Do you need the 5th string?

[stingrayPete1977]

[quote name='markorbit' post='1124795' date='Feb 12 2011, 11:17 AM']Of course you don't [i]need[/i] the 5th string, but I really like all the options that open up when it's there, not to mention the extra low notes.[/quote]
As Doddy says below in certain situations you [i]do need[/i] the 5. I play in an originals band but playing someone elses bass parts that have riffs written and recorded on five strings where in places it is not possible to play them or you would at least have to be Billy Sheehan.

[quote name='Doddy' post='1124820' date='Feb 12 2011, 11:47 AM']Ignoring the whole positional playing argument (which makes no difference to me) and speaking purely about the extra notes,then yes I do need a five string for certain situations.[/quote]

[stingrayPete1977]

[quote name='Fat Rich' post='1124868' date='Feb 12 2011, 12:34 PM']I'm happiest on a five, but I don't [i]need[/i] the low B so I voted no.[/quote]

I'm happiest on a four, but I do[i] need [/i]the low B so I voted yes.

[icastle]

Of course I need a 5th string.

Where else am I supposed to rest my thumb?

[Blademan_98]

I answered yes.

I don't own a 5 string but the only way my wife will let me get another bass is if it's different to the ones I have now!

GASing for a 5............

Edited February 12, 2011 by Blademan_98

[jwbassman]

Voted no because I don't 'need it' - I really like it having though especially for those low note finishes.

Play both 4s and 5s, just have to remember which one I'm on at any given time

[Machines]

In a band i've never [i]needed[/i] the B string but have made use of it. At home I use it a lot.

[Conan]

To me, bass is all about LOW notes. A five has four extra low notes that a four (in standard tuning at least) doesn't have. So what's not to like?

My five is nowhere near as good in quality terms as my four, so I have found it awkward making the transition. If out-and-out tone and playability is what I need, then I play my Status four. If I want extended range, I play the Cort 5.

Works for me. They are merely tools. I wouldn't attempt to put up a set of shelves while only using one screwdriver - so why limit myself to only one tool when playing bass?

It also depends on context. If you have played with the same band for a while, or in a cover band with a singer who is getting on a bit, dropped keys may become the norm. Drop below E on a four and you often lose the real low root notes. A five gives more lee-way.

As others have said, I don't [i]need[/i] it. I managed without it for 20 years, but if I've got it I will use it. We are still talking about the fifth string here BTW!

All IMO and IME of course!

Edited February 12, 2011 by Conan

[Musicman20]

Never understood why players can't just own and play 4s and 5s. Totally different instruments...and it's great fun to be able to play both. I swap between all the time.

[wotnwhy]

It's really down to the individual wether or not a 5 is needed* in their arsenal, some things need it, if you don't play any of that stuff you don't. If you do you do

I only use the extra 5 notes a handfull of times. I can play most of my sets in most bands with a 4, and get round the points where i do use the notes in some way. But the low notes when they ARE used have a big impact, and playing higher up useing the 5th string for more comfort, is enough for me to need it.

*need: shouldn't be contsrued as HAVING to have it. I mean you don't HAVE to have the 4th

[icastle]

[quote name='jwbassman' post='1124899' date='Feb 12 2011, 01:00 PM']Play both 4s and 5s, just have to remember which one I'm on at any given time [/quote]

That's easy.
If you suddenly find you're playing thin air then you're using the 4...

[lonestar]

Yes where else would I rest my thumb ?

[niceguyhomer]

I use my B string quite a bit but in truth I could live without it.

[spacecowboy]

Yes.

My band tune down to A so i find i personally need 5.

[Telebass]

I don't need it, but it's certainly a valid thing, not a gimmick. I'll add one to the arsenal at some point, for sure. A Fender American Standard P5, probably!

[Lozz196]

[quote name='jezzaboy' post='1124781' date='Feb 12 2011, 11:07 AM']Most of the time I could get away with a 3 string never mind a 5 stringer. I had a 5 but couldn`t get used to it at all.

Jez[/quote]
Same here, EAD for most of the music I played in my last band. Only actually used the G for two songs, thinking about it.

[JTUK]

to the OP...of course.

For most music I'd say a 5 is without doubt the standard but I can see that some here would not agree.

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='JTUK' post='1125116' date='Feb 12 2011, 04:42 PM']to the OP...of course.

For most music I'd say a 5 is without doubt the standard but I can see that some here would not agree.[/quote]
Which music and which standard is it that you are referring to? Most bassists and most music still appears to be four string.

[JTUK]

Any sideman on a big tour would have one in his arsenal and would probably be his go-to instrument

A band gig, less so.

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='JTUK' post='1125141' date='Feb 12 2011, 04:57 PM']Any sideman on a big tour would have one in his arsenal and would probably be his go-to instrument

A band gig, less so.[/quote]
I must be going to all the wrong gigs then because so many only seem to be able to manage a four string.

[Steve A]

If the music you play requires the extra low notes, then you need a 5 string. If it doesn't, you don't.

The position argument is bollocks. Anything you can play in one position on a 5 string you can play on a 4 string if you practise correctly.

