Re: 10-String-Stick Straight-4ths Tuning
greg wrote:
On a 36 or 34" scale instrument, you can't go higher than Eb without having breakage, going down by nin 4ths from that would put you at the F# Below piano's low A, which would mean a very thick, string that no amplifier could reproduce (23.12 Hz fundamental).
So it technically could be done, but it wouldn't gain you anything useful...
Hi greg. A F#0 string a fourth below a 5 string bass B is fully functional and audible. 10 strings in fourths is practical on a 34" scale.
The first 9 string bass was made in 1995 by Conklin Guitars for Bill "Buddha" Dickens and was the first use of a low F#0 string i know of.
From around 2004 and for many years i was very interested in extended range basses and discussed these a lot on the ERB forums with owners of basses with up to 12 strings tuned in fourths.
I have experimented with a gauge .165 string tuned to roughly F#0.
Many of the largest string companies now sell F#0 strings. Warwick sell a mass produced bass set up in F#BEA. F#0 is borderline mainstream now.
There is still a huge amount of common misconceptions about sub-B strings. A lot of these arise from focussing on the fundamental frequency and noticing it is close to the lower limit of human hearing or below the reproduction range of amplification.
However, the low frequency of the fundamental is not a problem.
The higher harmonics are still audible, the lower you tune, increasingly they take over the job of carrying the tone and the fundamental becomes increasingly useless and unnecessary.
If you do a direct-input (no amplifier) frequency analysis of a typical low bass note like B0 or E1 you discover that the fundamental has a lower, often much lower, amplitude than the 2nd, 3rd, 4th (and maybe more) harmonics. The 2nd harmonic and up do the large majority of the work of carrying the tone.
For example, consider the open note of a bass low B string, which is fully functional, audible and sounds good.
The fundamental frequency is 31Hz, which is below the ability to reproduce for most amplification. All the tone is carried by the 2nd harmonic at 62Hz and higher harmonics.
A F#0 string is the same, the fundamental frequency at 23Hz is not reproduced by most amplification, but the 2nd harmonic at 46Hz is.
Here's a video (not by me) demonstrating a cheap 34" scale bass with F#0 and C#0 (17Hz, another fourth lower) strings.
At 2:21 is a direct recording (no amplification) that plays down to F#0, you will need a good sound system, preferably good headphones.
The F#0 note is stable, audible and a recognisable note. Obviously, the necessary gauge of .165+ creates a stiffness that results in quite a 'dark' tone.
The C#0 string is quite extreme, although it is also fully functional and audible, however the lowest notes start to become difficult to discern.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SP--q-Qv-c&feature=youtu.be&t=141Here's another video with F#0 and C#0 strings amplified, for a much better tone. Watch from 1:11.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgnYzWY0rEY&feature=youtu.be&t=71This post is also a reply to this thread
http://www.stickist.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=9427 where Emmett is quoted:
"Your graphite Grand Stick could be converted into a "Ten-String
Grand" by replacing the bridge and nut with hardware that I already
have, and two of the headstock holes for 6th and 12th tuners could be
filled with black epoxy.
I'll call it the "SB10": The limits of 4ths across the board (in a
single sequence) allow only nine strings before you run out of
tension at the high end and hearing range at the low end."
I can understand Emmett not being impressed by or interested in pitches much below Bb, many people are not, but it is not a case of hearing range.
I understand that the largest string SE make is a .128 for Bb? I can also understand SE not thinking a larger gauge is justified to produce, but i would like to see larger gauges available, maybe as custom made strings.
The advantage a tap guitar has is that it does not require as much tension as a bass guitar, so the string can be lower gauge, more flexible and therefore have better tone,
Tapped notes are tone-rich which will also help with very low notes.