Short-scale tuning question

skullfunkerry

Guitar is my main instrument but I picked up a short-scale bass recently from a friend: decided it would be better to have proper bass on my recordings, rather than pitch-shifting my guitar.

Some of the stuff I do is in lower tunings, usually drop C. Rather than tuning the bass down I was thinking about getting a five string... but then I thought 'why not just tune the short-scale like the bottom four strings of a five?'

So two questions really: has anyone got any experience of tuning a short-scale to BEAD? And if so, what string gauge would you recommend? Due to the lower string tension I'm guessing fairly heavy...

My recordings are far from hi-fi btw, so I'm not looking for full-size bass recommendations or reasons why I'm the worst kind of person  

octatonic

When I do BEAD with regular scale I use 65/85/105/125.
Maybe go a gauge up from there.

FatPete

Can you even get short scale strings that heavy?

Funkfingers

http://www.shortscalebass.co.uk/short-scale-string-choice/

https://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/strings-c1/sets-c865/bass-guitar-c34/medium-scale-t951

MattBanshee

A short-scale bass tuned down is going to be floppier than an overcooked runner bean. 

Funkfingers

MattBanshee said:

A short-scale bass tuned down is going to be floppier than an overcooked runner bean. 

In theory, if large enough string gauges are available, the tension could be balanced.

That still leaves the business of widening the nut slots, adjusting the intonation (assuming that the bridge saddles have sufficient travel away from the nut) and hoping that the neck wood and truss rod can take the strain. 

My experience of five and six string bass guitars is that even the regular 34" scale length tends to result in insufficient tension on the lowest string. 

On a short scale instrument, even with huge strings, my chief concern would be the accuracy of the intonation up and down the fret positions.

skullfunkerry said:

I'm not looking for full-size bass recommendations

I know. That is why this post ends here.

Bridgehouse

skullfunkerry said:
so I'm not looking for full-size bass recommendations or reasons why I'm the worst kind of person  

I think this is possibly why the conversation is going to be limited. Practically speaking even the thickest gauge of short scale strings is gonna give too much flub tuned down to B. 

skullfunkerry

From a quick search online, it looks like I won't find heavy enough strings... maybe I do need full-size bass recommendations!

Funkfingers

skullfunkerry said:

Guitar is my main instrument ... Some of the stuff I do is in lower tunings, usually drop C. Rather than tuning the bass down I was thinking about getting a five string.

Much depends on whether you play by pitch or by position. Guitar riffs learned in Drop C would need to be played one fret higher on a five string bass guitar tuned BEADG. Pull-offs and hammer-ons involving open strings might not work.

If you are recording a song demo, laying down both guitar and bass parts, it will be usually be quicker and easier to do this with a four string bass guitar in the same tuning as the guitar.

One compromise that might work for you is a four string bass, tuned DGCF and with a Hipshot D-Tuner device on the low string.