EBMM StingRay Special Club

[bdplaid]

The only time I think of the Stingrays being one-trick ponies is when I or other players only anchor the plucking hand at the bridge pickup. Lots more cool tones when moving the hand toward the neck, as we all know. The only thing is that the SR doesn't make it easy unless we fit some sort of thumbrest to facilitate moving around. Otherwise, it's like having a Jazz and only using the the back pickup Jaco-style.

 

[Jared Lash]

@Stevorebob, you can say the old Rays aren't one-trick ponies, and I somewhat agree with you. But my understanding is that a major reason for the creation of the Special was a recognition that the old Rays *are* kind of a one-trick pony whose one trick is no longer of great value among musicians. Hence the revoicing of the pickups.

Stingrays have always had a more distinctive sound than a lot of other basses but I wouldn't go so far as to call them one trick ponies. From Louis Johnson to Bernard Edwards to Tony Levin to John Deacon to the bassist for Sade (whose name I'm struggling to remember right now) to Flea to a host of other players, there's a pretty wide range of different tones.

If you read between the lines a bit it's pretty clear that EBMM saw that the trend is (and has been for a number of years now) to have a more vintage sound to the bass, at least on songs with actual bass being played. The zing of the Stingray is a signature sound, but it's also one that doesn't fit current tones as well.

I've played a number of Stingrays over the years and always wanted them to work for me because so many guys that I love sound great with a Ray, but they've never been quite right in my hands and to my ears.

But the Specials really do work for me. They have a tone that is still distinctively a Stingray while being warmer and also more versatile IMO. Lately I've really been fighting the urge to sell a bass or two in order to pick one up.

 

[basschips]

So much for the Stingray being a one trick pony.
Some people prefer more bite, some less fiddling with knobs and switches, some more slap room, some more pickup switching , some see this as being a more versatile bass.

Some say yay, some say nay. At the end of the day, it’s still a Ray!! That’s a winner in my book any day . To quote Forrest Gump..” That’s all I’ve got to say .”

It's like a box of chocolates!

 

[Stevorebob]

@Stevorebob, you can say the old Rays aren't one-trick ponies, and I somewhat agree with you. But my understanding is that a major reason for the creation of the Special was a recognition that the old Rays *are* kind of a one-trick pony whose one trick is no longer of great value among musicians. Hence the revoicing of the pickups.

Move your hand. Turn some knobs. Slap, pick, pluck, thumb, strum. Fret on the fret. Palm mute, thumb mute. If all one can do is play with their thumb anchored at the pickup and won’t turn a knob, then every bass is a one-trick pony.

The StingRay has a distinctive sound, yes. But it is only limited by the player.

 

[CElton]

Not exactly I'm not a slapper. But I would prefer 5H over 5HH because of:
1) series mode;
2) more streamlined and clean exterior;
3) less fiddling in stressful live situations

+1 and I also like the Series w/Filter mode. I use it quite a bit.

In the end it’s horses for courses. Play what you like.

 

[maplenecked]

The only thing is that the SR doesn't make it easy unless we fit some sort of thumbrest to facilitate moving around

That’s what the B string is for!

 

[Stranger Danger]

Yeah, my wife asked me that since the HH Special can get so many sounds, can't you get rid of your other basses? Uhhhhhh.... no.

I did. She’s not wrong

 

[Groovegestapo]

Yeah, my wife asked me that since the HH Special can get so many sounds, can't you get rid of your other basses? Uhhhhhh.... no.

Women can be joy killers, I know by experience

 

[LadyLoveStingRay5]

Women can be joy killers, I know by experience

Now , now, we are all not joy killers .
Just ask @HD007

 

[Groovegestapo]

Now , now, we are all not joy killers .
Just ask @HD007

I meant some Wives, to be more correct.

 

[basschips]

Women can be joy killers, I know by experience

Actually, I know from experience with my first wife. My second and current wife (a definite keeper) is very supportive of me musically including buying music equipment. Once in a while she might say something like, "honey you can only play one bass at a time". My answer is usually, "Yeah but... __________".

 

[maplenecked]

I meant some Wives, to be more correct.

The perceived joy killing is just obfuscation so they can buy treats too and not feel guilty. In these days of amazon though, we both jump when UPS comes a knockin

 

[scottm]

The perceived joy killing is just obfuscation so they can buy treats too and not feel guilty. In these days of amazon though, we both jump when UPS comes a knockin

Same here!
My wife beads and I bass!
She always encourages me to get new equipment/basses.... then hits up Amazon for some orders for her.
Our marriage has found a sweet spot!

-ScottM

 

[Stevorebob]

Careful, friends. Any spouse — husbands as well as wives — can kill joy. And hopefully, they enable it as well; otherwise, bass guitars are not your problem.

 

[Pet Sounds]

Just to be clear, I don't think the old Ray is a one-trick pony, but I do think the Special adds some tricks that are useful to me!

 

[Stranger Danger]

Now , now, we are all not joy killers .
Just ask @HD007

In my experience women bring me joy

 

[Treeman]

This escalation from number of humbuckers to marriage......we really are a “Special” bunch.

 

[skaine]

One last question about MM Stingray, sorry if my newbie questions are irrellevant.

The bass is 2015 made Stingray with HH setup and 4 strings. Ash body and Alnico pickups. I bought it as a used instrument couple of days ago as i mentioned before.

After setting up and changing the new strings, i noticed that the bass lacks of mids (low mids especially) and bass frequency doesnt seem to very focused. Is this normal for Stingrays or my ears got very used to hearing precision bass so that i feel that way?

The question two is, i found the neck humbucker little bit plain toned compared with the bridge pickup. So i made a tap test on the poles of the humbuckers, bridge humbucker pulls the screw driver strongly, however neck humbucker is somewhat weaker than the bridge humbucker. Is this a normal feature for that particular model?

There isnt another model that i can compare in the guitar center, thats why i am asking here. I cant record the sound so cant send you the sound samples. Thats the exact model with my bass in the video by the way. Also sounds almost similar to mine.

Thanks for your help in advance.

 

[Epitaph04]

Have you tried actually boosting the midrange? Cutting the bass? What strings are you using? What amp? Stingrays can be very punchy and sharp on the bridge pickup. Otherwise, they sound very differently from precision basses. More hifi. More pure clean bass.

 

[thumbs&fingers]

If I were to take a guess, I'd say he meant "the real advantage to me with the HH......is not having to drastically change eq settings on amp or board." and "H" was a typo. Instead of changing the eq drastically, he just switches the pickup positions?

Just my guess, I could be wrong.

What I was saying is having H means less eq tweaks. HH an so so many sounds that playing live you would have to constantly mess with your eq every time you flipped pickup positions in a set. I like both and haven’t decided what works best for me. If I only had one bass it would be HH because it can get close enough to all the classic sounds