M-Bass-M Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Hi, I'm looking to acquire a Ray copy, and at the moment the choice appears to be either an OLP Ray HH, or a Sterling by Ray34 (single H). I'm looking for a fairly "pure" single-H 'Ray tone, so I'm not sure if a HH model would be a bit overkill, although it is it the cheaper option. What should I do? Cheers Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I tried a Sterling Stingray at Sounds Live in Newcastle today, it was alright. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlloyd Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I assume these are in a local shop as the OLPs are no longer made... have you had the chance to try them out? Which did you prefer? For what it's worth, I was never that impressed by the OLP basses, although I had an OLP baritone guitar that was fairly nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 what's your budget? For less than the price of a new Ray34, and around teh same price of a used Ray34, you can get a MusicMan SUB4. The SUB4 may not be as pretty as some of the Ray34s (some are trully stunning, I must admit). But you get the correct pickup and the correct (2-band EQ) preamp. In other words, you get a Stingray. The body is not contoured, and the paint job is peculiar: textured, matt. Colour choices are just black, dark red, blue, and a couple of very rare others. I have a SUB5 (5 string) in black and I do love the finish. The pickguard is weird... it's metallic, like the floor of buses, that sort of pattern... I don't like it. I replaced mine with a black one. [see picture below, mine had a SD Basslines pickup when I bought it, but I put the original back in it and I prefer it] They come up frequently here in the forum and on eBay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
absolutpepper Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I had an OLP Ray and a SBMM RAY 35. The OLP was only like a 'real' Ray in appearance, the similarities ended there. The SBMM's are far more like the 'real' thing and IMO great value for money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I always thought that the "riffled" finish on the SUB's coupled with those strange cardboard scratchplates made them look really naff. The new Sterling Stingrays are far more attractive but they don't seem to slap well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I am staying well away this time it's more Jose' territory Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeh Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I bought a Sterling SB34 when i rebought all my gear last year and im very impressed with it. Certainly stands up to the MM Ray I used to have. Easily better than the OLP's and SUBs ive played. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fender73 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 OLP, plus upgraded electrics = good value. Standard electrics are pretty lacking in bottom end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 [quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='1097903' date='Jan 21 2011, 06:16 PM']I am staying well away this time it's more Jose' territory [/quote] I just realised I didn't even mention OLP in my reply Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 You must have upgraded to a Sub snob Jose! Oh no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AsterL Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I own a HH EB Stingray, and the 2 humbuckers is definitely better than just the one IMO. You can get J bass trhough P bass as well as some pretty damn cool sounds. I use it for all styles. Depends if you feel you'll use switching a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M-Bass-M Posted January 22, 2011 Author Share Posted January 22, 2011 [quote name='Chris2112' post='1097809' date='Jan 21 2011, 05:09 PM']The new Sterling Stingrays are far more attractive but they don't seem to slap well![/quote] In what way do you think it doesn't slap well - do you mean physically, or just in terms of not being able to get a good tone from the PuP/electrics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 Surely if it were set up right the minor differences would make little difference as to how well they slap (I know thats me deffending the Sterling!) compared to a regular Ray. Or like m-bass-m says do you mean the electronics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jabba_the_gut Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 I'm a great fan of the SUB basses and think that as a secondhand bass represent good value. I've got three SUB basses; a SUB4, SUB5 and a SUB Sterling. I'd agree with other folk regarding the original checkerplate scratchplates - they do look a bit naff in my opinion but can be changed as they are dimensionally the same as other Musicman basses. I personally like the finish and with a different scratchplate thinks they look quite good. Build quality is excellent - nice solid basses. But the mainthing is the sound and feel. Soundwise all three basses are excellent for that 'Ray tone. I would say I prefer the SUB Sterling as a bass as it has three band eq and a slightly thinner neck but that is just personal preference. The SUB basses seem to go for between £300 and £400 wich is still a good chunk less than the new 'Sterling' range (Am I the only person that finds it confusing to name a range of basses the same as a bass in your range?....) I did also use to own a Vintage Stingray copy. Not a bad bass, the neck was nice but it just didn't sound like a 'Ray and if that tone is your main criteria I'd give each replica a thorough try. