stingrays..pre ernie ball or not

[neepheid]

[quote name='Ou7shined' timestamp='1374580150' post='2150360']
Although once they warm up the cheese ones can play like butter.
[/quote]

Ghee whizz, those ones sound like they are the cream of the crop.

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1374580354' post='2150364']


Ghee whizz, those ones sound like they are the cream of the crop.
[/quote]

Aye but best take them with a pinch of salt.

[Gust0o]

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1374421554' post='2148519']
You could go all out and get a Bongo. It will blow your mind.
[/quote]

Having recently added a Bongo to the collection, I'll second that - if you can stomach the looks, of course!

[Gust0o]

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1374580354' post='2150364']
Ghee whizz, those ones sound like they are the cream of the crop.
[/quote]

You guys are really milking this pun

[martthebass]

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1374575855' post='2150251']
The neck profiles are chalk and cheese.
[/quote]

I'm never sure how much of the profile is 'standardised' on EBBM or preeb. I regularly play (not mine) a preeb at a local Jamnight, the neck profile is chunky and not really to my tastes (doesn't feel far off a 57 precision RI in my girly hands). My 1990 Ray had a slimmer profile but still more substantial than a standard modern US P bass. I've had a few 2000's Rays, my current 2001 Fretless has a very slim neck and seems inbetween my old 1990 and a Sterling in terms of width at the nut.

[Cairobill]

Thats interesting. I found the 1994 neck to be simliar to the present day ones. I guess its a case of try before you buy?

[Dingus]

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1374579707' post='2150352']
Neither of these materials fill me with confidence with regard to structural integrity
[/quote]

That is very perceptive of you , because in my experience , the necks on both pre and post EB Stingrays are not that stable , probably because they are so slim and have no extra stiffening features . Maybe the reason EBMM have moved towards a fatter neck profile is to try and combat the tendency of these necks to shift with the slightest change in the weather . The oil finish doesn't help with that , either . Very sensitive to heat and humidity .

[martthebass]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1374584686' post='2150483']


That is very perceptive of you , because in my experience , the necks on both pre and post EB Stingrays are not that stable , probably because they are so slim and have no extra stiffening features . Maybe the reason EBMM have moved towards a fatter neck profile is to try and combat the tendency of these necks to shift with the slightest change in the weather . The oil finish doesn't help with that , either . Very sensitive to heat and humidity .
[/quote]

Yup 'Jane Hill's Stalker'. The gloss finished neck on my old 30th Anni didn't need adjusting in the 2 years that I had it. I think some of the oil finished are better than others though, I had a 2006 that was always changing shape.......the 2001 Fretless has been ok though no movement in 18 months.

[stingrayPete1977]

My 2002 hardly moved in ten years, Classic and pre were sealed other than where my 79 was worn through to the wood, awesome bass.

[neepheid]

[quote name='Gust0o' timestamp='1374581083' post='2150385']
You guys are really milking this pun
[/quote]

Yo-gurt to be kidding me man.

[stingrayPete1977]

Nobody got any chalk puns then?

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1374599785' post='2150762']
Nobody got any chalk puns then?
[/quote]

I'll see if I can dust one off

[stingrayPete1977]

Ooooooshhh

[discreet]

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1374599785' post='2150762']
Nobody got any chalk puns then?
[/quote]

No - I'm board.

[Dingus]

Always bear in mind that some folks are more sensitive to movement than others . I am aware of the sightest shift because I am very particular about the action and overall feel of my basses , whereas some players who use a slightly more "meaty" action or who like a little more relief in the neck are less likely to be troubled by small shifts . I know for a fact that the main reason Flea gave up on using Stingrays was because he got sick of the EBMM's necks constantly needing adjustment , hence the shift to graphite - necked basses . My pre- EBMM Stingray needed fairly regular attention , and shifted by big amounts , too , from what I remember , so it's not just EBMM era basses , either . The typical Stingray profile is a shallow "D" , and there just isn't enough girth to make it rigid enough , I expect .

Edited July 23, 2013 by Dingus

[stingrayPete1977]

But he was playing in California one night , russia the next!

[Dingus]

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1374611438' post='2150961']
But he was playing in California one night , russia the next!
[/quote]

It's a bit of a contrast , but I remember the bass player for Run Rig ( kind of like the Flea of the Outer Hebrides ) saying in an interview in a bass magazine he had the same problem with his Stingray , and he will have been playing in Inverness one night and Dundee the next . And yes , I admit that I am enough of a bass guitar anorak to read interviews with the bass player from RunRig .

