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EBMM StingRay Special Club

#2,021
Kevin Wolfe said:
In regards to roasted, non-roasted I’d like to make a few observations here taken from real life, long term experience.
It is a fact that the drier wood becomes the more stable it becomes as well, both in its dimensions and straightness. Let me qualify that statement by saying I’ve been a player for 45 years and one bass in my quiver I’ve owned for forty of those years. When that bass was new I felt like it was reasonably stable but the older (drier) it gets, the better it becomes and is pretty much impervious to any kind of climate change within reason.
It is my belief that painting a maple neck will not make it more stable. Only proper curing and drying will do that. Having said that, I think it’s possible that the trend in roasted wood is really only a means of speeding up that process. Economics maybe?
I’m also a gunsmith specializing in the crafting of hand made 18th century flintlock replicas most of which are stocked in sugar maple (very stable) and some with red maple (not so stable).
When I buy this wood it is kiln dried and then aged in a humidity controlled warehouse in PA to a moisture content of around 12% for at least four years. When it is shipped to me it then is exposed to the Florida humidity of between 60% on the dry end, to maybe 85% or even higher and will undergo all kinds of drastic warping and twisting. I then have to start the aging and re-acclimating process all over again. I’m sure that building guitars, especially necks, requires a similar process.
Sorry about the rant, but I couldn’t contain it any longer. I have an opinion about PLEK’ed necks, but I’m gonna bite my tongue for now.
Thanks, KW
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I’d like to hear your thoughts on Plek’d necks. I’m always in a pursuit of knowledge, and always appreciate the viewpoint of experienced, knowledgeable individuals.
 
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#2,023
p k said:
Haven't had a ton of play time on it but I really like the variety of tones that you can get with the 5 HH. The g string being so close to the edge of the fretboard is taking a little adjustment as is the 5th string (I primarily play 4s). She definitely is a looker!
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I’ve noticed that G string edge too (as the experienced 5 string players mentioned). I can tell it will take a little extra attention for a while. But I like the payoff- the overall neck width is extremely comfortable.

Glad you’re finding the HH tones. There are so many - such a versatile instrument.
 
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#2,024
MascisMan said:
Yes and that is sort of my point. The non-aesthetic benefits of roasted maple are the feel (for some players) and stability (for all players). A finished and cared for non-roasted neck is just as stable as a roasted maple neck for all intents and purposes.

It seems to me by painting the headstock and neck you lose the marketing aspect of what roasted maple represents for these new Specials. In other words, I'm not sure there is a definite advantage to having your maple neck roasted if you are going to paint it and the headstock. None of the roasted color shows, you don't get the "raw wood" feel, and any added stability is largely negligible.

Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful bass. I just feel that it defeats the purpose of having a "roasted maple" neck as a feature.
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Roasting the neck removes moisture - the moisture that is affected by seasonal changes, and necessitates periodic truss rod adjustments.

That's a benefit to all necks, whether they end up with a high gloss finish, painted, or oil & wax.

The other benefit, for the marketing department, is that by removing that moisture, the neck is a little lighter - which is obviously part of the design brief, regarding the Stingray Special.
 
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#2,025
Wood and Wire said:
Roasting the neck removes moisture - the moisture that is affected by seasonal changes, and necessitates periodic truss rod adjustments.

That's a benefit to all necks, whether they end up with a high gloss finish, painted, or oil & wax.

The other benefit, for the marketing department, is that by removing that moisture, the neck is a little lighter - which is obviously part of the design brief, regarding the Stingray Special.
Click to expand...

Roasted necks are also hydrophobic - they no longer absorb moisture and you won't have changes due to humidity. The downside is that you can't steam out dings like you can on a standard maple neck.
 
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#2,026
I’ve primarily been a P bass player for years, but I’m enjoying this new Stingray Special 5. One observation for which I’d like to find a solution: on my P basses, I can adjust the pickup heights so that they generally arch higher in the middle, following the curvature of the fingerboard, thereby making each string the same distance from the pickup. On my Stingray, I’m noticing the outside strings (B & G) sound louder than the inner strings (especially the A string). I’m assuming this is because the pickup is flat, and the pole pieces don’t follow the curvature of the strings, so the inner strings are further away from the pickup. Is there a simple solution to this? Is it possible to raise the pole pieces in the middle, to account for the curvature of the strings? I know jazz basses typically face the same problem, although I have seen some jazz pickups with raised pole pieces in the middle.
 
