As a matter of course, if one were to down-tune a bass, one would use heavier gauged strings, and a longer scale instrument. Adversely, if one were tuning up, you would probably use lighter gauged strings and a shorter scale instrument. Now that i got that out of the way, on to the real question:
I want to up-tune a 5 string fretless bass, but I noticed there's little to no variation on string gauge and length for flatwound strings, whereas with roundwound strings you can easily get anything you need. The actual tuning I have in mind is supposed to match a guitarist's drop C tuning, only I match what the guitar does from their low E on, on my low B on, so:
G up to Bflat
D up to F
A up to C
E up to G
B up to C
The purpose of this tuning is to keep my tension as tight as possible, as down tuning often makes the strings more wobbly, noisy, and difficult to play. I've pulled this tuning off just fine on a fretted bass using adequate strings, however the string selection for fretless basses is extremely low. Any tips?
I want to up-tune a 5 string fretless bass, but I noticed there's little to no variation on string gauge and length for flatwound strings, whereas with roundwound strings you can easily get anything you need. The actual tuning I have in mind is supposed to match a guitarist's drop C tuning, only I match what the guitar does from their low E on, on my low B on, so:
G up to Bflat
D up to F
A up to C
E up to G
B up to C
The purpose of this tuning is to keep my tension as tight as possible, as down tuning often makes the strings more wobbly, noisy, and difficult to play. I've pulled this tuning off just fine on a fretted bass using adequate strings, however the string selection for fretless basses is extremely low. Any tips?
