EBMM Music Man Basses...why so much $?

[Up the dose]

In my experience! I have gotten way lower, and more stable action, on a Stingray than I ever have on any Fender I've owned!

I think he is referring to the wheel style truss rod adjustment on all Music Man basses. It requires no special tools, no cover to remove, no strings to loosen. The new Fender Music Man styled Bass the Dimension appears to have taken this from Ernie Ball as well.

 

[Up the dose]

High quality, that's why.

I own mainly EBMM's, along with two Fender basses and a Fender guitar.

The EBMM's just exude quality as soon as you open the case.

The one's that really surprised me were:

Bongo 5 HH and HS
Classic Stingray 5

Just absolutely amazing. The prices have since shot up in the UK, so they are roughly £1600-1700 for a Bongo 5, but that's not that much more than a Fender 5 Deluxe which isn't, IMO, at the same level of quality.

+1
Agreed.
I also own Music Man basses , and a Fender Deluxe model. I love them all, but the Ernie Ball basses are definitely built better. The Paint finish is better, the feel of the controls, the tuners, the bridge, the neck all look and feel way more solid.

 

[BawanaRik]

High quality, that's why.

I own mainly EBMM's, along with two Fender basses and a Fender guitar.

The EBMM's just exude quality as soon as you open the case.

The one's that really surprised me were:

Bongo 5 HH and HS
Classic Stingray 5

Just absolutely amazing. The prices have since shot up in the UK, so they are roughly £1600-1700 for a Bongo 5, but that's not that much more than a Fender 5 Deluxe which isn't, IMO, at the same level of quality.

Thanks for pointing out something many Americans forget. Your Pound is quite a bit more than our dollar. We get most things cheap here.

When I was a kid the standard thing was to buy an Strat here. fly to England, sell it and pay for the trip.

I think things are better now but still we getting the same bass for 2/3s of what you pay.

 

[ecj_bass]

I think EBMM's are priced pretty fairly, considering the quality of other instruments at a similar price range. They sound and feel great.

 

[Smallmouth_Bass]

If you think $1500 is expensive, just consider how lucky us electric bassists are. Upright basses cost a fortune. Even the cheaper, lower quality ones.

 

[inthebassclef]

Super valid point. My upright which is a very cheap one was $1400.

 

[joeyl]

If you think $1500 is expensive, just consider how lucky us electric bassists are. Upright basses cost a fortune. Even the cheaper, lower quality ones.

or brass instruments like a tuba, man they are expensive.

 

[JJR58]

To add on to my earlier post,I still havent played a sub $2000 bass that felt as quality as my Stingray. My 2013 Fender Am P comes close though. Theres something about those EBMM's...like they feel solid and heavy without even being heavy,kinda hard to describe. But to me it screams I totally got what I payed for. Anyone get what Im sayin?

Yes indeed, I get what you're sayin, I got lucky and picked up 91' Ray for 850.
I even would have paid more it's such a great bass.
And as far as the weight thing.
Mine is heavy for sure, but I will tell you this, don't feel the weight at all when i'm wearing it while gigging.
Go figure.

 

[j.kernodle]

the glaring issue I have with all of this is that you got a crazy good deal in 1990 for that 'ray. street price on rays was at or near 1000 back then. I know cause I tried to find one. my first bass back in the early 90's was a peavey fury combo pack that I paid 421 bucks for after tax. my next bass was a 92 "boner" American standard jazz that was 800 bucks new. street price. I paid almost 1200 for a Sterling in 96 street price.

and if you're patient you can get a 90's ray for 750. those deals are not all that uncommon if you watch Craigslist. bdgotoh just sold an HS for under 800 bucks.

 

[decentbassbreh]

I think they are still worth it, but I guess i just got bad GAS

 

[hernameisrio]

I got my EBMM Sterling (I think it's from 2001?) for $650 with the hardshell case. Cosmetically it's not perfect, but I love it. If you keeeeep looking, like when I literally was watching 14 different eBay auctions at once, you'll find a deal!

 

[j.kernodle]

^. yep

another sanity check. try buying a teal 90's ray and post it on the classifieds here for 1200 and enjoy bumping your ad for a year.

if anything economies of scale have made Ernie balls cheaper over the years relative to inflation. in the early 90's, stingrays were pretty hard to find and in huge demand because of flea and Tim commerfoed playing them. now there are a ton on the market which if anything has driven the value down relative to inflation. if you want a 300 dollar ray you can buy an import which was never an option until recently.

 

[JJR58]

the glaring issue I have with all of this is that you got a crazy good deal in 1990 for that 'ray. street price on rays was at or near 1000 back then. I know cause I tried to find one. my first bass back in the early 90's was a peavey fury combo pack that I paid 421 bucks for after tax. my next bass was a 92 "boner" American standard jazz that was 800 bucks new. street price. I paid almost 1200 for a Sterling in 96 street price.

and if you're patient you can get a 90's ray for 750. those deals are not all that uncommon if you watch Craigslist. bdgotoh just sold an HS for under 800 bucks.