[Kiwi]

[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1374255786' post='2146997']
The best Stingrays for looks and sound that i have seen were made by Ernie Ball in the late eighties/early nineties. Not played so couldn't comment on feel.
[/quote]
I've been saying this on here for the last 10 years. I still have a preEB ray though not for any reason other than it was cheap and I was going for the Bernard Edwards thing. But if there wasn't the genre association, I'd have an 87 or 88 blueburst ray with a birdseye neck.

[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1374261748' post='2147055']
I would struggle to understand why anyone would pay silly amounts for a pre-ernie ball Musicman over the new Musicman Classic series, unless they were a collector.
[/quote]
I haven't played the classic series yet but well worn basses sound a bit mellower to me. Of course the trick is not to pay silly amounts in the first place.

[stingrayPete1977]

The biggest missed opportunity bass wise will always be the graphite necked Flea Ray

[JTUK]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1374600392' post='2150774']
Always bear in mind that some folks are more sensitive to movement than others . I am aware of the sightest shift because I am very particular about the action and overall feel of my basses , whereas some players who use a slightly more "meaty" action or who like a little more relief in the neck are less likely to be troubled by small shifts . I know for a fact that the main reason Flea gave up on using Stingrays was because he got sick of the EBMM's necks constantly needing adjustment , hence the shift to graphite - necked basses . My pre- EBMM Stingray needed fairly regular attention , and shifted by big amounts , too , from what I remember , so it's not just EBMM era basses , either . The typical Stingray profile is a shallow "D" , and there just isn't enough girth to make it rigid enough , I expect .
[/quote]

The thing that made my MM the best...pre EB... was that the neck was bomber and ROCK solid.
Never ever moved and I do like a low smooth action...which it was able to deliver..

Now days, my necks need a tweak twice a year... and the saddles a tad more.
But I do keep them pretty stable in terms of what I expose them to.....

[Dingus]

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1374613210' post='2150985']
The biggest missed opportunity bass wise will always be the graphite necked Flea Ray
[/quote]

Yes ! EBMM would have been fighting customers off with the proverbial unhygenic stick if that had come about . Don't give up hope though ; there is still the chance that the Dingus Signature model may come to pass - Bongo with a graphite neck and big knockers

[Musicman20]

My god a Bongo with a graphite neck would sound so modern and aggressive it would be unreal!!!

[BassTractor]

Nobody even care enough to warn the OP against pre-EB bongos?
I guarantee you that they do not hold water when compared with the Bongos that Ernie Ball builds.

(Sorry, but someone had to say it. Itz za loow.)

best,
bert

[Kiwi]

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1374614782' post='2151016']
My god a Bongo with a graphite neck would sound so modern and aggressive it would be unreal!!!
[/quote]
Bongos are pretty warm sounding by themselves but with the extra mids from the graphite neck, I think that would be an exceptionally nice sounding bass. Therefore probably no chance it will be built.

[drTStingray]

I've been following this debate/ruck with interest. I have an early 2010 Classic Stingray and it is without doubt a fantastic instrument. It has the same pre as all post 79 2 band Rays with the addition of a couple of features to stop you frying the pre (listens for all the vintage guy's sharp intakes of breath and cries of its not original then - all I can say is whatever floats your boat - and I know what floats mine). Pete I'm also shocked. I had a 79 ray bought new in 79 - it's what turned me against fender basses - to this day!! And the 2010 is everything the 79 was but built better, with more consistency and a rather good after sales service. The biggest sound shifter with these basses is your amp,it's settings and the strings. You can lose the top end shimmer easily just by cutting or boosting your tweeter.

To get the Louis Johnson slap sound you need a sabre or two pick up ray and have both pick ups on. I have an HH Ray and love it totally.

I get a lot of compliments about the sound of both instruments and one is played sometimes in a classic genre populated by the most anal of anal retro gear and instrument buffs. They often concede that the 2010 Classic (it is fitted with flat wounds and sometimes has the mutes on) sounds live how an old Precision sounds recorded - or possibly compliments the music even better. For me it's one of the best bass sounds known to man.

As a self confessed Musicman enthusiast I don't currently have a pre EB. That they are good there is no doubt - I used one for about 10 yrs so I know. The modern basses do everything the old ones did but have the advantage of great build quality and possibly broader sounds plus you get that 'new car' feeling and vibe from them. I'm afraid a brand new car has always done more for me than a tatty vintage one but that's just my personal view!!

Edited July 24, 2013 by drTStingray