Why are b-strings so hard to get right?

[Thomas Kievit]

Most players play on 1 spot for most of the time. I only play above the bridge pickup. Not because of the sound, but because of the tension there is on the string.

To me, it is the player not the string, not the scale of the bass, not the instrument that wasn't design for it nor the cab that can't handle it.

Ok sure the cab and amp need to have enough power but outside of that, I found that the B string need a different approach to make it works. Like plucking it less agressively closer to the bridge than the other strings. No on ever tried this exercice :
Play the B string closest to the bridge
Play the E string a little further, maybe over the bridge pickup
Play the A string in between your pickup
Play the D string over the neck pickup
Play the G string just in front of the neck
Play the C string over the 24th fret

This is a way to even out the sound of each string. try this, then play all your string right between your pickup. Listen very carfully how each string sound with the other.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

My opinion? It's mostly in the nut. B strings have more mass and less tension than the other strings. When you get a bass that has a floppy B string, if the string is new, it's because there isn't enough down angle at the nut or the nut allows side to side movement of the string.

 

[Clef_de_fa]

Most players play on 1 spot for most of the time. I only play above the bridge pickup. Not because of the sound, but because of the tension there is on the string.

then people should try and explore a little bit more instead of being stubborn and that the most expensive solution. My B string is like ,120 or ,125. Don't like it bigger than that and the respond is just fine to me and I have a simple 34' 6 strings made by Carvin, nothing fancy at all.

 

[Ric5]

My formula to get a good 5 string bass ... This is a result of playing 5 string basses for 15 years and owning over 30 different 5 string basses of many different brands with many different types of strings and different setups.

1 - Flatten out the neck as much as possible.
2 - Use lighter strings. 115 to 125 makes the best low B. The fatter strings get boomy.
3 - 35" scale is way over-rated. I sold off all of my 35" scale basses and I now only play 33" and 34"
4 - Turn up the mids. Turning up the mids brings out the overtones on the low B that make it sound good.
5 - Most bass cabs will do fine if you follow steps 1 - 4.

 

[Ric5]

My opinion? It's mostly in the nut. B strings have more mass and less tension than the other strings. When you get a bass that has a floppy B string, if the string is new, it's because there isn't enough down angle at the nut or the nut allows side to side movement of the string.

The nut is quite often overlooked in bass setups, and with many basses the nut is too high.

 

[Ric5]

I may make a trip to the post office to see how much it weighs. I haven't owned it long, but, it feels like it weighs 7.5#.

Maybe it's just balanced well?

I thought my MIM was light & it feels 2#'s heavier than the 5.

If you ever go to sell it people will line up to buy a 5 string with low action and low weight.

 

[Nephilymbass]

I think several things effect wether a bass has a good low b tone. The biggest reason for crappy low b is just a lack of R&D. Every bass I've played with a crappy low b I felt like they just took a 4 string and added another string with little to no thought to it. Some companies 5 strings are just terrible. Others arent that bad but have me wondering what ideas the company actually put into their basses. Fender for example Ive played a jazz tuned bead with duncan QP pickups, and I've played a stock pj both 4 strings setup bead and the low B was actually better than the 5 strings that were supposedly designed for it. Maybe extra bulk in the necks keep the bass from resonating as well resulting in a deader sound. I know most of the 5 strings I've liked actually had very skinny necks. The neck on my stingray isn't much different than several 4 strings I've played, the string spacing is closer and the neck is more tapered but as far as bulk it's really not much different.

 

[bikeplate]

Just more reasons to play a 4 string

 

[Doug Parent]

It's been said before but bears repeating. Stiffness of the neck. Aside from other factors that other people have stated clearly gauge, scale, etc, I can say that after playing various 34" scale basses, the ones I own that have stiffening rods in the neck have better, clearer B strings. One other factor, the body wood. The heavier more dense instruments to me seem to have a more solid fundamental. My light weight Ash bodied bass/maple neck compared to my Korina body/wenge neck bass is a wimp. And I'm using cheap La Bella string from Carvin. 34" scale. My 34" scale Fender ADV (light weight Alder body) has a B string that constantly apologizes for itself. It seems like the less movement and more mass between the two points the string is anchored to makes a big difference.

 

[spade2you]

I think this debate has been going on since the dawn of the internet.

A lot of it is rigidity. The undesirable flop sound is from the neck flexing and energy being lost. Reinforcement is the key and not everyone does this. It shouldn't be too shocking that some 5-6 string basses were simply designed with a wider neck. Why change the neck if customers can't tell the difference?

