Buyer Beware: Sterling Ray 35 and Music Man and the importance of play testing.

My vote(2nd/jazz bass?) was based on what i felt sat in the mix best + has a sexy growl. The 3rd was good too. I felt the last one sounded kinda thin... Not punchy or bassy. One thing to note is not all basses sound good eqed flat and only show character after some knob turning.

 

Of them all, I preferred the sound of the EBMM the best. The Ray35 was missing something. Had no high end. Allegedly they are supposed to have the same preamps and pickups but now I'm not so sure.

 

Wait, you mean a cheaper bass isn't as good as the more expensive one? That violates all TB logic. You must have mixed up the recordings

 

I have yet to play any bass that resembles a MM that actually sounds like its namesake. If there was a cheaper alternative out there that did, I'd be all over it. The Ray's capture the "vibe", but little else...at least the examples I've played. It stinks because they are some beautifully made basses for the price.

 

2 & 3 for me sounded the best. The last one had no fullness to it, like so one cut out the bottom. The MM actually sounded really good recorded. Maybe I should have kept my MM Sterling 5 a bit longer.

 

I liked the first 2 the best.

So what is the exact order? The link for the clip says "Test 2 Yamaha trbx, Ernie MM, Sterling 35, Fender Jazz" That can't possibly be the actual order.

 

I'd bet money on the Sterling By MM being wired Series. Going between the Real EBMM and the Sterling, It sounds just like switching from series to parallel on my EBMM Sterling.

 

The SBMM instruments have no parts that are US made. They have nothing to do with EBMM beyond being licensed by them. They are set up in the USA but not by Music Man. They are a licensed product and that is it. I have always felt that they are a bit deceitful with the marketing. They basically omit key information in an effort to let people believe something that's not true and then hide behind the "we never said that" thing. The electronics are supposed to be built to the US specs but it's almost presented in a way that maybe they are suggesting it IS the US electronics. They say "set up in CA" without ever letting anyone know where or who is setting it up which can lead people to believe it's the EBMM factory that is doing the setups when it's not.

 

It never fails that you do indeed get what you pay for.

 

A "Bit deceitful" is an understatement. I do not know what Mr. Ball is thinking by allowing this stunt to erode a fine name in the industry... but let's be honest - EBMMs of today aren't *quite* as nice as they were 10 years ago. The wood they use isn't as choice, that's for sure (yes, I have had multiple EBMMs. I know of what I speak).

 

There's a $700+ price difference between those two bass guitars. It is not surprising that you find the more expensive version to be of better quality......

 

My Ray 35 sound like the Bee's Knees.. I usually just run it flat, and with the selector pushed all the way back (Series?). I may just have an especially good one, maybe made by the guy that got promoted the next week.... who knows.... It does however sound awful through a VTBass, so it may just be the setup/preamp/nut behind the bass combo....

 

I believe his point was that he was under the impression that the electronics were the same in both the US and Sterling line and was shocked to find that is not the case and that in fact that are not very similar.

 

Hmm, I'd like to know just how many people experience this difference. Seems like the general consensus on here and other forums, from people that own both, is that the Ray34-35 are pretty accurate representations of their older EBMM siblings...

 

I agree with all of this Harry. The best EBMMs were from the late 80s to the early mid-90s. They started going down a bit, IMO, when EB stopped putting real finishes on the necks -- no doubt a cost cutting measure.

 

Just to be clear (and pardon me if this is obvious)... are all of these being played on the same "Freshness" of string and brand? I mean I completely agree there is massive tonal difference, but string freshness is probably the single biggest factor is how any bass sounds... followed by electronics/PU and then setup...

But me personally, I've never bought the idea that an "Asian Import" version of ANYTHING is going to be as good... I simply haven't seen it in my years of play comparisons nor do I believe that there is any way to skirt one of the laws of economics which states "you get what you pay for" since you cannot sell something at a price that exceeds it's value for very long... (you can fool some of the people some of the time, but not all of the people all of the time)..

there's a reason besides OSHA and higher wages that one costs $799 retail and the other $1699...

 

Sounds like you have the bass control cranked on the "Ernie Ball MM" (what model? Stingray???? Sterling????). Also sounds more like fingers on the "EBMM" track and a pick on the "Sterling 35" track. Yes, they do sound different, but I can easily make my 20 year old EBMM Stingray 5 sound like your "Sterling 35" track with EQ. I can just as easily make is sound like your "EBMM" track with EQ.

I'm sure they are different, I just think the "EBMM" track sounds like it's been EQ'd very differently. No Music Man I've ever played sounds like that when it's truly flat. It can get there easily enough, but that sound is not native.