BabyBlueSound

3 minutes ago, martthebass said:

 

That's a real surprise after hearing so many good things about these.  Glad I opted for a used Fallout US now.

I'd still say this is an AMAZING instrument if you manage to get one without all the quality control issues  I am returning it now and the shop will try to fix it somehow, replace it, or just refund it. And then if they can't fix it and must refund it, my mission will be to find one that works well, as I am in love  

18 hours ago, Obrienp said:

Funny the blurb on Project Music website says they give it a setup in their in-house workshop. Obviously forgot on yours, or is it just cursory? 
 

This has cured my GAS anyway! Project Music website says they still have a Daphne Blue one in stock, so it might be worth sending yours back now to bag the other one.

I guess setup-wise most was done that could be done, intonation looked quite alright. They could have carved the nut a bit (or just install a new one, this being dirty and looking horrible overall  ) but not sure if that's usually part of an on-sale setup or not as an industry standard.

Anyways, I'm sending back the bass tomorrow, and PM is very helpful about it, their tech will review if anything can be fixed, or if it can be exchanged, and in the worst case scenario they will just refund. No hassle dealing with them.  

1 hour ago, Obrienp said:

That’s very disappointing because it’s not exactly the cheapest in that general price sector! I am glad I saw your post, as I was having serious GAS for the remaining Daphne Blue one at Project Music. That has cured it, so thanks!

 

I wonder if the general quality of these SS Rays has gone down since they were released. All of the reviews I have seen online, which are all from a couple of years ago, say how well it was made. At that point it was retailing for a couple of hundred quid less I believe. 
 

I think I’ll keep my eyes peeled for a secondhand example. It might have had some of the issues ironed out and if it hasn’t, a bit of remedial work on a £400-450 bass is acceptable but not when it’s near £700.

It IS very disappointing, since I have now done some comparisons with my Talman (equipped with EMG Geezer Butlers which I really like!), and the Sterling's sound is just SO MUCH BETTER, I am honestly stunned at the jump in quality.

5 minutes ago, ezbass said:

That nut is horrific! 

My buddy suspected it's carved out of a toothbrush

Ok, so just to sum up, I had:

1., A bent tone knob

2., Visibly ugly glue job between the neck and the fretboard near the body

3., A terribly looking nut with a gap behind it, seriously, the nut on my £150 Talman is an ivory masterpiece compared to this one  

4., Some small glue spots on the neck that you can feel when sliding your hand around

5., Tiny paint job chip where the neck joins the body

6., And of course the string saddle that does not allow the E to go lower than 2.5mm, directly impacting playability

I'd expect a much shorter quality issue list from a £600+ bass to be honest. I could roll with most, but the high action I can't accept. 

Checking Talkbass, I see a lot of people have similar issues (some say quality noticeably dropped when Covid started), and they either return the bass, or shim and change the nut, etc.

For now, I'll try to get mine replaced if they still have that other one in stock, or just get a refund for now and will try later  Really wanted this bass but not at any cost, like shimming the brand new instrument etc.

p.s. the G string is flat dead, the others sound pretty good  but that's really just splitting hairs, I'd buy new strings anyway.

Yep, in case anyone else would be wondering, I am NOT liking the bass so far, because it's not made well. It's a lovely instrument but the QC is just plain awful. More on this in order not to derail this thread: 

33 minutes ago, ezbass said:

If you don't mind the colour, Anderton's have one in dropped copper.

https://www.andertons.co.uk/bass-dept/bass-guitars/short-scale-bass-guitars/sterling-musicman-short-scale-ray-4-bass-in-dropped-copper

Unfortunately I don't like that, really need the blue beauty  Anyway I have contacted Project Music to see what can they do. Shim it for me, or replace with the other one in stock, or cover the costs of a luthier, I'm down with anything... don't tell me I'm not flexible  Let's see how they handle it. I will only return as a last resort. Thanks for all your help and checking the saddles, action etc, really helpful!

13 minutes ago, ezbass said:

Send it back, get another one, it’s not right IMO.

I am considering that, but it's not in stock anywhere, so might go down the luthier way. We'll see, it's still very new, got to know it first  

6 minutes ago, ezbass said:

My action is a hair over 2mm at the 12 fret, there is minimal relief (no rattles though) and I have this amount of adjustment left (I did lower the slots, however).

