It does look good. I still like the tort a bit better though.
It looks like the Ruby Punch BFR with the white guard
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EBMM StingRay Special Club
- Thread starter MultiScaleMale
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It looks like the Ruby Punch BFR with the white guard
Definitely diggin’ the white pg (and matching headstock - yes!!) Excellent pair of Stingrays you got there.
Howdy, folks! I am thinking of consolidating my Stingrays from a 4H and a 5H to a 5 HH. What do y'all think of this idea? Also, I have my eye on a 5HH with an ebony fretboard. Will it sound much different than rosewood? Thanks!
I have had maple,rosewood and now ebony 5hh. The ebony is my favorite. Not as crazy aggressive as maple which can sometimes be a bit hard to tame with string choice. But a little brighter than rosewood, It's hard to describe. It just sounds rich and luxurious.
Keep in mind ebony is more brittle and if you live in adverse climate, it might not be the best choice as it has a higher probability of cracking.
Thank you, @CrimsonGhost, that is great to hear. @humbuckaroo, we're in Cali but moving to OH soon. I think we can keep a reasonable humidity. Maybe one of those little humidity things for the case? There's one around here somewhere....
EBMM's finishes never cease to amaze me!
I wouldn't do that. Had an HH (4), but I didn't find the two pickups being all that magic.
Once I started playing 5s I sold my 4H. I have a 5HH and I love the versatility. I don't know the 5H, but if you love any of the sounds aside from Full H, you might not want to let it go.
Can't speak to ebony aside from liking it on my violin. And that every picture of a ray with an ebony board makes me happy.
I don't really like the other settings on the HH models myself (outside of position 4), but I recommend trying for yourself.
Do you use the series options on the 5H? That's my favorite and I would miss not having that
I think ebony Stingrays sound the best personally. Notes bloom very fast and it has a little extra high frequency right where I like it. I only really notice it when playing solo though. In a mix I don't think it makes much difference. I had a maple board and ebony board Special at the same time they sounded nearly identical in a mix
I have had 4h and 2 5hh.
I sold my 4h and stuck with HH as there are many great usable positions.
Neck pup position 1 - dime the mids and you have a great p-bass tone.
Position 2 sort of 60s jazz
Position 3 middle both pups not used too often but works for certain material.
Position 4 sort of 70s jazz.
Position 5 classic stingray.
Popping slapping etc isn't a big of a deal as people say with the neck pickup. just takes a little time to find your right hand position.
I sold my 4h and stuck with HH as there are many great usable positions.
Neck pup position 1 - dime the mids and you have a great p-bass tone.
Position 2 sort of 60s jazz
Position 3 middle both pups not used too often but works for certain material.
Position 4 sort of 70s jazz.
Position 5 classic stingray.
Popping slapping etc isn't a big of a deal as people say with the neck pickup. just takes a little time to find your right hand position.
I get what you mena, but
I agree with you for the most part, but I thought Position #1 is bridge pickup only and position #5 is neck pickup only, IOW, the opposite of what you posted. Like you said, boosting mids for the neck-only position is a good way to use it, but I only boost about halfway and also boost the highs a similar amount. You get some clack that way, but the tone is meaty with good definition and the clack is isn't as obvious as the note definition in the mix.
I find all five HH pickup switch positions very usable and, as I've said many times in the various Stingray threads, I use all five of them on our typical four-set / four-hour gig. Position #4, the middle coils, is my consistent favorite, but I also have regular love affairs with the other four. Lately I've really liked Positions #1 and #5, especially with some SVT-like overdrive (my Broughton SV-Pre does that REALLY well!).
I've love the option for both neck coils, thinking that would be more of a 60's Jazz bass tone, but I still love #4 as-is.
I agree with you for the most part, but I thought Position #1 is bridge pickup only and position #5 is neck pickup only, IOW, the opposite of what you posted. Like you said, boosting mids for the neck-only position is a good way to use it, but I only boost about halfway and also boost the highs a similar amount. You get some clack that way, but the tone is meaty with good definition and the clack is isn't as obvious as the note definition in the mix.
I find all five HH pickup switch positions very usable and, as I've said many times in the various Stingray threads, I use all five of them on our typical four-set / four-hour gig. Position #4, the middle coils, is my consistent favorite, but I also have regular love affairs with the other four. Lately I've really liked Positions #1 and #5, especially with some SVT-like overdrive (my Broughton SV-Pre does that REALLY well!).
I've love the option for both neck coils, thinking that would be more of a 60's Jazz bass tone, but I still love #4 as-is.
Neck pickup only with a pick and some tube drive sounds awesome. Very thick powerful p vibe but still different depending on where you are on the mids
My 4h with a pick for instance always had this top end thing especially on D and G I always disliked about stingrays with a pick, that and always trying to more more beef by riding the bass control just didn't do it.
