Thoughts on Ray34 bass

[Birddogcof]

Good afternoon all,

Hope you are all staying healthy. I am looking to purchase a SBMM Ray34. I would like your thoughts on the instrument please. How does iy sound and feel compared to a EBMM Stingray? I'm leaning more towards the H model. I cannot play one due to the COVID isolation and stores being closed. Besides it seema GC by me are all closed permanently.

Do they still make the stealth one? Thats the one I really like in terms of looks. Thanks for your time. I look forwars to reading your comments.

Birddogcof

 

[CallMeAl]

I’m a P and J kinda guy, so I can’t tell you how they stack up against the “real deal.” But the one I tried sounded great- rich and punchy- and the neck was buttah’. Excellent bass and well worth the price tag IMHO. Good luck!

 

[Birddogcof]

I’m a P and J kinda guy, so I can’t tell you how they stack up against the “real deal.” But the one I tried sounded great- rich and punchy- and the neck was buttah’. Excellent bass and well worth the price tag IMHO. Good luck!

Thanks. I've been looking. Trying to find a well taken care of bass is tough. Of course when I try the classifieds, I notice that all the ones I like are sold and for good reasons. The price!

 

[lokikallas]

They play and sound incredibly similar. I don’t think the stealth is a current offering, but I’m not sure. They aren’t as nice as an EBMM, but they are worth the price. I’ve got 2 now. A stealth and a silver burst. I think the EBMM has nicer attention to detail, but the main difference is country of manufacture. It’s similar to a MIM vs MIA fender. Both sound right, one is just a bit nicer.

 

[Birddogcof]

Very nice. Thabks for the info. If you wanna move either one, let me know. Lol.

Every review I watched or read said they are worth the money.

They play and sound incredibly similar. I don’t think the stealth is a current offering, but I’m not sure. They aren’t as nice as an EBMM, but they are worth the price. I’ve got 2 now. A stealth and a silver burst. I think the EBMM has nicer attention to detail, but the main difference is country of manufacture. It’s similar to a MIM va MIA fender. Both sound right, one is just a bit nicer.

 

[Hank Scorpio]

Great sound, great feel. Punch above their weight for the price. Only major downside is I've struggled to find one below the 10lb weight, the positive is if you don't mind that heft to them then there are incredible deals used to be found.

 

[Birddogcof]

Yea weight doeant really matter to me. I'm a bigger guy. If you happen to come across a great deal, send it my way please.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

They are harder to find and won’t be new, but old American made Music Man SUB basses are out there, and can be pretty cheap. They have the same electronics as regular Stingrays, but with a more plain finish. This my USA SUB5:

 

[invalidprotocol]

Stealthy with warmth...

Stealthy with flair...

Stealthy with heft...

 

[Birddogcof]

I really love the stealthy with heft one. I tried looking for more closeups of the Burl finish on the middle one. I love the fact it has a roasted maple neck.

Stealthy with warmth...

View attachment 3805829


Stealthy with flair...

View attachment 3805830


Stealthy with heft...

View attachment 3805831

 

[invalidprotocol]

The SBMM Ray34 is a excellent instrument for the money and close enough to the real thing for me. The roasted neck feels great and the instrument plays just as good. Sounds like a beast even at a light 8.6lbs.

 

[invalidprotocol]

I really love the stealthy with heft one. I tried looking for more closeups of the Burl finish on the middle one. I love the fact it has a roasted maple neck.

I originally wanted the burl finish but every sample I found had a poor match in the center. When GC started carrying the natural finish I tried out multiple. All were lighter and played/sounded nice but one spoke to me in particular. Fortunately someone bailed on their layaway on the gem I ended up with.

 

[Birddogcof]

Nice. I think the closest GC around me closed. So right now I have no place to go. Its hard to make out the look on the Burk Poplar one.

