POLL: If you could only have one...

thegummy · March 2020

fretmeister said:

thegummy said:

Only get a five string if you'll be playing music that uses the extra low notes.

I can see why someone might think it's better to have the string there even if they don't use it much but it means you'll always have an extra string to mute so it will be a hindrance unless you need it.

I'd say in general, in genres that use five strings, most players in that genre will use one. So look at players who pay the same genres as you.

I disagree massively.

The best part about a 5 string isn't the extra low notes, it's being able to play across the board more for less fatigue and easier fingering patterns.

Note to anyone silly enough to say "basses have 4 strings" and the like.
The double bass started with only 3 strings. So if you want to be authentic you have to take off the G from your 4 string.

Sounds like a theoretical benefit rather than something that actually gives much in the real world.

I don't think I've ever heard bassists complaining that having to move horizontally on the fretboard is so fatiguing or difficult to finger that it's a problem.

Re: the 3 strings, I think I would be mostly fine with 3 since I use the highest string the least. It doesn't cause muting problems though so there wouldn't be any benefit removing it.

If I found a bass made for only 3 (so the fretboard was narrower) I'd give it a try and see! Definitely not 2 strings though, that's not enough.

Rocker · March 2020

TBH three strings are enough for me. Actually plenty.

fretmeister · March 2020

thegummy said:

fretmeister said:

thegummy said:

Only get a five string if you'll be playing music that uses the extra low notes.

I can see why someone might think it's better to have the string there even if they don't use it much but it means you'll always have an extra string to mute so it will be a hindrance unless you need it.

I'd say in general, in genres that use five strings, most players in that genre will use one. So look at players who pay the same genres as you.

I disagree massively.

The best part about a 5 string isn't the extra low notes, it's being able to play across the board more for less fatigue and easier fingering patterns.

Note to anyone silly enough to say "basses have 4 strings" and the like.
The double bass started with only 3 strings. So if you want to be authentic you have to take off the G from your 4 string.

Sounds like a theoretical benefit rather than something that actually gives much in the real world.

I don't think I've ever heard bassists complaining that having to move horizontally on the fretboard is so fatiguing or difficult to finger that it's a problem.

Re: the 3 strings, I think I would be mostly fine with 3 since I use the highest string the least. It doesn't cause muting problems though so there wouldn't be any benefit removing it.

If I found a bass made for only 3 (so the fretboard was narrower) I'd give it a try and see! Definitely not 2 strings though, that's not enough.

Go join Basschat. There’s hundreds of them.

Just because you haven’t heard of it doesn’t mean it isn’t real.

They / we don’t complain about 4 strings, we just enjoy 5s when it’s easier.

thegummy · March 2020

fretmeister said:

thegummy said:

fretmeister said:

thegummy said:

Only get a five string if you'll be playing music that uses the extra low notes.

I can see why someone might think it's better to have the string there even if they don't use it much but it means you'll always have an extra string to mute so it will be a hindrance unless you need it.

I'd say in general, in genres that use five strings, most players in that genre will use one. So look at players who pay the same genres as you.

I disagree massively.

The best part about a 5 string isn't the extra low notes, it's being able to play across the board more for less fatigue and easier fingering patterns.

Note to anyone silly enough to say "basses have 4 strings" and the like.
The double bass started with only 3 strings. So if you want to be authentic you have to take off the G from your 4 string.

Sounds like a theoretical benefit rather than something that actually gives much in the real world.

I don't think I've ever heard bassists complaining that having to move horizontally on the fretboard is so fatiguing or difficult to finger that it's a problem.

Re: the 3 strings, I think I would be mostly fine with 3 since I use the highest string the least. It doesn't cause muting problems though so there wouldn't be any benefit removing it.

If I found a bass made for only 3 (so the fretboard was narrower) I'd give it a try and see! Definitely not 2 strings though, that's not enough.

