No no the color is fine, and black would be cool too. I don’t like the shape of it. I don’t know a better way to make it look....I just know I don’t like that particular shape lol
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NBD! Musicman StingRay 5H Special
- Thread starter GRoberts
- Start date
Maybe a round shaped one like other music man basses and leave the switch and knobs right on the wood with a separate white or black guard around those?.
The StingRay Special is clearly a great instrument and I am thrilled that EBMM is finally addressing the Achilles’ Heel of their basses (i.e., the weight). For me, this presents a dilemma as it will take me some time to save up the money to buy one (I don't borrow money and pay cash for everything) and I'm reluctant to give up my beloved 2001 EBMM StingRay 5H. Time will tell.
The guard has grown on me too (overall shape for the 5s).
Black would be cool but the white is neat too as the whitewall hot rod reference!
Definitely a lack of fret end finishing. It's actually pretty bad. I could obviously have Mike Lull fix it for me but not an added expense I should expect for a $2300 bass. Just wondering if any others have noticed this problem. Mine can't be the only one.
Glad you're digging your new bass though. I really like the improvements they've made
+1 on fret sprout. It happens. Wood swells and shrinks. Was it new?
Oops our posts crossed.
That’s great you have Mike Lull to take a look. Good luck and hope you get it working to your liking.
Darn sorry to hear that. I wish shops would do setups before sending things out.
True, but I really don't think this should've made it out of the factory. I really dig the bass other wise. Love the ebony board. I'll have Lull Plek it and it'll be better than new.
This can happen even on high end basses. Sorry to hear you are grappling with this issue.
It is due to high moisture content in the wood. When the neck loses this moisture after the manufacture of the bass the fret ends sticks out. You could probably fix it yourself if you are handy.
I have two identical G & L 's (close in serial number, as well) and one is affected but not the other. When I bought them they were fine for a couple of years. I'll probably get to it and file them down before the humid weather starts. It should not be expensive to fix professionally.
Thanks for the info. I guess I should be happy the bass has lost it's moisture content.
You're right, I could probably fix it myself but I'll leave it to the pro. I'm not mad. Fortunately the bass kicks ass in every other department so I'm willing to fix this and move on.
Wasn't trying to hijack or take away from the OP's great new bass buy. Just Wondering if others had this problem with their new Stingrays.
After playing the Stingray Special 5H on several gigs now, I am more and more impressed with the neck shape, neck profile and string spacing. I simply play this bass more fluidly. Maybe the Ernie ball Slinky Bass strings help too. This bass makes me wish I could have a 5 String jazz bass with the same neck shape, profile and string spacing. It fits my hand like a glove!!
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How do you like the Sennheiser wireless? Looking at picking one if these up.
Whoah, Sorry for the supersize pic. I'll try to fix that later.
The Sennheiser XSWD wireless is great for stage use. I LOVE it! My band mate has one for his guitar and the XLR version for his mic. We've used them together at several shows and they automatically play nice together.
I've used the Sennheiser wireless on my bass at least a dozen shows since I got it. It is very plug-n-play and sounds great. It doesn't reach as far as other industrial grade wireless units, but it has been ideal for all my needs. I hate dragging cords around behind me. If you leave the stage or lose line of sight at a longer distance it reaches its limits. But for any typical stage use, or walking out in front of the house system to hear the mix, it's been great!
The other caveat is that the SENN XSWD charge is good for 5 hours. That's been fine for all my shows. I just make sure I charge before your show. And I can bring a portable USB battery and a USB-C cable with me should I need to give it a little more juice. So far, I have never needed to charge during a show.
Be aware, it comes with only one charging cable (I bought an extra or use my Macbook Pro USB-C to USB cable. The Senn uses USB-C cable connectors at the Receiver and transmitter.
I know exactly what you mean and feels the exact same way. Fits the hand like a glove are words I've used to describe mine.
New Bass Day! Musicman StingRay 5H Special (2019)
I didn't find this bass. ...It found ME! Has that happened to anyone else? I didn't see this one coming and I am so excited!
I tried a Fender Jazz Bass Elite V at a local GC and liked it so I crossed town to check out another. Loved the classic sound but struggled with the neck size for my hands. The only other 5 string bass in the shop to get my attention was this cool looking Surf Green StingRay 5H Special. (Musicman calls this color "Cruz Teal.") To my surprise, the model was updated in 2018 and the first thing I noticed was its light weight. I later confirmed this particular SR 5H special weighs exactly 8.3 Lbs!! Other SR 5H Specials I found online range from 8.10 oz's to 9.6lbs. That weight range is still a lot more user-friendly than the heavier original StingRays! But this StingRay 5 weighs less than 8.5 Lbs?!? Wow! How does it sound?
