Members Avalanchemaster Posted March 23, 2012 Members Share Posted March 23, 2012 Down the road I want to have a fiver. I was wondering what people's experiences have been with the fives they have played and which seems most affordable with good stability/sound... I was thinking about getting a Cort Curbow. Maybe an F series LTD? Thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lz4005 Posted March 23, 2012 Members Share Posted March 23, 2012 Go for longer than 34" scale for least flopitude. Best I've ever played was a Dingwall fanned fret that was something like 37" on the B. But it wasn't inexpensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Avalanchemaster Posted March 23, 2012 Author Members Share Posted March 23, 2012 37" scale? Did you have trouble reaching the first fret at that length? Or maybe you could play with the neck pitched up? Yeah, I am thinking 35" would be minimum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JesperT Posted March 23, 2012 Members Share Posted March 23, 2012 The type, gauge and brand of strings is also important. I'd say the B-string on the 35" Ibanez BTB bass I used to own was very tight. That was with elixir strings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sunburstbasser Posted March 23, 2012 Members Share Posted March 23, 2012 The B on my Reverend is nice, which I attribute to the 35" scale. I've played the Cort Curbow 5. The 4 is an excellent bass, the 5 has a very skinny neck and I believe a 34" scale. I'm not overly impressed with any of Cort's 5 string basses. The Ibanez BTB is a great bass. Lakland 5ers also have a 35" scale, and sound great though you'll want to go with their Skyline models if you don't want to spend a huge amount of money. I've played some 34" 5s with good B strings, but not cheap ones. The Stingray 5 has a pretty nice B, for instance. Get your hands on a few, even if you aren't going to buy right away. I approach the 5 as a separate beast from the 4, and some of the things I like on a 4 I don't want on a 5. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gonzobassman Posted March 23, 2012 Members Share Posted March 23, 2012 Sunburstbasser couldn't have said it better.Stingrays have a surprisingly great B when you consider the scale. Carvin has a decent "extended scale" 5er,believe it or not! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitargod0dmw Posted March 24, 2012 Members Share Posted March 24, 2012 The best that I've played/owned have been my Modulus Q5 and EBMM Stingray 5. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members walkerci Posted March 24, 2012 Members Share Posted March 24, 2012 G&L L2500, MusicMan StingRay 5, Reverend Rumblefish 5XL - all good.Yes, strings are a factor. I like LaBella and Ernie Ball strings, not floppy at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sunburstbasser Posted March 24, 2012 Members Share Posted March 24, 2012 Sunburstbasser couldn't have said it better.Stingrays have a surprisingly great B when you consider the scale. Carvin has a decent "extended scale" 5er,believe it or not! Yes, I think they list it as 35.5" on their site. One of my friends has a Carvin 4 and it is an excellent bass. The 5s would be worth checking out as well, and used can be had for a very nice price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gonzobassman Posted March 24, 2012 Members Share Posted March 24, 2012 I had them "custom" make me a 7 piece neck thru,string thru 5er about ten years ago.It was a GREAT bass! No {censored}! I'm not much of a Carvin lover,but that bass,and the 2-10/1-18 speakers(Carvin)powered by my SWR 900 was a killer rig.Then I plugged my first EBMMSR5 into it,and traded the Carvin for a Shure wireless unit that I haven't used in 5 years!!! I know...STUPID!!! Lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members perrydabassman Posted March 24, 2012 Members Share Posted March 24, 2012 Lubs both of my MTD's. The KZ-5 has the most versatile tone though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MillenniumBlues Posted March 24, 2012 Members Share Posted March 24, 2012 It's starting to sound like a broken record in here, but I have to agree on the StingRay 5. As far as value/price ratio goes, they are a good deal for a non-floppy, good-quality 5 string. The other Music Man basses are also good, but I think the StingRay 5 is the least expensive of them. There's no shortage of good used ones for under a grand out there, either. However, Ed Friedland really liked the most recent Fender American Standard Precision V - he indicated that the B string was actually quite good. Brand new, those go for just under $1300. Here's a link to his review: . He also specifically addresses concerns with the B string here: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members georgestrings Posted March 24, 2012 Members Share Posted March 24, 2012 Another StingRay 5er fan here - I also like Ibanez for 34" 5ers... For inexpensive, but good quality 35" 5ers, Spector's Legends and Schecter's Stiletto Elites have pretty good B strings... All can be had for a decent price on the used market, with the EBMMs being the most expensive... - georgestrings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Avalanchemaster Posted March 24, 2012 Author Members Share Posted March 24, 2012 The MTD ZX (with the active Bartolinis) seem like a better bass, but the price difference may be a deciding factor. I like everything about the BTBs... but am not sure about the passive electronics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cpt. Spliff Posted March 24, 2012 Members Share Posted March 24, 2012 That fat B-string runs almost flat over the nut on most 5-stringers. I'd prefer a tilted head to increase the break angle. My 2c. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ermghoti II Posted March 25, 2012 Members Share Posted March 25, 2012 I tried desperately to justify buying a Modulus Q5 Sweet Spot with a Bartolini back around '94-'95 or so. It was freakishly even from E to B, like a keyboard almost. Still want, never have the megabucks laying about though. The pickup position has a lot to do with it. I played a cheap import Curbow a few years back with a similar configuration and scale, it was very close (except in price, LOL). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bassred Posted March 26, 2012 Members Share Posted March 26, 2012 My Schecter Stiletto Studio 5 has an amazingly nice and tight B. 35" scale helps. My MIM Jazz deluxe was a little loose, but not the troublesome kind of loose... Even my cheapo Essex (SX, before they changed the name to just the letters) has a decent low B even with a 34" scale.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lz4005 Posted March 26, 2012 Members Share Posted March 26, 2012 37" scale? Did you have trouble reaching the first fret at that length? Or maybe you could play with the neck pitched up? Yeah, I am thinking 35" would be minimum. With the fanned frets it didn't feel like that much bigger than a 35". That being said, I only played it for like 15 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bassandgolf Posted April 4, 2012 Members Share Posted April 4, 2012 My Sukop's are all 35's - love the B! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Avalanchemaster Posted April 4, 2012 Author Members Share Posted April 4, 2012 My Sukop's are all 35's - love the B! They appear amazing... but how is the sound and most importantly....PRICE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RSBro Posted April 5, 2012 Members Share Posted April 5, 2012 Bast:Dingwall ABII-5 (or any non-import model)Modulus Quantum 5MTD 535 My Spector NS-5 is 34" and while great, still is just an A- compared to those 3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Avalanchemaster Posted April 5, 2012 Author Members Share Posted April 5, 2012 So it looks like the 3k price range grants me this simple request???The Dingwall basses are intoxicating!! Why don't more manufacturers do the individual saddles? I know Ibanez does on the BTBs, but they aren't active basses... and they aren't adjusted for extra length like the Dingwalls are.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lz4005 Posted April 5, 2012 Members Share Posted April 5, 2012 So it looks like the 3k price range grants me this simple request??? You did say 'least floppy'. You can get 'a little floppy but still sounds good' for much less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bassred Posted April 6, 2012 Members Share Posted April 6, 2012 So it looks like the 3k price range grants me this simple request???The Dingwall basses are intoxicating!! Why don't more manufacturers do the individual saddles? I know Ibanez does on the BTBs, but they aren't active basses... and they aren't adjusted for extra length like the Dingwalls are.... The stiletto Studio is $750 new, I got mine as a factory second due to a tiny finish flaw on the bottom (by the strap-button) for like $490. there are some good options out there that fit the criteria of a tight B and a reasonable price I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rpsands Posted April 6, 2012 Members Share Posted April 6, 2012 Nothing compares to a Dingwall except a Knuckle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.