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Which MM Stingray, they are all good looking!

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Here’s mine!

I’ve been through a lot of stingrays, including a few Stingray Specials, and I prefer the Retro 70s by many many miles. The white with a black pg would be absolutely gorgeous. There’s a gorgeous one on Reverb right now to be honest for a really cheap price.

All depends what you want to play though. I like mine set up old school with some flats. If you like metal maybe you want some sparkly new thing.

Build quality and craftsmanship of the Retro 70s is a few steps above even the stingray special. It’s as nice or nicer than a Fender custom shop.

Edit: missed the post above. Gorgeous!
That is a beauty! Is it the sound that you think is miles better than a Special?
 
"The 4 string neck is too wide!"

" The 5 string neck is too narrow! "


There is a Goldilocks zone : The SLO Special neck.
When I first started shopping for a 'Ray I zeroed in on the SLO neck. Instead I built a Warmoth 'Ray clone and got my 1.5" neck, MM sound with a 2-band pre for under 8.5 lbs and about 1/2 the cost of the real thing.
 
If it was me I’d probably go with the StingRay Special single H. The 2-band vintage thing is really cool, but unless you already know thats the exact sound and feel you want, I think the Special is the safer choice. Lighter weight, nicer neck feel, updated preamp and you still get that unmistakable StingRay sound. I’d rather have the bass I want to pick up every day than buy something because its technically more “classic.”


As stupid as it sounds, and being a die-hard 2-band aficionado, I think the only thing that would make me think twice about getting a Special (as opposed to a late -80's / mid-90's second hand 2-bander) is the fact that the 3 band preamp requires the batteries to be changed every 6-12 months, and with the Special that's two batteries each time, whereas the 2-band preamp can easily last 5+ years without the battery even blinking.
 
That is a beauty! Is it the sound that you think is miles better than a Special?
Yes, absolutely the sound for one. But also the aesthetics, the mutes and the EXTREMELY good build quality and attention to finish quality. The frets and the neck feel like one piece of glass, it's just so flawless.

The Special is like an American Professional or Ultra Precision bass. The Retro 70s is more like like a 60s Custom Shop Precision, only better and for at least a grand less.

I like vintage inspired instruments, and nothing else. That's just me. I am not a fan of "new and improved" type stuff. Modern radius, big frets, unfinished neck, roasted maple color, not for me.

I also had issues with two different Special's neck geometry and fret finishing not being able to set up without buzz. No amount of relief, saddle height, etc., could get it right.

This one I had was pretty though!! It was the pink and I added a factory tort guard. Aesthetically, gawd DAYUM.

IMG_6949.webp
 
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!!!Caution!!!

Beware.....trying...... 'Hot Honey'

Addiction factor 100%

This is mine.


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Dude, this one is so crazy. Especially because on your particular bass, the neck and the body are pretty much the same color. So it’s just like a classic sr, but with the entire bass roasted. Look up the American vintage 58 precision roasted, it reminds me of that.
 
The Hot Honey makes for a very uniform looking bass so to speak, very cool, or warm :) . For myself, I threw a wrench into the ehh mix, and looked at an interview on the Scott's bass lessons youtube channel that Scott from SBL did 7 years ago with Scott Ball (VP) and Derek Brooks (Director of Artist relations) at Music man, and there Scott says they wanted the Special to be an ash instrument, and also "now that we've had all those years to sit back and think what is the best tonewood for the Stingray, it's definitely ash" (Derek). With this in mind i filtered searches on webstores, and it narrows the field a bit.

Thoughts on that?
 
That
My 30th anniversary Stingray in translucent Crimson Red over mahogany.
I replaced the original black pickguard with DIY parchment one (with thumbrest).

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That is very pretty. I have to confess I owned one many years ago, and, I didn't get along with the 3 band eq/clank so I sold it, reluctantly. The mahogany was awesome and warm.
 
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