Any sexy new basses you've got your eye on?

No, but I suppose we could have a thread for EBMM and SBMM Stingray’s and Sterling’s for reference.
There is alot to consider when looking into Stingrays and Sterlings (many don’t know this is a thing), and it took some time and looking into things and watching things to get what understanding I have of it.
I don’t know it all, and I could be wrong in some cases, but I am happy to share whatever i do know about them to help guide people to the right stingray, or away from the entirely, in the event that it is not a good bass for them.

1 Like

Ahh weird. They must have used a bad exchange rate because it was showing as 270k JPY (~$2500USD)

1 Like

Yeah, IDK, this is what is shows on my Reverb.
Maybe they lowered the price, but originally had it for $2500.
They go for that when new, I think this one is slightly used.

Check out this EBMM Sterling.
They show it on Reverb, and say 7, starting from $775 or something.
You click on it, and it shows a bunch of other ones, but this is the one on the right hand, middle of the page, with the MODEL DESCRIPTION. so it is not for sale, but it is the photo they use for this model.

I was kind of bummed. I like this one, I would love to have it.

3 Likes

I am confused when the guy on Reverb says it is a custom 1 of a kind when there are clearly at least two that we have found.
They are not the same exact bass, as the woodgrains are different, and maybeb on neck is roasted adn one isn’t, maybe that is what he means.

It is a crazy nice looking bass, I prefer the reverb neck better unless itis just lighting.


2 Likes

Aren’t those actually normal production models? Sweetwater has a ton of them in different colors.

I don’t think they are all that “custom”, despite the name.

2 Likes

Maybe he ‘customized’ the back of his with the bar code sticker…which, if it were custom…

5 Likes

you know what, it’s funny that you have posted that bass a bunch of times and i never really thought about it. but i’ve been thinking for a while that i want a stingray with a flamed neck to finish out my collection but haven’t really found any in a color i like. i might actually be on board with you, this might be one to watch for. :+1:

2 Likes

umm i do

2 Likes

It most definitely is not. I have seen multiple listings for the same color / style bass on reverb, as well as other websites that resell EBMM.
The solid orange one with chrome hardware and white pickguard, with that same bad ass neck and headstock, I have only ever seen online at GC, and don’t see it anymore. I would almost consider that one more unique then the transparent or translucent orange with black hardware.

The lighting is different in the two different photo’s.
And like I said, the fretboard on the bass I posted, DOES have that same pattern, you just can’t see it in light and angle of that particular photograph.

But like Roasted Maple necks, some are darker, some are lighter, so same would go for this custom flamed / roasted / tiger stripe burned neck, they are not all gonna look identical, and some will stand out more prominent then others.

Edit: It was either at ZZZ Sounds or Eddies Guitars. Neither of them have it on their website currently, but one of them did at some point a few months back.

2 Likes

Update: The Big Al is more expensive than what was posted (I guess I saw an old COVID panic price but it never sold and now the guy’s in a better financial situation), so that’s out. And the Bongo owner has never bothered to read any of my messages I sent him, even though he just put the listing up. I even sent him an offer (it’s on FB Marketplace). And I found a used EBMM Stingray (not the USA SUB, a legitimate Stingray) on FB Marketplace for $750 that appears to be in decent shape but it’s several states away. Asking if they’ll ship. It’s so cheap I can probably fly there and back and still get a deal. It’s not a sexy bass but it’ll do.

4 Likes

Yeah, you can dress up black bass. colored pick guard, DR coated colored strings.
I felt the same about my Stingray SLO Special. it is white. Bland and boring.
Plus it had a tortoise pickguard. UGLY AF.
But it was the Stingray I wanted, cuz it had the SLO neck on it.

A $10 chinese pick guard (black pearl) and DR Neon Orange strings.

A whole new Vibe. My Vibe.

There are some other more colorful pickguards that i would like to get, but they ask so much for them. Maybe someday when finances are better, I would get one of these,

I like the first two because of the colors.
I like the last one best, cuz that was a great movie.

But there are plenty of pick guards that will go great with black if you want to spice things up a bit.

If you really want some sick pickguard, custom design metal / wood work, Mike @itsratso, I think posted a website for custom pickguards that are just amazing, but they will cost a couple hundred for sure. But they are amazing. I would love to get one made some day.

5 Likes

Speaking of white slo Specials that have been gussied up, there’s a white slo special on TalkBass for sale* where the owner swapped out all the chrome on the stingray for black. He calls it Spy vs Spy-Tuxedo:

*He hasn’t been on TalkBeer for almost a week so he hasn’t seen my message.

Found another Barolo Bongo on Reverb this morning so I made an offer (check out that flame maple neck):

If it’s accepted I’ll get, that, otherwise I’ll be getting a white Stingray Special on Friday.

