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EBMM StingRay Special Club

#2,961
GRoberts said:
Since this is my first Stingray (5H Special), How many hours can I expect from the batteries? If they die, I imagine the bass would not be usable. Is there any sort of battery life indication so I know when I should change them
Click to expand...


More like years.

With 1 9V battery, it's common to get anywhere between 1 & 3 years life (depending on amount of use, and remembering to unplug the instrument when not in use), before it starts to deplete enough to cause distortion.

With 2 9V batteries, as used in the Specials, you can pretty much double that figure.
 
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#2,963
Had some time to geek out this weekend, so I recorded a few sound clips that I think will shed some light on the following questions:

How does the sound of the special compare to older stingrays?
Should I get a 5HH or a 5H?
Can you get a P bass or J bass sound out of an HH?
Should I get a 4 string or a 5 string SRS?

I played the same lick on all of these basses. Its boring and stupid, but then again, so is high school. I play the pattern once round and supportive, then tighten up the notes the second time through to give you a sense of the dynamics of each bass. There were a few basses that had lower output than the others so I did a second round with the smoothie adjusted to get the level and amount of compression the same as the others (those are marked [boosted] and the originals are in the "quiet tracks" folder). This is all recorded in garage band with a neutral line input from a focusrite scarlett, through a smoothie set for light but consistent compression, and the DI on an Aguilar DB751 post EQ. Bass boosted slightly, otherwise flat. Jamming along with "Benny" the built in Motown drummer. The bass is mixed a little too loud for obvious reasons.

I set every bass the way I like them. The SR5 30th gets just a small bass boost. The Specials have the mids not quite all the way up, and a bass boost, exact same EQ settings between the 4H and 5HH. The tracks market scooped I pulled the mid back to flat and added more bass. The 54-94 has some added bass and treble (because: Barts). The Sadowsky RV5 (Duncan-made singles) has the tone pulled back a bit but no EQ. All of the EBMMs are wearing slinkys except the SR5 30th which has dunlop super brights. All the others have super brights except for the few with flats, and some kind of steels on the zon. And stock blue nickels on the sadowsky PJ5 (that will soon change...)

For those without the patience to listen my very opinionated answers are: More natural and less electronic, H, No (but you can get something like a Rickenbacker sound*), 4 unless you absolutely have to have the low B.

*but a real rick sounds a lot better.

Listen on good headphones or monitors!

Invalid Link Removed

IMHO the SRS4 is one of the stars in this test, against some very tough company!
 
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#2,964
@pickles ,
Very nice clips. Thanks for taking time to do that.

I only listened to the Wal, Zon Fenders and MusicMans so far.

The Zon and Wal are very much in your face type basses. Very powerful and aggressive sounding .

I was highly impressed when comparing the Caprice and Cutlass to the vintage Fenders . Wow!! The Caprice held its own with both the vintage Jazz and Precision basses.
I’m so glad I have my Caprice . What a great bass.

The Cutlass was no slouch either. Such as shame these basses are discontinued.

I listen several times to the Stingray Special 5HH. I think 2nd and 4the gear handle Jazz and Precision territory quite well. Again, so glad I own one.

When I compared the Special to the 30th Anniv. I immediately noticed the pre- Special era clank or grit. The Special is more smooth and rich in its voicing. Different flavors , both great.

These Musicmans have me :headphone::smug::thumbsup:!!
 
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#2,967
LadyLoveStingRay5 said:
@pickles ,
Very nice clips. Thanks for taking time to do that.

I only listened to the Wal, Zon Fenders and MusicMans so far.

The Zon and Wal are very much in your face type basses. Very powerful and aggressive sounding .

I was highly impressed when comparing the Caprice and Cutlass to the vintage Fenders . Wow!! The Caprice held its own with both the vintage Jazz and Precision basses.
I’m so glad I have my Caprice . What a great bass.

The Cutlass was no slouch either. Such as shame these basses are discontinued.

I listen several times to the Stingray Special 5HH. I think 2nd and 4the gear handle Jazz and Precision territory quite well. Again, so glad I own one.

When I compared the Special to the 30th Anniv. I immediately noticed the pre- Special era clank or grit. The Special is more smooth and rich in its voicing. Different flavors , both great.

These Musicmans have me :headphone::smug::thumbsup:!!
Click to expand...

That last paragraph applies equally to the 30th I traded in. Loved that bass, it was a very chunky neck for me. It had lots more purr or growl depending how I was using it. Loved the neck finish and frets but not the size.
 
#2,969
LadyLoveStingRay5 said:
@pickles ,
Very nice clips. Thanks for taking time to do that.

I only listened to the Wal, Zon Fenders and MusicMans so far.

The Zon and Wal are very much in your face type basses. Very powerful and aggressive sounding .

I was highly impressed when comparing the Caprice and Cutlass to the vintage Fenders . Wow!! The Caprice held its own with both the vintage Jazz and Precision basses.
I’m so glad I have my Caprice . What a great bass.

The Cutlass was no slouch either. Such as shame these basses are discontinued.

I listen several times to the Stingray Special 5HH. I think 2nd and 4the gear handle Jazz and Precision territory quite well. Again, so glad I own one.

