LeftyBassist.com

to all you 5 and 6 string players, what made you take the jump from a 4, and what would you say are the pros and cons (besides weight but that one is obvious lol) of having more then just 4 strings.

well for me, I always liked the sounds of a B string in many country and smooth jazz tunes.

It took me about 6 or 7 months to really get used to using the B string with any comfort, and that was because I was in a blues band where the singer sang almost everything in C !! It took me forever to get accustomed to the string spacing. As well, that danged B string kept throwing me off when I was noodling around on the fretboard. For example, I'd reach for a F on the E string and end up hitting the C on the B string. Stuff like that where my fingers would not land where I wanted them to.

Now that I'm used to it, I find I am hesitant to go back to playing a 4 stringer. It just feels naked and empty having that skinny little neck in my hands LOL.

Interesting question…..The band I was in at the time I switched to a 5 was in a “drop” mode a lot and I preferred to stay in standard tuning so I needed the B string to get the lower D without sounding like a girl in a tutu on the high D. That was my sole reason at the time but now it’s been about ten years or so and I realize there are many more reasons for me to stay on a 5 or even a 6 string bass. Efficiency of movements is a big reason now. In one hand position I have more notes to use and octaves without moving all over the neck. The necks of 5 string basses seem to be so much more stable and require less tweaking of the truss rod and bridge to keep good action and intonation. Many of my 5 string basses are 35” so they have a tension I prefer now and they seem to sound deeper and growlier. I like tighter string spacing for fast runs up and down scales. Bigger body covers more of my gut. B string makes a great thumb rest for regular bass lines and the low D or C on the B string sounds so huge on a good bass and proper amplification. Sometimes when I hit the open B string on my Warwicks and look down at my pedal board to watch the tuner my eyes are vibrating and it’s hard to focus clearly and I can set car alarms off. Try that with a 4 string…The whole vibrating eyeball thing and car alarm thing are pretty stupid but fun. The list before that are the real reasons.

I am a 4 strings player, mostly by laziness and the fact I really enjoy my current instruments but I have the following recommendation. If you switch to a 5 strings bass you need to have a good quality amplification and get a decent instrument. If you intend on playing a 5 strings on a 25 yrs old, 100W Peavey or Fender combo, forget it. There are a few decent 5 strings for around $700 such as the KSD705 or can get a used bass but mostly you need a ($$$) great amplification.

It's not a step up, it's a lateral move.

didnt mean it like that man, just meant its a big step (atleast in my mind) to make the jump to additonal strings...especially a 5 string....odd numbers confuse me

i bought my first bass 2nd hand, it was the only one around that was good value for money and was a 5 string (washburn xb500) so i learned on a 5 string... at first it was just used as a thumbrest but eventually i got the hang of it and i'm probably better off for it. i've actually never played a decent 4 string left handed bass before as there are none in any shops where i live (Newcastle, Australia)and i've never owned one but i've got a new gl 2000 coming so see how i go

Well, it's one lower, isn't it? It's not four. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing with four. You're using five here. Where can you go from there?

Where?

Five.

Exactly.

One lower.

I grew up on 4-stringer, but I was playing enough in church (in Eb and Bb) to realize that a fifth string could actually be useful and not some added appendage that would never get used. In the mid-1990's I ordered a Carvin LB75, all mahogany, ebony f/b. And, after a couple of months, I never looked back. I have purchased a few basses since that time, both 4- and 5-stringers, but I call myself a "five-string player" at heart. Much more comfortable, much more versatile. The keys of Eb and Bb are the same as G or C nowadays...no problems whatsoever.

I do have an old, cheap acoustic/electric four-stringer that I use when playing with a bluegrass group or with at the occasional acoustic gig, but those are the only times I grab the 4 and leave the 5 at home.

I had the same issue with 5'ers. I could never find a reasonably inexpensive unit with a good neck and string spacing I could actually use. I finally found a Jackson Concert5 that has a Kahler 2450 on it and no more string spacing issues. The B string is good for output and tension, but the funny thing is ALL the music our band is doing now does not require it so it sits in the case.

The 4 stringers are tuned to DGCF and I only noodle on the 5er.

PLUS the 5'er is a righty and flipped looks like shiiiit, but for recording purposes, ya I use it for making mp3's with the band because it sounds excellent.

If I look back on my bass 'history' I think my longing for a five stringer was just a phase..

Started of with an EKS Cyclone lefty, moved up to an Ibanez (can't remember which series, probably a GSR) and then bought myself a Yamaha BBN5L as my first, and only, five stringer. Was a lot into Ill Nino, Machine Head at that time and the Ibanez wouldn't allow me to tune as low. Did learn to manage the five stringer and actually proved to be more stable as my four stringers as the B string provided me with a stable place to put my thumb on.

Eventually switched back to 4, the sound of a 75 reissue Jazz surpassed the Yamaha, no sweat

I still do enjoy playing the Yamaha occasionally, but that's more for taking a trip down memory lane...