Stingray Special with Twisted Neck?

[Perrinoid]

Hi,

Purchased Stingray Special from Musicians Friend in November 2021.
Nice Bass. Got a pro setup after I got it with DR Low Rider RoundWounds.
Bass felt great. Obviously the new roundwound strings had their classic buzziness to them as expected.

A couple months later I decided I wanted to experiment with Flatwounds. So I got a set of Labella low tension flats and put them on myself. I really dig the flatwound sound...nice balance with the stingray. However I was getting a weird buzz on the G string round the 7-12th frets. Couldn't fix it on my own unless I really cranked the action up way to high which was no good.

So I decided to take it to a shop to get it fixed, re-set up. Well the shop can't fix it. In fact, they claim the neck is slightly twisted...and that possibly Musicman is using newer immature woods which can move a bit post factory. The bass is under warranty, so I could ship it back to Musicman and see what they say. It's $45 to ship it and then SEVERAL weeks to diagnose and fix. Musicman said that they need to hear the buzz through an amp to validate a warranty repair. It really only buzzes when I dig in a little bit...as most stingray players do. So kind of subjective, but I would think if the neck is twisted, they would realize that and fix it.

Anyone have experience with Stingray Specials or dealing w Musicman? they seem like a good company who would want to make right. If it really is a twisted neck, or an issue with the nut maybe....I should definitely have it addressed while it's still under warranty, otherwise that could lead even more trouble. Gonna sleep on this for a day, but seems like I gotta ship it back and see what they say.

thoughts?

 

[steveinohio]

Yeah. The neck on mine sucks. It’s a Ball Family Reserve. All kinds of buzz. I need to send it in. It’s out of warranty though. Ship it back while it’s under warranty. I didn’t and I regret it.

 

[2milehighspike]

All my specials are fine. And EBMM are great to deal with and will take care of you. My only suggestion is to communicate with them with phone calls. They are an old school company and Phone calls work best.

 

[Perrinoid]

Yeah. The neck on mine sucks. It’s a Ball Family Reserve. All kinds of buzz. I need to send it in. It’s out of warranty though. Ship it back while it’s under warranty. I didn’t and I regret it.

Sending it back to Musicman since it's still under warranty. We'll see what they say. Hopefully they can admit the neck is in fact twisted and replace it.

 

[steveinohio]

Sending it back to Musicman since it's still under warranty. We'll see what they say. Hopefully they can admit the neck is in fact twisted and replace it.

I'm sure you won't have much of a problem man. They are a good company. This is the first issue I've had with them. While disappointing I still hold them in super high regard.

 

[Mrtoodamnsabre]

definitely call them, they'll help, billy is really nice and helpful, one time he consulted a guy who was in the factory for 35 years to figure out whether or not this preamp for sale on the internet was legit or not! if its under warranty they'll fix it

Yeah. The neck on mine sucks. It’s a Ball Family Reserve. All kinds of buzz. I need to send it in. It’s out of warranty though. Ship it back while it’s under warranty. I didn’t and I regret it.

usually though if you have the bass and its legit, they'll sell you a new neck or fix it if you ask from what ive heard, ive even heard of them taking an old enough neck and refretting it, you just have to ship in the old part!

 

[Perrinoid]

thanks guys. It's back at Musicman now, just waiting on a response. I sure could use the bass right now though....

 

[Yahboy]

String tension matter......

You need adjust truss rod for neck relief since lo rider has far higher string tension compare to LTF.

A great time to start learning basic bass guitar setup yourself .

 

[Perrinoid]

Welp! Couldn't be more disapointed with Musicman ErnieBall!!

-They called from the factory and said that there were some minor issues with the frets. no issues with the neck
-said they have it now "set up", and that no string buzz with the action set to factory specs
-they would ship back to me.
-got the bass back and the action sucks and its buzzing way worse than before!!! buzzing on the lower strings on lower frets and buzzing on the higher strings on higher frets. plays and sounds awful. should have never have sent it back!

I paid for shipping, they covered under warranty, but they made it way worse. really confused.
DONT SEND YOUR BASS TO THEM FOR SETUP RELATED THINGS.

$2k if anyone wants it. mint condition burnt ends musicman special.

 

[FunkHead]

String tension matter......

You need adjust truss rod for neck relief since lo rider has far higher string tension compare to LTF.

