It plays great with the Nylons onboard. I just finished about an hour with it. Nice, and smooth.
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It plays great with the Nylons onboard. I just finished about an hour with it. Nice, and smooth.
I'd suggest just checking out what your favorite bassists use and then try them out at your local store! That worked great for me to find the perfect bass that fits me sound-wise
Personally and my opinion only, I would get the Jazz and forget the other two. The Jazz neck pickup can get a pretty decent P-tone. So you would have the J and P tones in one bass, also a soloed bridge pickup tone. As far as the Ray goes, I tried to love them and bought two on separate occasions but just never bonded with the pickup placement. In fact, it annoyed the hell out me..for me, the neck pickup is a must.
Can't agree with @FishDub as to a J sounding like a P. I like other basses on occasion, but nothing beats a P, IMHO. Not that you shouldn't get a J or a 'Ray, but I'd definitely hang on to your P.
Really digging this thread. Thanks for the variety of opinions. Going to head down to a guitar shop next to my work to get hands on... My classic 50's P is chunnnnky. Been playing my franken-P a lot more since it has a mid 90's MIM P Neck and that feels much more comfortable.
Since you are putting the FENDER Jazz vs MM Sting Ray You might want to take a look at the MM Caprice. It is not a compromise but has some of the great features combined. It's passive, light weight, big MM sound, does not have the nazely tone the J bridge pickup has on it's own and some if the positives of the J
Aside form weight, 'feel', and neck profile, the real difference is the two single coils' tone vs. the tone of that single massive humbucker and it's active electronics.
The MM is like a Precision inasmuch as where you pluck the strings is how you control for how thick or thin you want the tone to be. Closer to the neck is beefier, twang-ier over or behind the pickup towards the bridge. Also the length of the string that wide pickup is sensing is rounder than the more narrow single coils in the Jazz.
With the Jazz, it's a bit less output in stock form, but you have the many options for tone offered by two pickups and what kind of blend between the two you dial up. This accomplishes a lot of the same thing as moving your plucking hand on the MM, though you can hear it on the Jazz as well: It's often not as obvious on a two-pickup axe, but it's still there.
In my experience the Jazz would feel a bit lighter and easier to move around on, where as the MM may be a bit heavier, just a bit more clunky for lack of a better term.
But it's hard to go wrong with either one. I'd approach it if everything else is equal of do I want one or two pickups.
The MM is like a Precision inasmuch as where you pluck the strings is how you control for how thick or thin you want the tone to be. Closer to the neck is beefier, twang-ier over or behind the pickup towards the bridge. Also the length of the string that wide pickup is sensing is rounder than the more narrow single coils in the Jazz.
With the Jazz, it's a bit less output in stock form, but you have the many options for tone offered by two pickups and what kind of blend between the two you dial up. This accomplishes a lot of the same thing as moving your plucking hand on the MM, though you can hear it on the Jazz as well: It's often not as obvious on a two-pickup axe, but it's still there.
In my experience the Jazz would feel a bit lighter and easier to move around on, where as the MM may be a bit heavier, just a bit more clunky for lack of a better term.
But it's hard to go wrong with either one. I'd approach it if everything else is equal of do I want one or two pickups.
This is me..I call it my Leo Trio. Pretty much have all bases covered with those three.
I should expand a little bit on my previous post:
Jazz basses are cool, really nice body shape, beautiful neck profile if you like it skinny. I have issues with single coil basses, however. I can never get the tone in my head out of them.
Enter the stingray: Neck that is a little chunkier, but such a nice profile for my hands. I can't describe it, and describing neck profiles past Skinny/chunky/wide/narrow without putting it in your hands is crazy anyways.
The ray punches no matter what. I can get it to cut no matter what. Out of all my basses (maybe adding in my ASAT) i feel the most confident when I bring out the Ray. I know I'm going to be laying down some sound with it.
I have a 4003: kinda like a jazz, and a precision as well! I tend to favor the Ray, ASAT, Ric, P in that order.
If you factor in the t-bird i once had: Ray, ASAT, T-bird, Ric, P.
