Anyone playing a MM Stingray 5?

[Corey Y]

I've been thinking of adding a 5 string to my arsenal lately and found a great deal on one locally. Not interested in it for down tuning, I have my Kramer 450B tuned to BEAD. Our band plays in Eb and a lot of the songs use inverted power chords, so I end up playing a lot of lines on the A string, and I'd like to be able to arrange my bass lines differently and exploit that B string for more low end. I've never owned a Music Man bass before. I always got the impression they were favored for a very aggressive high end and I use a pretty thick, bassy tone, not a lot of zing. I do know the bassist from Wallrus uses one and I love his bass tone (though it's definitely not the tone I use currently).

What say ye? Anyone rocking the SR5?

[bass sic]

I have an HH4, not a 5 but still a stingray. It has a lot of ballsy low end. The thing plays and sounds perfect, but there's no mojo with this bass. I always go back to the Pbass. I chose not to go with a fiver because in my opinion there's just better tone in a four string, and I really don't need the extra couple notes. There's only so high I go above drop C. Still, it's a great second bass and totally reliable unlike my old P.

[Corey Y]

Yeah, I don't play in a really low tuning for my main band, so I could make use of the full scale of a 5 string easily. I have songs where I use all 4 strings and the main riff goes up from the 3rd fret on the A string, so I could really make use of a B string to rearrange my parts. I figured I'd stick with a 34" scale fiver to preserve the sound I'm used to on E-G. Typically I play either my Carvin SB4000, which is basically a jazz bass, or my Fender MIM Precision. I love my Carvin, but it's a little too hi-fi most of the time for what I'm playing so I've been using the Precision more often lately. Also the Precision is about a pound lighter and I have a bum shoulder.

So I've thought about picking up a MIA P5 or some other 34" scale Precision based 5 string, but I figured I'd give the Stingray an honest consideration. Especially because I got offered a great deal for a mint condition with a hardshell case in my favorite color scheme. I figured if I don't like it at all I could probably sell it and make my money back or even make a little off of it.

[bass sic]

I don't think you will be disappointed in the SR. I say go for it.

[MikeyT]

                 http://tulsa.craigslist.org/msg/2519109002.html


   Is this the going price ?

[Corey Y]

I pulled the trigger on it, just got back from picking it up. Mint condition made in 2007, with the original hardshell case and case candy, $1050. The same model lists for $1645 on basscentral right now.

[Corey Y]

The new baby

[giantchris]

I always liked stingrays seem to have a deeper growl then Rics.  Prefer the necks and the string taper as well.  Thats a nice looking one you really can't go wrong with a tobacco burst.  Post some clips!

Thats a pretty decent price too.

[bloodofkings]

Owned one for a while. I loved the way it played but I was always fighting how snappy of a tone it had. Also heaviest damned bass I ever owned. With that aside it was a great bass. I wound up trading it for a MIA Jazz Bass. Kinda wish I didn't.

[Corey Y]

I had sort of written them off because of the usual weight, but this one is only 8.7 lbs.

[bass sic]

Mine is way lighter than my fender. Almost feels cheap it's so light weight.

[Corey Y]

Well, I used the Stingray 5 at practice tonight. It wasn't really to my taste, which was a bit disheartening. I guess the best description I could use is it isn't "rude" enough for me. Too smooth sounding for my rig. I suspect it would shine with a very modern aggressive bright, scooped mid tone. It's definitely a great instrument, really comfortable to play, but I suspect it will be moving on soon to someone who will appreciate it more.

[bass sic]

Even with different strings and maybe tweaking the onboard EQ? Or maybe its the 5 string lack of tone I mentioned. Just seems to me 4 strings sound better.

[Corey Y]

A change of strings might push it further towards what I like tonally. I did a lot of tweaking with the eq and pickup settings, but could dial it in to my liking. I think it might just be a matter of taste. So many vaiables, I haven't played a stingray or a five string before, either one or both might just not be for me.

[bass sic]

At least you can make your money back on it, and then some.

[Corey Y]

Yep, just made back my money selling it to a guy who has owned a few before and will surely appreciate it a lot more. It's like I got a 4 day free trial. Definitely the quickest turnaround on buying and selling a piece of gear for me, but oh well.

[bass sic]

If you can, try a four string. Its a different world. You might like it a lot.