Tuning Preference

[Luther]

I don't have a tapping instrument yet, but hope to soon.

I just have a question or two, that I'd like some feedback on. I'm leaning towards a Megatar or a ADG for my first instrument and I'm looking for a little feedback on the tuning setup.

The fourth/fourth tuning makes the most sense to me, ecspecially since I have a very limited musical background. I'm really looking for players expierences with that tuning and the differences between the crossed/uncrossed and the mirrored vs. parrallel set ups.

I've been through the great tuning page that Daniel Schell has up, so that covered the technical side, but I'd like to know how other people feel about it.

Is it easier to move to standard bass from any of the setups? Is there a interferance when you play a crossed 4ths/4th?

I'm not looking to be a rock star, just learn something new and have a good time. ;)

[rjgoos]

Luther, the good news is...it's ALL good. Name a tuning, and we can point you to a musician who is making very good music with it. It's like going into a Baskin Robbins...39 flavors, all good.


RJ Goos


P.S. For the record, I play a Stick in a classic tuning. It is fine for playing folk melodies on the right hand, and chords with the left, which is my interest, coming to this as an old fingerpicker. I'll let the others here chime in with regards to their preferred instruments and tunings.

[rockola]

Originally posted by Luther
I'm leaning towards a Megatar or a ADG for my first instrument and I'm looking for a little feedback on the tuning setup.

The fourth/fourth tuning makes the most sense to me, ecspecially since I have a very limited musical background. I'm really looking for players expierences with that tuning and the differences between the crossed/uncrossed and the mirrored vs. parrallel set ups.

I've been through the great tuning page that Daniel Schell has up, so that covered the technical side, but I'd like to know how other people feel about it.

Is it easier to move to standard bass from any of the setups? Is there a interferance when you play a crossed 4ths/4th?

My firm opinion is that for a bass in 4ths you need 6 strings, so the ADG won't cut it. (It's a wonderful instrument with bass in 5ths - I have one.)

I think most 4ths/4ths players have gone uncrossed. I've played several 4ths/4ths instruments, both mirrored and parallel, and almost instantly felt comfortable with them (parallel is the easiest in this respect), even though I usually play crossed 4ths/5ths. However, I do have a guitar/bass background; if this is going to be practically your first instrument, you should consider each of the options separately and then decide. The 5ths bass allows you to do things (very wide and open chords, for one) you couldn't really do on the 4ths bass (and vice versa). Whether to cross or not is a question of ergonomics (but only you can decide which one feels more natural) and also playing style; some players play notes from both sides simultaneously with one hand, and in this case the tuning is of course crucial.

[Glenn Drakeley]

fourths - fourths for me, I adopted BassBottom tuning due to my stubby fingers not being to leap over a faaattt bass string in the middle of my instrument, stayed with uncrossed as i'm a creature of habit !!! Now at least lefty doesn't have to leap into the air to reach the bass strings, it's just a stretch, and the bevel on the Box JC-35 keeps lefty firmly implanted onto the rear of the fretboard !!! Oh yea, great innovation on Stuart's part, beveling the backside of his fretboards, take note all lurking instrument manufacturers !!

[Luther]

Thanks guys, I was looking for personal feedback just like that.

There are so many choices, and some really beautiful instruments out there. I probably won't end up chosing one until I actually have the money burning a hole in my pocket.

I do have a little question. How hard is it to adapt printed music into the 5ths/4ths world?

[Glenn Drakeley]

>> stayed with uncrossed

Monster typo on my part, all of my Tapstruments are crossed except my Box LM which happens to be both crossed AND uncrossed, it's standard guitar on both sides !!!

[rjgoos]

Luther wrote:

>I do have a little question. How hard is it to adapt printed music into the 5ths/4ths world?<


Two approaches have been used, to my knowledge. Greg Howard has published (available from stick.com) books with a notation system that combines both sheet music (staff) and tablature (tab).

Daniel Schell's method (described in his book My Space, available from clicmusic.be) employs the use of "C-dots", placed beneath each C note on the instrument. I personally use the C-dots on the melody side of the Stick, and on the Stratocaster that I tap.

As far as I know, there are very few 4ths/5ths players in the world who can plop a piece of sheet music in front of them, and just start sight reading. A 4ths/4ths tuning would be far easier on the brain, if sight reading was a high priority. To me, from a folk music background, melodies on the right hand and chord accompanyment with the left hand works really well with 4ths/5ths, but I don't try to sight read with my left hand.

Both books are excellent, by the way.


R Jay Goos

[traktor]

I once learned to play sheet music, using inverted fifths bass and standard melody in fourths. It was kind of difficult.

I think bass in fourths and melody in fourths is easier to play, and assuming you're using a tuning such as what we call BassBottom, it means that your left hand hand taps out the same shape as your right hand would do when you want to play the notes G - B - D - F.

By simplifying and making identical what your hands do, you both accellerate your learning time (for you can train hands simultaneously), but you greatly simplify the learning (and internal re-wiring) required for learning to read.

Now, if only the Treble and Bass clefs had the damn notes on the same lines and spaces! Oh, well, guess we can't have everything.



PS: In the Easy Touch-Style Bassics method book (works for both these tunings), you'll find my TrakBats method of notation. These simple geometric symbols work on chord charts, and you can insert them into the "lyrics" line on either standard notation or tablature to clarify fingering.

The TrakBats font, along with the Word document of instructions, are free for your use. Download them from http://megatar.com/trakbats/ (Use the instructions in the Word document to install the font on your machine, and then the illustrations within the Word document become visible.)

[rjgoos]

My apologies, Traktor, I didn't mention your book because I thought the question was about reading music.

Traktor's book is applicable to both 4ths/4ths and 4ths/5ths for playing bass lines, etc. It isn't a sight reading-related book, though.

As for me, I think I lost too many brain cells during the Nixon Administration to be able to sight read 4ths and 5ths at the same time...


Jay

[lemur821]

Now, if only the Treble and Bass clefs had the damn notes on the same lines and spaces! Oh, well, guess we can't have everything.

I guess you'd have to transpose the bass clef to contrabass clef, so they were the same. Or maybe treble could be changed to french violin clef.