martthebass

I have a recurrent shoulder problem which means long sets with my beloved mm are tough. I moved onto the streamline for long sets. The combination of design and low weight (7lbs) cured my problem. There doesn't seem to be much of a stretch to the 1st and no neck dive as it has no headstock. Expensive but worth a try.

[quote name='krispn' post='895028' date='Jul 14 2010, 08:19 PM']A local shop has two stingrays in at the minute. Played them both (unplugged) yesterday and while one of them was quite nice the other felt much heavier. The guy in the shop claims the lighter model is a '99 model, has a 4 bolt neck and I guess he's right. The 2nd one was admittedly beat to hell with lumps out of the neck, chips in thr paint buckle rash and some very noticable damage to the g side of the fret board - like its been repeatedly dropped or gnawed by a big rat! Its also very evident on the left hand and Im not sure anything could be done to repair it other than a 'new' neck. Anyhow the point is this 2nd beat up bass felt considerably heavier and had a 6 bolt neck, metal battery cover etc and it was dated 89/90. The bridge appeared to have mounts for the mutes as well but they we long gone. Would the woods have been different in these two models? I am tempted but the cost of the new neck is putting me off as I cant get the guy to budge from about £550 - not a good deal considering the damage to the neck Cheers for any help[/quote] Not an expert but quickly: 1. 4 bolt necks went out fairly early in Ray's so this is the older of the 2. 2. The age of the second bass sounds probably about right. There shouldn't be a date on it tho - just a serial (on the bridge at this age IIRC). In the condition you are stating on the second bass - if it was in vgc I'd say £750 - 850 (depending on the level of figuring on the maple). £550 sounds steep if you're going to have to do a neck swap. There are plenty of decent ones out there - there's a minter on here for £650 in trans red ash (so shouldn't be heavy). Not my sale btw - but if I was in the market for another fretted ray I'd have it!

[quote name='bythesea' post='894124' date='Jul 13 2010, 08:16 PM']Does it have to be brand new? I bought a second hand (unmarked) CIJ fretless Jazz for round that figure. Wonderful bass.[/quote] +1, a nice CIJ Jazz would do nicely. Alternatively you might just snag a standard Warwick Corvette for £400, not too shabby if you prefer something away from the Fender track.

I think you need a bit more time experimenting with your settings in a proper practice/gig environment. I've found Rays can be very sensitive to surroundings and can take a bit of tweaking to get projection into the mix. I usually find a play at the mid eq normally does the job. I notice that your other 2 basses are Fender offerings - the MM is a different beast and the sound isn't for everyone, against your 2 I'd expect you to find it trebly/glassy to start with but it can be tamed (to an extent!).

[quote name='Apex' post='889956' date='Jul 8 2010, 10:41 PM']One practice later... Good sound, popular with the rest of the band but - despite your settings Mtb - I tended to lose the G-string in the mix. I think there was a Stingray thread on the same issue some while back.[/quote] Didn't really notice the 'weak G string effect' with mine but to be honest I'm quite used to losing the G in a heavy mix if things aren't perfectly balanced even with my Status.

I had the 2 pickup version of this (the Ken Taylor). The tone is naturally a bit darker than the Stingray 5 but I found it paired well with my MarkBass set up. I tended to put the treble to about 3/4 and roll off the mids a bit which cleaned the sound up. I also found the 'flat' position a bit uninspiring.

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='885333' date='Jul 4 2010, 11:27 AM']Wow! Five Streamlines in our midst so far. They're getting popular [/quote] Hey if Rob keeps turning these out by the dozen my #006 might eventually attain some 'vintage' value. Wonder who's got #001?

[quote name='witterth' post='881380' date='Jun 29 2010, 09:24 PM'][attachment=53250:100_0731.jpg] again just playing with doing this ...my fretless nice![/quote] Making me miss mine all the more W......

Just the Streamline for me Rich (but you already know that). Would love a Stealth at some point tho.

Doesn't look plain to me.....woody sex, that's what that is!

Stop it Rich, you're making me want one now and I need a fretless more than I need another 4string fretted.

Despite hiccoughs at my end on pick up from the courier - Paul had infinite patience in waiting for his Ray Fretless to be dispatched. Great guy to deal with.

[quote name='MB1' post='873909' date='Jun 21 2010, 09:31 PM']MB1. ...Frighteningly Showroom Clean! Mart ...how much heavier are these to a normal stingray?... 'tis made of Hogmonay is it not?[/quote] Not too bad Mart, yes solid mahoog but it comes in at about 9lb10 - similar to other solid coloured Rays ive owned but a good pound heavier than the one piece ash fretless I've just sold. Thought I'd struggle with it but the balance is spot on.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='872727' date='Jun 20 2010, 04:25 PM']Got any pics of this 30th? they make me go all funny! Now wheres that lottery ticket?[/quote] Link to a few pics on the MM porn section [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=25449&st=440&gopid=873839&#entry873839"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...mp;#entry873839[/url]

Here's a few pics of Tombboy's, Jim Elliot's and now my 30th Anni Ray. We had a troublesome start but after a couple of weeks I started to agree with Sterling Ball (the one time in my life I could say that) that this was the best Ray EBMM have ever made. 4 years on and the only sign of wear is a tiny 1mm dink on the very tip of the headstock (not even thru the lacquer) - makes me scared to take her out. Now if only I could find one of it's fretless brothers at a reasonable price (read <£1000) Enjoy...

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='873439' date='Jun 21 2010, 01:23 PM']You'll usually not go far wrong with a Fender Jazz fretless. They're a good workhorse and sound great. I've just picked up a fretless Iceni Zoot Funkmeister with aero pickups, EMG preamp & the most beautiful thin neck you've ever seen. Even has brass inlay lines! Stunning [/quote] +1 Linus - I wouldn't rule out a Ray fretless tho, if you like a P sized neck. Coupled with a 2eq pre they really sing as a fretless - I for one think they have the edge over the Jazz for sound.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='872727' date='Jun 20 2010, 04:25 PM']Got any pics of this 30th? they make me go all funny! Now wheres that lottery ticket?[/quote] I'll have to take some new ones SRP (lost them all a couple of weeks back when the PC died) and post them on the Musicman Porn thread.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='871730' date='Jun 19 2010, 02:16 PM']I spent the last 8 years with the Ernie Ball mate and I still love it dont get me wrong but it took all of 3 minutes of hearing a pre EB through someone elses amp etc to realise the pre sounds better.I think Im wishing I had gone for a 2 band when I purchased the EB but I was a lot younger then and I presumed more is better but it looks as though that is not always the case? Theres a lot of love for the 2 band out there which remains true to the original simple circuit I have in my pre whereas the 3 band has a modern green pcb.I might even swap it and keep all the 3 band bits safe if a cheap 2 band control plate comes my way.What is your experience with the sounds of a pre most people that say they prefer the newer ones have never heard a pre EB. [/quote] I've had 20 years pretty much with at least one mm in the fleet. 2eq, 3eq pre and post EB, fretted and fretless. In the end, as someone has already said, it's all down to personal opinion. In my opinion the best Ray I've played is the 30th but I assume some of that may be due to the woods. For fretted I prefer 3eq because I like the added flexibility in a live situation. For fretless I prefer 2eq as it seems to sing better in the lower register. I don't cuurently own a pre-EB, if I could find a good one that impressed me as much as the EB I have then I'd consider it but I don't think I'd be prepared to pay a £500 premium for the priviledge.