hey guys im new to the forum and recently gotten back into playing music(been like 3 years, ive played guitar and bass for about 12 on/off )......i play a 5 string bass in 2 totally different bands..........ones brutal hardcore/DM...and the other is more soft rock/alt...ive been into more brutal stuff all my life...but i like to play and listen to all stlyes

i have a 5 string esp LTD 155(2 months old) which i absolutly love.....no complaints whatsoever......it sounds extremly good out of my behringer 1000 watt 4x10 and Yamaha BBH digital head......

now, for the heavier band...my guitarists tune very low to about C i believe(same that Dehumanized tunes to, if u are familiar with that band)

now, i downtuned my bass from my softer band(standard E).......and tuned it down to C on my E string.......this made my LOW B string VERY low........no problems whatsoever tho it played AWESOME......it wasnt till about a week my bass sat cold in our studio i went to play it again and i got some slight fret buzzing on certain frets.......but on the higher 2 strings......also take note the bass hasnt been adjusted yet neck/string height wise


now i know strings should really be changed about evry 2 weeks which no one ever does anyway......so im in the market for some new strings.....i know ernie ball makes some lower gauge strings what gauge would u guys recomend for tuning drop C........i used to use skinny top heavy bottoms when i played guitar years ago tuned to C and they worked perfect......so what would the equivilent to those strings be on a 5 string...anything good available out there?.....or should i just get the standard 5 string gauge and downtune from there......also when tuning this low on a 5 string, is string height a big factor? will adjusting string height help eliminate some fret buzz in some spots.......any input is appreciated...thanx in advance

FFF

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first off, you never need to go that fucking low, work your octaves.
youre going to get buzz because a low b in standard only has about 2 pounds of tension on it reguardless of gauges.
and whoever told you that you need to change your strings every 2 weeks is totally full of shit.
bass strings should last you atleast a good 5 months

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You could of said it nicer than that sixsicsix

Welcome to metaltabs!

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yeah, but thats not how I roll, and someone with 12 years of experience should know this.

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Hey man thanx for the input......BUT....it wasn't more the low B string it was more the 3rd and 4th string on the 1st and 2nd frets.............and get this....I uptuned my bass back to E yesterday to play along to my other bands stuff.......and when I tuned back down to C tonight to jam with my heavier band evrything was PERFECT......no fretbuzz ANYWHERE.....maybe just the cold and sitting for a week messed with it somehow?........I dunno

And what do u mean by not going that low......I tuned it like that because I learned the songs on my 4 string......do u suggest the low B string be tuned to the guitars top "C" string?......


The 2 week string change thing I read in the stupid ESP manual...also the fact that after a few plays strings get extremly dirty and tend to "dull" out ya know.......maybe they meant more for guitars not basses.....I know bass strings can last years but u gotta admit, a new set of strings doesn't sound "new " anymore after a few plays......but whatever....

And the 12 year thing man don't get me wrong.....those 12+ years I wasn't playing for fuckin 12 hours a day....I am by no means a proffesional.....I try......I started out on bass 12 years ago then switched to guitar.....I learned all by ear.....I'm not the best ill admit it.......but try.......so many different styles of metal I love its near impossible for me to get to the level I wish.........and also that's why I asked here just wanted some input from fellow metal bassists.....I appreciate ur "help" tho man

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Thanx for the welcome man.......was a member for a few months now just never posted due to being afraid of getting flamed by sixsicsix


haha and get this....my fucking brand new 2 week old Behringer 1000 watt 4x10 blew a speaker tonight.......top right one.......just the way the aluminum cone is attached to the edhe of the speaker looked weak....must of been a dud...ill post a few shots later....now I gotta lug this heavy shit all the way back to return it........but I AM happy my strings macigally fixed themselves and played flawlessly tuned the way it was......eventually ill have to invest in another bass cuz I can't play in 2 bands uptuning and downtuning so frequently....or can I?.....prolly a bad idea...........

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you prolly shouldnt have bought a behringer....

Hartke makes the best aluminum speakers,get one of those

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Hey man indeed.......ya know I prolly shouldn't of done A LOT of things throughout my life....lol....