All else being equal (and they rarely are), longer scale length can't hurt things. Fanned frets are probably the best option since each string is basically cut to an ideal length.

Take ALL opinions with a grain of salt, including mine. Ever know a tone snob with moderate to severe hearing loss? That doesn't stop them from having strong opinions on stuff. Some guys haven't tried a whole lot of basses. Some guys spend more and figure the $ justifies their opinions. Try stuff out and see if you can start drawing conclusions. I used to be a 35" scale only guy until I tried out a friend's 34" scale Curbow (US) with a Rockwood neck. I soon adjusted my opinion and eventually ordered a 32" scale Cliff Bordwell 7 string, which has a better B string than most store brand 34" scale basses. Some luthiers have spent a lot of time trying to make sure their B string is the best it can be.

 

[interp]

I've owned and played a couple of 35" scale Lakland 55-94's. The B string was fine. I now own a 34" inch scale Zaganin (Brazilian). Its B string (.120) is better (tone, resonance, punch, etc.) than the Laklands. Both were/are played primarily through a Monique preamp into a Berg IP112ER, with the occasional addition of a Berg HT112ER.

I attribute the difference to the fact that the Zaganin has a through-body neck with the upper bout connected up to the 12th fret. It is an extremely rigid and stable neck.

And as Doug Parent pointed out, the body wood makes a difference too. The Zaganin has a five-piece neck of quarter-sawn rock maple with pau marfim and purple heart stringers. Fingerboard is Brazilian rosewood. The body wings are ash, with an imbuia burl top. All this weighs a lot--11.5 lbs--but this bass is so perfectly balanced that I don't even notice the weight.

And zero dead spots.

 

[interp]

It's been said before but bears repeating. Stiffness of the neck. Aside from other factors that other people have stated clearly gauge, scale, etc, I can say that after playing various 34" scale basses, the ones I own that have stiffening rods in the neck have better, clearer B strings. One other factor, the body wood. The heavier more dense instruments to me seem to have a more solid fundamental. My light weight Ash bodied bass/maple neck compared to my Korina body/wenge neck bass is a wimp. And I'm using cheap La Bella string from Carvin. 34" scale. My 34" scale Fender ADV (light weight Alder body) has a B string that constantly apologizes for itself. It seems like the less movement and more mass between the two points the string is anchored to makes a big difference.

Exactly.

 

[spade2you]

I have heavy basses, light basses, bolt-on, and neck-through. I don't notice any having a better or worse low B. They all have nicely rigid necks.

 

[BadJazz]

My opinion? It's mostly in the nut. B strings have more mass and less tension than the other strings. When you get a bass that has a floppy B string, if the string is new, it's because there isn't enough down angle at the nut or the nut allows side to side movement of the string.

Speaking of nuts and b-strings, here's what happened when I strung my L2K BEAD:

 

[mcm]

Because basses are meant to be 4 string. Really

 

[Doug Parent]

Because basses are meant to be 4 string. Really

Well, 4 string basses are yes

 

[bucephylus]

Here's how they do it on a DB:

The name "double bass" is because it was designed to double the cello line one octave lower. Since the lowest note on a cello is C, the E string of the DB is a problem. Fingerboard extensions were the solution, as you can see it just increases the scale length. The levers allow you to stop the string so when played open it's E, D#, D, C# or C. You need special longer E strings to use an extension. The normal scale is at least 40" (varies from bass to bass) this extends it at least 6".

In fact, that is more the double bass analog to the HipShot (or vice versa, to be more correct). There are 5 string uprights. The classical folks have been dealing with all the same issues from a range standpoint that is going on with BG, but for a much longer time.

 

[Thomas Kievit]

That works for you, so that doesn't mean it works for all of us. Like I already said : I prefer heavy string gauges at all times and playing over the bridge pickup is another preference.

then people should try and explore a little bit more instead of being stubborn and that the most expensive solution. My B string is like ,120 or ,125. Don't like it bigger than that and the respond is just fine to me and I have a simple 34' 6 strings made by Carvin, nothing fancy at all.

 

[Thomas Kievit]

Maybe you should play the kazoo instead.

Because basses are meant to be 4 string. Really

 

[Thomas Kievit]

You should get a brass nut, problem solved!

Speaking of nuts and b-strings, here's what happened when I strung my L2K BEAD:

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