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EBMM StingRay Special Club

#661
The preamp on the Specials have more smoothed out organic tone that less metallic and harsh than even the 2band. Before I preferred the 2band. Never did like the 3 band.
With the slightly reshaped body design / arm contour and lighter weight features this bass checks off all the things that prevented me from keeping a Stingray before. These basses are very comfortable . You notice the great feel immediately. The necks are very comfortable as well. Just annall around great redesign on a great classic bass.

What the team at Ernie Ball has done with these new classics is like what Sadowsky did with the Fender Jazz. He took a great design and made it more comfortable to play with a smaller body , added a great preamp, a great neck, with excellent build quality .
Yep. Boutique quality at less expensive made in USA prices.
 
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#662
I've had a black and ebony board 4H special for a few weeks now. I am constantly trying to get the aggressive Stingray sound out of it....and I just can't. The sound I hear in my head is the exactly that of the red 3EQ in the video below. I have a Bergantino Forte and an HDN112 cabinet. I've changed strings a few times, but haven't tried Cobalts yet. Any suggestions? Yes, I've maxed out the treble! Thanks in advance!

 
#663
BigDrew said:
I've had a black and ebony board 4H special for a few weeks now. I am constantly trying to get the aggressive Stingray sound out of it....and I just can't. The sound I hear in my head is the exactly that of the red 3EQ in the video below. I have a Bergantino Forte and an HDN112 cabinet. I've changed strings a few times, but haven't tried Cobalts yet. Any suggestions? Yes, I've maxed out the treble! Thanks in advance!

Click to expand...


It was the addition of the mid control (in 1987), and the fact that most people just assumed that the 3 band EQ behaved the same as the 2 band EQ, that gave the 3 band it's reputation for being so aggressive / harsh.

People tended to turn up the mids a lot louder than the intended "default" sound of a Stingray (and additionally, there seems to be a slight resonant peak at the crossover between the mid & treble, which is more pronounced when the mids are turned up).

The mid control is the one you want to focus on - but of course, the pre-amp has been modified to compliment the new pickup, and deliberately given a more "vintage" voice, than the 1987-2017 pre-amp.

With the old pre-amp, the suggested starting point was to max out Volume, Bass, and Treble (leave the Mid at centre detent) which was where the 2 band & 3 band were designed to sound identical, and then adjust to taste from there.

I haven't heard if there is an equivalent setting on the new Special, but I kind of doubt it.

if you want it to sound more aggressive, you really ought to be looking at Stainless Steel round wound strings - something like the LD set of Rotosound Swing 66 (or maybe even the heavier LE set) will retain the heavy low end, have an inherent Stainless Steel zing, and being Rotosounds, introduce an aggressive midrange.

Going for a medium, or lighter gauge (LC or lower) will make the low end tighter, but less heavy, which can make it seem even more aggressive.
 
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#664
LadyLoveStingRay5 said:
The preamp on the Specials have more smoothed out organic tone that less metallic and harsh than even the 2band. Before I preferred the 2band. Never did like the 3 band.
With the slightly reshaped body design / arm contour and lighter weight features this bass checks off all the things that prevented me from keeping a Stingray before. These basses are very comfortable . You notice the great feel immediately. The necks are very comfortable as well. Just annall around great redesign on a great classic bass.

What the team at Ernie Ball has done with these new classics is like what Sadowsky did with the Fender Jazz. He took a great design and made it more comfortable to play with a smaller body , added a great preamp, a great neck, with excellent build quality .
Yep. Boutique quality at less expensive made in USA prices.
Click to expand...
100% agreed
 
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#666
Wood and Wire said:
It was the addition of the mid control (in 1987), and the fact that most people just assumed that the 3 band EQ behaved the same as the 2 band EQ, that gave the 3 band it's reputation for being so aggressive / harsh.

People tended to turn up the mids a lot louder than the intended "default" sound of a Stingray (and additionally, there seems to be a slight resonant peak at the crossover between the mid & treble, which is more pronounced when the mids are turned up).

The mid control is the one you want to focus on - but of course, the pre-amp has been modified to compliment the new pickup, and deliberately given a more "vintage" voice, than the 1987-2017 pre-amp.

With the old pre-amp, the suggested starting point was to max out Volume, Bass, and Treble (leave the Mid at centre detent) which was where the 2 band & 3 band were designed to sound identical, and then adjust to taste from there.

I haven't heard if there is an equivalent setting on the new Special, but I kind of doubt it.

if you want it to sound more aggressive, you really ought to be looking at Stainless Steel round wound strings - something like the LD set of Rotosound Swing 66 (or maybe even the heavier LE set) will retain the heavy low end, have an inherent Stainless Steel zing, and being Rotosounds, introduce an aggressive midrange.

