Is now good time to be buying 'quality' musical instruments

[Waddo Soqable]

3 minutes ago, ProfJames said:

Well done!!!  Photos please!

Easy tiger, it won't arrive this evening ....can you not see it on the bass direct site now then ?

[ProfJames]

Just now, Waddo Soqable said:

Easy tiger, it won't arrive this evening ....can you not see it on the bass direct site now then ?

Just on it now, looks in great condition, quite like the white pickguard as well........ looks a great purchase, hope you enjoy it........

[Waddo Soqable]

1 minute ago, ProfJames said:

Just on it now, looks in great condition, quite like the white pickguard as well........ looks a great purchase, hope you enjoy it........

I've had a real stingray back in the day, (in fact 2 but passed one on fairly quickly) so kind of know what they're like, these sub versions seem to have a good rep when I've heard them talked about anyway.

[ProfJames]

2 minutes ago, Waddo Soqable said:

I've had a real stingray back in the day, (in fact 2 but passed one on fairly quickly) so kind of know what they're like, these sub versions seem to have a good rep when I've heard them talked about anyway.

I'm new to them (still defer to my BB1100s as my "go to") but really like the feel and the low end.  Not played a SUB but as you said...... people pay them a lot of respect and even question the diffeerences.  Looks a good purchase...

[Waddo Soqable]

4 minutes ago, ProfJames said:

I'm new to them (still defer to my BB1100s as my "go to") but really like the feel and the low end.  Not played a SUB but as you said...... people pay them a lot of respect and even question the diffeerences.  Looks a good purchase...

Supposedly they were made in the Stingray plant, by the same people, with  pretty much the same parts, but an "economy"  finish, is the way I've heard it.

This one in the pics looks good, hopefully it'll arrive without being wrecked en route, (or arrive at all !.)... I recently ordered something from GAK which seemed to vanish in DHL system, I ended up with a refund but makes you a bit wary of stuff being shipped via "courier"..

[ProfJames]

5 minutes ago, Waddo Soqable said:

Supposedly they were made in the Stingray plant, by the same people, with  pretty much the same parts, but an "economy"  finish, is the way I've heard it.

This one in the pics looks good, hopefully it'll arrive without being wrecked en route, (or arrive at all !.)... I recently ordered something from GAK which seemed to vanish in DHL system, I ended up with a refund but makes you a bit wary of stuff being shipped via "courier"..

Heard almost exactly the same as you re the SUB.  You can let us have a comparison please.  Always a concern using a courier.  BD should be fine though, great shop and good experienced people.

[Waddo Soqable]

1 minute ago, ProfJames said:

Heard almost exactly the same as you re the SUB.  You can let us have a comparison please.  Always a concern using a courier.  BD should be fine though, great shop and good experienced people.

Good to know BD have a decent rep. as a seller anyway, I've heard of them, but not ever bought from them before. Would have been nice to have had a confo email from them by now tho ( maybe they do it by hand, not automated )

It's a very long time since I had a proper Stingray so comparison will be tinged with memory clouds !

[ProfJames]

1 minute ago, Waddo Soqable said:

Good to know BD have a decent rep. as a seller anyway, I've heard of them, but not ever bought from them before. Would have been nice to have had a confo email from them by now tho ( maybe they do it by hand, not automated )

It's a very long time since I had a proper Stingray so comparison will be tinged with memory clouds !

I wouldn't be concerned with their automated system, the shop is shut, you have confirmation from PayPal that the transaction was completed.  I would be amazed if something was out of kilter.  Each retailer works in a different way, different systems, processes and protocols, different payment gateways, etc.   Sit back and await the delivery!

[drTStingray]

10 minutes ago, Waddo Soqable said:

Good to know BD have a decent rep. as a seller anyway, I've heard of them, but not ever bought from them before. Would have been nice to have had a confo email from them by now tho ( maybe they do it by hand, not automated )

It's a very long time since I had a proper Stingray so comparison will be tinged with memory clouds !

