faceman

Sounds excellent, I'm hoping to see the SCB at the North Sea Jazz Festival

If you look at the past photos when I took the bridge apart, you can see the pickguard lies on top of the bridge slightly and in the latter photos, one of the screw holes is covered up by the bridge. Are the MM pick guards always the same fit and size?

Attached are photos of the body without the pick guard. if you look at the body, the pickup hasn't been moved but if you look at the closer photo, you can see the bottom hole where the pick guard should screw into. I'm sure the bridge is either misaligned or plain wrong. Also I've compared the old pickguard and the one I bought. The old one has been cut across the bottom to fit it seams. It's pretty good bridge, I'm not massively fussed about changing it However, the offer has come up for a proper pre-EB MM one so i think I'd be stupid not to take it!

Yeah sorry I was going to say, because it's a late pre-EB one it isn't body through. Hopefully this bridge will be decent and hopefully be ideal! It looks like it still has the brushings for the big screws. One step closer to an 'original' bass

I've just taken the bridge apart and as you would expect, it looks every so lovely underneath there Anyway, some photos are attached so would I be able to drop in a this bridge or not? Also on another photo you can see the bridge in depth as it is now as well as how the pick guard hits the mounting plate. Would this be a problem with the proper MM bridge? I'm wondering if it is the bridge that is too big, or the pick guard?

Talk about luck! I did a post on the EB forum and fellow has emailed me and offered me a pre-EB bridge for $150 with a brand new mute assembly. He said it's got hollow saddles so it's pre-EB but not through-body stringing, which is what I need! It's used with some scratches and a little rust in some areas but overall very good condition for its age. It has the mute screws but not the mute spring assembly. Said he has an assembly he has one he can add on to it the deal as well. Thoughts? He has said he would throw in a new set of the two large screws that are on either side of the saddles but said I would have to check your bass to see if the original bushings for those two screws are still in the bass. What are these?!

Ah this sounds like a fun search I'll still contact them and see how I get along but it sounds like it won't be hopefully. It's working fine so I'm happy for the moment.

In terms of functionality, the bridge is perfect, it's simply look, that stupid plate and the mutes! I didn't realise there was a problem with getting EB spare parts. Thought it was like Fender were you can just get them. I'd probably even take a standard MM bridge but not sure I want to whack on a third party one..

The situation was that we were discussing StingRays and I showed him the ones I was contemplating buying. I asked if he was planning on selling on this '83 baby and he said yes as he didn't need it and was looking for another type of bass. It was purchased at what one might consider less than its true value (the fellow sold it at that price because it is what he paid for it, as said on the thread) and was going to sell it on to fund a future purchase. We agreed to pay the minimum he needed to do the upgrade to his bass and that's what happened. Yes, he made a profit but not as big as he could have made, this is why it was a friendly purchase, as it was a favour to me to sell it for less The neck feels great and has already had work as you said...any thoughts on where I could look for a bridge matey? There doesn't seem to be an official source of MM spare parts anywhere.

Nice, didn't see that one! Am guessing finding a pickup and fitting would be a good £100, unless you wanted to keep what is in there. The 3EQ Honeyburst he was asking £750, Andy Baxter was asking £725 but got him down to £675 for 2EQ. £650-700 seems to be standard for MMs these days. I'm guessing you would have paid less for my frankenbass? Personally, something that sounds better, feels better and is known to be from a good era is worth paying a little more for. I'll agree the bridge isn't great as it doesn't like great, lacks mutes so I am going to attempt to find something original or similar to replace it. Again, I'm happy so I'll just absorb the criticism on behalf of my *special* bass no one likes

Now I used to think they were £600 but they have been creeping up in price recently, depending on condition. The 2000 one I was looking at was £650, others have been £700 but I haven't seen one go for £600 for at least a year. This is true, if a bass is right for you then the price doesn't matter However, looking at this one at the Gallery (http://www.thebassgallery.com/product_details.cfm?ID=1291) which is up for £1,600. Others might have paid the same for a newer one but I do like my mojo on basses. The condition is very similar to the one I have, the only difference is the bridge is original. Considering mine was less than half the price, I'll take it I've posted on the EB forum about a bridge and emailed MM Customer Services about a new one from their classic series. Any other places to look? I just fancy having those mutes, as well as the look.

That's the one. My friend bought it and decided it didn't offer much more than his other StingRay. It was a close call between this and a newer 2000 2EQ StingRay, also with some battle damage, that was of a similar price. However, I just loved the feel of the neck, tone and road worn look of this baby and considering most StingRays are now going for £700 minimum, £750 didn't seem too bad at all. They may not all be the original parts but it is definatly a pre-EB bass together It feels a world away from the old standard EBMM I've played in the past and old my SUB bass. He bought it for that price from that thread and probably could have sold it for more privately. We came to an agreement because we are mates so I got it for this price, which we were both happy with. Yes it's a bit of a frankenbass but I'm not bothered too much...would like the bridge sorted at some point, as it's oversized, missing mutes but does hold tuning and intonation very well. And here's a nice photo with the black pickguard...

