Thursday 30 December 2010

4, 5 or 6 String

I play a 6 string bass.
This puts me into a certain niche of bass players that are generally regarded as show-offs. This doesn't bother me particularly, I like to think that it gives people the impression that I'm better than I really am. However I'm asked about it so much that I thought I'd put down some thoughts on the matter.

I play an active Shine 6 String bass. I don't know what model it is but it's one of their first.

I get more comments on my string count that anything else. This bothers me a little bit but with my bass being somewhat unusual people spend more time doing the math than listening to me play. I get asked lots of questions about having 6 strings so I'm just going to go through them quickly in my '6 Stringed basses FAQ'.

Why a 6 String?
I've spent a lot of time playing with guitarists that use a variety of strange tunings either due to style or personal preference. Drop D is easy enough, half step down not so much, whole step down you start to hear slack in the strings, drop D half step down... and worst of all they would sometimes switch between them mid set. Back in the day I wound up putting 5 string gauge strings on my 4 string bass and tuning it to B E A D. So in an attempt to avoid this same frustration I thought I'd just buy a 5 string but when the shop offered me a 6 for the same price visions of me as Les Claypool flashed through my head. If I had it to do again I'd have bought the 5 string, even if it was turquoise. 6 is just too much, it's heavy, slow, hard to play and I barely use the high C.

What's the tuning?
low - B E A D G C - high. This is actually an unusual tuning for a 6 string bass. A lot of the time they'll be something like D E A D G B, but I like maximum range.

Is is more difficult to play?
Yes but I put a lot of that down to it being a cheap beginner bass, there's a lot of technology and design thought that goes into the higher end basses that really ease playing, lower action, thinner lighter neck etc... However even on a high end, somehow I still think that I would find the 6th string 1 too many, especially for slap.

Was it expensive?
No, in fact this is the cheapest bass I've ever owned. I picked it up brand new for £160ish. 

Do they make basses with more that 6 strings?
Yup. I've seen basses with as many as 13 strings. Look up Jean Baudin his has 11.

Do you find it hard switching back and forth between your 4 and 6 string basses.
Not really. The only thing hard about it is my four string has a blisteringly fast neck, so I tend to really rush things when I play it. It is a bit of an adjustment when you first start playing with an additional lower string because you tend to use your low string as a base, so suddenly you find you're trying to play everything 5 steps lower. With a little practice you soon get over that hurdle.


Thinking about getting more strings?
Make sure you have a practical reason for doing do. I wanted range, low range in particular.
Be prepared to get a fair amount of stick, especially from guitarists.
Be prepared to spend a lot more money. Sure you can get the basses cheap enough, I picked up mine for £150ish, it's the strings. a good set of 6 will set you back anywhere between £30 and £90. I've done a lot of looking and the absolute cheapest I've been able to find is £20 but they didn't last more than 2 shows.
Develop a strong back. The neck and truss rod needed to keep the tension for that many strings can be quite weighty, I know mine is, especially in the neck. So you'll either end up with a guitar that is very neck heavy, or if they've balanced it out with a weighty body, generally heavy.
Make sure you have a rig that can handle it. If you've not got something that can drive 40hz your low B can sound quite weak. I've got a 15 inch speaker with handles all my low end.

Ultimately it's all down to what you think you're going to need and what you think you can handle. You can get 4 to 6 string basses for as cheap as you like really, so once you decide how much you want to spend you need to consider what you can handle.

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