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SUB Ray4 too dark

jking138

jking138

Oct 6, 2013
484
268
#1
I bought a Sterling SUB Ray4 a while ago and like how it plays but have been frustrated with the sound, it's too dark.
It doesn't seem to have any top end until I crank the preamp, then it get's very brittle. The low end is very thick and full but overbearing and without a cut it's nearly all sub frequencies. The E is by far the worst offender, A, D, sound great, G sounds weak but this seems to be normal. I know this model has a very hot pickup, not sure if this is part of the problem.

I've tried:
Raising and lowering the pick up, which only really seems to change the output.
New strings, no affect.
Tightened the neck screws.
New battery.

I have hpfs and compressors I can use that help but I feel like this is more of a set up issue or something fundamental with the bass itself.
Is there something I'm missing?
 
#5
Moving Pictures said:
What type of strings are you using? A dark sounding bass can sometimes benefit from really bright stainless steel strings or something like Cobalt rounds.

The other thing to check is your amp settings. Did you try changing the EQ there? Same with any preamp or EQ pedal.

I hope that helps a bit.
Click to expand...
Various brands, round wound, the most recent have been Ernie Ball Slinkys. I think I've had D'Addarios on there as well at some point.

Like I said, I've boosted the treble on the preamp but by the time the E sounds good the other strings sound far too bright and brittle. Tried different preamp pedals but with the same outcome.
 
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#6
RattleSnack said:
I had that model and recall that putting humbacker in parallel mode (just like real Stingray) instead of factory serial made it sound muche better. Less low mids, but more high mids.
But, again if I remember correctly, there are two generations od Ray4 and only later one has four wires from pickup so that connection can be changed.
Click to expand...
I'll look into this, I've read about it before but can't remember if I looked if it was a 2 or 4 wire pick up.
Do you have a diagram just in case?
 
#7
jking138 said:
I'll look into this, I've read about it before but can't remember if I looked if it was a 2 or 4 wire pick up.
Do you have a diagram just in case?
Click to expand...

No diagram, sorry. But it is simple to rewire. If pickup has 4 wires and is factory series wiring, then this is how it looks:

images.png


It's possible the wire colors are exactly same. So, for parallel connection you just need to disconnect white and red, and then connect red to black, and white to green. You can even do this temporarily (just wrap bare wire around soldered wire) and test how it sounds.

I'll just add this pic also, to illustrate difference between series and parallel connection (imagine those coils are next to each other, that's your pickups inside)
Series-and-Parallel-1-1000x308-1.jpg
 
#8
RattleSnack said:
No diagram, sorry. But it is simple to rewire. If pickup has 4 wires and is factory series wiring, then this is how it looks:

View attachment 7114118

It's possible the wire colors are exactly same. So, for parallel connection you just need to disconnect white and red, and then connect red to black, and white to green. You can even do this temporarily (just wrap bare wire around soldered wire) and test how it sounds.

I'll just add this pic also, to illustrate difference between series and parallel connection (imagine those coils are next to each other, that's your pickups inside)
View attachment 7114119
Click to expand...
Thanks, I'll check it out. When you say 'Red to Black and White to Green' do you mean soldered at the pots on the same tips?
 
#9
jking138 said:
Thanks, I'll check it out. When you say 'Red to Black and White to Green' do you mean soldered at the pots on the same tips?
Click to expand...
Yes, exactly 👍

I made a quick smartphone photo of how factory connection looked, so I can easily revert if I don't like parallel mode (I did like it). You can also get a two-way switch to have both connections at hand, and even tree-way if you feel like you might need single-coil mode also.
 
#14
I have a modded Ray4 from several years back. Mine took a little work to get a tone I like. Here's what I do:

Volume 100%
Bass knob 100%
Treble knob 50-100% depending on song

Amp gain turned all the way back to 0% (to prevent clipping) - and/or use a -10dB pad if your amp has one
EQ on amp to taste, such as cutting low frequencies here

Definitely a different animal than passive and Fender-style basses, but it sounds great in its own way.
 
#17
jking138 said:
Various brands, round wound, the most recent have been Ernie Ball Slinkys. I think I've had D'Addarios on there as well at some point.

Like I said, I've boosted the treble on the preamp but by the time the E sounds good the other strings sound far too bright and brittle. Tried different preamp pedals but with the same outcome.
Click to expand...
Sounds like the strings themselves aren't consistent? May I suggest some Rotoaound 66's to try, they are nice and bright, with a remarkably even tone across all strings.
 
#18
You could also check the pot values. Generally, I'd use 500k rather than 250k for a humbucker. Raising the resistance lets more highs through.

I'm not implying that your bass has the wrong pots, I have no idea what was used in these. Just something to check.
 
#19
jking138 said:
I bought a Sterling SUB Ray4 a while ago and like how it plays but have been frustrated with the sound, it's too dark.
It doesn't seem to have any top end until I crank the preamp, then it get's very brittle. The low end is very thick and full but overbearing and without a cut it's nearly all sub frequencies. The E is by far the worst offender, A, D, sound great, G sounds weak but this seems to be normal. I know this model has a very hot pickup, not sure if this is part of the problem.

I've tried:
Raising and lowering the pick up, which only really seems to change the output.
New strings, no affect.
Tightened the neck screws.
New battery.

I have hpfs and compressors I can use that help but I feel like this is more of a set up issue or something fundamental with the bass itself.
Is there something I'm missing?
Click to expand...
Sorry for the problems! I bought a 5 HH Sub a couple of weeks ago out of curiosity and, it definitely holds it's own. I did my usual 2 day setup, checking every screw (especially the bridge & neck) to include new strings, as usual. It runs right in the pack with my big dogs. Plenty of output! I was surprised at what I heard. I'm gigging it for the next 3 nights. I have no qualms about it whatsoever. Make sure you check your blend.

Tap the pickup with a metal object to make sure both sides are working? Adjust accordingly. If you don't have a solution, can you return it for another one slating output issues? Maybe I got a fluke, dunno but, I'm satisfied.
 

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