Sorry guys, I'm desperately revising for a big exam tomorrow so no time for photos but I will do some. Some notes on it through * '83 StingRay body in white, with the usual road worn damage for a 25+ year old bass * 2EQ original electronics, original input jack replace but still have original * Neck from an *84 Sabre, excellent feel and much quicker than any other MM bass I have played * Bridge is not original, appears to be a Schallar through-bridge. I'm convinced it's bigger than usual a standard bridge (see below). However it does keep in tune very nicely! * Original tuners with Hipshot D-Tuner on E string * Had an awful mirrored pick guard that I replaced for a standard MM Black one. However, it sits on the top part of the bridge and it appears the bridge covers up the hole. I'll show some photos to get some advice on how to solve this one. The screw holes also didn't exactly match some screws are at an angle. However, it feels and sounds bloody excellent! It has a very strong G string and the whole thing is just the best StingRay I've ever played. It's not too bright like my old SUB but it's got a lot of bite. And all for only £750! It may be a Frankenbass but it's a pre-EB StingRay for a very small amount. I would possibly be on the lookout for a bridge from one of the new classic series ones as finding an '83 bridge will be hard!

In just a few months time, it's going to be my twenty first birthday (shock, growing old!) and my family is putting together a party up home and there should hopefully be a fair number of people turning up. Therefore, the main thing I wanted to do was to put a band together. I've got my usual keyboardist, an awesome mate on sax and singing (not the same person!) as well as a guitartist and drummer friend. I was planning on doing two sets, the first of background instrumental music when people arrive, and the second of the main set. i've tried get a balance between things I like and things others will like. It's my party but what I like won't please everyone in the second set, so thoughts? The instrumental set we will probably blag with charts or something. Probably won't play them all either, it's all just considerations [b]Set One - Instrumentals[/b] 'Round Midnight - Monk Blue Rondo a la Turk - Brubeck Chameleon - Herbie Hancock Get Carter Theme - Roy Budd Green Onions - Booker T How High The Moon - Oscar Peterson I Can't Turn You Loose/Time is Tight - Otis Redding Jean Pierre - Miles Davis So What - Miles Davis Take Five - Brubeck Take The A Team Tequila - The Champs Unsquare Dance - Brubeck Watermelon Man - Hancock [b]Set Two - Main Set[/b] As The Days Go By - Daryl Braithwaite Money - Pink Floyd Do It Again - Steely Dan Like A Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan Ulysses - Franz Ferdinand Take Me To The River - Talking Heads The Wanderer - Dion The Logical Song - Supertramp Viva La Vida - Coldplay Enola Gay - OMD Smooth Operator - Sade Who Are You - The Who

[quote name='Gareth Hughes' post='839905' date='May 17 2010, 04:59 PM']Have fun - and if I can be of any help with anything, ask away. I have the book here too if that helps.[/quote] Thanks very much, I'll let you know how I get on. Apart from Santa Fe, the only other ones that need watching out for are La Vie Boheme seems to have some interesting scales and Finale, which has Santa Fe again! Anything else to look for particularly? This is an amateur production but the pianist was telling me how many harmonies and singers there are!

Update - my score arrived today and it all doesn't look too bad! Lots of steady patterns and whole notes, just 43 songs is all! I'm really looking forward to the first rehearsal on Friday. I've made flash cards with the notes on the staves and ask my friends to quiz me on which note it is and where it can be found on the fretboard. Once I've got this sussed, just need to jog my memory of which notes are white. Apart from a few songs which have specific lines (Santa Fe particularly), the rest one could in theory get away with chords. The pianist from the band suggested that I just wing it like this but since this is my first pit band, I'll do it properly. I'll happily keep on reporting back if people are interested in a little diary of this

Thanks mate, will keep that in mind I'm so glad it's not a bigger problem because it feels such a good bass and has an amazing tone. I want to put the original jack back in, which disables the power if there is no jack in! Therefore battery will last longer

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='839826' date='May 17 2010, 03:40 PM']I does sound a little like you have a short to earth somewhere which is causing the circuit to momentarily blink out. Don't play it anymore until you have checked it over thoroughly as you may be doing irreparable damage.[/quote] Solved the problem! I was using a stereo jack into my computer and it is indeed wired incorrectly. To quote my friend "on a mono jack, the sleeve and ring are connected, so the weird wiring makes no difference. With the stereo lead only partly in, not all the connections are made. Those that are are not connected to the right places" Therefore, it's fine! We will rewire the input jack when time allows so it copes with a stereo lead

I received my pre-EB StingRay today and besides being a workhouse and feeling fantastic, the electronics appear to be dead. I've bought a new battery but it has made no difference. My friend suggested briefly that there could be a loose conncetion or incorrect wiring. Following this [url="http://www.musicmanbass.org/mycustompage0019.htm"]http://www.musicmanbass.org/mycustompage0019.htm[/url] for the late-MM period (1983, when the bass was made), it appears to be wired correctly. However, the original input jack has been changed (I still have it) and am thinking this may be the cause of the problems. I made a little sound file of the recording here - [url="http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1480908/StingRayProblem.mp3"]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1480908/StingRayProblem.mp3[/url] to demonstrate the problem. The most interesting part is at 0:13, when I push the cable all the way in and it starts loud and seems to die. The first half is with the jack half way in and the second is all the way. It's the same wire I've used countless times with other basses without a problem. Any thoughts? I want to play my new StingRay