I have one (amongst its 9 other more expensive (some very much more) siblings. They’re great and sound exactly as a 2 band Stingray should - the string of cost saving measures are largely on body material (multiple, poorly matched pieces of poplar), no contours (so slab body as pre EB and Stingray Classic), neck finishing (covered with black paint - lack of hand finished fret end slots etc), body finish (textured) but the electronics and hardware are all standard (but unbranded hardware) US Stingray bits. Just remember the price of these has increased, and like with normal Stingrays, a lot of people prefer them stock! 

A good purchase though - they sound exactly as you’d expect a poplar bodied, rosewood board 2 band Stingray to. 

Edited June 14, 2021 by drTStingray

[Waddo Soqable]

3 minutes ago, ProfJames said:

I wouldn't be concerned with their automated system, the shop is shut, you have confirmation from PayPal that the transaction was completed.  I would be amazed if something was out of kilter.  Each retailer works in a different way, different systems, processes and protocols, different payment gateways, etc.   Sit back and await the delivery!

True,  I'm just still narked by those GAK / DHL nobs... !

[Waddo Soqable]

1 minute ago, drTStingray said:

I have one (amongst its 9 other more expensive (some very much more) siblings. They’re great and sound exactly as a 2 band Stingray should - the string of cost saving measures are largely on body material (multiple, poorly matched pieces of poplar), no contours (so slab body as pre EB and Stingray Classic), neck finishing (covered with black paint - lack of hand finished fret end slots etc), body finish (textured) but the electronics and hardware are all standard (but unbranded) US Stingray bits. Just remember the price of these has increased, and like with normal Stingrays, a lot of people prefer them stock! 

A good purchase though - they sound exactly as you’d expect a poplar bodied, rosewood board 2 band Stingray to. 

Good rundown thanks for that 👍 .. Funnily enough I was watching a ratty looking "passive" one on evilbay that was start price of 550, so this one looks a very fair buy in comparison. ( never knew they did passive MMs at all )

[hubrad]

2 hours ago, Waddo Soqable said:

Good rundown thanks for that 👍 .. Funnily enough I was watching a ratty looking "passive" one on evilbay that was start price of 550, so this one looks a very fair buy in comparison. ( never knew they did passive MMs at all )

A friend of mine has a passive 🇺🇸 SUB.. the tone controls are some kind of resistor-capacitor setup. Can't remember which knob did what, but it's a great sounding and playing bass.

[drTStingray]

9 hours ago, peteb said:

I'm not sure of your point here. For most people, a Ray is what it is (American built 4H / 5H, 2 or 3 eq). 

I feel this needs challenging as I know there are some people on here that have this view and buy and sell Stingrays because they like the idea, then can’t get on with them - or maybe do this several times think - this is not necessarily reflective of the market for Stingrays and is really an oversimplification and although I don’t want to start a silly poll (and as Basschat is fairly unrepresentative of the broader bass market it wouldn’t be much help anyway), there are a fair few people around who are a bit more discerning than that. There are vast differences across the years of production and certainly since 2005, there have been a range of additional options, and loads of variations of models, both standard and short run. Since 2018 there has been the introduction of the Stingray Special model. That’s before you get into desirable or otherwise colours - even back into the 80s and 90s. A new one is the mid 90s was £750 - a new one now is in the high £2ks. (The US Subs were about £425/450 new in the 2003-6 production period - gig bag (no case) - the passive was slightly cheaper).  

Saying a Stingray costs x is about as helpful in the real world as saying a Classic Mini was on sale for £5k, and a Classic Cooper S might be a bit more (oh yeah - a mint one might actually be £45k) - apart from for people who just want a Stingray and don’t actually care (I think it is a major presumption that is the market). It doesn’t just apply to Stingrays - the same is true of other basses (eg Warwick - tons of models - different values; Precisions - vast range of models of more or less the same thing - vast range of prices - occasional ‘bargains’ for one reason or another). 

