Drop A tuning - best bass for the job

[brenbass]

Hi guys
Im currently on the hunt for a new bass
I play in a metal band and we tune to drop A ( v low )
I had my eyes on either SR 520 or ESP Surveyor
I bought a SR 520 but the build quality and tone etc was not half as good as I
had expected, when I tuned to drop A ,adjusted neck etc it didnt sound like much either.
I own an Ibanez K5 and the difference in build quality & sound is massive

I dont like the 520 and feels quite cheap...
So Im gonna send back the SR 520 and go for something else
Im on the hunt for a 4 string that will hold low tuning and a big sound
Price range £650 ish
Has anyone any recommendations
Cheers

[Sibob]

Why not just drop tune the K5?! Pretty sure Fieldy is down to A anyway.

If you really want a 4 string in that tuning, your best bet is going to be stringing it like the bottom 4 strings on a 5, ie BEAD, and then dropping to it A.
Slightly higher tension strings might help, but as long as you have a solid neck and bridge on whatever bass you choose to use, it should be fine!

Si

[EdwardHimself]

[quote name='Sibob' post='616710' date='Oct 4 2009, 06:37 PM']Why not just drop tune the K5?! Pretty sure Fieldy is down to A anyway.[/quote]

I would have said.

The ESP surveyor will probably sound great with the bottom set of strings from a 5 set. The pickups and electronics are really very meaty.

[rapscallion]

I've seen a Schecter set up to B-E-A-D straight out of the shop

Or was it a Warwick?

[Sibob]

I've got a passive bass tuned to drop C standard with Dimarzio UltraJazz pickups....it's as meaty as you can get. It took over as my main bass from an 18v preamp'd bass

Si

[sturm]

at the risk of being stupid can you explain what is meant by drop tuning?

[Sibob]

Detuning a bass from standard 'E, A, D, G' tuning to something lower

So when i refer to my tuning as 'Drop C standard', I mean C, F, Bb, Eb
Drop D is commonly D, A, D, G.
Drop D standard would be D, G, C, F

I assume that the Drop A that the OP is referring to would be A, E, A, D on a 4 string
Unless he means Drop A standard, which is A, D, G, C

There is of course millions of combinations of tunings, high, low etc etc

Nice
Si

[tjkennelly]

I was always under the impression that a 'dropped' tuning had the lowest string dropped a tone
i.e Drop D is DADG, Drop C is CGCF

Wheras standard tunings are tuned to 4ths
i.e. Standard E is EADG, Standard D is DGCF

So drop A would be AEAD


[quote]I've seen a Schecter set up to B-E-A-D straight out of the shop

Or was it a Warwick?[/quote]

I think it was [url="http://www.warwickbass.com/modules/produkte/produkt.php?katID=22019&cl=EN"]this[/url]

[TheBlueFalcon]

If you like Ibanez basses, the 35" scale of the BTB series are supposed to be good for drop tuning.

[bassbloke]

Strings and technique make the biggest difference. Sure, a 35" or 36" bass will help with tension, but if you play too hard and too near the neck it'll sound like a mess.

If you're a fan of Ibanez basses, look out for an ATK.

[Mr. Foxen]

Drop tuning is dropping the bottom string relative to the rest, so you end up with intervals between strings from bottom of 5th, 4th, 4th, 4th. Detuning is when you move the lot. Guitards like drop tuning because they can play their beloved power chords with minimal effort. On bass it mostly messes with your positions and makes your bottom string sound weak.

Most important thing about detuning is having strings man enough for the job. My bass in ADGC is strung .145 to .070.

Then you need amp and cabs man enough for the job.

Bass just needs the right setup, and not be shortscale I guess.

[Sibob]

I'm in C,F,Bb,Eb with 45-105, low action, no rattle......lovely

But yeah, definitly for A, E, A, D I'd go for lowest 4 strings from a 5 string set and detune your B to A.

Si

[sturm]

thanks for the replies, my brain hurts now though

[dougal]

I had the same set-up with a death metal band.

The solution was to take my otherwise normal carvin XB-75P:


Which has a 35.5" scale length. Buy some [url="http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/products/2639-warwick_black_label_darklord_bass_strings"]warwick dark lord strings[/url] and tune it F# B E A D, (except go down a semi-tone so it's F A Eb Ab Db). Needed a new nut, and some coaxing to get the .175 through the hole in the back of the bass, but wasn't too bad.

Actually, the most annoying part was that I had to buy another entire set to get a matching D, so I now have 3 spare strings, which I'll probably never use...