I have a 4HH, dig it with flats or rounds, and just ordered a fretless 4H incoming. Deliciousness, all along the way.
Of course I can!
As somebody else stated, the additional 4 positions of the switch give you a (little) wider tonal palette, more or less Fender-y type of sounds. That's 100% true, and that's why I initially decided to buy one ("I'll bring with me one bass only, wooo!")
BUT.
Apart from my bad luck with the very bass, I found those 4 extra sounds...dull.
I have 8 basses, all of them are GREAT instruments (ranging from 500 to almost 4k €), and simply get the job done easier and better than any of those 4 sounds. I'm very "picky" about sounds, as I think most of us are and, if I want a P Bass tone, I have nothing to do except plugging (at home, in studio or live) one of my two P basses. Idem for the Jazz, etc.
Also, those 4 position sounded ok while playing alone but, once I tried it with a band, they turned out to be more difficult to dial in. Way easier to switch bass and turn some knobs on the amp/pedals, maybe. I'm 32 and I practice sports, moving an additional bass isn't much pain for me.
Furthermore, the "Stingray Position" of the HH didn't really sound like a H Stingray.
I thought it was placebo because, before buying mine, I tried two Special 4 -H and HH- in another store and I then had the feeling that the H was "The Stingray", while the HH sounded a little more tamed in character, a little more zingy in the top.
Once I got my 4HH (ebony fretboard), I put on my usual strings (Rotosound RS66LD), setted it up like my Speical 5H (ebony fretboard played thru same exact measurements, same equipment, same room, etc etc) and...I found that it was not placebo: the bridge position sounded really different.
So, all in all, an HH wouldn't be my choice again. My Classic 4H and my Special 5H are more than fantastic instruments; if I want/I'm in need some other kind of sound, I simply have to switch bass.
My 2 cents, of course!
Having owned over 150+ basses and having p's j's and H and HH at the same time I 1000000% disagree with this and believe this "doesn't sound like a H stingray" is internet bunk.
H gives you 3 distinct textures from one pickup; HH gives 5 blended combinations across two — broader range, but does not duplicate all of the H’s exact voicings. Also, only the H was ever available with two tone controls, which some players say is in some ways better than the Stingrays with three tone controls.
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An opposite take - i have a 4H and a 4HH.
I got the 4HH 2nd and i find it significantly more versatile and maybe to its discredit, i find myself almost never using the soloed Bridge position now lol. At least in my case - the bridge soloed sounds near identical, and if i wasn't A-B'ing them they both sound good / essentially the same even on the more skeptical side (one has newer strings).
IMO the approach that people take when talking about the HH is comparing it to other basses - and in alot of cases passive basses which is just wierd, but i understand trying to give someone some frame reference. I frequently see people state that just the Neck is like an EB, the 4th position is like a PBass, and the 2nd position is like a Jazz bass - i don't agree - you obvoiusly get some similar frequency scoops but they just sound like a different vibe, because the placements arent the exact same, its active, and has massive hot pole peices.
If anything - if you going for a "Pbass" vibe, or a more agressive "Jazz bass" vibe ect ect, most of that is going to lie in the fact that you have a 3 band preamp that IMO sounds fantastic. Yes, switching to the neck will mellow it out a bit, but so will cutting your mids and bass boosting, this goes for the H or the HH - you can still get a similar vibe in the mix even on the H bass by playing with the onboard preamp."
Things id personally consider which made me go with the 4H to start with instead of the HH (which i wouldnt do if i went back in time).
- The pickup gets in the way of slap for me (and alot of people). I can still slap on the HH but its less comfortable and i have to adjust my finger placement
- You probbably don't care at all - but there is a giant plastic and non-recessed backplate for the HH. It did bother me a bit, but obvouisly most people dont see that including yourself
- Its going to be slightly heavier.
- More to think about / fiddle with- which can be a good or a bad thing lol. Before on the HH i would tweak my tone signficantly song to song since im in a cover band, but that was just 3 knobs, now its like... okay i want to do this Pickup Setting, and this pre-amp setting.
Aside from this i don't really see a whole lot if any advantages of H over the HH and one of my points was just actively giving yourself less options or completely asthetic.
If i had to pick one, it would be the HH - although im keeping both. Both of them are super versitile just with the preamp but i don't feel like your actively missing out on anythign with the HH, your just getting "more".
Lastly - i know for myself at least.. everytime i go through a different "type of bass" phase - it takes a while to dial in everything with your band. When i went from Jazz basses to getting a new Pbass.. it just felt/sounded off.. until i slowly re-dialed in my amp to get it where i wanted it.. same thing when i switched to the stingray - its normal.. especially when what sounds good solo at home completely changes in a mix. The nice thing about the stingray special is just how much you can shape it even if you run your Amp flat.
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