I must say if I found a Ray being sold by a struggling muso, and it was a model I was really after, you wouldn’t catching me offering a low ball price, in fact I would be more than happy to pay a going rate and probably more - I’d be more than happy to outbid the ‘flippers’. If I did pay a low ball price, I would most certainly feel I was taking advantage of such a person, who you could consider to be in a ‘vulnerable’ position - there is a distasteful side to capitalism imho! 
 

Edited June 14, 2021 by drTStingray

[peteb]

4 minutes ago, drTStingray said:

people who just want a Stingray and don’t actually care

I'm afraid that I'm one of these people and I don't think that I'm alone. 

I know that EBMM have brought out many different versions over the past twenty or so years, but I just wanted a pretty standard Ray because it's a great bass with a classic / unique sound. I don't really need a variant of that model, even though they may well be decent basses.

Let's just say that you can get a really nice 90s 3eq Stingray 4H for a pretty good price if you do a bit of searching. This represents great value for what is a well made, great sounding, iconic bass that can cover just about any gig. 

[drTStingray]

Just now, peteb said:

I'm afraid that I'm one of these people and I don't think that I'm alone. 

I know that EBMM have brought out many different versions over the past twenty or so years, but I just wanted a pretty standard Ray because it's a great bass with a classic / unique sound. I don't really need a variant of that model, even though they may well be decent basses.

Let's just say that you can get a really nice 90s 3eq Stingray 4H for a pretty good price if you do a bit of searching. This represents great value for what is a well made, great sounding, iconic bass that can cover just about any gig. 

No problem - I know there a few people on here and TB who have that point of view view 👍 I’m just saying there are other points of view which differ - the commission sales in shops (not just of Stingrays) show there is a broader market. There’s a whole thread full of problems relating to scammers on FB market place so you takes your chance there - on the other hand there are also FB groups for some instruments - like supporters clubs - and I guess like car clubs (eg the MG Car Club), people might sell to each other within that as they’re all enthusiasts. 

[tegs07]

8 hours ago, drTStingray said:

I must say if I found a Ray being sold by a struggling muso, and it was a model I was really after, you wouldn’t catching me offering a low ball price, in fact I would be more than happy to pay a going rate and probably more - I’d be more than happy to outbid the ‘flippers’. If I did pay a low ball price, I would most certainly feel I was taking advantage of such a person, who you could consider to be in a ‘vulnerable’ position - there is a distasteful side to capitalism imho! 
 

Very ethical of you. Personally I look at buying and selling things very dispassionately.

Value is relative. When there are lots of buyers for a scarce object it’s value goes up and the reverse is also true.

 I wanted a Stingray for years but there were few for sale and many people that wanted one. I bid what I could afford and constantly lost out on bids. Was the seller unethical? They were getting as much as they could so not really.

In the last 12 months there have been more 2EQ 4H’s on the market (colour, year, neck composition didn’t matter) so I continued to bid and got one at slightly less than my previous top bids. This was its going value! It was what someone was willing to pay at the time. The seller was happy. I was happy. In a few years I may sell it for more or less depending on circumstances (both personal and wider economic). There is no morality unless someone takes pleasure out of someone else’s misfortune.

Edited June 15, 2021 by tegs07

[Waddo Soqable]

20 hours ago, ProfJames said:

I wouldn't be concerned with their automated system, the shop is shut, you have confirmation from PayPal that the transaction was completed.  I would be amazed if something was out of kilter.  Each retailer works in a different way, different systems, processes and protocols, different payment gateways, etc.   Sit back and await the delivery!

Spoke to them on phone this morning, all good ...they also sent an email confo, tho I was out and about so didn't see it til later. Supposedly, they say, it should arrive tomorrow, which is pretty impressive ( if it turns up !)

[ProfJames]

19 minutes ago, Waddo Soqable said:

Spoke to them on phone this morning, all good ...they also sent an email confo, tho I was out and about so didn't see it til later. Supposedly, they say, it should arrive tomorrow, which is pretty impressive ( if it turns up !)