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlloyd Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 With the SUB, you're getting a lot of what makes a real Stingray. They saved some money on a number of areas: * the body wood, using poplar instead of ash, although it is the case that a number of Stingrays in the early 90s (IIRC) were made from poplar. * the contouring * the finishing, the textured paint job allowing them to skip the polishing steps * the electronics... while the pickup is the same as on a Stingray (I believe), the preamp uses less expensive components than on a Stingray The bridge and (I think) the tuners are also unbranded... I don't know if they differ in any other way. The sound is pretty much spot on. I have a vague recollection that the output on the SUBs I've played was slightly less than on a Stingray, but I may be thinking of a passive SUB. I know what I would go for if I was after a Stingray on a budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 [quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='1098173' date='Jan 21 2011, 10:30 PM']You must have upgraded to a Sub snob Jose! Oh no.[/quote] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 [quote name='dlloyd' post='1098411' date='Jan 22 2011, 10:06 AM']With the SUB, you're getting a lot of what makes a real Stingray. They saved some money on a number of areas: [...] * the electronics... while the pickup is the same as on a Stingray (I believe), the preamp uses less expensive components than on a Stingray [...] The sound is pretty much spot on. I have a vague recollection that the output on the SUBs I've played was slightly less than on a Stingray, but I may be thinking of a passive SUB. [...] I know what I would go for if I was after a Stingray on a budget.[/quote] The preamp on my SUB5 looks pretty much the same as the preamp on my 2002 2EQ Stingray. Cheaper components? I mean... *all* of the components are dead cheap! You can build a copy of that preamp for around £20-25 in all... and that's buying single components and with postage charges... There was a thread at talkbass where someone had made the circuit boards (facilitating building the preamp no end) and giving them for the price of a beer... I got one Anyway, I doubt they'd change anything on the preamp, as it'd cost more to have two separate assemblies than just using one of the preamps they were already building, since they must cost them pennies to make. Soundwise, I can confirm that the 2002 Stingray 2EQ and the 2004 SUB5 2EQ preamps sound identical to this pair of ears. Output: again, I see no sustantial difference, other than what can be accounted for by different string-pickup heights, really. Stingray on a budget? SUB all the way, indeed. OLPs are nice, and can get very nice, but you do need to modify them... and the SUB is still more Stingray-ish (shut up, Pete ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soloshchenko Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 [quote name='mcnach' post='1097460' date='Jan 21 2011, 01:21 PM']what's your budget? For less than the price of a new Ray34, and around teh same price of a used Ray34, you can get a MusicMan SUB4. The SUB4 may not be as pretty as some of the Ray34s (some are trully stunning, I must admit). But you get the correct pickup and the correct (2-band EQ) preamp. In other words, you get a Stingray. The body is not contoured, and the paint job is peculiar: textured, matt. Colour choices are just black, dark red, blue, and a couple of very rare others. I have a SUB5 (5 string) in black and I do love the finish. The pickguard is weird... it's metallic, like the floor of buses, that sort of pattern... I don't like it. I replaced mine with a black one. [see picture below, mine had a SD Basslines pickup when I bought it, but I put the original back in it and I prefer it] They come up frequently here in the forum and on eBay. [/quote] I'd agree with this. In fact I thing my next project is to acquire a decent sub 4 and re finish it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlloyd Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 [quote name='mcnach' post='1098581' date='Jan 22 2011, 12:48 PM']The preamp on my SUB5 looks pretty much the same as the preamp on my 2002 2EQ Stingray. Cheaper components? I mean... *all* of the components are dead cheap! You can build a copy of that preamp for around £20-25 in all...[/quote] Somebody from Ernie Ball said that the preamps had different components on their forum a few years ago... I can't remember the exact wording. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlloyd Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 [quote name='dlloyd' post='1098856' date='Jan 22 2011, 05:13 PM']Somebody from Ernie Ball said that the preamps had different components on their forum a few years ago... I can't remember the exact wording.[/quote] Thinking about it, it may have been the SR5 vs the SUB5 that they were talking about... I don't know... too long ago (2004ish) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danny-79 Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 Hold out for a used MMSR, you should be able to pick one up for around £600 or less even an wont lose anything on it if you decide to sell it . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckman67 Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 (edited) Just checked my emails from Musicman regarding the SUB bass, the 2 band eq on the SUB is the same as the 2 band Stingray 4. I got rid of the thin metal scratchplate,& bought a white triple ply one much better looking more of a Stingray look. Edited January 23, 2011 by luckman67 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M-Bass-M Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 [quote name='danny-79' post='1098952' date='Jan 22 2011, 06:36 PM']Hold out for a used MMSR, you should be able to pick one up for around £600 or less even an wont lose anything on it if you decide to sell it .[/quote] Cheers for all the replies. If I were to go for say the OLP, then my plan was to eventually upgrade the PuP and electronics. By the time I've paid for that, I may as well have gone for an original MM in the first place! That's the plan now, just have to wait around a bit for the right opportunity to come my way... Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Well, I'd snap this one up for £350! [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120676974294&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:GB:1123"]black MM SUB4 on eBay[/url] no connection with the seller at all, if I had the "toy tokens" right now, I'd buy it to refinish it in white Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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