• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join freeLog in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

EBMM StingRay Special Club

You are right, as a customer, who is willing to shell out your hard earned money to expect a fully functioning instrument in return.

Hopefully, you'll get your wish!

I am on my third StingRay, and inspite of buying recently, for mucho dinero, I have no regrets.
Careful now…. You’ll end up like me having to change your TalkBass name. ;) 😅
 
Edit: Looked into that one, it really is beautiful. I will get a passive one day, I really like them.

Today I re-purchased another Special 4H, this time in Oxblood which wasn't an option the first time around. I'll snap some pics when it comes in.
Did the new Special show up yet? Oxblood looks classy, and at least for me personally, it reminds me of my first bass (2004 MIM Jazz Bass in the Midnight Wine finish). It would've been pretty tempting to go with Oxblood if that finish had been an option when I got mine!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pet Sounds
Did the new Special show up yet? Oxblood looks classy, and at least for me personally, it reminds me of my first bass (2004 MIM Jazz Bass in the Midnight Wine finish). It would've been pretty tempting to go with Oxblood if that finish had been an option when I got mine!

Yeah it does look pretty classy.

Unfortunately for anyone waiting for photos, I ended up switching the replacement bass back to Fallout Green at the last minute. I just loved the color matching on that variant too much, and didn't want to miss out on it forever. The dark green body, rosewood neck and parchment guard give off these great earthy vibes that I have completely fallen in love with.
 
Yeah it does look pretty classy.

Unfortunately for anyone waiting for photos, I ended up switching the replacement bass back to Fallout Green at the last minute. I just loved the color matching on that variant too much, and didn't want to miss out on it forever. The dark green body, rosewood neck and parchment guard give off these great earthy vibes that I have completely fallen in love with.
Best to go with your hearts desire. It’s a nice finish. The subtle sparkling ✨ is beautiful!!
 
Yeah it does look pretty classy.

Unfortunately for anyone waiting for photos, I ended up switching the replacement bass back to Fallout Green at the last minute. I just loved the color matching on that variant too much, and didn't want to miss out on it forever. The dark green body, rosewood neck and parchment guard give off these great earthy vibes that I have completely fallen in love with.
Can't argue with that! Fallout Green is definitely among the best green finishes I've seen.
 
I really think so too.

Replacement arrived today. Looked it over, looks mint in terms of assembly just like the last.

The neck is less interesting on the back but the headstock is great with nice big streaks, even on the back. The back of the headstock has a streak I've seen before on a Sweetwater example that reminds me of a tapeworm, which is the name I've given it. I like little unique quirks like this a lot so that was cool. The rosewood board is not uniform in color like the last one, and has near-black streaks all up and down the neck whereas the last was a sort of dark brown all throughout. I noticed that the neck doesn't smell as "smokey" as the last example but then when I looked at the serial number, it appears that the second bass I got was actually made 19 basses earlier than the last, so that makes sense. It was probably hanging on the factory racks a lot longer.

The bridge has a slight yellowish tinge on the shelf where the Music Man logo resides, which might be a sloppy chrome plating situation. The tuners have the same scuffing as the last one (mentioned here previously).

I wasn't sure about this bass being equal or better than the last one I got in terms of overall quality, but then I weighed it. The last bass was 8.2 pounds and this one came in at just 7.7 pounds on my scale. What a treat that was! The half-pound diet has me glad I went through the replacement process. Of course the ultimate test is to plug it in and play, so stay tuned.
 
Plays great, no buzz. I feel like it's more resonant than the other one, even acoustically. Neck was perfect this time, no adjustments needed. I did lower the bridge as I had 2.5mm/0.1 inch at the twelfth initially. Oiled the board and threw on a set of cobalt flats again too. It's perfect now.
Glad it worked out!

So... Pics?
 
New bass day! And I finally join the Stingray Special club 😀

This is a custom build from the CDE. Blue Dream finish, black hardware, ebony fretboard, flamed roasted maple neck.

Blue Dream really is the right way to describe this. It's absolutely stunning. I've only played it for a short while since it arrived but I think this is the most comfortable bass I've ever played. Instant favourite. It's so light as well. I picked it up out of the case and was amazed at the weight. Unfortunately I don't have anything to weigh it with so can't tell you what the actual weight is, but it's definitely lighter than my Spector Euro LX4 😄.

I put the order in for this on 3rd April, got the notification that UPS were picking it up on 22nd May. A bit quicker than I expected. I'm in the UK, and the box arrived in the UK Friday night, right before a public holiday, so it sat (I'm guessing) in customs for a few days, but yesterday it finally started moving and today it finally arrived, 2 days earlier than UPS originally estimated.

I'm really really happy with this!

IMG_6776.HEIC.jpg

IMG_6777.HEIC.jpg
 
New bass day! And I finally join the Stingray Special club 😀

This is a custom build from the CDE. Blue Dream finish, black hardware, ebony fretboard, flamed roasted maple neck.

Blue Dream really is the right way to describe this. It's absolutely stunning. I've only played it for a short while since it arrived but I think this is the most comfortable bass I've ever played. Instant favourite. It's so light as well. I picked it up out of the case and was amazed at the weight. Unfortunately I don't have anything to weigh it with so can't tell you what the actual weight is, but it's definitely lighter than my Spector Euro LX4 😄.

