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MM 35th Anniversary StingRay5 - and no more hard cases


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Interesting spalted finish on the 35th anniversary SR5. Not sure about the block inlays but I expect it will look great in the flesh. 
It seems they are also moving away from hard cases to mono travel cases. Probably more practical but personally I like a hard case (probably tradition). 
Interesting development with heat treated pickups too.

 

https://blog.music-man.com/news/ernie-ball-music-man-new-at-namm-2022/

 

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As much as I love my hardcase for storing my bass away while not using it it's also a pain in the bum for gigs. It doesn't fit in my mini properly and I can't stuff cables and the like into it like I can a gig bag. My Stingray case is mainly used to store the bass only and I use a gig bag to take it to gigs or practice.

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One of the selling points and main convenience of Mono cases - the Verigo, and the Sleeve - is they are top loading. Why would you have Mono make a case for you that has to laid flat to open? 😕

Edited by MacDaddy
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I get the point re hard cases not being gig-practical, or at least the rectangular ones as I find Hiscox cases are great for gigs. But gig-bags just seem to be more gig-friendly for some reason, I love my Mono M80s, and I invariably top load them.

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That new case is a curious choice. Hard case fans will surely consider it too flimsy, but it looks bulky and awkward to use compared to a gig bag.

 

Regarding the SR5, they look so much better without a pickguard, don't they?

Edited by pineweasel
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The basses are shipped in their cases currently - packed in a cardboard guitar packing case. The Mono bag is presumably strong enough to ship basses (and guitars) in a similar way. 
 

Re the SR5 shape and scratch plate, I’ve grown to like all the variants over the years - the 35th Anniversary bass certainly looks very nice indeed - the necks look sublime.
 

Unlike some types of basses which will remain nameless, the Stingray 5 was designed as a completely new instrument rather than adding a string to an existing 4 string design - I think it benefitted from that engineering process. Like @rodney72a I like the standard design of SR5 (with the big pickguard) as much as any other version - judging by how scuffed those pickguards get on working basses I wonder how the finish would stand up to extensive gigging for a bass without a pickguard? 
 

The hard cases have increased in size since the mid 201x period - when you have a number of them they take up a lot of space and like others I tend to take basses out in gig bags and have done for years rather than hard cases, which take up much more space in a car. A mono case would be reasonable to take out I guess and have more protection than a gig bag when carried with other equipment. 

Edited by drTStingray
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As a cellist I wouldn't have anything other than a hard case, and my basses all have them. Two of my basses have Hiscox cases, as does my cello. I don't know about the bass cases, but the cello case is rated to 500kg - not that I intend to test it out... My two viols have cases which are similar to these new cases: zipped with shaped foam interior. Yes, they're lighter than a solid case would be, but they're bulky and the zips are prone to failing. I'd get hard cases for them, but they have to be made-to-measure, which last time I enquired was over £500 each (Kingham). You can get carbon fibre cases for cellos, which are much lighter, but they're stupid money - decent one is around £2k.  

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That Mono looks very much like the semi rigid ones you get with Sadowsky and Ibanez premium basses and not unlike a Protection Racket case/bag (albeit with a custom shaped interior). I like them, a practical, halfway house (I’m not keen on carrying gigbags, rucksack style, I seem to knock the headstocks on door frames).

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I like the 35th anniversary SR5. I don’t like the enormous pickguard and never have done, so when it’s removed I think it looks so much sleeker. If it has to have a pickguard then the Sterling is much more elegant. Interesting that the 5H is being sold through dealers but the HH will be direct.
The Mono bag reminds me of the semi-rigid case that came with the Japanese Sadowsky Metro cases. Light in weight it may be but it’s just as bulky, won’t afford as much protection, cannot be carried like a gig bag and will likely put an end to any used sales as no-one in their right mind would risk sending a bass via a courier in a soft case (although given there’s now a trend in the for sale section to not offer postage maybe it doesn’t matter). 

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22 hours ago, uk_lefty said:

As much as I love my hardcase for storing my bass away while not using it it's also a pain in the bum for gigs. It doesn't fit in my mini properly and I can't stuff cables and the like into it like I can a gig bag. My Stingray case is mainly used to store the bass only and I use a gig bag to take it to gigs or practice.


Yes, my cases are all in a cupboard and rarely get used (if at all). I take my basses to gigs/rehearsals in my Mono Double gigbag. 
 

That said, I still like the ceremony of opening a hard case to see the bass inside. I wish they added a light to the lid like in a fridge to add a bit more drama!

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7 hours ago, jd56hawk said:

For the price they ask, it's a shame they're no longer including hardshell cases...and I'm big on gigbags!

 

Mono cases are a good chunk more expensive than a regular ABS case, and far more protective.  Good step foward for me, although it is odd they dropped one of the main Mono features of top loading.

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1 hour ago, Old Horse Murphy said:


I take my basses to gigs/rehearsals in my Mono Double gigbag. 
 

I’ve just bought one of those for the very same reasons. It’s not really that much deeper than my Hiscox hard case so a lot more practical than having two basses/cases/bags in the car. Plus less actual items to carry too, so load in/out easier.

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10 minutes ago, Lozz196 said:

I’ve just bought one of those for the very same reasons. It’s not really that much deeper than my Hiscox hard case so a lot more practical than having two basses/cases/bags in the car. Plus less actual items to carry too, so load in/out easier.


Just remember to lift with your legs Loz 😂

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4 hours ago, Old Horse Murphy said:

That said, I still like the ceremony of opening a hard case to see the bass inside. I wish they added a light to the lid like in a fridge to add a bit more drama!

The new Ernie Ball BadMotherF*cker bass and case.

briefcase.gif

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