why doesn't Ernie Ball do signature basses

[bostonasphalt2]

Originally Posted by king_biscuit

Lol, good point. Actually the egomaniac that owns the company today has the only signature bass -- the Sterling model.

Egomaniac doesn't even begin to describe him

[two fingers]

Originally Posted by sevdog

The John East preamp is out there and is becoming less surprising to see.

Also Ive seen single coil switches on Stingrays more than twice.

But I think you don't see Music Man basses modded as much as Fenders because they don't NEED mods. They're in another generation and already have high-mass bridges, high quality pickups, good tuners, and a good preamp. If you remove those potential mods from the equation in Fender mods then seeing a modded Fender would be rare too.

Another great point. You would pretty much have to mod an SR in the direction of a Fender to be anything other than what it is.

[svtb15]

I just wish that EB would make lighter weight SR5 basses... Lightweight would be something under 9.5 pounds... Every bass i pickup in a store is like an anchor.. I would buy one if i could just find one that is light in weight....
I missed a deal on a 1989 that was pretty light.. PLEASE EB, use some lighter woods!

[sevdog]

Originally Posted by svtb15

I just wish that EB would make lighter weight SR5 basses... Lightweight would be something under 9.5 pounds... Every bass i pickup in a store is like an anchor.. I would buy one if i could just find one that is light in weight....
I missed a deal on a 1989 that was pretty light.. PLEASE EB, use some lighter woods!

There's a mod that would be popular....ship us your bass and we'll put it back together with nicely painted/stained body made of super lightweight ash.

[j.kernodle]

I could do one right now.

Sterling body shape with body contours. gloss finish mahogany body with a Birdseye top, two humbuckers, coil split switches, volume, BLEND, and 2 band EQ. gloss finish Birdseye neck, and ebony board. black hardware. I don't think that would piss off musicman fans.

[king_biscuit]

Originally Posted by two fingers

Sorry. I don't know and don't care. I was just observing that the guy who brought it up had made a great point. Have you ever seen a modded SR bass? I'm sure you could Google one up real quick. But I have never seen anyone mod a SR in particular. And his point was that Fenders get modded all the time. And that, in fact, most signature model Fender basses and guitars are based off of Fender guitars and basses that famous people already owned......... and had modded.

I get it, but the EBMM signatures don't follow that protocol. Btw, that him you keep referring to is actually a her

[Epitaph04]

I think Sterling Ball also believes that the consumer has enough options to choose from when ordering a bass guitar from them. I remember watching a factory tour on youtube and while showcasing the different colors that were on different guitar/bass bodies he says something like "..and people STILL want a custom shop" or something like that.

[dedpool1052]

Originally Posted by Epitaph04

I remember watching a factory tour on youtube and while showcasing the different colors that were on different guitar/bass bodies he says something like "..and people STILL want a custom shop" or something like that.

i've seen that video as well. iirc, the interviewer commented on people wanting a custom shop and Sterling said (not word for word, but pretty much) "we have such and such number of options so there's really no need for a custom shop."

[Tele295]

I'd go for a Pino signature fretless SR

[Caca de Kick]

I'm glad they don't...I don't buy signature models.
But I also remember back in the day even as I grew up and lived near the factory, their guitars never did take off then, you just about never saw them anywhere in central or so-cal. I remember in the early 90's you had Steve Morse and Eddie Van Halen, but still obscure. So they always had to have name players to develop models for.
The preEB guitars were hiddeous looking!
Their basses sold like crazy since day one, and have been for decades.

[Im_telling_tim]

Probably because they know that everyone that starts playing one will just switch to a p bass

[ShoeManiac]

It definitely seems that if Ernie Ball / Musicman wanted to, they could tweak the Stingray sufficiently so that they could offer signature models based on individual specs. And there are plenty of options for customizing a Stingray: the bridge, preamps, fingerboards, number of strings, pickup configurations, etc.

As for the players who would merit a signature model? Pino, Tony Levin and Flea all come to mind.

[aasti3000]

Originally Posted by king_biscuit

He ought to get a warm reception with that question over there

LOL! I know where you're getting at with that statement.

[aasti3000]

Originally Posted by Tele295

I'd go for a Pino signature fretless SR

+1

[Mr_Music90]

Originally Posted by Epitaph04

I think Sterling Ball also believes that the consumer has enough options to choose from when ordering a bass guitar from them. I remember watching a factory tour on youtube and while showcasing the different colors that were on different guitar/bass bodies he says something like "..and people STILL want a custom shop" or something like that.

That might be for the colours, yes, but when it comes to different woods, they don't have that much..

[jim777]

Originally Posted by jeffbonny

What bassist who uses MM's has modded one that it would warrant being a different model from a stock one?

John Myung's Bongo 6 has a 5 string neck, because he likes the thinner neck and closer spacing. So, while there are a lot of Bongo 6's out there, Myung's is definitely not a model you can currently buy. The pre is also recessed into the body, but is on and set flat with the pickup balance to the center detent.

[Fuzzbass]

Originally Posted by two fingers

You would pretty much have to mod an SR in the direction of a Fender to be anything other than what it is.

MM basses have a distinctive, highly colored sound. Nothing wrong with that at all, it's a wonderful sound (I love both MM and Fender, btw). But most folks get Music Man basses for that specific sound. I once hot rodded a Music Man with a Bartolini pickup and various other preamps. I got some cool tones, and the Bartolini pickup and preamp combo was the most neutral of all -- but with the electronics mods, the signature MM tone was lost.

I also replaced stock Music Man bridges with Ken Smith bridges, because I wanted the quick string release feature. There was no change in tone, the only downside was exposed sockets for those big bolts that secure the MM bridge, but I expected that and didn't care.

[two fingers]

Originally Posted by Fuzzbass

MM basses have a distinctive, highly colored sound. Nothing wrong with that at all, it's a wonderful sound (I love both MM and Fender, btw). But most folks get Music Man basses for that specific sound. I once hot rodded a Music Man with a Bartolini pickup and various other preamps. I got some cool tones, and the Bartolini pickup and preamp combo was the most neutral of all -- but with the electronics mods, the signature MM tone was lost.

I may not have stated it very well but that was my point exactly as well. Fans of EBMM basses are fans because of what THEY ARE, not because of their being a platform and what they COULD be. Why buy a Corvette and try to turn it into an SUV? Just go buy an SUV. A Corvette does what it does.

[5StringThunder]

They do, just very rarely and none of them are production models. John Myung (Dream Theatre) has a custom that's a 6 string with a 5 string neck on it and his EQ on it is hard wired instead of on pots. Johnny Christ (Avenged Sevenfold) had a custom sterling, it was a stock model just with a custom finish/paint job, then he switched to Schecter.

[Smart guy]

Although all the players mentioned played stock stingrays, their sounds and tone are unique. EB could easily make signature models that replicate these sounds. Tweak the pups find pres and woods that will reproduce these sounds effortlessly. A Pino fret less with that mid rangey weeping sound. A Louis Johnson sig with like he said in his now famous instructional video, a special pick up made for him by Leo Fender that has very strong magnets, that can replicate his sound without having to bang away too hard. Same for Bernard Edwards who in order to get his sound played the bass with an invisible pick. Imagine a stingray that can nail his sound without having to shred your fingers, I would buy one. (Not to mention making them period correct).