 

[SteveCS]

Good afternoon all,

Hope you are all staying healthy. I am looking to purchase a SBMM Ray34. I would like your thoughts on the instrument please. How does iy sound and feel compared to a EBMM Stingray? ...

As an owner/player of both a Ray34 and EBMM StingRay, I can say that the differences are minor to negligible. The Ray34 is a fully-qualified StingRay that just happens to not be made in the USA, IME.

 

[jd56hawk]

Good afternoon all,

Hope you are all staying healthy. I am looking to purchase a SBMM Ray34. I would like your thoughts on the instrument please. How does iy sound and feel compared to a EBMM Stingray? I'm leaning more towards the H model. I cannot play one due to the COVID isolation and stores being closed. Besides it seema GC by me are all closed permanently.

Do they still make the stealth one? Thats the one I really like in terms of looks. Thanks for your time. I look forwars to reading your comments.

Birddogcof

Yes, they do, but it seems they've gone up in price.

Just saw another for $899.99, though.
Regardless, I had the Pearl White model a few years back and really regret selling it...wouldn't even consider buying a Music Man with so many beautiful Ray 34s available for less than half the price.
You might like the new Ash Black model.
I think it looks pretty good.

 

[SunByrne]

I actually have something for this one, because I had a similar question.

So one day back in January I was in a GC that had a SUB4, a Ray24, a Ray34, and an actual EBMM. I was interested in how they all compared and so I played all four of them. (GC wasn't busy and the guy working was very patient with me.) They all have a similar feel and sound, as they should, but there are real differences as you'd expect given the price. My thoughts:

SUB4: Great bass for $300. Pretty close to the classic StingRay sound, but maybe a little thinner, which I'd attribute to the pickup being cheaper. Fit and finish not as good as the Ray34, but for $300 this is an excellent deal. Just wish it had 3-band EQ, but again, budget bass. And the "Ruby red" finish is actually even better in person, IMO—really nice. (I almost walked out with one of these.)

Ray24: I swear to you were I blindfolded I would be completely unable to differentiate this from the SUB4. To me, it neither felt nor sounded appreciably different from the SUB4 and I have no idea where the additional $200 went. Well, the bridge is a bit better, but that's about it. Plus there aren't very many finish options for this. Feels like a complete miss by their marketing folks.

Ray34: Really big step up from the Ray24. Better, more solid and smoother feel, improved fit and finish, nicer tuners, and fuller tone. This is also where you get the 3-band EQ. It's not quite the full EBMM experience, but it's probably 90–95% of it for about half the price. I think the SUB4 is a great deal, and so is this. You could totally gig with this. Now, I haven't seen one of the new black ash versions in person, but in pictures... wow. I currently have GAS for one of these.

EBMM StingRay: There's a reason this is a classic... but the $1700 price tag ain't a joke, either. Components are maybe a smidge better than the Ray34 but the overall feel isn't much different... it's just not twice as good. I mean, if someone came up to me and said "I'm going to give you either a Ray34 or an EBMM StingRay, your choice—but you can't flip it, you have to keep it" I'm taking the EBMM. Well, almost certainly. Again, that black ash Ray34...

So, yeah, I think you're good going with a Ray34.

 

[Birddogcof]

I do like that black with the white grain! Its a beauty.

What do you guys think of this bass? I do not know the year but I can get it for $450 with free shipping. Only concern, if that, is it says "Made in Korea" when all the other Ray34s I see are made in Indonesia.

Should I be concerned?

 

[Birddogcof]

Very good write up!!

I actually have something for this one, because I had a similar question.

So one day back in January I was in a GC that had a SUB4, a Ray24, a Ray34, and an actual EBMM. I was interested in how they all compared and so I played all four of them. (GC wasn't busy and the guy working was very patient with me.) They all have a similar feel and sound, as they should, but there are real differences as you'd expect given the price. My thoughts:

SUB4: Great bass for $300. Pretty close to the classic StingRay sound, but maybe a little thinner, which I'd attribute to the pickup being cheaper. Fit and finish not as good as the Ray34, but for $300 this is an excellent deal. Just wish it had 3-band EQ, but again, budget bass. And the "Ruby red" finish is actually even better in person, IMO—really nice. (I almost walked out with one of these.)

