19mm string spacing for playing chords

[Barukh Immanuel]

I play a lot plucking 3 note chords on a 6 string bass with 17mm string spacing and am considering a new 6 string, which has 19mm spacing. Will that be too much? Will I feel the difference? How will it change the technique I need? Thank - first post on Talkbass!

 

[Dr. Cheese]

I play a lot plucking 3 note chords on a 6 string bass with 17mm string spacing and am considering a new 6 string, which has 19mm spacing. Will that be too much? Will I feel the difference? How will it change the technique I need? Thank - first post on Talkbass!

Are you comfortable on 17mm? Why change if that is the case?

 

[Barukh Immanuel]

Are you comfortable on 17mm? Why change if that is the case?

 

[Barukh Immanuel]

I'm looking to upgrade from an Ibanez brb and I want a passive pickup option. Thinking of a DMark Omega 6. Any recommendations? Kiesel seems narrow, and custom orders are probably too complicated to ship...

 

[Bryan R. Tyler]

That all depends on your personal comfort. I have average-sized hands and I definitely prefer tighter spacing on a 6, particularly when the chords stretch over four strings. I also prefer a shorter scale though for the same reason but with my left hand. You might not notice a difference at all.

I’m pretty sure all Ibanez BTBs come with passive pickups, so you probably mean a passive bass or an active/passive electronics option.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

I'm looking to upgrade from an Ibanez brb and I want a passive pickup option. Thinking of a DMark Omega 6. Any recommendations? Kiesel seems narrow, and custom orders are probably too complicated to ship...

Anything you buy from Keisel will be shipped unless you live in San Diego (Escondido.)

 

[Barukh Immanuel]

That all depends on your personal comfort. I have average-sized hands and I definitely prefer tighter spacing on a 6, particularly when the chords stretch over four strings. I also prefer a shorter scale though for the same reason but with my left hand. You might not notice a difference at all.

I’m pretty sure all Ibanez BTBs come with passive pickups, so you probably mean a passive bass or an active/passive electronics option.

What do you use/recommend? I've been very comfortable with 17mm spacing, but that's all I know. Tried a 16 and I felt cramped.... And, yes, I play chords over 4 strings too.

 

[Wasnex]

My #1 since about 1995 has been a Yamaha TRB6P with 19mm spacing. I do remember that when I first started playing the TRB6P, that 19MM seemed like a lot of distance to cover when I had to make quick jumps back and fourth across non-adjacent strings.

I do mess around with chords a little, but I would not say it's something that I consider a feature of my playing. I play jazz standards out of the Real Book and sometimes just mess around comping the changes. I don't have any feeling that the extra spacing limits what I do with my plucking hand. In fact I think it actually helps because there is more room to get your fingers between the strings for plucking.

Now if you are concerned with making chord shapes high on the neck, I can't really help you on that. I don't generally play much above about the 15th fret. Even by that range my thumb is coming under and then over the fingerboard, and I have to modify my technique sort of like thumb position on upright bass. The reason is the fourth finger becomes increasingly useless for reaching down across the lower strings because of the angles, position of the hand, and width of the finger board.

I would say access to the D, A, and C string is pretty good but the higher you go the more difficult it gets to access the E, and especially the B string. But I hate the tone of my B string above about the 5th fret due to inharmonicity, and the the E string develops the same problem somewhere above about the 12th fret. So access is not really that critical in my opinion. The point is since the notes sound awful up that high on the neck, I would choose to play them lower anyway.

 

[Barukh Immanuel]

Very helpful. Thanks. I was considering the trb, but its about as heavy as my btb, and I'm looking to reduce back stress....

 

[Wasnex]

Very helpful. Thanks. I was considering the trb, but its about as heavy as my btb, and I'm looking to reduce back stress....

I have played two TRB6Ps and they were both heavy, but well balanced. In my experience the way the bass balances is way more important than weight, but YMMV.

