But what about the neck profile itself. Is it the same for the fiver and the four string?
When some years ago I switched over to G&Ls from Fender I found that the neck profile on a Tribute L2500 and the L2000 were different even though at that time both shared the same nut width of 1.75". The L2500 neck felt much thinner, flatter, and less rounded than the L2000 or my M2000 which has a 1 5/8" nut as do the newer L2000s.
I could never get completely comfortable with the neck on the L2500 in the same way that I was with a much older Modulus M92-5 I played years ago. Maybe that’s not an issue with the Yamaha basses though.
There aren’t any Sire dealers within 500 miles of Denver, and I never did manage to find someone that had a BB734/5 in stock around here before I ordered the 4. I’m not sure how it translates, the radius seems way off but here are the specs between the 734 and 735:
Much flatter radius fretboard if that’s accurate. It’s a royal PIA but I suppose you could order a five string and try it depending on the return policy to send it back if you don’t like it.
I did that with the M2 fiver I tried. Ended up swapping it for my U5. The one advantage Sire may have with their five strings is the 35" scale length. I prefer that but what I did not enjoy was Sire’s preamp. The mid control had issues.
I believe it was caused by a defect in the preamp. Certainly a warranty issue but it left me without a whole lot trust for the bass in addition to not enjoying the rest all that much either. I’m thrilled with the U5 though so a swap worked out well.
I got an Ibanez 6 string recently and I was thinking how much better it sounded… and then I considered it could also be the 4 year old strings on my Sire.
I don’t play it very often so I’m not inclined to spend money on new strings… I bought new strings for my pbass may 2023 and haven’t gotten around to putting them on yet lol
I’m a total noob so I’m sure I have no idea what I’m spewing. Opinion is all I can offer.
I can’t argue with any points in this video.
This video, and the comment in one of the beginner videos about not starting on a 5’er is the only reason I’ve not sold the 4’s, (and other sites saying to own a 5 but all else should be 4s).
For me, so far, a 5 string just feels more comfortable. I started with 4’s (bad GAS) with a couple of the popular sites, including B2B. I tapered off a bit and stopped learning. I can’t say I was discouraged or lost interest. I’m not sure what it was really, other than not feeling the mojo…
Then I snagged a 5 string and seem to have a better, passion??.
I pick up the 4 and try a lesson but end up picking the 5 right back up. I’m not saying I prefer the sound of one over the other, it just feels better to me. Am I better with a 5? I highly doubt it, but it’s something I’m willing to continue with to become better with it (muting and etc.).
I technically treat it like a 4 string through the lessons. I’m not using the B. It’s not a rest though. I’m floating/sliding thumb. Come to think of it, the floating thumb keeps my wrist straight which I think adds to the comfort.
So, for me I prefer a 5 for the comfort and not the sound or playability. Seems to be working smoothly thus far.
If I had a couple of 6-string sets, I’d put four on one bass and save the others until I had another 4-string set. Might be a tad high pitched, but it’d work for a piccolo
I own a fiver and a 4s but the later is 400km away. I resumed playing a couple of months ago after more than 20 years of not playing, and suddenly came across this video and this thread, and started freaking out, thinking that Im not progressing fast enough because of the extra string.
Your comment (and some others) gives me hope
And at the same time, invalidates the excuse I was creating to make myself feel better: Of course Im not progressing, its all beacause of that extra string!
