Music man choices

Definitely the HH. There will be people that tell you that the HH does not sound as good as the H, they are high...

 

Difficult choices. They all are great selections. Stingray HH. I think Benny Rietveld has a great sound.

 

HH definitely does not get enough love, and I feel like I constantly catch it being over looked in similar threads time and time again. Though it has been a while, I too have heard people claim it sounds different, or that they can't get the original stingray tone from the HH. Definitely not true in my experience at all, mine has ray tone for days and so much more. To my ears it's like if you took your J bass, combined it with a standard H ray, and then fed it steroids.. It would be much like what you'd have with the HH.

 

I don't understand the interest for a single H Stingray. You still have the single H option with the HH. Plus you get 4 other options. The more options the better for me.

Can't go wrong with the Bongo either or an HS Stingray.

 

I guess it is a little bit of traditionalism. When I think "StringRay," I think about that one big humbucker and that preamp. I'm sure the HH is nice, but that isn't what I think of when I hear "StringRay." I guess it is similar to a Precision with a J pickup...technically it is an improvement, but in some ways it detracts from the essence of what the instrument really is.

 

Different strokes for different folks. I am also one that prefers a PJ to a straight P.

 

Question from a SR Classic 4H owner: are the bridge pickups in the same position on the H and HH Stingrays?

 

Far as I know it is the same position. The bridge on the Bongos is in a different position though.

 

Bridge pickups are in the same position on the H and HH Stingrays.
Had a Sabre, only used the bridge pickup - so I vote Stingray 4H.

 

EBMM makes quality basses (and guitars), so you really can't go wrong. It all comes down to personal preference. Are you frequently changing tones? Then, go for the HH. Or, are you more of a set-it-and-forget-it kinda player? Then go for the SR4.

 

SR4H gets my vote. The HH is nice too, but when I had a SR5HH, I only used the bridge humbucker. Now I have a SR5 Classic and it does everything I want it to.

 

I owned several EBMM basses during the 90s and 2000s. My take:

- My favorite was 1990 Stingray 5. I'm a big fan of the series/single-coil/parallel switch... hyper-useful.

- The Sabre and Stingray HH seemed fantastic on paper with all the switching modes... but aside from the bridge humbucker soloed, the other modes simply weren't that useful to me.

- Every EBMM bass I've ever played has a "boingy" tone compared to a Fender P or J tone. If that boingy tone suits accomplishes your sonic goal, cool... but it's something that's always there. I haven't played the new Cutlass or Caprice basses... curious if they have the same EBMM sound characteristics I'm referring to.

- Hands down, my EBMM basses win the award for the necks that moved the most with the weather and humidity. I remember reading an old magazine article with Flea in which he said one factor that brought him closer to doing his Modulus deal was that his Stingray necks tended to warp on him. Not sure if Flea was referring to what I experienced... but dang, I was always chasing those necks. Maybe they've gotten better since those days?

- If EBMM could make a multi-pickup bass with multi-position switching/panning that would truly give us the sounds of a P, Stingray, Jazz and more (similar to Nordstrand's Dan Lutz model), that would be pretty choice.

YMMV

 

This is an interesting thread for me. I've owned two SR4H's over the years. While I liked them, I always preferred my Fenders. But one thing I didn't care for with the 'Rays were the fact that the single pickup WAS so close to the bridge. Yes, I know - that's what makes a 'Ray a 'Ray.

But I prefer to anchor my thumb on top of the Precision or Jazz neck pickup. At least while playing the E string. Then I anchor on the string above the one I"m playing after that (ie., anchor on the A string while playing the D; anchor on the D while playing the G). So I think I'd really like the SR4HH. But I've never had the opportunity to play one.

I see the single-H is ahead in the polling. But I'm thinking that a lot more people own a single-H 'Ray than a HH; so that might partially account for the voting. People tend to vote for the one they own or are most familiar with. Further confusing the matter are the comments from those of you who HAVE owned both! You all make persuasive cases for your respective position, so I'm still no better off! Maybe I'll just stick with my Fenders since I KNOW I like them...

 

I also bought the 4 HH version thinking that the multiple pickup options would be really useful. In the end however I left it at the rear humbucker position pretty much all the time.

I ended up doing a really cool mod, that is remove the pickups, install an original Stingray 4H pickup an re-wire the selector to have series/parallel/bridge coil/neck coil/mute switch options (pretty much like the late 80s SR5ers).

This opened up really interesting sound options and the best is that I shaved off more than 0.3 pounds in weight!

 

Owned and gigged several of both for many years. I only have a H at the moment but that's only because I don't gig regularly anymore. The HH models are fantastic and yes they sound identical to H models from the same years. My HHs did sound a bit different from my 1990 Ray, but not enough to matter in a mix.

 

Well to make things more confusing, the poll is flawed. There is no HS option. I do like the HH config. But I like the HS better.

 

I've owned both a 98 stingray H and a 07 stingray HH. My 98 ray H was my main gigging bass from 98 until I bought the HH in 07. Then the HH was my main bass for about 2 years or so. Ultimately I sold the HH and kept the H. Here's why: For me I only found one or two coil settings that I found useful on the HH and usually it was the bridge pickup solo'd. The neck pickup was much quieter than the bridge pickup and when I tried to use both pickups together, it was kind of a muddy thuddy mess. maybe i got a dud. maybe it was some other environmental factor. IDK. the other factor in my decision to sell was the fact that that neck pickup always seemed to be in my way from a playing standpoint.
That said- my HH was gorgeous and well made. As long I was using the bridge pickup it was all Ray and sounded great. ymmv.

 

I voted 4h, at least it was not a 5'er...