Go join Basschat. There’s hundreds of them.
Just because you haven’t heard of it doesn’t mean it isn’t real.

They / we don’t complain about 4 strings, we just enjoy 5s when it’s easier.

What's real?

I don't understand what you're talking about.

Already a member of that forum but really don't know what you're referring to.

fretmeister · March 2020

If you find any thread on Basschat about people getting their first 5 string it will be littered with comments about the ease of playing across the board.

It's a common view.

Even more so among bassists playing music in keys that are not friendly to open string use.

thegummy · March 2020

fretmeister said:

If you find any thread on Basschat about people getting their first 5 string it will be littered with comments about the ease of playing across the board.

It's a common view.

Even more so among bassists playing music in keys that are not friendly to open string use.

I've heard it said loads of times, I was never saying it wasn't something that people say.

What I mean is that when you're thinking about comparing 4 strings vs 5 string basses, technically being able to go down a string instead of down a few frets is easier but when the majority of bassists are playing 4 string basses, it's easy enough to go down frets anyway. That's what I mean by it's theoretically better; it's solving something that isn't really a problem.

Like if someone invented a machine that applies the right amount of toothpaste to your toothbrush for you - it would be technically easier than putting it on manually but no one's struggling with that anyway.

Rocker · March 2020

fretmeister said:

@ICBM ;;

Here you go!

It is real!

What is the purpose of the third control knob? Assuming one is volume, the second is tone....

ICBM · March 2020

Rocker said:

What is the purpose of the third control knob? Assuming one is volume, the second is tone....

I assume it's active, so it's volume/tone/hiss.

Rocker · March 2020

ICBM said:

Rocker said:

What is the purpose of the third control knob? Assuming one is volume, the second is tone....

I assume it's active, so it's volume/tone/hiss.

Maybe each string has a separate volume control

proggy · March 2020

I would have a 4 string and it would have to be a Jazz Bass.

I really can't see the point of that psychedelic 2 string bass thing or understand why anyone would bother with it.

JezWynd · March 2020

proggy said:

I would have a 4 string and it would have to be a Jazz Bass.
I really can't see the point of that psychedelic 2 string bass thing or understand why anyone would bother with it.

The thin neck, especially at nut must make it uncomfortable to play.

fretmeister · March 2020

Rocker said:

fretmeister said:

@ICBM ;;

Here you go!

It is real!

What is the purpose of the third control knob? Assuming one is volume, the second is tone....

Volume, Treble, Bass.

The Volume is a Push Pull to swap between active and passive. When in passive mode the Treble Control turns into a passive tone control from the centre position downwards. It's quite clever.

I'm not a fan of those Delano pickups though. Their modern soapbars are fantastic, but their take on P and J pickups leave me cold.

fretmeister · March 2020

Rocker said:

ICBM said:

Rocker said:

What is the purpose of the third control knob? Assuming one is volume, the second is tone....

I assume it's active, so it's volume/tone/hiss.

Maybe each string has a separate volume control

Victor Wooten has a 4 string where each string not only has a separate volume but also a separate output as well.
He uses it to create soundscapes where the notes come from different places in the auditorium.
It's a very unusual effect and quite interesting for unaccompanied pieces.

thegummy · March 2020

proggy said:

I would have a 4 string and it would have to be a Jazz Bass.
I really can't see the point of that psychedelic 2 string bass thing or understand why anyone would bother with it.

Me neither. I like the body colour but can't imagine anyone could find that thinness of neck more comfortable than a 3-string version which would also be more practical.

Really though I still think I'd find 3 limiting, if I was playing a root note on the A string I'd have the same need for a G string as I would have a need for the D when playing the root on the E.

I suppose at the extreme end of things, 11 frets and one string is all that's needed to at least play a simple bass line.

Here's Brushy playing his One-String:

thegummy · March 2020

fretmeister said:

Rocker said:

ICBM said:

Rocker said:

What is the purpose of the third control knob? Assuming one is volume, the second is tone....