 

[el murdoque]

On a 4 or 5, I enjoy a wide string spacing, 19 or 20mm.
For a long time I thought that this is my preference on a 6, too. My current 6 has 18mm and is the most comfortable I've ever played. My right hand felt at home straight from the first moment. I can easily play chords further up the neck and have no issues whatsoever.

 

[Wasnex]

Here's an image that gives an example for how technique changes as I play up in higher positions. This is not me, but my technique looks very similar. I don't think this issue has anything to do with string spacing,

The image is from this post: Left hand position

 

[Watchootognbout]

The image above is Me and my BTB with 17mm spacing.
I also have two Tune TWB's with 19mm spacing.

I prefer 19mm.
Easier to slap.
But adjusting to the difference between the two is no problem.

 

[BassFalcon]

The only real answer any of us can give you is “maybe?” John Patitucci has 19 or 20mm spacing on his signature Yamahas. Works out pretty good for him. I’ve had an ibanez sound gear 6er since the mid 90’s I’ve chorded all over, it has 16.5mm spacing. Works pretty good for me. Honestly I think I’d like to have a little more space these days but I don’t want to get a new bass, nor do I feel strongly enough about it to get something like a hipshot bridge mounted to have adjustable spacing. Which I suppose would be an option for you, it would be cheaper than a whole new bass and allow you to experiment with all sorts of spacings.

 

[Nephilymbass]

I play a lot plucking 3 note chords on a 6 string bass with 17mm string spacing and am considering a new 6 string, which has 19mm spacing. Will that be too much? Will I feel the difference? How will it change the technique I need? Thank - first post on Talkbass!

If you have average sized hands I don’t think it’ll be any issue. If you first get the bass and it feels like the neck is really wide try wearing the bass a little higher. A lot of the complaints I see from people who complain about 5 or 6 string necks being too wide are people who wear their bass low and have their palm on the back of the neck. Often times if you just wear the bass higher you’d suprised how much reach you actually do have. I ve owned a 7 string for example and feel like I could reasonably play a 9 string and I don’t have unusually large hands or anything.

 

[Bassaga]

I play a fair amount of chords on my 5-string with 16.5mm spacing, and have trouble playing the same things on my 4-string at 19mm.

You said 16 feels too narrow for you (while I often wish I could find something even narrower) plus it's very likely you're a better bassist than I am, so you may end up very happy with wider spacing. In any case, to me, going up a few millimeters is definitely noticeable and requires adjustment.

 

[Jefenator]

I used to think my Dingwall was sub-optimal for chording, with 18mm spacing (which feels more like 19mm or 20mm at an angle) and that crazy tilt in the higher register.
But after logging more practice hours recently, I think it'll do.
Practice time seems to be clearly the greater factor.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

I play a lot plucking 3 note chords on a 6 string bass with 17mm string spacing and am considering a new 6 string, which has 19mm spacing. Will that be too much? Will I feel the difference? How will it change the technique I need? Thank - first post on Talkbass!

1 mm either way feels a world different. Heck, just the smaller nut width feels a world different. But, my basses all have 19mm spacing, and I play chords all the time.

 

[Manticore]

Here's an image that gives an example for how technique changes as I play up in higher positions. This is not me, but my technique looks very similar. I don't think this issue has anything to do with string spacing,
View attachment 4215217

The image is from this post: Left hand position

This is close to how I finger chords on a 19mm 6 string as well. I don't have particularly large or small hands. Bringing the thumb closer to the bottom edge of the fingerboard is the key. I prefer wider spacing, including at the nut.

 

[Bryan R. Tyler]

What do you use/recommend? I've been very comfortable with 17mm spacing, but that's all I know. Tried a 16 and I felt cramped.... And, yes, I play chords over 4 strings too.

17mm, although I’m fine with 16.5 as well. I use a freestroke technique to pluck with rather than the standard rest strokes though, so tight spacing is also helpful in that regard and doesn’t feel cramped.