Thank for checking, I could work with THAT. But I don't have any adjustment space left and it's still between 2.25mm and 2.5mm... very very high for me, even when fretted (so lowering the slot won't be enough).

5 minutes ago, ezbass said:

Are the nut slots too high, mine were. Maybe a truss rod tweak too?

Yeah nut is a bit high but not terrible. Truss rod is almost alright, and I could tighten it a bit, but I was once told truss rod adjustments should never be used for adjusting action  So I looked into this more and if I will decide to keep it, I'll get it to a luthier to shim the neck I guess.

NBD!!!  Sterling shortie is joining the Talman!

Got it this morning, what a beauty! Still getting to know it. Small issues: the nut s a bit slant, has a gap behind it and does not look very clean overall. And two of the knobs are not straight at all. Minor stuff but a bit annoying.

One serious question to fellow owners: don't you find the action very high? I just LOVE a very low action, but out of the box my E string is already on the lowest possible setting (see pic, it's already touching the bridge plate) so there's no more wiggle room at all, and it's still crazy high for me. 

8 minutes ago, gazzatriumph said:

And when you get older and your eyes start to fail you will love neck markers, I don't see the point of fret board ones though except for decoration. 

I DO love ALL sorts of neck markers! Except LED ones  But I do see how it's beneficial to some people under some circumstances. 

We're getting a bit off-topic here  but my pet peeve is putting bright blue LEDs into EVERYTHING. You can't buy a phone charger or a USB hub these days without it lighting up a dark room, or burning small dots into your retina if they're constantly in your field of vision.

And then I have seen people/manufacturers actually installing LEDs as markers / decoration in the bass neck... 🤮 

24 minutes ago, ots said:

That's where I got mine from - good service.

Good to know! They promised a Tue or Wed delivery, can't wait  I think they're down to the last piece, I almost needed 2 (for a friend) and had them confirm they actually had only 2 left. Ultimately I only needed one, so the other is still up for grabs  

@ezbass is the pickup standard size? In case I'd want a white stingray pickup cover  

Ordered one finally as I found stock in one single shop, Project Music in Exeter, every other place it's a rolling "will be in stock in 1 months" status for quite a few months now  . Doublechecked with them if they REALLY have it in stock and apparently they do, so hoping for a fast delivery now  

1 hour ago, naxos10 said:

Until recently 3 of my short scales were strung with 50 - 110 gauge roundwound strings and they sounded spot on. 2 of these are ACG basses which came factory fitted with this gauge.

I have now fitted the 2 pbass short scales with 40 - 90 gauge flats can hear and here a difference in the harmonic content, while the tension is similar to the roundwounds.

I'd love to hear how your shorty sounds with 90 flats, can you record it?

There's an Ibanez shortie on the market now for £135, can recommend to anyone who wants to peek into the world of SS for a reasonable price.

4 hours ago, SteveXFR said:

Charles Berthoud's whole thing seems to be take a great, simple song and ruin it by completely over playing and jamming in 20 times as many notes.

There's also is "when you have 30 seconds to audition for ......." where he takes one of that bands riffs and completely ruins it by jamming in a million unnecessary notes to create something that sounds OK as a solo piece but would never work in a band

...but why would I watch someone play an already great bassline as is?   Yeah, "overplaying" is his thing, but at least he keeps it groovy.

I can't stand the Devine style. All that talk, then some non-groovy technique-y riff with bends, hammers, weird timings and melodies, my head never ever bobs to his playing.

Everything you say is keeping this bass on the very top of my "next to buy" list.  

I check this beauty every day basically, and trying to convince myself I need this, but then I practice a bit and I realise I'm not even close to being decent enough for a fretless 😁

2 minutes ago, Nobody said:

I'm diggin' my short scale.

More pics please! 🤤

4 hours ago, hooky_lowdown said:

If anyone has a talman and wants a solid black pickguard, let me know I'll be happy to swop.

I'd love to have a solid black pickguard, my 3 ply is slightly used, moderate home wear since October. I can take some photos later.

What a beauty, if only it was a 4-string one... 🤓