lug Posted March 14, 2001 Share Posted March 14, 2001 Has anyone A/Bed a Stingray to a Sterling. I here the Sterling has a jazz style neck and a slightly different pickup config. What if any are the sonic differences between the two? You can stop now -jeremyc STOP QUOTING EVERY THING I SAY!!! -Bass_god_offspring lug, you should add that statement to you signature.-Tenstrum I'm not sure any argument can top lug's. - Sweet Willie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyripphotmail.com Posted March 14, 2001 Share Posted March 14, 2001 Lug, I've played both extensively (the Sterling was my main bass for two years). Here are the differences: Stingray - 'normal neck', similar to a flat P-Bass neck. The pickups are wired in series (I think - please correct me here, guys), and you aren't given the option to change the coil selection. Sterling - downsized body, skinny neck (thinner than a jazz, at least to my hands). The electronics include a three coil pickup that allows you to select either coil to change the sound. A 'dummy' coil is used to lessen the hum when you solo a coil. I preferred the sound of the Sterling. When you set the pickup switch to the back position, the tone is really great - cutting as all hell. I personally can't stand the downsized body, and ended up getting rid of the bass for this reason. You might want to check out the Stingray 5 - it has the size of a Stingray with the selectable pickups. That sounds like a good deal, to me.. Hope this helps! ------------------ Rob Miller Philadelphia, PA www.bklounge.net Rob Miller Philadelphia, PA www.JimmyRipp.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenLoy Posted March 23, 2001 Share Posted March 23, 2001 The sterling does not have a dummy coil. The pickup is a two-coil humbucker...the switch selects between series, parallel, or single-coil wiring. Parallel sounds similar to single-coil without the hum, and single-coil is, well, single-coil. I opted for a Stingray, also because of the body issues, and because I've got big hands and the neck felt natural to me coming from a P-Bass. The coil-splitting options of the Sterling are compelling, though...I'm thinking about having a push-pull pot switch put in to split the coil that way without having to gouge a hole in the body to put a 3-way switch in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyripphotmail.com Posted March 23, 2001 Share Posted March 23, 2001 Ben, Yo, check it out: http://www.ernieball.com/musicman/basses/sterling/index.html Looks like we were both right! >Controls 3-band active preamp - volume, treble, mid, and bass >Switch 3-way lever pickup selector (position 1 is closest to bridge) >(Coil 1 closest to bridge) >1) Coils 1 & 2 (parallel) >2) Coil 1 & phantom coil >3) Coils 1 & 2 (series) >Pickups Music®Man humbucking with hum cancelling phantom coil ------------------ Rob Miller Philadelphia, PA Rob Miller Philadelphia, PA www.JimmyRipp.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenLoy Posted March 23, 2001 Share Posted March 23, 2001 Well slap me around and call me susan! So there it is! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xtian_dup1 Posted March 26, 2001 Share Posted March 26, 2001 Can I take this question one step further? I am interested in the Stingray/Sterling 5, and the G&L L2500. They seem VERY similar. Is anyone here familiar with both? Or like Ernie Ball over G&L for any reason? Thanks, - Christian Budapest, Hungary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyripphotmail.com Posted March 26, 2001 Share Posted March 26, 2001 Yo Christian, are you already tired of that 7 stringer? I haven't played the G&L, so I can't really comment. I know that the re-sale value of the Ernie Balls seems to be better, FWIW. Cheers! ------------------ Rob Miller Philadelphia, PA Rob Miller Philadelphia, PA www.JimmyRipp.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Addicott Posted March 26, 2001 Share Posted March 26, 2001 Is anyone here familiar with both? Or like Ernie Ball over G&L for any reason? I've owned a G&L L-1505 (5-string with only one pickup) and I currently play a stingray 5. The G&L had some good points, but I prefer the Stingray 5 quite a bit. The neck is slightly wider, the overall tone is much more "muscular" and the low B is definitely more happening. If you're looking at the two-pickup G&L model, however, that might be a different story. The Stingray is a one-sound axe whose one sound is super duper useful. I have a G&L L-2000 (basically a 4-string version of the 2500) and that axe is a real gas. With the pickup switching, series parallel switching and passive/active options, there are MULTIPLE sounds, some of which are really great. I hope this isn't confusing, but the Stingray 5 and the G&L L-2500 are somewhat different in concept. ------------------ Jeff Addicott http://www.jeffnet.org/~addicott/bass.html This message has been edited by Jeff Addicott on 03-26-2001 at 03:18 PM Jeff Addicott http://www.jeffnet.org/~addicott/bass.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xtian_dup1 Posted March 27, 2001 Share Posted March 27, 2001 Hey jimmyripp...not tired of the 7, just always loved the body shape, tone, and the look of the pickups on the MusicMan/ErnieBall/G&L lines. Talked to Evan at BassNW yesterday, and they have a boatload of G&Ls in stock, and all of them are on special sale. He offered me a G&L L2500 with hardshell case for $999!! Jeff - thanks for the feedback. That was exactly the kind of info I was looking for. From your description, I think the L2500 really does fit my needs better due to the excessive tone shaping capabilities. I don't have "A SOUND"...I just use whatever works for the song, so the flexibility of the G&L seems like the right thing for me. Unfortunately, I paid the same money for my Conklin 7-string about 6 months ago, and I just can't bring myself to spend that much again on a bass that is actually a replacement for something(s) I already own. Ah well....it is still right up there at the top of the list for the next time I happen to find a trunk full of cash! ;-) Thanks, - Christian Budapest, Hungary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy_dup1 Posted March 28, 2001 Share Posted March 28, 2001 I can't really tell the sound difference between a Sterling and a Stingray. I a-b'd my Sterling fretless with a student's Stingray fretless and they sure sounded the same to us. The electronics in the Sterling (basically a coil split switch allow double coil, single coil and series wiring) are identical to those in a Stingray 5 string. Subway guitars has been making Subray basses for years with this wiring and I believe that the Seymour Duncan replacement pickups allow this wiring as well. As far as the necks go, the Stingray feels like about the widest Precision you will ever find and the Sterling feels like a Jazz bass (which is a big reason why I bought mine.) I've had several students buy G&L 5000 basses which are very similar in feel to the Stingray with even more switches and dials than the Sterling. ------------------ http://www.jps.net/jeremy/basspage.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lug Posted March 29, 2001 Author Share Posted March 29, 2001 Thanks for the great info! I was mainly wondering if the stingray and sterling were close. Sounds like they are from most of the posts. The funny thing is all the G&L entries. My main bass is a lefty G&L 2000 with the asat (jazz style) neck. I love the stingray sound so I'll try a lefty sterling. Thanks again. You can stop now -jeremyc STOP QUOTING EVERY THING I SAY!!! -Bass_god_offspring lug, you should add that statement to you signature.-Tenstrum I'm not sure any argument can top lug's. - Sweet Willie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobby Bass Posted April 3, 2001 Share Posted April 3, 2001 As far as comparing the Stingray to a Precision Bass. I don't like the P-Bass neck, too wide. The last P-Bass I owned could have been a 5 string neck in another life. My Stingray seems to be somewhere between the P-Bass & my other bass a Jazz Bass. Wider than a Jazz but narrower than a P-Bass neck. If it feels good play it. ------------------ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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