G & L B string vs Stingray ?

[nofrets5]

Wondering how you all feel they compare, etc, as I know it's not always easy to get a great B on a 34" neck, but that Music Man is known for their B's at that scale.

Thanks and Happy Holidays !

[quickervicar]

Strings chosen have a lot to do with tension on a 34" scale

[sandmangeck]

WHAT? I CAN'T THINK FROM ALL THE SHOUTING AND I NEED MY GLASSES TO READ< THE PRINT IS TOO SMALL!!!

[unclejane]

Originally Posted by nofrets5

Wondering how you all feel they compare, etc, as I know it's not always easy to get a great B on a 34" neck, but that Music Man is known for their B's at that scale.

Thanks and Happy Holidays

Havn't tried it on the music man, but on my L2500 I get a very good B with EXL Chrome flats (the medium light guage). I was running EXL rounds but the B was like a thermonuclear weapon compared to all the other strings. The flats have really evened it out and it even sounds pretty good up above the 12th fret.

So you may have to be careful what strings you use to get the sound you want....

LS

[Ken Baker]

Originally Posted by nofrets5

Wondering how you all feel they compare, etc, as I know it's not always easy to get a great B on a 34" neck, but that Music Man is known for their B's at that scale.

I own an L-2500 and a Bongo 5HHp.

In a word, the B strings are different. One is not better than the other, they are just different. Much of the difference comes from the electronics packages.

The G&L is kind of a "What you see is what you hear" sort of package. It starts with very powerful and midrange strong MFD pickups...... and that's pretty much it. The preamp adds very little in the way of built-in tone shaping other than a switchable treble boost. This renders a B string with not only a very solid and strong fundamental, but one that is also rich in harmonics. Passive mode is an option on the G&L L series basses, and that's where a lot of people keep 'em.

The EBMM MusicMan is a very controlled instrument. The electronics package, from the pickups to the preamp, are voiced by the designers and Sterling Ball to their vision of what a bass should sound like. The B string here also has a solid and strong fundamental but is, in my opinion, lacking in natural harmonics. I wouldn't call the sound sterile by a long shot, but it's a voice that seems to need a little more character. The preamp is pretty much required here.

Strings do play an important role here, as they would with most basses, but particularly so with the G&L.

A string change on the Bongo within a generic type (rounds, flats, nickel, etc.) yields a new tone, but not vastly new. More like a variation in sustain and loudness with overall tone still in the hands of the pickups and preamp voicing. I don't see much in the way of people being vocal about their string choice on EBMM basses, and a LOT of players stay with the Slinkys that the basses were designed to use.

A string change on the L-2500 takes you down a different road. The pickups are so sensitive that they reproduce all the little nuances that strings bring to the instrument. This is both a boon and a bane because it can make searching for "The String" an expensive proposition. You'll see all kinds of strings in use, from the factory D'Addarios to TIs, to God knows what. Hell, baling wire might even sound good!

In summary, just think that they're different. Compare them from an angle of what YOU want in the way of tone. Taken on their own, one is not better than the other, though the tone of one may suit you better than the other.

My fingers are hoarse...

[joyboy52]

Well Said (typed)

[nofrets5]

(smart asses -went a bit large with the font....

Ken, thanks for the reply; I should have mentioned I have an American L-2000 already, but wasn't aware I may have consider strings being so vital. Good to know I would get a good playing B string if I go down that road.

Much Thanks and Happy Holidays, to all.

[DavePlaysBass]

I just played a maple boarded / Ash Tribby L-2500 with the stock XL 130 B thru body and it was very good. It was better than I recall the B on my US rosewood / Basswood / Maple top L-2500. I came home and played by Sadowsky and thought to myself that the $600 G&L felt and played every bit as well.

If I was looking for a 34" scale 5 string, I would probably head towards a Maple Board if I wanted to get the best odds of a good B.

[nofrets5]

Really ? a maple fingerboard could make a difference in a B string ? I never would have thought...

Interesting; any one else ?

[DavePlaysBass]

Originally Posted by nofrets5

Really ? a maple fingerboard could make a difference in a B string ? I never would have thought...

Interesting; any one else ?

YMMV.

Maple has a little more bite that can be beneficial to B string focus. I have even seen Sadowsky recommend ash / maple as a good B string combination compared to alder / rosewood.

Not to say you can't have a good B with rosewood (I do on my RV5). But its all about increasing the odds.

[eastcoasteddie]

This may not be pertinent, but my American L2500 has a maple fretboard, ash body. I use Ernie Ball strings (regular slinky 5) and I couldn't be happier with the B's sound. Especially in series p/u mode, it sounds very big.

The last time I tried a Stingray 5 in a store, I was totally unimpressed with it. Considering that I have a Stingray 4 and have been GAS-ing for an SR5 for a long time, even though I've had my L2500 for about 11 years now. That last time I played the SR5 quenched my GAS.

[vates]

Can't say about SR5, but my Bongo's B sounds much better than the B of my L2500... Please note, that "better" for me means more even sounding with other strings.

...and I didn't like the idea of a fiver without 24 frets... ...and two MFDs made a very crowded spacing for right hand's fingers to me... ...that's why it had to go...

[FiveStringsNme]

my l2500 has a rosewood board and a .125 DR LoRider.. it cuts through nicely, sounds good, and I bounce between tunings anything from Standard to Open C major, so it's seen different tensions, too. I have to say that LoRiders have been great for me so far.