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Upgraded Sub vs Ray34

keatz

keatz

Jan 19, 2011
907
946
#1
Hi, I am looking for a budget friendly 4 string as my "covers" bass. I have the option to buy a second hand Sterling by MM Sub in black finish with maple neck and fretboard with the following upgrades: Black Hipshot bridge, including body routed for string through body, black Hipshot tuners, Nordstrand MM 4.2 pickup and John East MM 3-band pre and a black control plate.
I am wondering if you think this would be a good choice over a stock Ray34.

Interested to hear your thoughts, Thanks.
 
#2
keatz said:
Hi, I am looking for a budget friendly 4 string as my "covers" bass. I have the option to buy a second hand Sterling by MM Sub in black finish with maple neck and fretboard with the following upgrades: Black Hipshot bridge, including body routed for string through body, black Hipshot tuners, Nordstrand MM 4.2 pickup and John East MM 3-band pre and a black control plate.
I am wondering if you think this would be a good choice over a stock Ray34.

Interested to hear your thoughts, Thanks.
Click to expand...
I would absolutely go for the stock Ray34. I’m always suspicious of extensive «upgrades» on inexpensive basses, especially string-through conversions, as I’ve never seen them done well.
 
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#3
JakobT said:
I would absolutely go for the stock Ray34. I’m always suspicious of extensive «upgrades» on inexpensive basses, especially string-through conversions, as I’ve never seen them done well.
Click to expand...
Ok thanks for your feedback. Here is the bass in question......
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#4
Thanks. The pictures sort of confirm my suspicions - you’ll notice that the string-through holes are not evenly spaced, nor do they line up correctly. As this is obviously an upgrade made primarily for looks, it makes me wonder how sloppily the things I can’t see have been done, and why the seller is getting rid of the bass he’s now spent a good bit of money on.

For this reason, I usually steer away from basses with «upgrades» done by someone else, especially cheap ones. It may be OK, but if it isn’t you might get stuck with a turkey. You’d probably be better off just buying a used SUB and making any upgrades you want yourself.

A stock Ray34 is a better - and much safer - option.
 
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#5
JakobT said:
Thanks. The pictures sort of confirm my suspicions - you’ll notice that the string-through holes are not evenly spaced, nor do they line up correctly. As this is obviously an upgrade made primarily for looks, it makes me wonder how sloppily the things I can’t see have been done, and why the seller is getting rid of the bass he’s now spent a good bit of money on.

For this reason, I usually steer away from basses with «upgrades» done by someone else, especially cheap ones. It may be OK, but if it isn’t you might get stuck with a turkey. You’d probably be better off just buying a used SUB and making any upgrades you want yourself.

A stock Ray34 is a better - and much safer - option.
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Yes I must say I did notice the uneven spacing on the back. The seller is an older guy that is selling in favour of exclusively using his short scale bass. He says this sub has been his best bass, but I can take that with a grain of salt.
 
#6
keatz said:
Yes I must say I did notice the uneven spacing on the back. The seller is an older guy that is selling in favour of exclusively using his short scale bass. He says this sub has been his best bass, but I can take that with a grain of salt.
Click to expand...

Well, «best» is something of a relative term. :)

I would at least suggest that you try it out before you buy.
 
#7
Besides any issues with the upgrades, the Sub and the Ray34 have different neck profiles. The Sub has a narrow nut, Jazz-ish profile, while the Ray34 has a wider nut, more like a Precision. If that difference is something that matters to you, it's worth thinking about. The Ray24 has the same narrow nut width as the Sub, if you want that but decide you don't want to risk the upgraded Sub.
 
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#8
Inara said:
Besides any issues with the upgrades, the Sub and the Ray34 have different neck profiles. The Sub has a narrow nut, Jazz-ish profile, while the Ray34 has a wider nut, more like a Precision. If that difference is something that matters to you, it's worth thinking about. The Ray24 has the same narrow nut width as the Sub, if you want that but decide you don't want to risk the upgraded Sub.
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The Ray24 is also cheaper than a Ray34. On the other hand, it also has a slab body, which may or may not be to the OP’s liking.
 
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#14
keatz said:
Hi, I am looking for a budget friendly 4 string as my "covers" bass. I have the option to buy a second hand Sterling by MM Sub in black finish with maple neck and fretboard with the following upgrades: Black Hipshot bridge, including body routed for string through body, black Hipshot tuners, Nordstrand MM 4.2 pickup and John East MM 3-band pre and a black control plate.
I am wondering if you think this would be a good choice over a stock Ray34.

Interested to hear your thoughts, Thanks.
Click to expand...

I would feel comfortable with the Ray34. They are nicely made basses!
 
#18
I didn't expect such a one sided response here, wow. I really that that a John east pre and nordstrand pickup were massive attributes. Even a second hand Ray34 is a little more expensive so I am weighing that up too. There is a second hand older model Ray34 here for AUD$990 and that sub has got AU$750 on it, which is what a new sub goes for here. A new Ray34 goes between $1.5k-$2.5k. Also, that sub is in another state so unable to try it, but I can't try it anything atm because we are in lockdown(because of only 10 overnight cases in my state hah).
But, I put the question out to you guys for a reason, so if I decide to go with the sub now and regret it, I only have myself to blame......
 
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#19
Oh, and I used to have a Ray24, but I let it go to try a fender jazz. I definitely didn't dig the 25 as much as a 34 I tried in store a year or so ago. A stock Ray I admit I wouldnt touch. Unless stingray isn't for me at all haha, but geez I really love the tones I hear from them when I listen to others, and I need a bass to try and improve my slap skills on, which for a player that has been playing for 18 years is atrocious.
 

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