EBMM StingRay Special Club

[WesC]

I would not have thought that would work, but seeing it... it looks killer!

 

[Edmang]

I think the tort guard actually looks kinda cool but I'll put up a poll and see what y'all think. I'll post some pics when Im done screwing around and get a chance.

Poll for this sort of thing is kind of useless. There will be some yes, some no, and some carrots. Even if the only Yes was you, that is the only one that matters.

 

[HD007]

View attachment 3393026
If I’m completely honest about mine, it’s exactly the colour I wanted, but I’m fairly sure it’s not one of the best Specials they made that day. It’s all in the wood right, so perhaps this one just doesn’t have as much mojo as the others. My old 3 band Ray had that mojo in buckets regarding the wood, I’m not into white basses but just had to buy it. My Old Smoothie has that same mojo too, but this particularly Special doesn’t acoustically have that, and the ones in the shop that did were too heavy for me.

That said, this Special is still an outstanding bass which does exactly what I want it to, and sounds great. All said and done, it’s a keeper.

That extra bit that equals mojo is such a fascination (and so personal).

My Special 5HH was a half pound heavier than advertised on Sweetwater and I almost sent it back. But the tone — mojo, if you will — was there for me.

Earlier I had swapped a lighter four-string Special because of weight. The first bass was not super heavy but was above average. Anyway, I didn’t entirely click with the lighter replacement.

This isn’t a comment on weight. More like: when that chemistry is there, I’m keeping that puppy!

Maybe your Special will liven up for you as it gets played in. Wood is full of mysteries after all.

 

[tminus10]

Poll for this sort of thing is kind of useless. There will be some yes, some no, and some carrots. Even if the only Yes was you, that is the only one that matters.

Absolutely. But they’re fun sometimes

 

[Fingerer]

First string change!~ Just put a set of Rotosound 66 strings on my 4H SRS - awesome! Thought about going with the NYXL pack, but these are really nice!

 

[MeLikeBass]

Because Of all the basses i own I tend to play whatever I have at any given time for pretty much no reason other than it’s here, I ought to play that! So after a month of not playing my EBMM HH Special because A) I have several basses and B) my carpal tunnel is having a go at me, I played it tonite and was struck again that this could be the last bass I ever need to own or buy. Playability, sound, looks AND, for those like myself who give a damn, weight make it too much fun to play. Of course GAS may decide differently so hell I may have to buy another in another finish, HH or maybe with just a single pup, etc. only time will tell. I will say it sucks some aren’t as enthused after getting one because of one reason or the other and hopefully any issues will be addressed by EB but I hope these issues are the exception and not the rule.

 

[bumble yeti]

View attachment 3393944 Because Of all the basses i own I tend to play whatever I have at any given time for pretty much no reason other than it’s here, I ought to play that! So after a month of not playing my EBMM HH Special because A) I have several basses and B) my carpal tunnel is having a go at me, I played it tonite and was struck again that this could be the last bass I ever need to own or buy. Playability, sound, looks AND, for those like myself who give a damn, weight make it too much fun to play. Of course GAS may decide differently so hell I may have to buy another in another finish, HH or maybe with just a single pup, etc. only time will tell. I will say it sucks some aren’t as enthused after getting one because of one reason or the other and hopefully any issues will be addressed by EB but I hope these issues are the exception and not the rule.

Nice bass. LOVE the grain.

 

[Chiliwailer]

That extra bit that equals mojo is such a fascination (and so personal).

My Special 5HH was a half pound heavier than advertised on Sweetwater and I almost sent it back. But the tone — mojo, if you will — was there for me.

Earlier I had swapped a lighter four-string Special because of weight. The first bass was not super heavy but was above average. Anyway, I didn’t entirely click with the lighter replacement.

This isn’t a comment on weight. More like: when that chemistry is there, I’m keeping that puppy!

Maybe your Special will liven up for you as it gets played in. Wood is full of mysteries after all.

Nicely said, tone is personal as you say. It’s different in acoustic tone to what I’d previously be drawn to, but even in the shop I felt it’d be a bass worth taking a chance on. I’m glad I did.

 

[maplenecked]

The Dargie is a weird green funky reptile alien thing that keeps crawling back into my lap. The whole vibe of the instrument just makes me make a stank face.

 

[Wood and Wire]

Sounds like a Gibson SG / EB bass neck pickup to me.

We can debate until the cows come home, about which specific instrument / pickup the Stingray HH's neck pickup sounds exactly the same as, but for all intents and purposes it sounds like a Precision - more so than it sounds anything like a Stingray.

If you're expecting it to sound like a Stingray, but with added beef, you're going to be surprised / disappointed.

That is the point I was making, to allay any fears the OP may have about a defective instrument, and determine if that is the "issue" they are encountering, or if there is indeed something else going on.

The traditional Stingray H placement is referred to as the "sweet spot", not because it's the best place to put any pickup on any instrument - but because it's the only place to put that specific Stingray pickup, and get the Stingray sound.

Place that same pickup anywhere else, and it sounds like an entirely different instrument.