Jazz basses are cool, really nice body shape, beautiful neck profile if you like it skinny. I have issues with single coil basses, however. I can never get the tone in my head out of them.
Enter the stingray: Neck that is a little chunkier, but such a nice profile for my hands. I can't describe it, and describing neck profiles past Skinny/chunky/wide/narrow without putting it in your hands is crazy anyways.
The ray punches no matter what. I can get it to cut no matter what. Out of all my basses (maybe adding in my ASAT) i feel the most confident when I bring out the Ray. I know I'm going to be laying down some sound with it.
I have a 4003: kinda like a jazz, and a precision as well! I tend to favor the Ray, ASAT, Ric, P in that order.
If you factor in the t-bird i once had: Ray, ASAT, T-bird, Ric, P.
- Sep 14, 2012
- 1,561
- 1,210
- 40
- Disclosures
- Reverend Guitars ; SIT Strings ; Trickfish Amplifiers ; LK Straps ; Rattlesnake Cables
Me too: But I swapped in an ASAT in place of the Jazz. As previously stated, I dont get on with single coils
Get Musicman sound and quality, with the feel of a Jazz neck and a more P bass like body by getting an EBMM Sterling! I swear by them.
"As far as I'm concerned, everyone should have a Precision, Jazz, and
Fixed it.
I owned both a 2015 Music Man Stingray Classic 4 & a 2008 Fender American Standard jazz bass.
I bought the Ray first & then secondly the Jazz.
The Ray was $1200 used & the Jazz was $750 used.
Aesthetically, I feel the Jazz is gorgeous & the Ray is " primitive " looking.
They both felt & played very well to me. I especially loved the Ray's trussrod adjustment wheel.
The Jazz is a hair over 9# & I'd guess the Ray was 10.5 - 11#.
Both necks felt great, but, the Ray neck felt particularly " rubbery " or soft to me with quite a bit of give to it.
The Ray is probably technically more gorgeous with it's bird's-eye maple neck & natural ash body, but, my Blizzard Pearl Jazz is no slouch.
Sound wise, I love my Jazz bass & it's versatility. The Ray I felt was lacking in the tone department. Yes, it's a single pickup bass, but, so is my Blizzard Pearl Precision bass with flats & between hand placement & the tone knob, my Precision is plenty versatile.
I ultimately got rid of the Stingray, though I may consider buying another someday.
Good luck with your bass search!
**** Another thing is I never could achieve withthe Ray was ultra low action. The strings wouldn't adjust as low to the frets as I wanted with the bridge saddles. I've never had a bass I couldn't adjust to 4/64" - 3/64" @ the 12th fret, or lower if wanted, besides this one.
I bought the Ray first & then secondly the Jazz.
The Ray was $1200 used & the Jazz was $750 used.
Aesthetically, I feel the Jazz is gorgeous & the Ray is " primitive " looking.
They both felt & played very well to me. I especially loved the Ray's trussrod adjustment wheel.
The Jazz is a hair over 9# & I'd guess the Ray was 10.5 - 11#.
Both necks felt great, but, the Ray neck felt particularly " rubbery " or soft to me with quite a bit of give to it.
The Ray is probably technically more gorgeous with it's bird's-eye maple neck & natural ash body, but, my Blizzard Pearl Jazz is no slouch.
Sound wise, I love my Jazz bass & it's versatility. The Ray I felt was lacking in the tone department. Yes, it's a single pickup bass, but, so is my Blizzard Pearl Precision bass with flats & between hand placement & the tone knob, my Precision is plenty versatile.
I ultimately got rid of the Stingray, though I may consider buying another someday.
Good luck with your bass search!
**** Another thing is I never could achieve withthe Ray was ultra low action. The strings wouldn't adjust as low to the frets as I wanted with the bridge saddles. I've never had a bass I couldn't adjust to 4/64" - 3/64" @ the 12th fret, or lower if wanted, besides this one.
I have owned many of both and for me, I would take the Jazz Bass for the different styles of music I play.
Hear, hear!Get Musicman sound and quality, with the feel of a Jazz neck and a more P bass like body by getting an EBMM Sterling! I swear by them.
