Why are TBers so against drop or detuning?

[afromoose]

Because there are a lot of anal retentive bass players

 

[sayman]

I chime in and say "buy a 5 string" because I think it is really good advice. I tried the detuning and various alternate tunings and NONE of them is as good as BEADG.

All of the drop and alternate tunings are best for instruments that play chords.

I was a stubborn 4 string only guy through the 70s, 80s, and 90s. When I bought my first 5 string bass I had a hard time adjusting. But once I retrained my brain I now prefer the 5 to 4.

So a lot of modern music is written for bands with a bass that has a B string. Also older blues, jazz, rock, country, gospel and other types of music benefit from the 5th string. Plus playing in E F and E flat are really nice on the 5 string along with the low D and low C. Then the 2 octaves in a short distance is great as well.

I really feel sorry for those who still play a 4 string bass.

I own 15 basses and none is a 4 string.

If I did play a 4 then I would tune it DGCF and use fat strings.

+1

 

[sayman]

+1

+1

Feel the need to clarify: I have nothing against 4 strings at all - to each their own. I'm just agreeing that for nearly 30 years I was a 4-stringer. I got into 5 strings a couple of years ago and never looked back.

 

[T-MOST]

Try asking those guys who say "buy a 5 string". I could care less what anyone else does with their bass.

 

[MonkeyBass]

It's your bass... drop it, raise it... spin in on its headstock... dress it up like Princess Diana. Whatever floats your boat dude.

 

[sayman]

It's your bass... drop it, raise it... spin in on its headstock... dress it up like Princess Diana. Whatever floats your boat dude.

Call it from work...festoon it with ribbons...hug it and kiss it and call it "George"...

 

[etechstan]

I had a 4 string tuned at BEAD and one of the guitards I play with went nuts. "You can't do that" "its not made to be strung like that" guy isn't very bright. Buy a five string, they're already detuned.

 

[Baron Von Vik]

the only thing worse is looking to a site like talkbass for approval of your methods. if you want to drop tune, drop tune and don't worry about anyone thinks. nothing matters except you, your band, and your audience. stop looking for approval from other bass players. who cares what they think?

The discussion should have ended there ^^^.

 

[boomtisk]

Simple answer to the thread subject: Because drop tuning is something guitarists like.

Like it or not, even on bass drop tuning is sometimes the only way to play the open-string chugga-chugga heavey metuhl riffs they like to come up with without killing your fretting hand.

 

[staindbass]

i made millions of dollars on dropped tuning, no regrets here. when you detune a bass the strings become loose and floppy, and it takes a different touch to play. just cuz you can play a p bass in A440 doesnt mean you can play a detuned bass well. my low b is tuned to A flat. maybe thats why people dont like it.

 

[rockstarbassist]

I played with my Spector NS-5 tuned ACGCF last night and it seemed to rule pretty well. Like usual...

Ive been playing in drop and alternate like D and C std almost my whole 12~ years of playing so it's more "home" to me than E std at this point. Just watching the Alter Bridge Blu-Ray this AM too and I guess I should email Brian and tell him he's doing it wrong NOT playing in 440 on his NYC 5s lol bc TB said so...

 

[Bigjohn]

There's nothing wrong with drop and down tuning.
Try playing Tool (usually Drop-D) on a 5 string - lame.
Try playing Alice In Chains (Usually Eb or Eb drop-Db) with a 5 string - lame.
Try playing Queens Of The Stone Age (often C tuning) on a 5-string - lame.
It's a different sound and in the case of drop tuning, the low string intervals with the others are changed up, which opens up possibilities.
For intonation, I just set the instrument for the basic tuning I will use (e.g. standard or Eb or D). Just dropping the low string a step doesn't cause problems.
I also adjust neck truss rod and bridge for the strings and tuning.

 

[prd004]

I really feel sorry for those who still play a 4 string bass.

As long as we are debating the merits of five vs. four:

I got my first five sting back in 93, they weren't very poular in my circle, no one I knew had one, but I thought having the extra notes would be fun, and useful. I also thought it would expand my studying and inspire me more! All of this was true, for a while but I realized that I didn't care for the sound of the B string. And I like to play up on the neck anyway. Eventually I swithced back to fours and have never looked back.

No need to feel sorry for me! You see once I realized that John Paul Jones, John Entwistle, Jack Bruce, Paul McCartney, James Jamerson, Bob Babbit, Joe Osborne, Steve Harris, Geezer Butler, Geddy Lee, Berry Oakley, Chris Squire, Cliff Burton etc., etc., etc., all did their entire recorded history on four string basses, there is no limit to the four string bass, only to the mind of the person holding it!!!!!!!!!! No need to feel sorry for any of these guys either, I think things turned out OK for them!

As far as the drop tuning goes, people who aren't into it will tell you unless you are playing chords what's the point? That's a good point and it's my general view on the subject. But If your guitarist plays a half step down, you'd be silly not to tune a half step down! If everything your band does is written a whole step down, then you might want to do likewise. Also there are certain types of music ie. nu-metal or whatever where downtuning makes sense too, I just don't play this type of music!

 

[Bigjohn]

Because there are a lot of anal retentive bass players

No kidding. And I hate to say it but also a lot of dumb lame ones.
So many dudes here get all uptight about stuff guitar players are way beyond.
Like fret buzz. News flash: All those great players y'all talk about like Geddy, Squire, Flea and Chancellor have low action and LOADS of fret buzz.
You don't hear it much in a loud gig setting and to the extent you do, it sounds GOOD.

 

[Eliot Lorango]

I think those anal retentive bass players also have a tendency to work less too. Dropping your E string to D has a clearly different sound and feel than playing it on the B. A good bass player knows that too.

 

[Floyd Eye]

My band plays 1/2 step down. All my basses are set up that way.

 

[caeman]

I love fret buzz. I consider it to be natural bass fuzz.

 

[theduke1]

if you can't sing it where it is written, play something else! Drop tuning is just the easy way out
IMHO

 

[caeman]

Um...theduke1, I must disagree. Singers should transpose music to keys that they can comfortably handle. I often transpose songs to G and D. A begins to get a little high for me. John Montgomery's The Little Girl is in D-flat. Great song and that is John's natural voice.

 

[Floyd Eye]

if you can't sing it where it is written, play something else! Drop tuning is just the easy way out
IMHO

First of all, much is written originally in drop tuning. Secondly, what you just said makes as much sense as not playing any song that every member of your band can't play exactly as written, using the same techniques, chord shapes, guitars, pedals, etc...


If the audience digs it, who cares. It's just music, it's not like it's sacred text or anything.