2 things
-Lack of practice I’ve been awful this week
-GAS I got my 5 string and now I don’t want to practice anything that doesn’t include that fat B string
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For me, at 72 years old, it’s my memory. I cannot remember concepts and even note names for very long without rote repetition…
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Nothing - I’m loving every minute of it!
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i struggle with “showing up”. i usually noodle for a bit and then go back to getting lost in social media, it’s been like this for a little over a year. im hoping a personal teacher could help break through that but i have to get to finding one.
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How are you doing on it so far? I just got my first 5 yesterday. I treated it like a 4 string with a really awesome thumbrest last night, tonight I got into using it for more than making the room vibrate. The song I’m working on for my next cover, I had (have tbh) an issue with the transition to the first chorus… not the second one… which is played the exact same way. I’m better tonight. Just a quarter second panic of wtf string do I hit now. That’s really the only issue I’ve had with my brain trying to figure out 25% more strings.
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I’m trying to balance things. For me the strings closer together are a challenge because of my finger size… I’ll obviously use it for any 5 string songs. Other than that I want to experiment with songs we tune 1/2 a step down as well as drop D.
I’m a perfect world of be able to be a musician, learn the new string and never have to down tune again. On the other hand not having the open strings may prove too much trouble.
It would be a huge win to never have to tune at a show. One bass for standard and the 5 for any alt tunings.
I often skip playing open strings even on standard tunings because I like the boom of the thicker strings so it may work.
The other idea I had was tuning the B string to D and on drop D songs just play the D instead of the E string but that seems silly.
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I did one in drop D tonight with that in mind. It was written for a 4 string in drop D, so it didn’t flow well at all and I ended up dropping the E to D in the end. I loved the timbre of that D on the B string though. The string spacing hasn’t even been an after thought for me. I’ve got long fingers but skinny. Maybe that’s it? I love the way that fretboard fits my fretting hand though. It feels easier to play with better left hand posture. I find my thumb just sits on the back where it’s supposed to.
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The flatter radius of 5’s is a beautiful thing.
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I far prefer a 9.5” fretboard radius on a 4-string.
Fivers have never had any allure for me. Very likely because no music I play requires a fiver. 
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The BB734a is 10" and the 735a is 24.5". I really dig the flatter radius of 5’s.
On the BB735a the string spacing is also 18mm, which is fine, I would probably like it or at least not mind it. I totally hated the 16.5mm on my Warwick.
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Is it really 18? I assume it’s the same on the 435 since the dimensions for the neck are the same for both? That would explain why the string spacing wasn’t an issue at all. Yeah, the flat and slim neck is really nice to play on. I’m going to end up with a 735 also. I prefer the sound of the 435 to the passive mode of the 734. The sound is… bigger, fatter, fuller, I guess is how I’d put it. I love that preamp also though.
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Interesting. There’s quite a few differences between them - different wood, different pickups, and the 5 is a lot bigger.
That’s just passive = passive. I really like that preamp in the 700 series but just doing apples to apples as much as possible last night I had to admit that I liked the 400 series sound with the series 5 pickups vs the 700 with the series 7.
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Yeah they are both really good pickups. The 234 has some nice ceramics on it too.
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I was doing okay until I got to the point where you had to know the major and minor chords and I realized I did not know them. I intended to go back and just practice the chords until I knew them but got distracted by life.
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I think the #1 thing that keeps me from improving on my bass journey is lack of goals. But this is only periodic. I have improved, and continue to improve every day on my bass journey but when I’m not progressing it’s because of lack of a goal. I mean a real goal. I want to “get better” is not a real goal. It’s a wish. A purpose to practice is essential. “I’m going to memorize this set of 6 songs for worship team on Sunday” gives me something to measure against and it’s a simple “pass / fail” - Can I play every note of every song without hesitation and without looking at the music? If the answer is “no”… I’m not done practicing. Setting aside time to practice every single day is essential too.
I used to also think that I was in the minority for needing to practice the same lick hundreds of times to get it to be muscle memory … Now I realize that the hours of repetition is what’s required! Unfortunately, that also puts the song on an endless loop inside my head when it’s time to go to sleep! Gaaahh!!
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I don’t have anyone to play with.
That little extra bit of excitement/motivation that comes from enjoying a hobby with others is the spark I need to keep going. I live in a rural community with very little opportunity to find/meet musicians, so it’s been a struggle.
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Lack of talent, or as you might call it, “divine spark”.
I’ve been playing for over 3 years, I practice almost every day (I had only two 1-week breaks during that time). My daily practice time is from 2 to 4 hours.
I have a teacher and I learn in a structured way. I record myself, know the entire fretboard and I feel confident with the guitar in my hand.
I know the theory, my technique is supposedly quite good and can play by ear.
[I also tried playing in a band (so that nobody would sat that I am able to only play in my room), but it was an absolute disaster,lol.]
Generally, all the elements of success for learning an instrument are in place, except that it is like a puzzle scattered all over the room, nothing fits together and I JUST CAN’T play. I made significant progress in the first year, after that, nothing.
I am living proof that not everyone can be turned into a musician. An exception to the rule I guess🙃. I miss that something, the “divine spark”, talent. Because talent matters, no matter what you say.
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@Hahn,
It sounds like you’ve been doing all the right things, and you’ve progressed.
Question: Do you enjoy playing?
By that I mean: Do you feel good while you’re playing, and afterwards?
If the answer is yes, then you have succeeded in your goal: You are a player.
As for the band experience, your one not-so-great experience isn’t a death sentence. Remember, any good relationship in life starts with finding the right people to mesh with. Bands form and break up all the time due to incompatible goals, preferences and personalities. If you truly want to play in a band, then you should keep looking for the people you can happily work with, and vice versa.
Keep practicing and give yourself some slack — and , most importantly, the credit you deserve for all you’ve accomplished. You got this.
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I don’t know if I still like it. For sure I’m tired and very frustrated by my incompetence.
My ambitions are just much bigger than my abilities
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