The bass's common range on the staff extends from the lowest note, open E, which is one line below the five-line bass staff (lines written above or below the staff are called ledger lines), all the way to D-sharp (on the twentieth fret of the bass), which is so high that it needs octave signs (8va) to designate it. Most written bass music is either on the staff or slightly above or below it. In some cases, it is extended through the use of ledger lines or octave signs to achieve pitches in the higher range of the instrument.

Adding strings to the electric bass increases its range. It is most common to add an additional lower string that extends the low end of the bass all the way to B. This would necessitate the addition of one ledger line with the low B on the space below that ledger line. If a high string is added, it is usually a C. This extends the bass so high that bass clef notation becomes almost silly at the higher extremities.

When it comes to notation, one issue that plagues all multiple-string instruments is their extended range. Further complicating the matter is that each string's range overlaps the other's to one extent or another. This means that a single note may be achieved by playing it on any number of strings. For example, a G written on the fourth space of the bass staff may be played either on the open G string, the fifth fret of the D string, the tenth fret of the A string, or the fifteenth fret of the E string. Although regular notation is best at describing pitch and rhythm, it has no means of indicating the best or proper position on the neck to play a given passage of music, hence the use of tablature.