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Sterling or Stingray

#21
rayzak said:
This is the thing i've noticed about almost every Sterling by MM i've played. The fretwork has NOT been good. rojo, there's one at the Mayfield GC that's just dangerous:p Seriously, the frets are so sharp, I couldn't believe GC would actually put it on display without at least filing the frets. But even the other one's i've played, they have all had shoddy fretwork. Could it be the weather here in Cleveland? Other than that, they seem like great basses.
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It could be the weather, I've had a lot of pokey frets on just about everything lately! I don't mind those so much, they are a relatively easy fix...
It's the high frets and buzzing that requires a fret level or dress. A good tech is going to charge $60-100+ for such a service (they usually add on a setup, too).
 
#22
i own a EBMM Stingray 5, and IMO, it blows away the Ray35 I've tried. I don't know why, but something just feels wrong for me when i play it.

The Ray34 however, is a different story. If i needed an extra 4 string bass, i will not hesitate to get it. Some claim they don't feel any difference between SBMM and EBMM, but i do feel a difference, so make sure you try before playing. Tone wise, they are very very worth it for the price. Feel wise, they are a little off the real thing, but for the price difference, i really dont think its a bid deal.

Hope this helps. Goodluck
 
#23
Down_Low said:
Actually I'd say it's more like buying a Squier. Made in Indonesia under licence by another company. Sterling By Musicman is not the Ernie Ball company.

I still want one of those Ray34 CA's though!
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I think they are a step up from the Squire line. The tone and quality of this bass is much better than a Squier. At least the Squiers I played. Plus the price point brought it to a new level ($1000 list). But I got the Sterling for 60% off of list.
 
#24
rayzak said:
This is the thing i've noticed about almost every Sterling by MM i've played. The fretwork has NOT been good. rojo, there's one at the Mayfield GC that's just dangerous:p Seriously, the frets are so sharp, I couldn't believe GC would actually put it on display without at least filing the frets. But even the other one's i've played, they have all had shoddy fretwork. Could it be the weather here in Cleveland? Other than that, they seem like great basses.
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I totally agree here. I need to get my frets filed down. But since that was the only complaint I had, had to buy the bass. It played too well.
 
#26
thecarpenter said:
I totally agree here. I need to get my frets filed down. But since that was the only complaint I had, had to buy the bass. It played too well.
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It is a common issue with basses. Matter of fact, when I got my Sadowsky Metro(shipped from Texas to Indy), it had very sharp frets. Once I had it fixed, it was never an issue again.

I just thought it was odd that every one i've tried has had this issue.
 
#27
rayzak said:
It is a common issue with basses. Matter of fact, when I got my Sadowsky Metro(shipped from Texas to Indy), it had very sharp frets. Once I had it fixed, it was never an issue again.

I just thought it was odd that every one i've tried has had this issue.
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My Ray35 had to get some fretwork done, was included with the setup and cost me about 30$ + strings... then again the luthier that gets his work through this shop here in Champaign always under charges.. he does such amazing work!
 
#28
Down_Low said:
Actually I'd say it's more like buying a Squier. Made in Indonesia under licence by another company. Sterling By Musicman is not the Ernie Ball company.

I still want one of those Ray34 CA's though!
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If you are trying to say that the quality is not on par with US made Stingrays, I'd say you were wrong. The materials, quality, construction, fit, finish and setup are easily 95% of the US models.

Make no mistake, it is a quality instrument. My only qualm was that the neck was not exactly the same, but still a very comfortable bass to play nonetheless.
 
#29
rayzak said:
It is a common issue with basses. Matter of fact, when I got my Sadowsky Metro(shipped from Texas to Indy), it had very sharp frets. Once I had it fixed, it was never an issue again.

I just thought it was odd that every one i've tried has had this issue.
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I went though several of them, even different colors (I got the Honeyburst), they all had the same issue. But the money off I got on the whole deal, I just got the bass and will get the fretwork done soon.
 
#31
tastybasslines said:
If you are trying to say that the quality is not on par with US made Stingrays, I'd say you were wrong. The materials, quality, construction, fit, finish and setup are easily 95% of the US models.

Make no mistake, it is a quality instrument. My only qualm was that the neck was not exactly the same, but still a very comfortable bass to play nonetheless.
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Also keep in mind that the setup and inspection is done in the US, not in Indonesia. I think I'm going to stick with the Sterling is like buying a Fender Mexican, just MII, inspected in the USA.
 
#33
tylerwylie said:
I assume you mean the Ernie Ball Music Man Stingray vs the Sterling by Music Man Stingray?
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Jimmy Stump said:
If anyone knows Sterling Ball, can they give him a pinch for the ridiculous naming of these different instruments? :rollno:
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I agree. It's a tangled web of product names differentiating between Ernie Ball/Music Man StingRay, Sterling by Music Man StingRay, Ernie Ball/Music Man Sterling and Sterling by Music Man Sterling.

PDGood said:
Peavey is doing the same thing. They say that their overseas made product is "supposed" to say BXP on it. But some companies are advertising Milleniums at a low price and not mentioning the BXP.
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I disagree on two points: 1) It's not a deliberate attempt to confuse the market. What good would that do? I just think it's poor salesmanship. Great basses, poor marketing. 2) Peavey is a completely different situation. Peavey isn't using unusual or confusing product names, you're just upset with the retailers for not mentioning country of origin. That's not Peavey's fault.

PDGood said:
And of course, when all of these Sterlings and BXPs hit the used market there will be plenty of people who will try to sell the cheaper ones at a higher price to an uninformed buyer. (I've already seen this happen.)
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People have been ripping off one another on the used market since the dawn of time. Bad product names don't really HELP the problem but it's not the cause of it, either.

Alright, sorry for going slightly off-topic... back to the discussion of the relative quality of Sterling by MM versus the US-made EB models.
 
#34
I have two SUBS, sterling and stingray. I tried Ray 34 and SB-14 in the store the other day, and i should say i was dissapointed. Soundwise they are good basses, but craftsmanship was not top notch. I compared them to the real deal and i i can say that SUBS coming very close in feel and sound to the original, and those from indonesia dont. Therefore: yes, price difference between SLO ones and Indonesia ones are justified; if you can, grab a used SLO bass; or get a SUB =))

I am not saying that those are bad instruments, they are very damn good and price is very affordable. I also have Indonesian built G&L and Cort, and i believe those Sterlings are made in the same Cort factory. You cant compare SBMM with Squiers, they are in different league. SBMM can be compared to MIM Fenders, and in my opinion SBMM would nail them down.

Well, what a mess i wrote.. =))
 

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