What happened to 6 strings?

[lousybassplayer]

15 posts by jazzbassr whatever, and the majority of them where talking smack about an instrument he doesn't own and probably never played. And when my guitar player is playing clean open chords and the drummer is holding down a simple back beat, I can play all kinds of high notes and have that sonic space to myself. I have doen this on 2 of about 20 songs I played with my 6 string. If that is dwelling I am going to go ahead and jsut stretch a .135 string over a broomstick, tape a MM pickup to the bottom and plcuk the resulting note on the one and the three. Many would say that is a bass line.

 

[Flaked Beans]

I love this thread!















man, I forgot the popcorn!

 

[Flaked Beans]

I don't know what happened, and obviously I'm not playing bass right, but I keep getting calls somehow...

That Skjold is gorgeous

 

[LM Bass]

Music is not a competition, it is co-operation. No one "owns" a musical register. I make my living 100% from music, so I get a say-so!
(Pete Skjold makes a fine bass!

 

[bassbenj]

Technique is critical on a 6 string. You have some leeway on a 5er and about anything goes on a 4 string. I'm very short, but still comfortable on 35" scale 6ers. It's also true that inherent design of the bass comes into play on a 6 string, too.

Naturally, nobody wants to admit that their technique isn't up to par. We're dealing with musicians here.....

+1 on that good buddy!

So much better to argue that Jaco only needed 4 strings than to say that "I can't get my mitt around a 6 string neck and grip it like a ball bat and play the B string with my thumb!

I personally don't get this "neck comfort" thing either. I've got short scale basses and 35" scale basses I've got 4 strings, 5 strings 6 strings and 8 strings. I've got very wide spacing and I've got my Modulus that is like a 6 string built on a 5 string neck right at the limits of tight string spacing. I've got Jazz necks, I've got SX necks, I've got G&L necks, I've also got thin Carvin necks.

Now yes, if I play one particular instrument for a while and then switch to another you can feel a slight adjustment period. But to say that any one instrument is just too "uncomfortable" for me to play? Nonsense. How in the world can I play my guitars if a J or P 4 string neck is all I could tolerate? Go check out the fret and string spacing on a Strat some time.

Come on guys, quit whining and learn your techniques, practice more, and start to let your creativity soar. There is a whole world out there beyond what is "exactly the way they do it on the recording!"

 

[can_v]

That Skjold is gorgeous

Man, This thread is funny. And that Skjold is cool.

 

[Jefenator]

Ah, the ages-old ER debate.

IMO you can get fired just as easily with a 4-string.

 

[can_v]

You know what's funny? It all came down to simplest thing as "Taste". Everyone has different taste. if someone can play well and nail the job, are any of you really care how many strings the he or she is playing?

 

[woo10]

...but YOU aren't Jaco.

Neither am I, that's why my next bass is a 6'er

 

[woo10]

maybe beacause its called a BASS, and a BASS doesnt need 6 strings. basses should be noodling with those high frequencies, thats for guitar.

By the same logic, a band with a piano or keyboards should not have a guitarist or a bassist, and if it comes with a sequencer then no drums either

 

[T-Bird]

Hi.

WOW, what an entertaining thread.

I've often heard this as an excuse from those who are against ERB- that people get 6+ string basses just to look cool. Here's the thing though- who looks cool using a six-string? I can't think of any six-string players that actually look cool when playing.

The reason I don't play my 6er on all the tunes, but prefer my Epi T-Bird or Explorer is mainly this on those that doesn't require one.
A modern shaped 6er in the hands of a bearded, crew-cut hairdo biker playing rock just looks silly as hell .

maybe beacause its called a BASS, and a BASS doesnt need 6 strings. basses should be noodling with those high frequencies, thats for guitar.

If I want a F#BEADG tuning I do need a 6er.

Regards
Sam

 

[El Bajo]

Whats blinding obvious to me is that 4 string songs can be played on a 6 string and visa versa (though the notes may have to be played on an octave higher). It doesent matter if you play an entire set on a 6 without using the B and C string, you wouldnt find a piarnist substituting a grand piano for a smaller keyboard purely becasue he doesent play a certain range.


So its irrelevant how many strings a bass has, I have both 4 string and 6 strings. 6 string is my main bass but I use the 4 string precision for the tone it gives when playing classic rock, so for me it boils down to tone.

 

[JHRyan]

With all of the stigma and prejudice electric bass players already get from both the academic and "legit" musical circles it is sad to see us debate about something as functionally pointless as whether or not a person has or does not have too many strings.