I put the order in for this on 3rd April, got the notification that UPS were picking it up on 22nd May. A bit quicker than I expected. I'm in the UK, and the box arrived in the UK Friday night, right before a public holiday, so it sat (I'm guessing) in customs for a few days, but yesterday it finally started moving and today it finally arrived, 2 days earlier than UPS originally estimated.

I'm really really happy with this!

View attachment 7238418
View attachment 7238419
In my dreams I ordered a fretless 5H in this color... Maybe one day

Enjoy that beautiful bass
 
New bass day! And I finally join the Stingray Special club 😀

This is a custom build from the CDE. Blue Dream finish, black hardware, ebony fretboard, flamed roasted maple neck.

Blue Dream really is the right way to describe this. It's absolutely stunning. I've only played it for a short while since it arrived but I think this is the most comfortable bass I've ever played. Instant favourite. It's so light as well. I picked it up out of the case and was amazed at the weight. Unfortunately I don't have anything to weigh it with so can't tell you what the actual weight is, but it's definitely lighter than my Spector Euro LX4 😄.

I put the order in for this on 3rd April, got the notification that UPS were picking it up on 22nd May. A bit quicker than I expected. I'm in the UK, and the box arrived in the UK Friday night, right before a public holiday, so it sat (I'm guessing) in customs for a few days, but yesterday it finally started moving and today it finally arrived, 2 days earlier than UPS originally estimated.

I'm really really happy with this!

View attachment 7238418
View attachment 7238419
That is especially BLUETIFUL!!!
Congratulations on a successful order.
 
I'm thinking about joining the club. I'm sure in the 8 years and nearly 15K posts in this thread that it has already been said many times, but what are your thoughts on H versus HH? I've heard so far that H is the more traditional and possibly aggressive sound, and gives room for slap/funk due to the absence of the neck pickup, whereas HH may be slightly less aggressive but with a few more tonal options.

On a very shallow note, the HH basses have a more balanced look to my eye, and I would lean that way if all things were equal. Having said that, I do like a forward tone.

Just curious if people have strong opinions.
 
  • Like
Reactions: PrimitiveMan
I'm thinking about joining the club. I'm sure in the 8 years and nearly 15K posts in this thread that it has already been said many times, but what are your thoughts on H versus HH? I've heard so far that H is the more traditional and possibly aggressive sound, and gives room for slap/funk due to the absence of the neck pickup, whereas HH may be slightly less aggressive but with a few more tonal options.

On a very shallow note, the HH basses have a more balanced look to my eye, and I would lean that way if all things were equal. Having said that, I do like a forward tone.

Just curious if people have strong opinions.
Really just preference. I prefer the switching options on the 5H more useful, but for the 4 I'd go HH for the extra options
 
New bass day! And I finally join the Stingray Special club 😀

This is a custom build from the CDE. Blue Dream finish, black hardware, ebony fretboard, flamed roasted maple neck.

Blue Dream really is the right way to describe this. It's absolutely stunning. I've only played it for a short while since it arrived but I think this is the most comfortable bass I've ever played. Instant favourite. It's so light as well. I picked it up out of the case and was amazed at the weight. Unfortunately I don't have anything to weigh it with so can't tell you what the actual weight is, but it's definitely lighter than my Spector Euro LX4 😄.

I put the order in for this on 3rd April, got the notification that UPS were picking it up on 22nd May. A bit quicker than I expected. I'm in the UK, and the box arrived in the UK Friday night, right before a public holiday, so it sat (I'm guessing) in customs for a few days, but yesterday it finally started moving and today it finally arrived, 2 days earlier than UPS originally estimated.

I'm really really happy with this!

View attachment 7238418
View attachment 7238419
Super congrats!

Ebony + Black Hardware + Blue = AWESOME!!
 
I'm thinking about joining the club. I'm sure in the 8 years and nearly 15K posts in this thread that it has already been said many times, but what are your thoughts on H versus HH? I've heard so far that H is the more traditional and possibly aggressive sound, and gives room for slap/funk due to the absence of the neck pickup, whereas HH may be slightly less aggressive but with a few more tonal options.

On a very shallow note, the HH basses have a more balanced look to my eye, and I would lean that way if all things were equal. Having said that, I do like a forward tone.

Just curious if people have strong opinions.
I used to be in the all I need is the H for that classic StingRay sound . Now I have both . Depends on what you are after. If you want more to a what the H can offer , go HH. If you want that classic StingRay “ bounce “ to the notes and that’s good enough for you, go H.

You’ll get enough of the StingRay “ bounce “ with the HH plus a whole lot more . But the questions are:
Can you adjust to the neck pickup if you slap?
On the 5 string will the G string positioning be an issue ?
Do I like what the switching options offer on the HH?

If you can try before you buy or purchase the HH first. If you can buy from a store with good return policy , you can exchange for H if the HH is not what you want.
 
On a very shallow note, the HH basses have a more balanced look to my eye, and I would lean that way if all things were equal. Having said that, I do like a forward tone.
For me the 4H has tone{s} I wanted; Many say the HH when using Bridge pickup only does the same

On a shallow note I much prefer the Single H Aesthetic :) Always have since I saw and heard one for first time back in 1979 I believe

I not a 5 String Player but 5H is sharp looking Bass also and from what I have heard on video's and a couple in the wild best ever Stingray

Yes even over my 4H