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Stingray 5 HH

A

alemray

Jun 8, 2006
4
0
Beckley, WV
#1
Hi everyone!

I know that I'm getting a Stingray 5 in a couple months and have made up my mind that it'll be white w/ matching headstock, white pearloid pickguard, and a maple neck. What I haven't decided is whether or not to get the standard 1 humbucker configuration or to go ahead and spend the extra bucks on the HH. I'm not able to try one out because no one within 200 miles carries one:bawl: , so I have to go by word of mouth, (as much as I hate that). What I was wondering is if they are worth the money. Do they have a wide variety of sounds without losing the "Stingray" sound? Also, is there a way to switch to just the bridge humbucker to assure that sound? I play a REALLY wide range of styles and I'm looking for something to use more so I don't have to be terrified everytime I take my Alembic somewhere. Any help would be very much appreciated.:)
 
#3
Do a search and you'll find lots of info from me.

As an update to my earlier comments, yes the HH adds some great sounds, but in some ways I missed the simplicity of a single pickup model. With the H, you just work with EQ and hand placement to get different tones ... but with the HH there are all of the different basic sounds, all of which have very different midrange response, and when trying to get a sound with the band it is a little more confusing. There are just so many combinations of the switch and EQ settings! But position 4 is really hot for rock(very thick and punchy), and position 5 gets a crazy deep throbby thump. 1, 4, and 5 are my favorite settings on the HH.

You can definately get the same basic parallel bridge sound you can with an SR5, so if you just leave the switch back its the same bass.

For versatility the HH is great.
 
#4
From everything I've read and heard, you can get the "original" MusicMan sound with the HH models. If you think you might want the HH version, I would go for it. You could always use the back pickup setting if that is what you end up preferring, but you won't be able to add the neck pickup once you've bought the single pickup version.

White with white headstock, beautiful setup. I prefer it with a rosewood neck and a black pickguard. Really classy!
 
#6
I say go for the HH config. I've been playing a 4-string StingRay for over ten years now, and bought a 5-string HH nearly the instant I heard it. Since then, I've also bought a Bongo 5HH. Music Man's HH config and electronics is so incredibly useful acrossthe spectrum of sounds it makes pretty much every other bass I've played seem static and boring.

Now, with that said, the StingRay 4 still has a bite and punch that the StingRay 5 has never been able to deliver in any combination. Part of this is due to the different pickups, part is due to the simpler electronics. If you want the classic StingRay sound to a T you still have to go with the 4-string H.

My SR5 gets me close enough to the original, but others may not feel the same way, especially if you play in a loud or complex band scenario where you need every single last little drop of power to cut through.

To complicate matters even more, the HS configs are supposed to add more of the bite/punch back into the tone at the price of a little less tonal flexibility. I haven't played one so can't comment on that.
 

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