I can understand that you might want to hit a lower note or make the sound more rumbly but bassists like Duff McKagen and Lemmy always seem to play in Eflat. Is there any reason for this? They rarely take advantage of the low E flat. I guess it’s for the tone?
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If it isn’t because they need that lower note, my next guess would be that they like the sound of the low E fretted as opposed to an open string. Just my guess though. There are some big Lemmy fans on here that can probably give you his exact reasoning for it.
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Could be string tension, could be vocal range (those are why Mike Ness does it - he tunes his guitars to Eb and capos off to play open chords in the song keys.)
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Thanks chaps 
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Most all KISS songs are tuned down a half a step across bass and guitars. They have said it gives the notes a different tonal quality (which it does) on open strings, etc. Does it? No clue. But they are all zillionaires, so who’s to argue?
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You could have a point there - maybe it avoids the ringing sound of an open string?
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There’s a guy called “ The Happy Blues Man” has done an article on this very subject.
The reasons he gave were
1 : to fit in with the singer
2: to sound like your heroes?
3: to make the strings easier to bend
4: beef up your tone
5: to use heavier gauge strings
From my own experience with Motörhead songs I’ve found Lemmy will often play power chords using the first and third fret. So that could be a possibility?
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Yeah now you mention it they are easier to work with. I also find it easier to pick harder when the strings are looser.
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I’d guess this one.
It’s amazing how much a half step can do for vocal comfort.
If a band is tuning down to D, C#, C… lower… I think it’s more for the sound and the added heft and beef of low tuned riffs…
But when it’s just that half step, I always think singers.
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Without wishing to dig up long dead threads, I stumbled across Paul Del Bello’s latest video -
Paul suggests another reason for downtuning is to allow you to use higher-gauge strings, thus improving the tone…
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Most KISS songs are tuned down a step. They say it gives them a different tone on open string notes and the additional Eb of course, adding to their sound.
Tone and the notes you need I think are really the reasons.
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Mike Ness tunes his 6-stringers down a half step to get looser strings and then capos on the second fret to be tuned a half step up from normal.
Some people like odd tunings.
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To play SLAYER songs 
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I have a question related to this. A lot of the bass lines I’m trying to learn - 2000s punk rock - is also tuned down to Eb/D#. However, when I find the written transcription it says to tune down, but then continues labeling the frets as though the bass were in standard EADG tuning. I’ve even watched video tutorials with the artists themselves and they say, “Tune down a half step,” and then proceed to tell you that a D is in the 5th fret. Why??
What is the reason for not calling the notes what they are?
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When you say ‘labeling the frets’ do you mean tab?
Could it be to maintain the mental maps of the fretboard?
No idea, really
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Ah, I just looked at a couple of KISS scores, and yes, you are correct, the staff shows a G, but in reality it is really a Gb!
I never noticed this, but would suppose it is just like for sax or other transposing instruments where the music is simply transposed but the tones come out in the proper key. Tuning down your bass is simply turning it into a transposing instrument.
keen observation!
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I mean referring to the frets in the tab. I see it in guitar music as well when the chords are listed above as E A ect., when they are really Eb Ab.
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Yes, this is same for say, tenor sax…
What is written in the music is a C, but in reality it is harmonically a D, but they do not write the music like this, as the keys on a sax are labeled in our brains as “this is the C key”.
Same for bass - the 3rd fret of the E string is labeled in our brains as a G, so they just go with it, otherwise you would have to transpose everything on the fly in your head for each alternate tuning.
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