I assume it's active, so it's volume/tone/hiss.

Maybe each string has a separate volume control

Victor Wooten has a 4 string where each string not only has a separate volume but also a separate output as well.
He uses it to create soundscapes where the notes come from different places in the auditorium.
It's a very unusual effect and quite interesting for unaccompanied pieces.

Sounds cool but defo seems like it would have to be for a specific performance.

I quite like the idea of Billy Sheehan's dual output bass for every day bass playing. It has a neck pickup right up at the fretboard with its own output and a normally positioned P-style pickup going to a different output.

Not sure how he does it but to me it seems like it would be great for using the neck one to an amp or subwoofer PA as just a pure solid low end thing, almost like a sine wave synth, since the cleanest lowest tone comes from a neck pickup then the P can go to a normal bass amp to sound more like a bass guitar with all the grunt, harmonics, string noise, distortion etc.

Kind of like an alternative way of triggering a sine wave synth (or sometimes even 808 samples) from the bass guitar recording just to get the proper sub lows. I like the idea of this theoretically a lot, the thing that stops me doing it so much is that I have such inadequate sub monitoring and it's hard to judge the level of sub bass. Not only that but even if I had a great monitoring system, a lot of people listen in rooms with big bass peaks and nulls so even if it sounded perfectly balanced in a mastering studio, some people can play it back in a room that makes it overpowering (happens when listening to hiphop, sometimes the sub bass will just overpower everything on some notes).

fretmeister · March 2020

thegummy said:

fretmeister said:

Rocker said:

ICBM said:

Rocker said:

What is the purpose of the third control knob? Assuming one is volume, the second is tone....

I assume it's active, so it's volume/tone/hiss.

Maybe each string has a separate volume control

Victor Wooten has a 4 string where each string not only has a separate volume but also a separate output as well.
He uses it to create soundscapes where the notes come from different places in the auditorium.
It's a very unusual effect and quite interesting for unaccompanied pieces.

Sounds cool but defo seems like it would have to be for a specific performance.

I quite like the idea of Billy Sheehan's dual output bass for every day bass playing. It has a neck pickup right up at the fretboard with its own output and a normally positioned P-style pickup going to a different output.

Not sure how he does it but to me it seems like it would be great for using the neck one to an amp or subwoofer PA as just a pure solid low end thing, almost like a sine wave synth, since the cleanest lowest tone comes from a neck pickup then the P can go to a normal bass amp to sound more like a bass guitar with all the grunt, harmonics, string noise, distortion etc.

Kind of like an alternative way of triggering a sine wave synth (or sometimes even 808 samples) from the bass guitar recording just to get the proper sub lows. I like the idea of this theoretically a lot, the thing that stops me doing it so much is that I have such inadequate sub monitoring and it's hard to judge the level of sub bass. Not only that but even if I had a great monitoring system, a lot of people listen in rooms with big bass peaks and nulls so even if it sounded perfectly balanced in a mastering studio, some people can play it back in a room that makes it overpowering (happens when listening to hiphop, sometimes the sub bass will just overpower everything on some notes).

I ran pretty much a copy of Sheehan's rig for a few years, including a Yamaha Attitude and a modded Status.

Super deep, compressed and clean on the neck pickup, and the all drive and FX on the other, but still blended with another clean.

2 separate stacks. I had a few versions of it.

FIrst was pedals into a Hartke HA3500 head and Marshall VBC412 for high and drive and an Ashdown 400H and another Marshall VBC412 for the lows.

Then a Rack with a Bass Pod Pro and an Ampeg SVP-BSP (Sheehan sig) both giving a clean and dirty into a 5000W yamaha power amp etc

It was amazing. And weighed over 400 lb all in!

thegummy · March 2020

fretmeister said:

I ran pretty much a copy of Sheehan's rig for a few years, including a Yamaha Attitude and a modded Status.