[Cat Burrito]

[quote name='jezzaboy' post='1124781' date='Feb 12 2011, 11:07 AM']Most of the time I could get away with a 3 string never mind a 5 stringer.[/quote]
This is where I am at, although it depends on the song. 4 is plenty for me but I don't mind 5 string basses

[MythSte]

[quote name='Steve Amadeo' post='1125154' date='Feb 12 2011, 05:05 PM']If the music you play requires the extra low notes, then you need a 5 string. If it doesn't, you don't.

The position argument is bollocks. Anything you can play in one position on a 5 string you can play on a 4 string if you practise correctly.[/quote]

Of course you can, but in many instances it would be easier on a 5.

[mcnach]

[quote name='Phil-osopher10' post='1124740' date='Feb 12 2011, 10:39 AM']Just seeing if people think it is vital to have a 5'er in your arsenal, 6's, 7's and and aboves are not considered real instruments (jealous) and thus don't count! oj[/quote]


I voted no, because I don't *need* it.

But do I like it? Do I want it? Hell yes!!!

Like many here, I think, I am not a pro musician. I toyed with classical guitars in the house and an electric organ when i was a kid, but never took it seriously. Instead I'd cycle, or join a judo club, play basketball, much more seriously than that. It wasn't until I was 16-17 that the bug bit me. I wanted to enrol in a music academy, but it was a difficult time and my parents said they could not pay for it and they saw it as a distraction rather than something "serious"... so I ended up playing and learning by myself and went on to university to study other subjects (for which I could get a grant).

But music, listening and playing, has continued to become a core subject for me.

At first, when I picked up a guitar, I didn't even try to learn many chords. I practiced some scales to improve my dexterity, and I discovered "power chords". I thouht that would make me happy enough, just to be able to make some noise and play some songs in a way that they were recognisable. I then thought that I might as well learn a few chords. Then some more. Strictly rhythm. Soloing was too fancy and difficult to do well, with all the nuances, vibrato, bending...
But constantly, everytime I was comfortable at one stage, I wanted to progress to another one, to the one that in my own personal view seemd like "the next" one... Just one more. And that's it.

That continued, and I was able to become a mediocre guitarist, and then I discovered bass

Bass caught my attention big time the day I played a bass not alone my myself, but in a band situation, with an audience. It's a long story, but the short version is there was a jam, I was playing guitar, and the bassist disappeared when the place started to get busy. I picked the bass for fun, and someoen else picked my guitar. I had played with that drummer before, we knew how we worked, and I had been told that I used to play guitar like a bass player (heh!) so I guess I had an untapped affinity towards it. And I just loved it. To be in charge of the rhythm, interacting with the drums... That day I went home and I started looking at buying a bass, my first real bass...

But my aims were low. Just to play and record at home maybe. As far as bass players go, I was not even a mediocre one.
I played with a plectrum only. I loved the fingerstyle sound, but that was too hard (being used to one technique only). And slap, don't even go there.

One day I thought I should get a bit better, so I started to look for bands to play.
Joined a metal one because I figured playing with a pick would work there and should be easier than other styles, with my background.
But I wanted to just be able to play fingerstyle now and then. It seemed the next level. I tried. Tiring, playing in a fast metal band. But kept at it. One day, I found I only played fingrstyle, and only used a pick if I wanted that sound. I could switch between the two. great.
Similar thing with slap (I quit that band and was playing with various others, trying to get exposed to different styles, and different people).

Same with strings. Four string user only. Sometimes I would want a 5-string, or I would be somewhere and a 50stringer would be handed on to me. I don't want to feel uncomfortable. So I will play a 5-string until I can feel at home with it (this took a while, I started many times and quit after a week... I have been now trying for over a month... I'm getting there
Same with fretless.

I may not need more than a fretted 4-string 95% of the time. But it seems like a shame not to be able to have access to these other sounds and ways of playing. Even if played badly like I do!

I once went for an audition in a band I really admired, playing a fantastic mix of funk/blues/rap/reggae. A little while later they tell me I got it. So I go for my first session. They had an acoustic gig the week after, so we were just going to work on an acoustic set and I could borrow an acoustic bass they had. Alright. I arrive there and they gave me a 5-string fretless. To learn a whole new set on. That was a interesting experience. I went in feeling confident, and suddenly my confidence was all gone. I managed to make it sound alright... but I don't want to feel that naked again.

One day... one day I'll attack that subject called... "reading".

Neevr stop. Always learning something new. Even if you don't *need* it very often. If it improves your ability to play, understand or feel music... it's a good thing.

[stingrayPete1977]

Im not going to quote mcnash's great post as it might jam the web but is all +1 for me too. Since trying the 5 I am having to think about why things go where the do and what else could follow from there. In the last few years I have swapped to a slightly more hi fi amp sound and 5 strings both have improved my playing no end, I also have a lesson booked with a certain BC member on reading and theory etc

[stingrayPete1977]

[quote name='Steve Amadeo' post='1125154' date='Feb 12 2011, 05:05 PM']If the music you play requires the extra low notes, then you need a 5 string. If it doesn't, you don't.

The position argument is bollocks. Anything you can play in one position on a 5 string you can play on a 4 string if you practise correctly.[/quote]

Thats just crap mate somewhere deep down you must know it.