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Fender p bass or Ernie ball stingray

#141
No idea if this will help but.....

Played a pre EB Stingray for 20 yrs cause back in the early 80's it was the bass to have and at the time you couldnt give P basses away, but I was never quite satisfied with the sound...sure it cut through ok but the lack of low mids gnawed away at me everytime I played it.

I then had a 10 yr break and came back with a cheap Mex P and never picked the Stringray up again and sold it.

A P bass played with flats and a light touch has a quality that is very hard to beat IME.
 
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#142
Tuna Can Dan said:
What's up everyone! Im new to this site and I wanted to know everyone's opinion. I own 2 bass guitars and I can't justify having both at the moment so I have to choose which to keep. I currently own a American pro fender p bass and a Ernie ball musicman stingray 4. Here's what I've come up with: Fender is a fender it has the traditional bass sound and you can't go wrong. Ernie ball has that signature sound you either love or hate. I personally feel the stingray stands out more and cuts through in a band better. I've had many compliments on my stingray played through a Ampeg svt CL with 8x10. I'm stuck between loving the way the fender looks and feels vs the stingray sound. Also in the fender I have the Seymour Duncan quarter pounder installed. I just feel like the fender doesn't have as much balls as the Ernie ball. Please let me know your thoughts and opinions . Here's both my guitars!
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I also own a fender P. with quater pounder and a MM stingray 5. i would not part with either. you are right about the mystique and unmistakable sound of a P. but the MM not only cuts through live but also sits just right in recordings. especially for heavier music. there is no question my advice would be to keep both. between both you have everything covered.
 
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#143
metron said:
I recommend keeping the precision. I think the sound is a little more universal which would be beneficial when having only one bass. The downside is that it's obviously less of a unique sound than the StingRay. Sure the 'Ray cuts through more but in my experience, that's not always desirable.
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The Stingray *can* cut through if that's what you want it to do. It can also sit happily back in the mix if that's what you want it to do. Check out the very different sounds people have got using Stingrays in recordings in pop, funk, metal, rock... anything.

To be honest, both basses will do just fine in just about anything.
 
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#144
Tuna Can Dan said:
What's up everyone! Im new to this site and I wanted to know everyone's opinion. I own 2 bass guitars and I can't justify having both at the moment so I have to choose which to keep. I currently own a American pro fender p bass and a Ernie ball musicman stingray 4. Here's what I've come up with: Fender is a fender it has the traditional bass sound and you can't go wrong. Ernie ball has that signature sound you either love or hate. I personally feel the stingray stands out more and cuts through in a band better. I've had many compliments on my stingray played through a Ampeg svt CL with 8x10. I'm stuck between loving the way the fender looks and feels vs the stingray sound. Also in the fender I have the Seymour Duncan quarter pounder installed. I just feel like the fender doesn't have as much balls as the Ernie ball. Please let me know your thoughts and opinions . Here's both my guitars!
Click to expand...
Here is my 2 cents...If you don't NEED the money to fund another I would keep both. I have sold many basses in the past only to regret it or have needed it eventually for a different genre. Both of those basses have their place, sound and playability-I have owned both. Who knows? You may need both or the one you would have sold..However, since these are very common and easily acquired you can always get another down the road if need be..:-)
 
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#146
Pretty sure I already responded here, but just saw the thread title again and had a quick thought that sums it up for me...

Do you want your bass to be "in the mix", or "in your face"?

I'll probably come up with a better way to say that after I have my coffee, but that's how I see the difference between my P and my Stingray. One sits nicely in the mix, the other you KNOW is there. You can figure out which is which :).
 
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#147
Guitar_3.JPG
As a Stingray owner, I'm going to tell you to keep the Ray, but only if you absolutely have to sell one of them.

We all know what both basses sound like, but you can smooth out a Ray's aggressive tone by EQ, and playing over the end of the neck. You can't get a P-bass to sound as aggressive as a Ray, and that's that.

It's like a band aid and a ballpoint pen; different needs.

Mike
 
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#148
1. It's chocolate v. butterscotch - different strokes for different folks. We can't tell you which is a better bass for YOU.

2. When is doubt, go for the bass that is better to play. Never mind that a P will never be out of place, as my sound guy puts it, he can make any bass sound good. On the other hand, if it is more difficult to play, nothing (other than a set up if there is an issue) can change that.
 
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#149
I personally think a P can sound every bit as aggressive as Ray. It just depends on what frequencies you are talking about. A P distorts so well and that immediately can place it anywhere in a mix. I am into forward sounding bass tones and I think the P does them as well as any bass. The whole huge treble thing is not really my style though. It's too bitey and thin. I usually keep the treble on my classic Ray a little under half up.
 
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#151
They are both very versatile basses. The SR gets called a 1-trick pony, but it's really not. The preamp offers a lot of versatility and slapping a dif set of strings on opens up whole new universes of tone. I've got one SR with rounds and another with nylon tapewounds right now. With the treble rolled off the latter could pass for a P (ok, maybe with a little more bite) ;)
 
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#153
May have to slightly amend my answer as I have been trying out a bunch of Pbasses lately and keep going in that direction. I may end selling my Ray just to save some cash. Not sure yet, but personally I feel like the Pbass and some pedals is all I need. I just love the simplicity of it. Of course I am mainly playing Jazz/R&B/fusion..etc. So it just seems to work for me.

I guess I still lean Pbass here, just in a more solid direction.
 
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#155
The Precision Bass has been used on an awful lot of hard rock records, some metal as well.
The Jazz bass seems to be an often used bass for Jazz.
Stingray has been used on a lot of funk records, disco, dance and pop.
I think that a Stingray can be brought into the territory of the P Bass and the Jazz bass if the player tames that massive treble, unfortunately it seems very few want to dial it back a bit.
 
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#158
Tuna Can Dan said:
So after much thought I think I'm going to keep my stingray. I seem to keep going back to it and can't get over the sound. I can get another fender down the road. So with that being said is there anyone that has a stingray classic they'd like to trade for the fender? I think I prefer gloss necks better. I played my friends classic last night and really liked the neck. Also I'll offer the p bass up for sale here before I put it on eBay/reverb.
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I'm confused, I thought the threads title question was posed because one of them had to go, you couldn't justify having the two basses.
So now the P Bass is going and you want to trade it for a second Stingray? ...so you will have two Stingrays?
 

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