 

[Wood and Wire]

Neck PU in sabre is special though with the 16 pole piece thing going on.

The Sabre originally had 8 pole pieces on the neck pickup.

It was a later revision that switched the neck pickup to 16 poles (to alleviate the negative effects of magnetic pull), and added covers for cosmetic reasons.

FWIW it was the original 8 pole Sabre, where I first encountered the surprise / shock of the neck pickup not sounding - as I had expected - like a Stingray with added muscle, but instead sounding more like a Precision.

That same general impression seems to have continued with the later, and reissued Sabres, and Stingray HH - I haven't done a direct comparison, but the impression remains, so I don't think anything significant has changed (Special preamp / pickup re-voicing not withstanding).

 

[Wood and Wire]

The first one, i was expecting it sounding like a Stingray with a meatier tone.

I managed to find another Stingray with the exact setup in a guitar center today. Only one guitar center sells Stingrays in Istanbul and they had only one Stingray in stock.

Anyway, both of them sounded different. Mine sounded much brighter with less low mids and much less meaty. The salesmen also agreed me after listening them both and told me it could be because of the other bass has much older strings and set up.

Then i visited a luthier to get a more precise set up, then it appeared my E string is somewhat dull compared with the others, he told me he couldnt hear anything wrong with the electronics, but also he didnt listened the other bass as well to compare.

Anyway he did the best setup that he can. He also told me that i can try another brand of strings next time to see if it makes any difference, since the strings are brand new, he told me to bring the bass after a week because the strings are more stiff and less elastic at the moment because they are brand new. I used Daddario NYXL roundwound 45/105 by the way.

Other than those, we have regular Daddario, Dunlop, Elixir, Ernie Ball Slinky and Fender strings only in guitar centers. La bella, Rotosound, Thomastik are almost impossible to find.

Sounds as if it's functioning correctly - just not as expected.

New strings will bring the whole instrument to life.

 

[Wood and Wire]

View attachment 3393026
If I’m completely honest about mine, it’s exactly the colour I wanted, but I’m fairly sure it’s not one of the best Specials they made that day. It’s all in the wood right, so perhaps this one just doesn’t have as much mojo as the others. My old 3 band Ray had that mojo in buckets regarding the wood, I’m not into white basses but just had to buy it. My Old Smoothie has that same mojo too, but this particularly Special doesn’t acoustically have that, and the ones in the shop that did were too heavy for me.

That said, this Special is still an outstanding bass which does exactly what I want it to, and sounds great. All said and done, it’s a keeper.

If it's any consolation ; the less figuring the wood has, the more stable / consistent it will be (couple that with the roasting process, and it should be super reliable, and light weight).

Wood being organic, no two pieces are going to sound acoustically identical - how does it sound when recorded?

 

[Chiliwailer]

If it's any consolation ; the less figuring the wood has, the more stable / consistent it will be (couple that with the roasting process, and it should be super reliable, and light weight).

Wood being organic, no two pieces are going to sound acoustically identical - how does it sound when recorded?

It sounds great recorded, in fact it sounds great period

Like our friend above said, it’s a personal preference thing. I can’t play live anymore due to health, but before I stopped I mostly used a 64 or 66 P Bass that oozed big resonance, or a MM Ray or 79 Sabre that did too. This puppy is just very different all together acoustically, total opposite.

I’m being too subjective though in my earlier post - my ‘best one’ in the shop may be another persons ‘I’ll take the other one’!

 

[mojomike001]

I find I can get my 4HH to resemble the sound of a P by using the 4th position of the lever and slightly boosting the bass and mids. “Resemble” does not mean “sounds exactly like.” It means that it comes close enough that it could fool the ear in the mix.

 

[Chiliwailer]

I find I can get my 4HH to resemble the sound of a P by using the 4th position of the lever and slightly boosting the bass and mids. “Resemble” does not mean “sounds exactly like.” It means that it comes close enough that it could fool the ear in the mix.

Most people here agree with that. I’ve found it depends on the amp I’m using or the mix. Position 4 can sound like a PJ to me in some cases, yet like a P in others. Position 5 with the bass and treble slightly cut and the mid slightly boosted gives me the nearly P Bass tone that resembled my old P Bass, other times it’s nothing like a P! YMMV

 

[Stranger Danger]

I find I can get my 4HH to resemble the sound of a P by using the 4th position of the lever and slightly boosting the bass and mids. “Resemble” does not mean “sounds exactly like.” It means that it comes close enough that it could fool the ear in the mix.

That’s been my experience as well

 

[mojomike001]

I also have a jazz bass with DiMarzio pickups which I would defy anyone to reliably distinguish from a P bass if the neck pickup is soloed.

 

[Stranger Danger]

I also have a jazz bass with DiMarzio pickups which I would defy anyone to reliably distinguish from a P bass if the neck pickup is soloed.

I’ve had that set up before. The Area Js are pretty close. The Model Js not so much.

 

[Stevorebob]

What really does the P-Bass thing very well is a P-Bass.