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#2,027
04E78FFD-1476-4528-A490-25ADDF61C8D7.jpeg 04E78FFD-1476-4528-A490-25ADDF61C8D7.jpeg C6E838E1-63E4-47DE-96F7-21BE24B20086.jpeg
MultiScaleMale said:
I guess this is the new type of I hate relics because you didn’t earn the dings on the bass? Roasting didn’t earn the dryness of a 45 year old neck!! PLEK’ed necks are great. I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that you haven’t played a roasted neck bass nor a PLEK’ed neck. But please, jump on the thread where everyone is talking about their new bass and share your tangential feelings.
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Ok @RichSnyder, I’ll call ya on that one. I own a StingRay Special or I wouldn’t be in this club. And I absolutely love the roasted neck. I like the finish, the looks, and the fact that it has a jumpstart on a natural aging process. In fact I love everything about the bass.
I also own a Gibson Les Paul Standard with a PLEK’ed neck and I’m not that impressed with the quality of the workmanship. If you look close enough you can see machine tool marks in the binding, fret ends, and the fretboard. I’ve seen some PLEK jobs done much better. But I’ve seen hand done fret jobs done way better. My Fender MIA Deluxe Tele has one of the nicest factory fret jobs I’ve ever seen. I would imagine PLEKing is like anything else in that it depends on who does the machine set up. I still don’t think it could ever come close to fret work done by hand by a master craftsman, just faster and cheaper.
 
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#2,028
Kevin Wolfe said:
View attachment 3315178 View attachment 3315178 View attachment 3315180
Ok @RichSnyder, I’ll call ya on that one. I own a StingRay Special or I wouldn’t be in this club. And I absolutely love the roasted neck. I like the finish, the looks, and the fact that it has a jumpstart on a natural aging process. In fact I love everything about the bass.
I also own a Gibson Les Paul Standard with a PLEK’ed neck and I’m not that impressed with the quality of the workmanship. If you look close enough you can see machine tool marks in the binding, fret ends, and the fretboard. I’ve seen some PLEK jobs done much better. But I’ve seen hand done fret jobs done way better. My Fender MIA Deluxe Tele has one of the nicest factory fret jobs I’ve ever seen. I would imagine PLEKing is like anything else in that it depends on who does the machine set up. I still don’t think it could ever come close to fret work done by hand by a master craftsman, just faster and cheaper.
Click to expand...
I’d guess the Plek is like anything else. It’s not just the machine but the machinist that matters
 
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#2,030
MultiScaleMale said:
I guess this is the new type of I hate relics because you didn’t earn the dings on the bass? Roasting didn’t earn the dryness of a 45 year old neck!! PLEK’ed necks are great. I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that you haven’t played a roasted neck bass nor a PLEK’ed neck. But please, jump on the thread where everyone is talking about their new bass and share your tangential feelings.
Click to expand...
And besides that @RichSnyder, everyone wasn’t talking about their new bass, they were talking about whether or not the roasted necks were finished, or whether or not a painted neck was more stable than one with an oil finish. Maybe you missed those post and the one back in September when I posted about my newly acquired SRS 5H.
 
#2,032
Kevin Wolfe said:
And besides that @RichSnyder, everyone wasn’t talking about their new bass, they were talking about whether or not the roasted necks were finished, or whether or not a painted neck was more stable than one with an oil finish. Maybe you missed those post and the one back in September when I posted about my newly acquired SRS 5H.
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Sorry, that's what I get for posting when I just wake up and read posts in a grumpy voice. Apologies.
 
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#2,035
More time spent with my new SR Special 5 this weekend... I’m digging it a lot. Great build quality, great feeling neck, great tone. One complaint, not with the bass itself, is that the case is very limited on storage space for accessories. I’d like to see a hidden storage compartment under the neck, like some hard cases have. I just ordered a ProTec Contego case, so I’ll have plenty of storage. But the bass itself is impressing the heck out of me.
 
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#2,036
Killens84 said:
More time spent with my new SR Special 5 this weekend... I’m digging it a lot. Great build quality, great feeling neck, great tone. One complaint, not with the bass itself, is that the case is very limited on storage space for accessories. I’d like to see a hidden storage compartment under the neck, like some hard cases have. I just ordered a ProTec Contego case, so I’ll have plenty of storage. But the bass itself is impressing the heck out of me.
Click to expand...
My hard case lives in the closet. I use quality gig bags. Just keeps me from carrying an extra bag.
 
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#2,039
So I put some GHS Bass Boomers on. Close but no cigar. I like them better than the DR Sunbeams but i think I’m just not a Rounds guy. Next up EB Slinky Flats. Found the 45-100 set for $25 on Amazon. So far La Bella tapes are still my favorite on this bass but I’ll give these flats a try next.
 
#2,040
Killens84 said:
I’ve primarily been a P bass player for years, but I’m enjoying this new Stingray Special 5. One observation for which I’d like to find a solution: on my P basses, I can adjust the pickup heights so that they generally arch higher in the middle, following the curvature of the fingerboard, thereby making each string the same distance from the pickup. On my Stingray, I’m noticing the outside strings (B & G) sound louder than the inner strings (especially the A string). I’m assuming this is because the pickup is flat, and the pole pieces don’t follow the curvature of the strings, so the inner strings are further away from the pickup. Is there a simple solution to this? Is it possible to raise the pole pieces in the middle, to account for the curvature of the strings? I know jazz basses typically face the same problem, although I have seen some jazz pickups with raised pole pieces in the middle.
Click to expand...
The simple solution is don’t curve the strings
 

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