What 5'er has the punchiest, tightest B string?

[millsbass5]

I cant sit here and give you an opinion on which bass has the best low B.Simply because I dont have access to 99.9% of all the fine basses that these guys have mentioned.Hell,around here,they consider a MIA Jazz boutique.So therefor,I pretty much have to make do with what I have access to.Unless I want to buy something sight unseen and have it shipped to me.(Which can be rather unsettling, to say the least.)So,I simply make do with what I have,which is a pre-Gibson era Tobias Classic 5 and Carvin LB75.I purchased both basses sight enseen and sound enheard.I have to agree with RICKNOTE on this one,its all in the touch and placement of your picking hand.I can honestly say I havent heard a better sounding B string this side of the Mississippi than off my basses.In my experience,you just cant hammer away on a B string like you can on the A,D,G strings.Ive heard the Roscoes andDingwalls have the B strings that God himself would play.If you have the funds to go out and cop one of those basses,more power to you.Common sense tells me if you are a ham-fisted,heavey-handed player,nomatter what bass you play,you are going to have the same problem.Ive heard nothing but good things about Lakland Basses.I would seriously look into my playing technique if I were you.IMO,just chill out and lighten up a little.

 

[Arthur U. Poon]

my Roscoe 6 has a stoooooooopid B string. it gives meh teh smilz

+1 on Roscoe. Although my Roscoe isn't a 5-string, the B-string on my Roscoe-6 is IMHO is the best feeling, sounding B-string I've played/heard. The B-string on my new Ristola 6-string is equally good.

I agree that a good sounding, feeling B-string is a result of a well constructed neck. String construction has to be a factor as well. IMO a 35" scale does make a difference in feel and sound.

I also prefer the added tension that a 35" scale does to the remaining strings, but YMMV.

 

[matt thompson]

It looks like the two front runners are a dinwall and a Q5. Owning both I have two ways of looking at their B's.

Modulus Q5 (bart pre): This gets huge and of all the basses that i have had the chance to play (on a gig with lots of power) there is not another bass that can boom like the modi. Maybe not quite as focused as others, but will shake any room and have your band mates looking at you like "DAMN"

Dingwall Afterburner II (aggie pre): Very Very accurate B, dare I say polite (in the evil way.) A lot more even sounding all the way up the neck. Can also get down low and suprisingly sounds great through tens.

As others have said a lot of what the B sounds like is how you play it (close the bridge, neck, really thuding it, or smooth fingerstyle.)

You really cant go wrong with either so keep droping the BOMBS!

 

[lambro]

I've played some F-basses that had impressive B string clarity and punch


I actually sold my WAL fretted 5er because its low B was a bit of a let down, despite the bass sounding great on the other strings etc for some reason the B was a bit off, different gauges etc didnt help


one aspect to watch for on 5+ string basses is how the E string sounds, often the low E gets lost at the expense of the B

 

[MikeBass]

<snip>.......and suprisingly sounds great through tens.

You need something bigger for a B string to sound good???
That's kinda what you're implying- please correct me if I'm wrong here.

I've played the baddest of the bad basses out there-including the ultra deluxe pimped out Dingwall that was in Bass Player mag a few years back, as well as a few AfterBurners, through tens and never had an issue with a B string not sounding good because of the speaker size.

 

[dougjwray]

You need something bigger for a B string to sound good???
That's kinda what you're implying- please correct me if I'm wrong here.

I've played the baddest of the bad basses out there-including the ultra deluxe pimped out Dingwall that was in Bass Player mag a few years back, as well as a few AfterBurners, through tens and never had an issue with a B string not sounding good because of the speaker size.

What-- you're not familiar with the rule of thumb on this?! You take the number of strings, multiply by 3, and the sum is the diameter of the appropriate speaker!

 

[d-basser]

+1000000 for Dingwall
It is the one thing I dont like bout my new Sei is that the B doesnt touch that of my Afterburner.

 

[spade2you]

What-- you're not familiar with the rule of thumb on this?! You take the number of strings, multiply by 3, and the sum is the diameter of the appropriate speaker!

I dunno, depending on the cab, I think something bigger than a 10" speaker can really enhance the girth of a low B. I've noticed that when I switch it to mono that my low B doesn't have nearly as much thunder to it.

 

[fullrangebass]

My take on Dingwalls with either MarkBass 2x10"s & tweeter or with various 4x10's & tweeter (through many different amps), never I felt the B was anything less than thunderous and punchy

Unless we take into account if it's a starry, cloudy or full moon night. Then it matters

 

[LouBass]

This is probably an outlier, but the first 5 string I owned was a Carvin. I never did like the B string and rarely used it. Then on a lark, I bought a used Moses Vertical Jump Bass, 35" scale, fretless. The B string on this thing is a monster. It's tight and with the composite fingerboard and all graphic body - it's a hard rockin' growling fiend. I'm not sure I'd ever use this bass for jazz, but it's a great rock bass even as a fretless and I am so sold on the B string now.

 

[matt thompson]

IME anything below the Low (E) on the B string (at higher volumes) you cant expeirence. I wanna feel it! Limited to Eden, Genz Benz, Aguilar, and Euphonic 10's (some are 210's and others 410's) When pushed moderatly hard they all fart out.

If anyone gets good earth shaking lows out of 10's please let me know, but I find that it has to be 12's or bigger get get LOW and sound like you can still push them harder

 

[(b)Assman]

Hear pedullas have really tight b's

 

[vision]

Just about all of the boutique jazzes out there (Sadowsky, Alleva, Celinder, Lull) have VERY punchy and tight B strings.

 

[ggunn]

IME anything below the Low (E) on the B string (at higher volumes) you cant expeirence. I wanna feel it! Limited to Eden, Genz Benz, Aguilar, and Euphonic 10's (some are 210's and others 410's) When pushed moderatly hard they all fart out.

If anyone gets good earth shaking lows out of 10's please let me know, but I find that it has to be 12's or bigger get get LOW and sound like you can still push them harder

My SVT with 8 10's can knock you down when I play a low B. ;^)

Seriously, it's not about speaker diameter, it's about total speaker area, i.e., the air volume displaced by speaker excursion.

 

[matt thompson]

Seriously, it's not about speaker diameter.

If this is true why are there different sized drivers? If you have an 810 you think that would push more air than a 215?

 

[Double Agent]

My SVT with 8 10's can knock you down when I play a low B. ;^)

Seriously, it's not about speaker diameter, it's about total speaker area, i.e., the air volume displaced by speaker excursion.

The speaker's diameter does have SOMETHING to do with it, but I agree that its not the only component that makes a difference. The way the cab and speakers are tuned to each other makes a difference as well.

I've played a 5er through an SWR Henry the 8x8 and it nearly knocked me off the stool I was sitting on. While it didn't project like a cab with 12s or 15s, that cab would punch you right in the chest and no sign of farting out. So, while speaker diameter is a factor, its hardly the sole factor is determining how well a cab handles a low B.