The updates made in 2018 include an 18V preamp, 3-Band EQ with boost/cut for Bass/Mid/Treble. There is a 3-way selector switch for the single Humbucker pickup. The 3 switch-position modes are; Parallel, Series w/filter & Series. I am amazed at the useful and wisely voiced EQ ranges even in their most extreme settings. Tone shaping is profoundly capable and more versatile than I imagined it could be with just a single PU. I've been favoring the "Series mode" where the switch is all the way forward toward the neck. I need to try the Parallel mode a bit more and use the EQ bands to punch up the parallel sound on the bridge PU.
The ebony fingerboard is a striking deep black. It is a sexy thick slab on the maple neck. The neck profile is super comfy. The string spacing feels tighter than the 19mm spacing I am used to. Not sure if this is 18mm but it feels fantastic. It is incredibly comfortable and fits my hand well. It affords highly fluid playability. There is plenty of room for slap where the FB meets the body.
The body is lightweight swamp ash and offers sleek body contours with new sculpting. The neck bolts onto the nicely rounded & sculpted heel with 5 bolts through the heel plate. The contour at the heel is superbly rounded making upper fret access on the 22-fret fingerboard effortless and super easy to play. (Yes, the new updated Special has 22 frets!)
The official color designation is called "Cruz Teal." (But it looks just like Bel-Air or Surf Green) At first, I thought the color was a bit loud but I have completely fallen in love with it. The black knobs look great paired with the new lightweight aluminum bridge. (also black) The black tuning pegs on this color scheme look perfect. They are new and are super lightweight and the tuning ears have a thicker 3D shape versus the older flat tuning ears. The overall aesthetic of this bass exceeds the sum of its parts. It is visually striking in person!
The neck is roasted maple and has a familiar darker tint seen on most roasted neck offerings. I can't say what sonic affect the roasted neck offers if anything, but the back is a satin smooth finish and it feels great. Every note sustains like magic and can be felt resonating in the neck as I play. All notes have a nice sense of texture and fullness with detail and articulate growl that make it extremely resonant, vibrant and inspiring to play.
I've gigged this bass at three very different shows using different bass rigs at each show. It cuts in the band mix perhaps better than any bass I've used. My bandmates love it! They typically do not comment on my sound. They said I seemed to play this bass with more inspiration. That could be due to the ease the neck profile and string spacing affords me. I excuted some things better than before. (Translated: I sucked less?) LOL
Whether or not this new StingRay 5H Special rivals the original StingRay I can't say. Some have said this new model is a little warmer and less aggressive. For some that may be disheartening, but for me, those attributes constitute an "upgrade" and make it perfect! I simply cannot deal with basses bordering near or above 10lbs. The 8.3 Lb weight of this bass made it even more enticing and seductive but the sound needed to aquit itself. Boy does it ever sound great! And being less than 8.5 lbs makes a huge difference on a typical 3-4 hour show.
The sound is classic, has tons of growl, and it cuts through the band mix notching a very credible voice that works incredibly well. There is something about this bass that feels like an old bass I've played forever. It is resonant, alive, vibrant, responsive. Brilliant bass. The reviews from other owners seem to be consistently positive. I can see why.
I may name this bass "The Bird" since the color scheme reminds me of the '57 Ford T-Bird in one the photo's below.
I am more excited than I've been in a long time! It KILLS through my big rig; GK MB Fusion 800 / Bergantino CN212
They really have upped their game.
EBMM's quality control is top notch - I severely doubt the bass left the factory like that. Far more possibility it's been sat in the retailer's warehouse or store, maybe for some time and been subject to temperature or humidity fluctuation. The necks are roasted so that will have taken moisture out. However the stainless frets stay put and with extreme fluctuations in temperature or humidity the wood can move whilst the frets don't - hence the fret sprout occurring.
I suggest you do it - I play my Specials a lot but there's no way I'm selling my 2003 SR5 - the ceramic SR5 is a great bass. However the 2 lb weight difference is very welcome!!
Congratulations. Looks great - I've swapped my pg for black - it makes the Cruz teal colour look slightly different - yours is making me think about changing back again!
