A couple years ago I bought a used Musicman Stingray from Guitar Center. I really loved everything about it with the exception of the setup. I took it to my guy and he set it up for me while I waited. He said the neck had a bit of relief in it. We sat and talked for awhile after he was done. I take the bass home and go out of town for a week. I come home and the neck is back to the way it was before the setup. Now my guy has been setting my stuff up for years and knows what he's doing. I took it back again and he tells me that the neck is twisted! I left it with him to see if he could get it right and he was not able to get it done. Needless to say I took it back to guitar center and got my money back. Are the necks on musicman basses temperamental or did I just get a bad one?
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Should I buy another Musicman?
- Thread starter DommyLama
- Start date
Did he tell you it was twisted the first time you brought it to him? If not, then his diagnosis doesn't make a lot of sense. I've never seen a neck twist in a week.
Musicman have a generally excellent reputation for quality. It's not unusual for necks to sometimes take time to settle into a new setup.
No he just said it had quite a bit of relief in it and when I went back he said it was bowed and twisted
No they're not known for being tempermental. MM's quality is usually top notch, but like any brand, occasionally either a bad one can slip by QC at the factory or it could develop issues down the line. If you liked it otherwise I'd try again with another one. It sounds like you just got a dud.
If you otherwise like the Stingray, you should have exchanged it.
I agree with the other folks, it's pretty unusual to see a neck problem on a Stingray (and with all the Fenders I've had, I can say the same thing about them, too). But wood is wood and can develop anomolies along the way.
I agree with the other folks, it's pretty unusual to see a neck problem on a Stingray (and with all the Fenders I've had, I can say the same thing about them, too). But wood is wood and can develop anomolies along the way.
Thanks for your input everyone.. As you could imagine with the cost of a MM I've been a little gun shy about buying another one.
You could always look for a used one here. I actually think there are a few up right now.
I just bought a brand new 2014 Gibson EB 4 on Monday and a brand new old stock Yamaha BB424X on Thursday. I've met my bass allowance for a few months but I will look after the first of the year. Thanks for the heads up.
The answer to your original question is yes, of course you should [emoji4] if you want a tango pearl HH that is going to be rare so your best bet is to order a new one - it will come from the factory set up impeccably so unless it has experienced extraordinarily extreme low or high temperatures it will remain good. There should be no need to alter anything but if there is a minor tweak of the truss rod wheel adjuster will do it.
As for your experience with the musicman neck, another good thing about Musicman is awesome customer service - they would likely have sorted out that neck for you.
I have 7 of their basses and they all have great necks - people are known to set them up badly - the truss rod is the only likely adjustment ever needed in my experience. Their consistency is second to none so duds should not happen and having great customer service should give you peace of mind anyway.
And if you do go for a new one shop around for the best deal.
It'll probably take three months to be delivered but you can choose your colour (though you've done that already, and a v cool one it is too), pick guard colour (I would go with plain black or white with that colour), maple/rosewood/fretless fretboard etc.
As for your experience with the musicman neck, another good thing about Musicman is awesome customer service - they would likely have sorted out that neck for you.
I have 7 of their basses and they all have great necks - people are known to set them up badly - the truss rod is the only likely adjustment ever needed in my experience. Their consistency is second to none so duds should not happen and having great customer service should give you peace of mind anyway.
And if you do go for a new one shop around for the best deal.
It'll probably take three months to be delivered but you can choose your colour (though you've done that already, and a v cool one it is too), pick guard colour (I would go with plain black or white with that colour), maple/rosewood/fretless fretboard etc.
I will give them a try again. I do live in NE Ohio. The saying here is, if you don't like the weather just give it 15 minutes! Haha. I would go with a black pickguard and maple FB. When I'm ready I will find a shop other then guitar center around here to go though. Thanks for all the info.
DiabolusInMusic
Functionless Art is Merely Tolerated Vandalism
This is what I was going to say as well. I know a couple other players that find MM necks to adjust at the slightest change, including a guitar player.
I live in the UK and we have very changeable weather - I don't run my basses with very low action because it prevents me from getting the best range of intensity of sound with my fingers (v low action turns intense finger plucking to popping easier). With low action the truss rod needs a minor tweak at the beginning of winter and summer - BUT it's so easy with that truss rod wheel.
I can't imagine why anyone would find anything else unless running very very low action. My basses stay in tune if they're in the case for 6 months or more.
There is no appreciable difference in performance in this respect between those with unfinished necks or varnished necks.