Super deep, compressed and clean on the neck pickup, and the all drive and FX on the other, but still blended with another clean.

2 separate stacks. I had a few versions of it.

FIrst was pedals into a Hartke HA3500 head and Marshall VBC412 for high and drive and an Ashdown 400H and another Marshall VBC412 for the lows.

Then a Rack with a Bass Pod Pro and an Ampeg SVP-BSP (Sheehan sig) both giving a clean and dirty into a 5000W yamaha power amp etc

It was amazing. And weighed over 400 lb all in!

Very impressive, do you have any videos or even photos of the rig or of you playing through it?

fretmeister · March 2020

I think I have a few pics,
Ill have a look.

fretmeister · March 2020

Rack 2

Top
Ampeg SVP-BSP
Bass Pod Pro
Pod (Backup)
Yamaha P5000S

Image: https://scontent-lhr8-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/72762_452636678725_1042685_n.jpg?_nc_cat=102&_nc_sid=e007fa&_nc_ohc=8TVpPBRDQKsAX904tcA&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr8-1.xx&oh=4bc3d8c8edaedbfecc805ad626487dd5&oe=5E8FD9E3

Earlier version

Ampeg BSP-SVP
Pod
Behringer Compressor
Hartke HA3500
Ashdown MAH400H

Image: https://scontent-lhr8-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/71577_452636323725_6454236_n.jpg?_nc_cat=104&_nc_sid=e007fa&_nc_ohc=a04b6Y-407MAX-W_Ra-&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr8-1.xx&oh=2be42ce946b43821ff892ef5fff1abe8&oe=5E8E6061

Can't find a cab photo at the moment. Or when it was pedal based rather than rack.

thegummy · March 2020

Pretty cool man.

What was the POD used for, was that for when you wanted a driven sound out of it you'd add that in or would you even have it running on clean tones for a more subtle amp sim?

Schnozz · March 2020

4 String Jazz Bass.

wrinkleygit · March 2020

Never thought I would ever part with my Sei headless 5, but eventually the width of the neck became too much for the wrinkley fingers, now my forever bass is a 31.5” scale fretless 4.

fretmeister · March 2020

thegummy said:

Pretty cool man.

What was the POD used for, was that for when you wanted a driven sound out of it you'd add that in or would you even have it running on clean tones for a more subtle amp sim?

The guitar POD was a backup. The Ampeg Preamp is 2 blended channels - drive and clean. The Basspod did all the lows / compression.

The Guitar Pod did have all the extra bass packs in it though.

thegummy · March 2020

fretmeister said:

thegummy said:

Pretty cool man.

What was the POD used for, was that for when you wanted a driven sound out of it you'd add that in or would you even have it running on clean tones for a more subtle amp sim?

The guitar POD was a backup. The Ampeg Preamp is 2 blended channels - drive and clean. The Basspod did all the lows / compression.

The Guitar Pod did have all the extra bass packs in it though.

Cool man. Dirty bass is something I've always struggled with. I mainly use clean but when I hear a nice distorted tone I do wish I could nail it.

Best I got was a sim of an Orange bass amp turned up but it wasn't tried with a band so quite possibly wouldn't be as good in context.

Gulliver · March 2020

I'd go for a 5. A 5 gives you more range and tend to come with bigger, fatter sounding pickups. The upsides to a 4 are the wider string spacing and they're cheaper to restring.

jaymenon · April 2021

Five String - any day. I record a lot of songs in D and in C#min. The 5th string allows a low D and C#

Snap · May 2021

Rocker said:

As @ICBM said '4 string'. USA made Fender Precision. All I need now is a 'talent boost' pedal. Suggestions most welcome.

ha yes. I find a few beers have the same effect. I think I am immensely talented after a few sherbets. Unlike anyone else.

wraub · May 2021

I have several 4 string basses, and I have 2 5 string basses.

I like choices.

However, only one? This-

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