And honestly, I wasn't looking to spend ass loads on a cab......didn't wanna go too cheap either.........it seemed like the best bang for the buck......4x10 1000 watt for around $300 and change.......I didn't even WANT the Aluminum coned one(read a few bad things on em, even the hartkes).......i wanted the one they make with the regular speakers which was like $40 cheaper.......guitar center only had the aluminum coned one and the dude offered it to me for the same price so I was like alright fuck it.......ill be returning it today and hopefully swapping it for the non aluminum coned version..........just needed something to more than handle my 500 watt Yamaha head..........it was just that one speaker must of been defective.....all last night it was shaking more than the others until pieces of it crackked off where its attached to the very edge!!lol..........either way before it blew it sounded FLAWless.....no complaints here whatsoever......I'd take another....as long as the speakers don't blow on me......I play no where near as hard and my amp never hit the red warning indicator whatsoever so I know it was a dud...........I'm just pissed I gotta lug it all the way back now

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this guy is cool.
yeah it probably was the weather fucking with your action.

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About the detuning, when you detune you are putting less tension on the neck which means it will straighten, or if it was already straight, it will back bow. Either way this will cause your action to be significantly lower and THATS what causes your fret buzz. Sometimes the neck takes a little while before it settles in, which would explain why you noticed more the next day. Do a google search on adjusting truss rods so you can compensate for this, its quite simple.

For the tone and overall structural integrity of your bass, its probably better to simply tune your low B string up to C and just transpose anything else. That way instead of changing the tuning drastically when going band to band, you only need to move one string up a half step.

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thanx for all ur input man.........and yea indeed must of been......it was real cold that entire week it must of warped it somehow......glad its fixed now...

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yea man indeed thanx for that good info........ive never really taken that into consideration......alot of people dont.......how the neck flexes and how much of a big factor it can be......on bass, guitar, or even drums for that matter......i would love to learn how to adjust the truss rod myself....dont really know whats involved in that tho....i read a short thing on it just never actually DONE it......

and on the tuninig thing i figured yea tune that low B string up just a bit and it would be wayyy less stress on the neck.......also sucks cuz ill have to relearn the songs and ill lose that top low string which i already incorperated into most of the songs......i might just try it next week and see how it feels.....


just been out of playing music for almost 4 years and just got back into it 2 months ago full force.......so im still trying to adjust and learn more and more as i go along.....

thanx guys for all ur helpful input

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No problem man. I always liked relearning songs in different tunings, cause it makes you look at things differently. And as a result, you may come up with something cool. Truss rod adjustment is pretty simple, turning it clockwise (while looking down the neck from the headstock) tightens the rod, straightening the neck and turning counter clockwise adds relief to the neck. What you do is this:

1) Fret your string at the first fret with your left hand
2) Using the thumb of your right hand, fret that same string on the 15th fret, this combined with step 1 creates a straight edge across the fretboard that will allow you to observe the curvature of the neck.
3) While holding step 1 and 2, use a finger (middle is the easiest) from your right hand and tap the string above the ninth fret. There should be a very small, but still perceptable space between the 9th fret and the string.

If there is a lot of space, tighten the rod about 1/4 turn to straighten the neck and check again. If there is no space (string against the fret), the neck is too straight, loosen the rod 1/4 turn and check again. Repeat until you get a very small amount of space.

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Hey, Welcome to Metaltabs!

A bassist is always welcome.

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that is some great info right there man.......the instructions ive read on how to do it was almost identical........this should be stickied somewhere on this forum with pics.......kinda like a DIY......people should REALLY know how and when to have to do this

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thanx man for the welcome......the rest of u too.....very appreciated......


and BEHEMOTH fucking rulezzzzz \m/

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Thanks, people say I rule a lot.

I'm not much of a fan of the band, even missed an opportunity to see them..my name has to do with my monstrosity of girth and strength.

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Well, if you really want to drop to C...I would suggest getting heavy gauge strings and getting your bass adjusted accordingly. I drop all my strings one step (Eb Ab Db Gb) and I had to switch to heavy guage to get a bit more tension...the medium gauge strings were rattling too much....so yeah, hope that helps man.

~Cheers

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indeed man.......can u recomend me a good set of 5 strings? sizewise too?.....thanx in advance

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elixer
warwick black label
DR highbeams
dont use anything else

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which one of the 3 is my best bet.........and what gauge

thanx

FFF

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It depends on the tone you are after. IMO DR pretty much makes a superior string for every style. DR Highbeams are bright, good for slapping and tapping. DR Sunbeams are the same string but with nickel wraps instead of stainless steel like the Highbeams. They are IMO the best roundwound string made right now, warmer tone than the highbeams and they feel super smooth. Whatever string you get, I would get heavy gauge.

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Dean Markley Blue Steel are really good, I use those. And Rotosound make excellent strings...they are expensive, but if you have the money they are great.

Cheers

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never heard of sunbeams, Ill have to try them out.

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