I think it has more to do with which company floods the market with lower budget instruments.
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Music man Stingray
- Thread starter wattsman
- Start date
I think it has more to do with which company floods the market with lower budget instruments.
Indy bands remind of of the faddish "New Wave" scene of the 80's... seems there is more focus on fashion than substance (by some people, I'm sure not all)..
I always admired bands that buck trends and set them, rather than follow them.. I always like that about Rush.. The music was hard edged at times, almost like heavy metalish tones, but the music was played on old school Gibson ES-335, Fender Strats, Rickenbacker 4001, and fender Jazz bass...
I always admired bands that buck trends and set them, rather than follow them.. I always like that about Rush.. The music was hard edged at times, almost like heavy metalish tones, but the music was played on old school Gibson ES-335, Fender Strats, Rickenbacker 4001, and fender Jazz bass...
I have several 'Rays and think the construction, playability andlooks are outstanding. I also like Rics and Hofners and Jazz basses. But at the end of the day, after much trial and experimentation, I've found the P-Bass just works better for most of the music I like. Stingrays have a "zing" to them that you either love or you don't.
I agree with Pet Sounds about the bright bite sounds of the Stingray, that point is made in a lot of reviews. I like the sound and hope to find a used lefty Stingray soon.
Are you implying that fashion statements rule over substance and/or what YOU want vs. the SHEEP?
I agree with you. This whole tone thing with the wood is like being an audiophile that says everything sounds like sh%t. I own a lot of really nice
basses and they all sound good but they all have different electronics.
I get it on and acoustic instrument, but electrics? Not so sure.
I wonder what a balsa wood body would sound like?
Right.... I think once you get past some basic mechanical laws ... tensile strength, a certain minimum density ... the build quality, engineering and electronics play a much larger role than the woods, and finish...
Sure, I love the idea of a nitro cellulose ash or mahogany body instrument with an amazing flame or birds eye maple neck and other fancy woods, but I'm sure given the proper setup, and electronics/pickups a $200 Malaysian made bass would sound 90% as good as my $6000 customshop Fender Jazz. The problem is 99% of those $200 basses don't come with great pre-amps, pickups or a decent setup (frets dressing etc).
That all being said.. I'm a huge fan of quality workmanship, and materials.... so I do feel the premium we pay for those fancy woods is worth it to me assuming they don't "Take away" from the basics of building a good bass guitar.
There's a zillion Toyota Corollas on the road, but not so many Corvettes. It certainly doesn't mean they're better. StingRays are just a bit more exclusive for the consumer that isn't going to settle for generic cookie-cutter products. If everyone played one, I wouldn't like my MMs or Rickenbacker nearly as much.
Stingrays are considered very unhip. They scream 80s-90s bright slap, pop, fusion, church band, suburban Guitar Center blandness. You'd think with all the hipster interest in all things 80s that they would have been embraced more enthusiastically by the kids. The cool kids play Fenders, Rics or Thunderbirds. Remember, being in an Indie band is supposed to be DIY, not taking yourself seriously, not a technical muso type vibe. It's considered bad taste to be too good on your instrument or have too much theory. It would be like Dee Dee Ramone playing an Alembic. You're supposed to give off an "I don't give a poopie" vibe. Colin Greenwood of Radiohead played a MM for a while before switching to a 70s Precision. I've never owned a MM but there are some players I really admire for whom it was signature sound (Pino, Paul S. Denman, Bernard Edwards). I speak with some authority on what the hipsters favor because I live in Brooklyn, the Mecca of Hipsters. Like others have said, play what sounds right to you.
that's a good point too.... I recall the days in the 80's when you went into a music store (even GC) and there were a handful of Fender, Gibson, EBMM, and maybe one or two quasi-botique (a Spector, or maybe Warwik) brands hanging on the wall... all of which were not made in some 3rd world country and all of which cost a lot of money ... there really was very few $200 bass guitars (maybe a lower end Ibanez or something) and some Squires/Epiphones ...
Today it's the opposite... 90% of guitars hanging on the wall at most music shops are sub $300 versions of the big brands.. and only one or two might be the "real deal" ... Rickenbacker is a great example... rarely do you see one hanging on the wall at a store anymore... they're usually special order.
very well said... just like I said above.. "Style over substance" is a big part of Indy "rock"
My take:
I have to somewhat agree with the 80's / 90's fad tone thing; it annoyed me that Flea came along and took a great sound and style and turned it into some macho punk jackassery. Not that Flea isn't great- because he is- but he inspired lots of suburban white kids to jump around and slap on EVERYTHING. That's why I stopped slapping.
With that said, I have found that once I got used to the tone (by gigging with it for a while and then returning to P/J and back to the single humbucker again) I found it was the one that worked most consistently for live performance. That quirky bluunnng it makes and the big round bottom are great for rock; that funk slap tone is perfect for pop and dance. I find that it is a great substitute for vintage P/J tones but I don't find those vintage tones to be a consistently good substitute for the Stingray.
I've gone through a lot of tone varieties in the under $800 range looking for what I like and I've figured out that I'm a single humbucker kind of guy now and I proudly wear one on any stage.
I have to somewhat agree with the 80's / 90's fad tone thing; it annoyed me that Flea came along and took a great sound and style and turned it into some macho punk jackassery. Not that Flea isn't great- because he is- but he inspired lots of suburban white kids to jump around and slap on EVERYTHING. That's why I stopped slapping.
With that said, I have found that once I got used to the tone (by gigging with it for a while and then returning to P/J and back to the single humbucker again) I found it was the one that worked most consistently for live performance. That quirky bluunnng it makes and the big round bottom are great for rock; that funk slap tone is perfect for pop and dance. I find that it is a great substitute for vintage P/J tones but I don't find those vintage tones to be a consistently good substitute for the Stingray.
I've gone through a lot of tone varieties in the under $800 range looking for what I like and I've figured out that I'm a single humbucker kind of guy now and I proudly wear one on any stage.
Ok, Lol
They are both fairly common, though. If you want to really be a rebel, play a wish bass! I have Fenders, Stingrays, and a Ric, btw.
I appreciate your post, but the "cool kids" have always played those basses. The hipsters didn't invent that business.
Don't fool yourself, Musicman and big pappa would love to have that "flooded" market. Why do you think MM licensed it's good name to import copies?
This whole Indie band thing is new to me since I'm a good bit older. Don't get me wrong but is Indie more about looks or music. I just listened to some on you tube and just sounded like a bunch of high pitched kids with a lot of drums.
If you just need to look cool go with the Fender,
Both do a great job if you're playing music.
If you just need to look cool go with the Fender,
Both do a great job if you're playing music.