Still no photos then!!!!   

[Waddo Soqable]

18 minutes ago, ProfJames said:

Still no photos then!!!!   

You'll have to make do with the pics on their site till I have it in my hand ! ( hopefully tomorrow if what they say is true) ..curiously it still appears on their site as if it's available, would've thought they'd have put "Sold" on the listing by now. hey ho

[ProfJames]

29 minutes ago, Waddo Soqable said:

You'll have to make do with the pics on their site till I have it in my hand ! ( hopefully tomorrow if what they say is true) ..curiously it still appears on their site as if it's available, would've thought they'd have put "Sold" on the listing by now. hey ho

You just wont put the effort in!!!! 

[Waddo Soqable]

2 hours ago, ProfJames said:

You just wont put the effort in!!!! 

When it rocks up I'll do some just for you professor... Meanwhile here's some interesting Russian Cyrillic for you to study....  

Edited June 15, 2021 by Waddo Soqable

[Waddo Soqable]

20 hours ago, ProfJames said:

Still no photos then!!!!   

Ok, it turned up, impressive next day courier as compared to previous experience with DHL idiots!.. anyway been fiddling with it, and interesting to compare side by side with a cheapo Sub I've got, obviously the MM sub has way more 'sound' especially on the treble 'clang' end !   its been 'set up' very low and rattles like old widow panes, but I'll muck about with that myself.. the slight disappointment being there's some nasty gouges out of the back of neck and some eejit has been at them with sandpaper, also the neck edge markers look to have been re-glued in with big lumps of some type of adhesive, and on fret 5 looks like someone's tried to dig it off and left a right mess.. tbh the above IMHO takes it well below the sellers 9/10 rating, and wasn't mentioned in the descrip.!  I may email Bass Direct with pics and pull them up on this, if I'd gone to see it in person i'd have been haggling down a bit on price due to this..  anyway I enclose a few pics for Il Professore..

I may swap the orig. silver pickguard over for the black one (obviously retaining the original ) as I prefer the look.. it's a straight swap fit even the screw holes, so no butchery!

[Jus Lukin]

-

Edited March 14, 2022 by Jus Lukin

[Waddo Soqable]

Just now, Jus Lukin said:

Shame about those little niggles, but otherwise, very nice!

Yes it's a nice enough example other than that... I'll probably have a go at polishing out the back of the neck to lose the sandpaper 'work' and try to level the edge markers.. it's almost like someone's replaced the side dots and left them deliberately raised in order to 'feel' them with his thumb or somesuch !  

[martthebass]

12 minutes ago, Waddo Soqable said:

Ok, it turned up, impressive next day courier as compared to previous experience with DHL idiots!.. anyway been fiddling with it, and interesting to compare side by side with a cheapo Sub I've got, obviously the MM sub has way more 'sound' especially on the treble 'clang' end !   its been 'set up' very low and rattles like old widow panes, but I'll muck about with that myself.. the slight disappointment being there's some nasty gouges out of the back of neck and some eejit has been at them with sandpaper, also the neck edge markers look to have been re-glued in with big lumps of some type of adhesive, and on fret 5 looks like someone's tried to dig it off and left a right mess.. tbh the above IMHO takes it well below the sellers 9/10 rating, and wasn't mentioned in the descrip.!  I may email Bass Direct with pics and pull them up on this, if I'd gone to see it in person i'd have been haggling down a bit on price due to this..  anyway I enclose a few pics for Il Professore..

I may swap the orig. silver pickguard over for the black one (obviously retaining the original ) as I prefer the look.. it's a straight swap fit even the screw holes, so no butchery!

As you say shame about the neck cosmetics, like you I would have definitely haggled down the 9/10 rating on that.  I had a US Sterling SUB and had the neck refinished as the black paint had started to go 'sticky', it played (and looked) much better after this - maybe that's an option if you decide the bass is a keeper.