Hey guys ! I've actually signed up just so I could join this thread.
So, I've recently bought a Sterling by MM Sub Ray 4 (as per my profile pic) and since I know a lot a guys like me do not have 2K to drop on a brand new Ray, I figured I'd give you my honest thoughts on this bass, and walk you through the different stages of the modding I did.
Fresh out the box, IMHO, it's a hell of a bass ! For 400 dollars, you get what I think is the best starter/backup instrument you could possibly imagine. Cool perk, it comes out of the factory very well set up. Medium action, perfect intonation, good pickup height. The factory setting will suit most playing styles. Of course, if you want it more personal, grab a wrench ! Without getting into too much detail, all the woods used are of good quality. The neck is very playable, there isn't any lump or bump on the fingerboard, and the frets are well placed and smoothed out. As far as the body goes, it's not quite as heavy as a Ray, but still heavy enough to give you a fair amount of sustain. The only flaws I've spotted on these babies are the electronics. On one hand there's the pickup. I've read people wondering whether it uses alnico or ceramic. It's ceramic. I've seen many SUB Ray4 models and I have to say, the quality of the pup is a lottery. To be explicit, mine came with unaligned magnets. I can snap a pic for those interested. Basically, all 8 poles were sticking out randomly. One E magnet was higher than an A, a G higher than a D.. Which resulted in an uneven sound. That's quite a shame cause the pickup in itself has very similar tone to a real Ray, just less full. And on the other hand, on to the preamp. Same problem here, it lacks in quality. The volume control has no sensitivity and goes from 0-100 real quick ! As far as its voicing, it is too treble-oriented, but it has a hell of a punch ! But it is quite unidimentional.. So to sum it up, killer starter or backup bass as it is, with great materials, but the electronics leave some to be desired.
Soooo let's get to the modding part ! Before anything else, I need to tell you guys what kinda tone I wanted to achieve. I grew up on blink-182, MxPx, Less Than Jake, New Found Glory.. Lots of hip-hop too, but nothing that bears much influence soundwise. Except for NFG, back in the late 90's, all of these guys were using Ray's. I know the purists will despise that, but the tone of a 90's Ray with a 3 band EQ's and ceramic pickup was a real eargasm ! AND SO WERE THE CLASSIC ONES PUT THE GUN DOWN DAMMIT ! So that's what I was going after. Heavy low-mids, warm and agressive high end, fat overall sound. So, I swapped both the pickup and the preamp at the same time and here's what happened :
- For the pickup, I went with the Seymour Duncan SMB4-D (ceramic humbucking) wired in parallel.
Music Man
- For the preamp, I went with a John East MMSR 2 band EQ. I know I just went on about the whole 3 band thing, but I prefer keeping 2 knobs and EQ-ing my mids with a pedal. Personal preference.
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Now some might wonder why picking a rather vintage preamp trying to achieve a modern tone. Well, simply because the East is to me the most faithful pre of all. And a preamp alone isn't gonna define the tone signature. It's a 50/50 mix between both the pickup and the preamp. So I did the modding, and all I can say is WOW. I was nervous at first that the combination wouldn't quite do the job, but the doubts quickly vanished. With the East pre, I get the classic Stingray tone, as close as possible to the original, and with the SD, I get the agressiveness, punch and brightness from the players I used to listen to. Here's a cover I recorded with my upgraded bass. Play the track and feel free to let me know what you think. If anyone would like to hear this configuration in a different genre, or with other settings I'd be happy to help.
If you've made it this far, thanks for reading and once again, happy to help if needed !