Going for a medium, or lighter gauge (LC or lower) will make the low end tighter, but less heavy, which can make it seem even more aggressive.
Click to expand...
Thanks! I tried stainless Elixers and it wasn't there. I am thinking that the Specials just can't replicate the aggressive sound of the regular 3 band....and I think that was really one of the reasons for creating the Special! Oh well, I guess I need to find a 3 band!
 
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#667
BigDrew said:
Thanks! I tried stainless Elixers and it wasn't there. I am thinking that the Specials just can't replicate the aggressive sound of the regular 3 band....and I think that was really one of the reasons for creating the Special! Oh well, I guess I need to find a 3 band!
Click to expand...
I can get anything I want out of the Specials, I wanted a more versatile MM Bass and they delivered. My 5HH isn’t as punchy as the single H as I already have one. But the HH gets the job for all my gigs right now. I’ve owned all of them except the Sabre.
The only gripe I have had is with the factory setups and having to spend more money ironing those out.
 
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#671
BigDrew said:
I've had a black and ebony board 4H special for a few weeks now. I am constantly trying to get the aggressive Stingray sound out of it....and I just can't. The sound I hear in my head is the exactly that of the red 3EQ in the video below. I have a Bergantino Forte and an HDN112 cabinet. I've changed strings a few times, but haven't tried Cobalts yet. Any suggestions? Yes, I've maxed out the treble! Thanks in advance!

Click to expand...


The red one sounds like stainless steel strings to me. Maybe try D'Addario Pro-Steels.
 
#673
Before the Specials came out, I was seriously considering a Caprice. I really wanted to like them but there were a few things that I couldn't get past. The fretboard radius was too round, the pickup pole pieces don't line up and I found the pickups anemic. At least on the 2 -3 that I tried. I think that the idea was solid from EBMM but I am not sure that they nailed it quite right. At least for me, YMMV.
 
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#676
HD007 said:
While we're all playing with new toys and new strings (and keeping old toys), I thought I'd add an update on the new Cutlass.

I am loving this thing. I learned only recently that Cutlasses have more of a Precision neck than a Jazz, and the pickup is voiced a bit differently than the Caprice.

It's about 8.75 pounds (my Caprice is just under 8), but other than the weight this is sweet. I love the wider neck.

The simpleton part of me thrives with the one-pickup layout. It is a little hotter than the Caprice neck pup. I haven't had a chance to really compare any tonal differences in a playing situation. (I don't think they'd be significant.)

With the P-style limitations, I enjoy using my hands to get tonal variations. I think I do that more when I don't have to make decisions about which pickup or blend to use.

So that's it. Carry on with your aqua sparkles and TIs and Pleks! Cheers all!
Click to expand...
I chose the Cutlass over the Caprice for the same reason.
Stronger output and bigger tone to me.
 
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#677
Stranger Danger said:
Before the Specials came out, I was seriously considering a Caprice. I really wanted to like them but there were a few things that I couldn't get past. The fretboard radius was too round, the pickup pole pieces don't line up and I found the pickups anemic. At least on the 2 -3 that I tried. I think that the idea was solid from EBMM but I am not sure that they nailed it quite right. At least for me, YMMV.
Click to expand...

Interesting- it may indeed just be a YMMV. Did you ever get to play one for a while at home? The pickups are not high output but (for me at least) once I was able to really play them and adjust my equipment I found them powerful and expressive.

The Specials are awesome though, so glad you found something you liked.
 
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#678
I’m very much looking forward to getting my hands on one of these. I ordered a Special 4 in Burnt Apple from Sweetwater back in early July and was told that there would be a 30- to 60-day wait. Day 90 was this past Thursday, so I sent them a message via the website asking for an update. The rep got back to me later that day to say that—by sheer coincidence—the instrument had arrived at Sweetwater that morning, but it was damaged and had to go back to Ernie Ball. It will likely be several weeks before they get another one—I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it’s under 9 pounds, or I may have to wait even longer.
 
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#679
Doc Halo said:
I’m very much looking forward to getting my hands on one of these. I ordered a Special 4 in Burnt Apple from Sweetwater back in early July and was told that there would be a 30- to 60-day wait. Day 90 was this past Thursday, so I sent them a message via the website asking for an update. The rep got back to me later that day to say that—by sheer coincidence—the instrument had arrived at Sweetwater that morning, but that it was damaged and had to back to Ernie Ball. It will likely be another few weeks before they get another one—I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it’s under 9 pounds, or I may have to wait even longer.
Click to expand...
That sucks!
 
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