If you mean I got a crazy good deal, sorry I didn't specify, I got mine used about two years ago on ebay

 

[Musicman20]

Thanks for pointing out something many Americans forget. Your Pound is quite a bit more than our dollar. We get most things cheap here.

When I was a kid the standard thing was to buy an Strat here. fly to England, sell it and pay for the trip.

I think things are better now but still we getting the same bass for 2/3s of what you pay.

Aye we pay a fair whack but I still think they are worth it.

 

[j.kernodle]

If you mean I got a crazy good deal, sorry I didn't specify, I got mine used about two years ago on ebay

I was referring to the original post but yes. good buy for you as well.

 

[dzaneh]

Anyone who honestly thinks that Fender and EB are gouging on their US made instruments is uneducated about what it takes to manufacture and sell a product.

Here's a thumbnail of how it works:

You need manufacturing and office space.
Grab a newspaper and see what 20,000sf of warehouse space will cost you a month. Then heat and light it and make it secure.

You need machinery and tools.
Go price just CNC milling machines and water cutters. Then pay the upkeep and monthly electricity bill.
CNC machines are useless without computers and software. The industry standard Solidworks/Camworks is going to cost you $60K+ per seat even on a multi-seat licence.

You need skilled people to maintain and run those CNC machines then assemble what they spit out. It's not rocket science but it's not minimum wage either. And that's North American wages...with benefits if you want to keep anyone good.

You need materials and a staff to source them.
Good quality traditional wood is getting more expensive and harder to find. A large company needs a team of very knowledgeable people to keep a regular flow of materiel coming in...and not just wood. You need people who can source fasteners, fabrics, metal, electronics, rubber and plastics.

You need office staff to answer phones, administer purchase orders, do payroll, keep accounts. You need chairs and desks and computers and printers and office supplies for them.

You need an advertising staff and budget.

You need an external sales distribution network that gets a cut.

Packaging and shipping costs.

Then the retailer gets their cut.

It's also worth considering that companies like these need to come up with improvements and new designs. This takes people, tools and work space, computers and software and materiel to play with. The money spent on R&D is only recovered in the long term so the immediate costs are born by the products you're selling now.

Do the math.
A new Stingray or US P-Bass is almost certainly hanging on the wall at GC for as cheap as it can be done and still keep the machine that made it fed.

dang and I thought they grew on trees...

 

[DiabolusInMusic]

The Ernie Ball Music Man company uses a better grade of wood than most. Their regular standard basses have neck wood that competes with Fender's Custom Shop stuff. I kinda think EBMM uses a better grade or whatever of metal for their bridges. EBMM is also a much smaller company..so you're getting a more personal instrument.

I'd rather have G&L.

I would highly disagree with this. I live in a very dry climate with weather that can go from -40C to +40C. Fender necks are fairly stable throughout the year, and EBMM are probably the most susceptible to weather changes. This is not exclusive to my herd and it can also be said about my guitarists herd. I only know one EBMM guitar owner but do know several bass owners. Oh and I am comparing them to standard MIA necks not custom shop necks since I do not know anybody who personally owns a CS Fender.

Lastly, doesn't EBMM use basswood for their bodies, I thought this was a fairly cheap and soft wood but I am far from a builder. I am sure I will be corrected... I am not debating tonal semantics here just cost.

 

[*Tempest*]

Lastly, doesn't EBMM use basswood for their bodies, I thought this was a fairly cheap and soft wood but I am far from a builder. I am sure I will be corrected... I am not debating tonal semantics here just cost.

They use basswood only for the Bongo bodies. The others are ash. Maple tops on some models. Mahogany for the big al 5.

What year is your ebmm? I know within the last few years they started drying the wood before they start cutting. And curing the finishes to avoid expansion in different climates. I know that fender doesn't do this.

 

[j.kernodle]

the oil/wax finished necks are more succeptible to humidity changes than a poly or lacquer painted neck. it's not a wood quality issue. it's more of a finish issue. some people love the way the raw oil finish feels.

 

[StealthBanana]

Ha, and you think Stingrays are overpriced? Okay so maybe they are, but compared to a Rickenbacker or Fender Jazz is it really any different? I'm pretty sure 'Ray's go for relatively cheaper than those other two, and I can think of other basses that are REALLY overpriced in comparison (I'm looking at you, Wal bass Mk II that goes for 5k+ on the market). I really wish I can afford an actual Stingray (maybe someday) but in the meantime my SBMM Ray 34 will have to make do. I actually just got done recording in the studio with my band and I gotta say I love the tone I can get outta that instrument paired with a Sansamp Bass Driver. I'd suspect most people wouldn't even tell the difference between the sound of mine and an actual Ray anyways ;-)