Ray24: I swear to you were I blindfolded I would be completely unable to differentiate this from the SUB4. To me, it neither felt nor sounded appreciably different from the SUB4 and I have no idea where the additional $200 went. Well, the bridge is a bit better, but that's about it. Plus there aren't very many finish options for this. Feels like a complete miss by their marketing folks.

Ray34: Really big step up from the Ray24. Better, more solid and smoother feel, improved fit and finish, nicer tuners, and fuller tone. This is also where you get the 3-band EQ. It's not quite the full EBMM experience, but it's probably 90–95% of it for about half the price. I think the SUB4 is a great deal, and so is this. You could totally gig with this. Now, I haven't seen one of the new black ash versions in person, but in pictures... wow. I currently have GAS for one of these.

EBMM StingRay: There's a reason this is a classic... but the $1700 price tag ain't a joke, either. Components are maybe a smidge better than the Ray34 but the overall feel isn't much different... it's just not twice as good. I mean, if someone came up to me and said "I'm going to give you either a Ray34 or an EBMM StingRay, your choice—but you can't flip it, you have to keep it" I'm taking the EBMM. Well, almost certainly. Again, that black ash Ray34...

So, yeah, I think you're good going with a Ray34.

 

[Nephilymbass]

Good afternoon all,

Hope you are all staying healthy. I am looking to purchase a SBMM Ray34. I would like your thoughts on the instrument please. How does iy sound and feel compared to a EBMM Stingray? I'm leaning more towards the H model. I cannot play one due to the COVID isolation and stores being closed. Besides it seema GC by me are all closed permanently.

Do they still make the stealth one? Thats the one I really like in terms of looks. Thanks for your time. I look forwars to reading your comments.

Birddogcof

I owned the fret less ray34cafl for a bit. It had its pros and cons. I’d say they are great instruments for the money. Mine was actually heavier than the made in America SR5 I owned at the same time. Which was kind of surprising since it was a fretless 4 string compared to a fretted 5 with a bigger neck and more metal. I actually preferred the standard nut on the ray34 more than the compensated but in the stingray. Which I guess isn’t a huge deal because it’s not very expensive to replace a nut anyways. Finish wise the SBMM stuff isn’t as nice as the made in America musicman basses but they are pretty good for that price range. I did like the way the bass sounded but Other than acoustic bass I like to stick to 5 strings and I personally wasn’t a fan of not having a forearm contour. Depending on how you wear and play that may or may not be an issue but I definitely prefer to have a forearm contour.

 

[Resonance129]

I absolutely love mine. It was my main gigging bass for about 2 years when I was actually playing out.
- Solid instrument, with a nice electronics package, IMO. The 3-band EQ is wonderful (love having control of the mids on the fly) and pretty versatile. Smooth and round to MEAN and growly, depending on what you're going for.
- The neck is comfortable - Not MY personal favorite neck, but I prefer rounder, chunkier necks like that of a P bass. Pretty thin from front to back, but fairly wide at the nut, with good string spacing. And again, it feels solid. Some of the newer models have roasted maple!
-Not too incredibly heavy, although I've heard of some of them being anchors. Mine is slightly over 9lb and balances well on a nice, thick strap.
- Functional, stable tuners.
- Lots of finish options. I have one of the older Indonesian models in Honeyburst, but the newer models have all kinds of cool finishes.

One thing that really set it apart from some of the other basses I have is how responsive it is. I'd attributed it to the pickup and its placement on the body, but I'm sure there are plenty of factors to consider, there. I don't own an EBMM (yet), but compared to the ones I've fiddled around with in stores, the Ray34 holds its weight very well. At the price, they're hard to beat, IMO.

Just my 2 cents.