I can only speak for mine. Bought it about 1 1/2 years ago and the neck was/is in great condition. Very small chip or two at the tip of the headstock.
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S.U.B. Club
- Thread starter chrism2sych
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Thanks! Good to know re: neck. Yeah, it seems like no matter what the headstock chips are gonna on pretty much any MusicMan bass that was handled regularly. My regular Stingray has rash in the same area, so I get it ha
My first 3 SUBs were perfect. Sold them like a fool. Got another in 2021 but the guy didn't tell me he magic marked all the dings in the head stock. The only reason I kept it is because it is number 19. But yeah it's going to be hard finding a SUB now with a perfect headstock.
Fun story: I'm looking to get a gigging Stingray due to the cost of replacement nowadays if anything crazy happens at a venue. I did a lot of researches into the Sterling Ray34s. The fit and finish was hard to accept for the ~$1k price tag (the tuner saga, sanding marks, cheap nut, toy-like pots, lots of other little things). It does a super convincing Stingray tone print though (like 85% of what you want), but then I heard about the truss rod issues. Despite all of that, I was about to buy a Ray34 at Guitar Center and asked their tech see if the truss rod was seized and sure enough, it wouldn't spin. Hence why I'm pursuing a US-made SUB.
FWIW, it did seem like a less refined preamp and pickup if you're used to EBMM (again, it is convincing!)
Yeah, I'll have to keep an eye out for the Sharpie trick. The headstock is cosmetic for me, but if the neck paint is scuffed up, it seems like you'd really feel it on the thumb while playing.
There usually isn't a ton of them out there, especially excellent condition. Just keep your eyes peeled and be patient. My '04 5 string SUB was easily in 98% condition when I got it 5 years ago. The original owner got it to have a 5er, but it never caught on for him.
Seems most that have these hold on to them. I came really close to selling my 4 string SUB, as a 2002 Stingray popped up locally a week ago. The SR was black, 2EQ, perfect neck, great frets and not too light nor heavy-everything I love. The temptation was to replace my perfectly good SUB with an equivalent SR. However, when I went home and played my SUB, it was clear that it was every bit as good as that SR (my neck and frets are great, it's not heavy) and getting it would just be me spending about $500-600 extra for a label.
Agreed. I do plan on removing the paint from the neck and leave the headstock as is..
What's funny is how nice the wood looks underneath after people have sanded off the paint and tru-oil'd everything. Guess it had to be different from the Stingray Standard at the time!
Cool, thanks! That's all good to know. Seems like the biggest difference between the early 2000s SUBs/SR would be the Alnico vs. Ceramic pickup (at least I think my 2003 SR has a Ceramic pickup).
I'm not sure about the pickup magnets. My SUBs are alnico, and this SR looked like alnico, too.
In addition to feeling pretty much the same (neck profile, etc...) they both sounded pretty much identical, too.
Hey again SUB Club,
Does anyone happen to know if the US-era Sterling SUB has the deeper phantom coil Sterling pickup, or is it just the usual profile Stingray pickup with Sterling neck/body dimensions? I'm guessing it's the latter as the US-era Sterling SUBs don't have the pickup coil selector switch, so no need for the deeper pickup rout.
Does anyone happen to know if the US-era Sterling SUB has the deeper phantom coil Sterling pickup, or is it just the usual profile Stingray pickup with Sterling neck/body dimensions? I'm guessing it's the latter as the US-era Sterling SUBs don't have the pickup coil selector switch, so no need for the deeper pickup rout.
I was watching a MM sub on reverb, I currently have a sterling ray4. I was looking to upgrade. Same configuration, my ray4 sounds pretty good. I decided to pass because there may not be enough difference (better) to justify the $$
I may change my mind though. Always wanted a real MM
Negative. There's something about a 20 year old bass that sounds so good. Wood as dried, neck super stable, just a great solid bass. Love it more than my ray34.
I know what you mean, but the ray4 is 4 or 5 yrs old and stable. All the neck grain is north/south with no grain runout. Still watching for a MM sub. I can’t justify it right now. Only have 1 gig a month and it’s tips only. Right mow we are not playing because lead had shoulder surgery.
Understood, granted I've played a ray4 and it's not in the same ballpark as a 93 SUB. If can find one for under a G in decent shape, try to grab it.
Does my sterling SUB count? Bought used for $260 but spent lots of time and $ modifying
-sanded down back of neck, oiled and waxed: feels the same as my ebmm short scale stingray but took hours of work
-aluminum pickguard
-hipshot ultralight licensed tuners
-new bridge
-plasti-dipped front of headstock because the maple looked unbalanced with a darker body color
-nordstrand pickup and preamp
-sanded down back of neck, oiled and waxed: feels the same as my ebmm short scale stingray but took hours of work
-aluminum pickguard
-hipshot ultralight licensed tuners
-new bridge
-plasti-dipped front of headstock because the maple looked unbalanced with a darker body color
-nordstrand pickup and preamp
I think this club is for the US made SUB line. The Sterling SUBs have a club of their own.
Finally took the jump on a used Ernie Ball SUB. Looks to be in pretty great condition per the Guitar Center pics. Obviously will be doing a total polish/conditioning job on the frets/hardware/fretboard, but how should one clean the matte body finish? Damped microfiber with distilled water? Polish doesn't seem like the right idea.
Finally. I was hoping you got it. Trust you'll love it. Look like the bass was a player, by the way the neck was sanded. Remember this bass is almost vintage. So it won't be in perfect condition and if it's close all the better if not you can live with it.
