I've only been playing the NS/Stick for six months and so it may be premature to experiment with different tunings but I have been playing bass for over 20 years and I think that qualifies me to be experimental even though I'm a newbie to the instrument...

I am really getting into the NS/Stick and playing it like two instruments. I play (trying at least) the bass lines on the bass side and the chords/hooks/solo on the melody side. When I play some runs on the bass I really miss having the G string because it's on the melody side... so I got the idea to move the top strings up one position (losing the B sting and have two G strings). I realized that I really don't play much on the B string anyway so it won't be an issue but now I don't have a low E so I tuned down a 1/2 step.
My current tuning (From Top/Low string) is Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, Gb, B, E, A

I have come across some instances where having another higher string would be cool for some solos and I sometimes miss the low B string so it got me thinking... What about a 10string NS/Stick!?
What do you think?
Have a full bass guitar on the bass side and a wider range on the melody side too.

I thought that maybe I can use a 10 string stick and string it the way I want. But will the tone be the same? The NS/Stick bass tone is great! Can I get this great bass tone from a 10 sting stick or Railboard?

I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on the concept of a 10 string NS/Stick.

Thanks for reading...

You definitely can get a great bass tone from a non-NS stick, though it will sound different from what you can get from NS.

I played NS once and I really loved its tone and versatility, but I also find 8 strings not quite enough. I'm still hesitating about getting an NS, but I would order one immediately if offered with 10 strings.

I remember when I first started playing bass and 5 strings was crazy. Now here I am discussing 10 strings!

I think that you have hit upon a quality of the Chapman Stick that is part of what makes it so
amazing and that is versatility....

My first Stick in 2001 was set up pretty standard; 10 string Classic tuning, but it was so odd
to me that i changed the set up to a 10 string bass all in fourths. Essentially what you are proposing for the NS . I thought it was really cool and that I was instantly a better player,
I thought . But all I had really done was acquiesce to my comfort zone (I am really good at that .

After a few months and also after watching some of Greg Howard's videos
I realized or I intuitively understood why the Bass string is inverted or in the middle of the instrument and also why having the bass tuned in fifths opens up so many possibilities.

So I changed it back , no regrets...

"What 'I' think about it" is that it probably wont happen on the NS because the setup can so easily be achieved on a Stick I mean . And part of what makes the NS so cool and 'guitar' like is the tapered neck. Two more strings would make the neck at the bottom very wide. Not impossible but: http://www.flickr.com/photos/warrguitars/2086296187/
It can approach the ridiculous 'IMHO'.

The Irony is that I have been playing NS for a few years now and recently I changed setups so that my bass string is in inverted or "Interior Matched Reciprocal" :
http://www.stick.com/instruments/tuning ... terior_mr/

That experiment is going very well and I doubt there will be any turning back on that one .
Please by all means keep the ideas rolling in...

*j*
.~

Oh yes... that comfort zone...
It's so... comfortable...

For now I will continue to play in the traditional bass/guitar tuning since I want to play it like a regular bass with plucking, slapping and popping. The NS/Stick lets me do that with the wider spacing on the bass side.

I will eventually explore the inverted tunings. I will be at the Free Hands Academy sessions in August and I'm hoping someone will let me play their stick and let me explore the way it works. I will also be listening to the bass tones people are getting and see if I like it since that is what is most important to me...



I do wonder how wide and playable it will be with 10 strings. Maybe with something as thin as the Railboard neck will make it playable. There would be no problem just adding another sting on top (low B string) but another one on the bottom is hard to imagine/know until it's done...



I agree. This is the most versatile instrument I have ever played and I am loving every bit of it!
It has expanded my musical voice exponentially. Can't wait until August to sit with the masters and take it to the next step.

99.99% for sure that I am going to that too, in fact would not miss it. Don Schiff is the man you will want to connect with for a private lesson. Should be a very interesting weekend...

The question on the ten string NS would also be the required widening of the neck at the top. Perhaps when Emmett was experimenting (pre Stick) he realized or 'thought it good'
that, (said in a deep voice of god voice) "the neck should be equal at both the top and bottom" . .

I have noticed that playing the NS I stay
more in a sweet spot zone. Where as on the Stick there are more places to hang out
and explore. It is actually what I like about the NS compared to the Stick, that there is a
limitation of how many strings you have and the tapered neck also poses these strange ergonomic limitations.

But the whole idea is that, in a new limited context (compared to a ten or a twelve string)
and yet similar with the 'Interior Matched Reciprocal' tuning, the constraint squeezes you (or me) creatively. It seems to be working

Looking forward to August...

`j`
.`

I do like the constraints too as it forces me to find alternatives and give a unique voice. I saw something on TV about the White Stripes that they limited themselves to using only a four track when recording the album which contributes to their sound. (I'm not a White Stripes fan but I like listening to artists talk about their process)
I hope to get some Stick time at the FHA weekend in August and explore the wide range of voices. Maybe I will see if there are any stick players close to me in the SF Bay Area to see if they want to meet up.


I took a lesson from Don Schiff when I first got my NS and he got me on track to start playing. I travel to his area quite often for work and I try to meet up with him but it hasn't worked out since. I email him when I have a question or idea and he has been great. I have a feeling there aren't as many NS players as there are stick players so I hope to get a lot of 1-on-1 time at the FHA weekend and get me going to the next level!

Comfort-Zone.
What a great expression...

So I did the new string set up and 1/2 step drop tuning for about a week and found that there were some benefits but I found the tone suffered.

With the 1/2 step drop tune I was playing more in the 1st and 2nd fret and on the next string which gave a weaker tone and lost some of it's bite.

I found that on the NS/Stick the sweet spot on the bass strings is from 3rd fret to 7th fret for that great "bass guitar" tone. (at least that is what I think...)

I did enjoy getting up to some of those higher notes but the gauge of the G string might be too thin and wasn't giving the same beefy tone the other bass strings were giving. Maybe the pickups needed to be adjusted but I don't think that would have made as much difference in the tone.

I have put the low B back on took out the extra G string. But I am keeping the 1/2 step drop tune so that it's like having the "X" fret and I can play the open string note if I want to.

I'm still thinking a 10-string NS/Stick is a great idea. I'm still wondering if I would want a lower or higher string on the melody side...