When I compared the Special to the 30th Anniv. I immediately noticed the pre- Special era clank or grit. The Special is more smooth and rich in its voicing. Different flavors , both great.

These Musicmans have me :headphone::smug::thumbsup:!!
Click to expand...

I don’t hear P and J tones from 2 and 4. They’re more rick-ish to me. That’s the main reason I did those, so people considering an HH can listen and decide for themselves.

But then again we say “j tone” and the 66 vs the 62RI sound really different ftom each other.

Caprice and Cutlass get amazing tones. The cutlass really shines in the mix.
 
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#2,972
pickles said:
Had some time to geek out this weekend, so I recorded a few sound clips that I think will shed some light on the following questions:

How does the sound of the special compare to older stingrays?
Should I get a 5HH or a 5H?
Can you get a P bass or J bass sound out of an HH?
Should I get a 4 string or a 5 string SRS?

I played the same lick on all of these basses. Its boring and stupid, but then again, so is high school. I play the pattern once round and supportive, then tighten up the notes the second time through to give you a sense of the dynamics of each bass. There were a few basses that had lower output than the others so I did a second round with the smoothie adjusted to get the level and amount of compression the same as the others (those are marked [boosted] and the originals are in the "quiet tracks" folder). This is all recorded in garage band with a neutral line input from a focusrite scarlett, through a smoothie set for light but consistent compression, and the DI on an Aguilar DB751 post EQ. Bass boosted slightly, otherwise flat. Jamming along with "Benny" the built in Motown drummer. The bass is mixed a little too loud for obvious reasons.

I set every bass the way I like them. The SR5 30th gets just a small bass boost. The Specials have the mids not quite all the way up, and a bass boost, exact same EQ settings between the 4H and 5HH. The tracks market scooped I pulled the mid back to flat and added more bass. The 54-94 has some added bass and treble (because: Barts). The Sadowsky RV5 (Duncan-made singles) has the tone pulled back a bit but no EQ. All of the EBMMs are wearing slinkys except the SR5 30th which has dunlop super brights. All the others have super brights except for the few with flats, and some kind of steels on the zon. And stock blue nickels on the sadowsky PJ5 (that will soon change...)

For those without the patience to listen my very opinionated answers are: More natural and less electronic, H, No (but you can get something like a Rickenbacker sound*), 4 unless you absolutely have to have the low B.

*but a real rick sounds a lot better.

Listen on good headphones or monitors!

Invalid Link Removed

IMHO the SRS4 is one of the stars in this test, against some very tough company!
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for doing this! I’m still listening— and appreciating the effort that went into this.
 
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#2,975
pickles said:
Had some time to geek out this weekend, so I recorded a few sound clips that I think will shed some light on the following questions:

How does the sound of the special compare to older stingrays?
Should I get a 5HH or a 5H?
Can you get a P bass or J bass sound out of an HH?
Should I get a 4 string or a 5 string SRS?

I played the same lick on all of these basses. Its boring and stupid, but then again, so is high school. I play the pattern once round and supportive, then tighten up the notes the second time through to give you a sense of the dynamics of each bass. There were a few basses that had lower output than the others so I did a second round with the smoothie adjusted to get the level and amount of compression the same as the others (those are marked [boosted] and the originals are in the "quiet tracks" folder). This is all recorded in garage band with a neutral line input from a focusrite scarlett, through a smoothie set for light but consistent compression, and the DI on an Aguilar DB751 post EQ. Bass boosted slightly, otherwise flat. Jamming along with "Benny" the built in Motown drummer. The bass is mixed a little too loud for obvious reasons.

I set every bass the way I like them. The SR5 30th gets just a small bass boost. The Specials have the mids not quite all the way up, and a bass boost, exact same EQ settings between the 4H and 5HH. The tracks market scooped I pulled the mid back to flat and added more bass. The 54-94 has some added bass and treble (because: Barts). The Sadowsky RV5 (Duncan-made singles) has the tone pulled back a bit but no EQ. All of the EBMMs are wearing slinkys except the SR5 30th which has dunlop super brights. All the others have super brights except for the few with flats, and some kind of steels on the zon. And stock blue nickels on the sadowsky PJ5 (that will soon change...)

For those without the patience to listen my very opinionated answers are: More natural and less electronic, H, No (but you can get something like a Rickenbacker sound*), 4 unless you absolutely have to have the low B.

*but a real rick sounds a lot better.

Listen on good headphones or monitors!

Invalid Link Removed

IMHO the SRS4 is one of the stars in this test, against some very tough company!
Click to expand...

Nice work! Thank you for taking the time to do the work.
 
#2,977
Wood and Wire said:
More like years.

With 1 9V battery, it's common to get anywhere between 1 & 3 years life (depending on amount of use, and remembering to unplug the instrument when not in use), before it starts to deplete enough to cause distortion.

With 2 9V batteries, as used in the Specials, you can pretty much double that figure.
Click to expand...

True, I don't remember the last time I had to replace batteries in any of my three active basses. As long as you don't forget to unplug them, they last a really long time. If you do forget, the juice will drain mighty quickly.
 
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