 

[can_v]

With all of the stigma and prejudice electric bass players already get from both the academic and "legit" musical circles it is sad to see us debate about something as functionally pointless as whether or not a person has or does not have too many strings.

Amen

 

[Schlyder]

I got nothing against the 4 stringers. I used to be one once.
I myself can't wait for my six string to arrive. I finally ordered a custom one after finding the maker I wanted to have make it.
I started on a 4 manymany years ago,..and then went fretless, then converted the fretless4 to a 5 string. I have had it strung to a low B, and a high C at many different times. I felt that there was an expansion of possibilities available with the extra string.
And now after playing a 5 string for many years. And always wanting a 6 string, again for the added range and expansion of possibilities.
I am finally getting one. A custom fretless Jerzy Drozd VI.
The year wait to get it is going to be excruciating. But I will be one happy bass player when I do.

 

[spade2you]

So much better to argue that Jaco only needed 4 strings than to say that "I can't get my mitt around a 6 string neck and grip it like a ball bat and play the B string with my thumb!

Not that I was trying to start a massive brawl, but I was surprised that my technique comment didn't get much opposition. Many gripes can be solved with form, which is generally cheaper than a new bass, eh?

In a way, I consider myself lucky for having a classical guitar teacher that forced proper form down my gullet. Not only was I expected to play a part perfectly, but in good form. I hated it at the time, but the benefit of being able to play just about any instrument regardless of scale length, neck finish, neck profile, etc., is certainly a good thing. The only downside to the technique I use is that I can't play something with neck dive, but I can live with that.

 

[moon-bass]

This isn't aimed at anyone in particular, but this thread cracks me up. So much of the instrument that we play is personal opinion and prefeence - I just don't get how one bassist can tell another bassist that his/her choice of their particular instrument, number of strings, etc. is "wrong." I prefer to leave the prejudice against bass types up to the guitar players; next thing you know, we'll be saying that you can't use electric bass for jazz

I played 6 string basses almost exclusively for about 13 years, through many, many different types of gigs. It wasn't for a "cool" factor, it was really because I was more comfortable with a 6 string at the time, and I liked the sonic possibilities that it opened up. Several years ago, though, I dislocated the index finger on my left hand at the middle joint, and despite proper medical treatment and physical therapy, it's never been the same and I find that my finger tends to tire and hurt after extended playing time, so necessity more or less forced me to go back to 4 string, adding 5 strings to my aresenal (before my injury I hated 5 strings, I still prefer 4's and 6's over them), and using 6 strings more sparingly, which has helped with the issues. Before my finger injury, I never experienced any hand-comfort issues

Over the past 2 years or so though my finger has gotten significantly better, so I have been able to use 6 strings more. What I find now though is that I pick basses on a more gig-specific basis - some gigs lend themselves more to 6 strings, some more to 5's, some to 4's. If I am going to solo, I like the extra range that the 6 affords, but if I know that I am going to be holding down the bottom end for hours at a time, I am more comfortable with a 4 (finger-wise).

The whole silver lining for me is that the injury more or less "forced" me to explore different basses. From that I can truly say that each bass-type has it's place, whether it's due to the gig type, song type, player preference, coolness factor, or whatever. For me, each bass brings something different to the table, and different basses can influence my playing in different ways. Just because I don't like 14 string basses doesn't mean that they don't have a valid place in our art, the same goes for someone who wants to play roots on the E string on a 1 string bass.

My move back to 4 strings was done out of necessity, and although my finger injury sucks, at the very least I got a different viewpoint out of it, and I believe that my playing has improved as a result. YMMV.

 

[Jefenator]

Had a funny "first", the other night. I was using the 5-string fretless for the first time in a long time and I kept hitting wrong notes because my fingers kept assuming there would be a high C. I guess I need to take that axe out a little more often (or start looking for a fretless 6).

It is a little funny how we keep discussing this matter amongst each other because string quantity is really not something that ever needs to be justified to and/or sanctioned by another bassist. It's the band leaders, band mates and audiences who will really pull the rug out from under my feet.

Thus far with the latest 6'er, I've gotten nothing but positive feedback from all of them.

 

[peoriashows]

So its irrelevant how many strings a bass has, I have both 4 string and 6 strings. 6 string is my main bass but I use the 4 string precision for the tone it gives when playing classic rock, so for me it boils down to tone.

Agreed, that's why this is the next bass I am purchasing

 

[Brad Johnson]

Amazing, isn't it?

This one might qualify as A-frickin'-mazing, Ed. So much wisdom.