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First five stringer!


allihts
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In my band we spend alot of time tuning between drop-d and drop-d flat, and I've come to realise it would be easier for me to own a five string bass as i could get even lower without having to retune and probably get a tighter sound.

So I've been looking at five string basses and so far I've found the five string version of my current bass:
[url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/cort_gb35a_3ts.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/cort_gb35a_3ts.htm[/url]

this rather nice looking Squier:
[url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/fender_squier_deluxe_jazz_v_bass_bk.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/fender_squier_del...z_v_bass_bk.htm[/url]

anyone got any other recomendations? Budget is up to £250, and I like jazz style basses.

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Yeah, and if it sounds as good as the fours string it would be great only the build quality with Corts is shocking! The amount of times I've had problems with my four string I don't know if i could take the hassle all over again!

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The Peavey range are worth looking at - I found the Grind a better neck than the Cirrus, and both of them better than the Millennium. You'd need to stretch the budget a bit for a Grind (but a second-hand one should come in under budget), and more than that for a Cirrus. Not quite Jazz-style though.

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[quote name='Ghost_Bass' post='853402' date='Jun 1 2010, 10:59 AM']Take a look at the Yamaha RBX375. IMO is the best 5er for the price. A bit over your budget but you could search used basses (maybe a better one crosses your path!).
Good hunt :)[/quote]

Shameless plug off the back of someone elses recommendation :rolleyes:

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=88979&hl=yamaha"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...9&hl=yamaha[/url]

A

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The yamah RBX and Peavey Cirrus and Grind basses are both pretty good in my experience but, if you are after a Jazz shape then I would highly recommend the Squier.

I bought one about two years ago and it has been fantatsic. It is an extremely well made bass with some great sounds from the stock electronics. The other good thing is that it is just crying out for mods, I have a Aguilar Pre and Badass V bridge on mine. The only thing to watch is the neck and i would suggest trying one first. Its a full 19mm spacing and the neck is very wide and flat which doesnt suit everyone but I love it to bits as it is not far off my old Fender Roscoe Beck. There is a huge thread on TalkBass about how great they, might be worth a look to read some opinions, but for me its a great bass.

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I would first try a few 5-stringers to figure out what I feel about different inter-string distances. For me, that was the most important issue when gtting a 5-string bass that I felt comfortable with.

I have owned 4 5-stringers, 2 of them I still have. I have a cheap Peavey that has a delicious neck, yet its 16mm inter-string distance at the bridge annoys me. It can be fast to play, and I get used to it alright... but I much prefer a 19-20mm type. The extra width of the neck doesn't seem to bother me at all (and my hands are not big at all), but the more familiar spacing between strings on my picking hand just makes it so much easier for me to play, whether it is fingerstyle, pick or slap.

Another thing to consider is a Hipshot D-tuner. This is a tuning peg with some extra bits that allows you to switch between standard E and another tuning (say D, or D flat) simply by moving a small lever. I use drop-D tuning a lot, and this is great. Click, I have E. Click, I have D. You get to keep using your usual familar bass. I think they're about £50 new.

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[quote name='mcnach' post='863742' date='Jun 10 2010, 09:35 PM']I would first try a few 5-stringers to figure out what I feel about different inter-string distances. For me, that was the most important issue when gtting a 5-string bass that I felt comfortable with.

I have owned 4 5-stringers, 2 of them I still have. I have a cheap Peavey that has a delicious neck, yet its 16mm inter-string distance at the bridge annoys me. It can be fast to play, and I get used to it alright... but I much prefer a 19-20mm type. The extra width of the neck doesn't seem to bother me at all (and my hands are not big at all), but the more familiar spacing between strings on my picking hand just makes it so much easier for me to play, whether it is fingerstyle, pick or slap.

Another thing to consider is a Hipshot D-tuner. This is a tuning peg with some extra bits that allows you to switch between standard E and another tuning (say D, or D flat) simply by moving a small lever. I use drop-D tuning a lot, and this is great. Click, I have E. Click, I have D. You get to keep using your usual familar bass. I think they're about £50 new.[/quote]

+1 this. I have had 2 peavey basses which i like for playing with a pick and (dare i say it?) higher up the fretboard(!) because of their narrow string spacing. However, if you play more fingerstyle and slap then you might want to look for a bass with wider string spacing. Having said that i actually don't mind the narrow spacing for fingerstyle, possibly because of my tiny hands and the fact that i don't usually play other basses. I personally think the peavey basses are great otherwise though for the price.

Edited by EdwardHimself
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[quote name='geoffbyrne' post='853342' date='Jun 1 2010, 10:04 AM']May I recommend you look at the Peavey Millenium BXP (34" scale) or the Peavey Cirrus BXP (35" scale)? I have a Cirrus & it plays superbly.

G.[/quote]

+1 for the millenium, never owned one as a 5 stringer but it played nicely and would make a fine first 5'er with an array on nice finnishes.

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