligatory observation that Sire has some very nice five string basses....

The Sire M7 is great, and the Sire Vintage V7 5-string is great (I am told). I have the non-vintage V7 five-string and I like it a lot too... having been told by a couple of people that owned a reg V7 fiver and then got a VV7 5-er, I am contemplating buying the VV7 and selling V7 five string. I had a session player of African music from NY come to one of my gigs where I played the V7 five-string, he was wowed by the sound, initially mistook it for a Sadwosky (he'd never seen a Sire). So yeah, Sire 5-strings... excellent price, excellent quality, not an instrument that will hold you back despite being so affordable. Jussayin'.

 

[jasonmatthews]

This conversation pops up constantly.

To me, basses are tools. I pick the correct tool for the job. It's one thing if you're comparing 4- and 5-string versions of one model, but otherwise they all sound different. If I want the sound of active EMGs and 35" scale, I pick that bass. If I want 34" scale and Bartolinis, I pick that one. If I want an active j-bass sound, I pick that one. If I want a passive j-bass sound with the bridge in series, I pick that one. So on and so forth. Some basses are 4 string. Some are 5. Some are 6. Some tenor, fretless, active/passive, 34/35", walnut/maple/alder, etc.

I could never imagine number of strings being the most important thing, but that's just me. Keep your tools, OP! You might need them again.

 

[bassbully]

I went to a five a little over a month ago. I took it out three days after I bought it to a 4 set gig. I like it!