A great time to start learning basic bass guitar setup yourself .

This! The LTFs will show buzz on even the best necks. I went back to TI JF344 and buzzing gone.
The LTFs just need too much setup work imo.

 

[BigDrew]

Man that stinks. Don’t let them off the hook. Call them back and give them the update. You paid a lot for that instrument and it is under warranty.

 

[steveinohio]

That really stinks man. That's another reason why I don't want to send mine in. I have the feeling they will pull the same thing. I have had and still do have a lot of Rays. Not a one has the neck issues my Special has.

 

[Perrinoid]

Man that stinks. Don’t let them off the hook. Call them back and give them the update. You paid a lot for that instrument and it is under warranty.

At this point it's just not worth it. Ive already shipped it back. I think the key is talking to a better tech on a better setup. but it's worth letting them know. once the bass EQ is turned up and recorded, you can't hear the buzz....it's just the principle that's like ***...

 

[yankeeblues]

FYI a weird sitar-like buzz around the 12th fret is a pretty common complaint with Labella G strings, especially lower tension G strings. I have no idea if the neck is twisted, but you should definitely try other strings before you give up on the bass.

But I know how frustrating it is to pay top dollar for a bass (and strings) and run in to these issues.

 

[Mechayoshi]

Can you see the twist looking down the neck? Just trying to verify who misdiagnosed it, the shop or EBMM- or maybe it's something else entirely. What is the action set to? Generally if buzz can be completely hidden by amplification it's not that bad, especially if aiming for really low action with low tension strings.

 

[adamrobertt]

I'd be skeptical of a twisted neck. They happen, but are exceedingly rare.

It does sound like a fretwork issue to me. Did you make sure to verify the setup (specifically the neck adjustment) when you got it back? You can't just assume their setup will stand after travel and at your location.

Wood moves, that's why we have truss rods. If you're shipping your bass out for repair or setup, you must verify that the setup is still good before you evaluate. You may have to move the rod or adjust the action - this is normal.

 

[Perrinoid]

That makes the most sense at this point. It’s not a twisted neck...just needs a better setup.

FYI a weird sitar-like buzz around the 12th fret is a pretty common complaint with Labella G strings, especially lower tension G strings. I have no idea if the neck is twisted, but you should definitely try other strings before you give up on the bass.

But I know how frustrating it is to pay top dollar for a bass (and strings) and run in to these issues.

 

[Mrtoodamnsabre]

Labellas and even ernie balls have different tension strings and different string sets and often times mix diffferent sized guages, for example heavier low strings and lighter highs or heavier highs and lighter lows. Meaning tour tech is gonna have to raise or lower the strings on one or two saddles but leave the rest normal. I think this is a bridge saddle adjustment call or a shim call, if you sent it in and the player who tuned it up plays with a light hand as I do, it may not have buzzed on them, my strings actually are so low that anyone who else plays them buzzes a little.

This Could be a lot of things, I doubt it’s a twisted neck though, I do think the neck went out of whack in the way back. I think you should get a new tech or learn to do set ups, as minor adjustments are going to have to happen a lot. Turning a truss rod on one of those is a very low risk maneuver and it’s pretty easy to tell if you’ve turned the truss rod too much. Maybe a bigger shim than what’s in there is required or maybe a shim that sits towards the headstock rather than one that sits towards the body.

Besides that, a fretted bass has a lot of wiggle room in functionality even if the neck has a slight twist, where as on a Fretless it’s a death sentence. I think if you can’t hear it on a recording it’s fine

 

[Fondsdale]

FYI a weird sitar-like buzz around the 12th fret is a pretty common complaint with Labella G strings, especially lower tension G strings. I have no idea if the neck is twisted, but you should definitely try other strings before you give up on the bass.

But I know how frustrating it is to pay top dollar for a bass (and strings) and run in to these issues.

Yeah, I had this issue with a set of 760FL (although it was the D string). The string was visibly bent upon inspection, perhaps the core was snapped? Really put me off buying any more La Bella strings as it seems pretty common.

 

[sloppy_phil]

@Perrinoid have you tried another set of strings since getting this back? This all started with those La Bellas, I can't help but wonder what would happen if you went back to the DRs, or even a set of flats with conventional tension.

I've had super low tension strings (like tapes, etc) cause a bit of chaos on necks before