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NBD-Stingray 5 Anniversary Edition

#21
guy n. cognito said:
I will fully admit that the looks alone drew me to this bass. I normally don't like a 5H. But whatever they've done to the pre makes this thing a keeper.
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I just recorded a video earlier comparing the 30th Anniversary to a standard Stingray 5 H. There is a big difference in tone and loudness of the 30th over a standard Stingray 5 H. I didn't touch the settings on my amp and when I played the two back to back under the exact settings, the 30th was in my guess probably 3-5 decimals louder and in my opinion had a much clearer and cleaner tone.
 
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#22
Bassist Jay said:
I just recorded a video earlier comparing the 30th Anniversary to a standard Stingray 5 H. There is a big difference in tone and loudness of the 30th over a standard Stingray 5 H. I didn't touch the settings on my amp and when I played the two back to back under the exact settings, the 30th was in my guess probably 3-5 decimals louder and in my opinion had a much clearer and cleaner tone.
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I'd love to see it. Link?
 
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#23
guy n. cognito said:
I will fully admit that the looks alone drew me to this bass. I normally don't like a 5H. But whatever they've done to the pre makes this thing a keeper.
Click to expand...
I love the looks of the standard 5H but never got into the Classic series; don't like 7.25" on a 5 string fretboard and I missed the originals pickguard. I love vintage white with a tort or pearl white pickguard. That roasted maple neck and binding knock it out of the park. So classic, looks like a piece of candy.
 
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#24
BFunk said:
Please post a link to the vid once you put it online. Thanks.
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I made the video already and can post it but the recording of my playing both basses didn't come out great. Also, I just started using these 5 strings after having played thinner neck 4 string basses for 30 plus years so my playing also sounded like garbage. I'm almost embarrassed to show it but if you don't mind a few seconds of very poor playing on my part, I'll post the video that compares the 30th SR5 to a standard SR5.
 
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#28
andruca said:
Comparing this with a current production SR5 (alnico) or Classic Stingray 5 (alnico + thicker neck) is not fair really. The closest to this Anniversary SR5 would be pre-2008 Stingray 5s, which use that same earless pickup (ceramic).
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Not sure how the comparison isn't fair unless it was specific to differences in the alnico and ceramic pickups(?). There is nothing wrong with comparing various versions and vintages of basses. I don't think most of us expect that they should sound the same but it's always interesting hearing comparisons of new/altered models with old favorites.
 
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#29
rmars said:
Not sure how the comparison isn't fair unless it was specific to differences in the alnico and ceramic pickups(?). There is nothing wrong with comparing various versions and vintages of basses. I don't think most of us expect that they should sound the same but it's always interesting hearing comparisons of new/altered models with old favorites.
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To me a ceramic SR5 sounds nothing like alnico ones (don't get me wrong, they do sound similar but if you're really into them the sound character differences between alnico and ceramic are very noticeable). I own 2 ceramic SR5s (1997 and 2003) and they're way more similar to this Anniversary SR5 (as per videos, they're nowhere to be tested here in Europe) than current production alnico SR5s. I also own a Sterling5 HS with the more modern pickup cover shape and, while also ceramic, sounds definitely thinner than my old SR5s.
 
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#31
BFunk said:
Please post a link to the vid once you put it online. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Here is a link to my YouTube account that I uploaded the video to. Please pardon my sucky playing and bad audio quality. I'm in the middle of getting some more recording equipment for recording videos. I just started playing 5 string as well. For 30 plus years, I have played 4 string basses and most had thinner necks so there is a lot of adapting and I have had very little play time since November due to several hospitalizations and surgery. I normally don't sound as bad as I did in the video.

 
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#35
andruca said:
Comparing this with a current production SR5 (alnico) or Classic Stingray 5 (alnico + thicker neck) is not fair really. The closest to this Anniversary SR5 would be pre-2008 Stingray 5s, which use that same earless pickup (ceramic).
Click to expand...

Well, I wasn't worried about being "fair", rather making a meaningful comparison for those that may be interested. Between the change in pickup and preamp, I'm not sure if I'd try to boil the difference down to the pickup magnet material exclusively.
 
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#36
Beautiful bass. My GC had one too. The figuring on the neck with the binding was absolutely amazing. Needed a set up badly though. Strings were a 1/4 inch off the board. I was a little disappointed in that, but that's GC for ya. Lol.

Great score! Enjoy!
 
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