7 Likes

If I ever decide to buy a MMSR it would be with one pickup only. I heard these models excel in slap and with a second pickup so close to the neck it looks like getting in the way. And I also think it looks nicer with one but you prob have more tonal options with two.

3 Likes

That is SICK. I would be all over that. I know you put an offer on the Bongo, and if you get it and love it, that is awesome. I just couldn’t order a bongo online without playing one. I would have to fall in love with the feel of the bass first, without knowing what it feels like, I don’t care for the look enough to stay away.

Yes, I feel the same way, however, Brian (I forget his new screen name) talked to me about the HH (two himbucker) version. I had recommended against it, due to the fact I never could fall in love with my Ray4 HH, and ended up selling it. I love the color, and look of the bass, but the ONLY pick up position that I liked (of the 5 options) was the single bridge (common Stingray pick up location) pick up, and I just figured that I would continue to play my Ray4, Stingray SLO Special, and my Ray34 some, until I sell it.

BUT.

After my research, and learning about the Ray4, Ray5, Ray4HH, Ray5HH horrible pick ups, where they are wired in series, instead of parallel, PLUS they are just shitty pick ups, this would be doubled in any HH model since it is two terrible pick ups.
So
That may have been my major dissatisfaction with the Ray4HH.

I had toyed with the idea of upgrading the pick ups since it didn’t sell for about 4 months, but it finally did. I would have put in two Kent Armstrong pick ups, cuz they are a very good price, and I would be certain he would match a set.
Also, because the pick ups on the Ray4HH are wired differently, you would still get different phases, but they are still crap pickup.

ON this model, with decent to excellent pickups, you will probably enjoy all the 5 pick up selections, or at least find a few that work well for you.

The spacing of the pick up is close to the neck, however, I did not find that it really was an interference for slapping. It did take an adjustment from playing my standard stingrays, but it was not such a hindrance that you could not slap. In fact, you can still slap quite well with the HH model.
Plus
for many, Slapping is not something they want to do, and / or think they will not be good enough at it, or it is too hard to learn. If you think you will suck at it, or it will be too hard to learn, I would urge you to learn it, like anything else on Bass, or in life in general, it just takes practice, and it is very achievable. However, if you have no interest, then none of this applies.

One reason I would suggest this Stingray over others, or over the Bongo, would be the fact it has the 38mm width at the nut, like Jazz necks, that you said you are already used to, and it will not be an unknown factor, making it a higher risk to purchase something you never played.
That said, I do not know what the neck specs are on the Bongo. If they are Jazz necks too, then the same would apply for the bongo.

1 Like

Found the spec.
Bongo neck is 1.625 at the nut. This is not quite as big as the Stingray or P bass neck, with the stingray being 1.6875 and the P being all the way up to 1.75 for some models / era’s.
So, it will not feel quite as chunky as the Stingray Special, but it will still feel quite a bit bigger then the SLO or Jazz neck on the Stingray Slo Special or Ray34ca / Ray24ca or Ray4.

As always, thanks for taking the time to try to ensure that I make an informed decision @T_dub. If the Slo owner had logged onto the site in the last several days I probably would already have that one in my possession… The Bongo I may get is a 5 string so it will naturally feel a lot different neck-wise. It’s an impulse buy of sorts, but if I decide I don’t like it I’ll be able to sell it for whatever I paid for it or possibly more, so I don’t feel like there’s a lot of risk involved.

I also found an Ibanez ATK300, which was Ibanez’s attempt to mimic the Stingray back in the 90s, for just $250 (less than the price of a new SUB Ray4). Lots of folks on TalkBass have raved about it and think it’s very Stingrayesque (without the large EBMM price tag). It also has a more ample neck so we’ll see how I like it. All the ATK300’s currently on Reverb are $500+ so again, there’s little to no risk involved in buying it for an extended test drive of sorts. Here’s the Ibanez (serial number dates it as a Korean build from 1994, the first year they were made):


(I’m not a big fan of sunburst but if I get this it will be 3 sunburst bases in a row.)

If anyone is wondering if I play bass as much as I shop for them, the answer is no. Today is my birthday (no need to wish me happy birthday) and I had really wanted to have an EBMM in my hands by today but I’m confident I’ll close a sale this week.

4 Likes

I would buy that in a heartbeat, especially for that price.
Lobster also did a video on this one, and it looks and sounds killer.
I feel the same about bursts, but sometimes, when a bass is hard to find, or not often found, you kind of gotta take what you can get. Plus, if it is in as good of condition as it appears, you are correct, it is a good investment.

This is an 810, not a 300.
He does mention this being the top tier, with the lower end being made in Japan (I think thats what he said), so you might want to do a little more investigation, and make sure the 300 is worth the selling price on Reverb if you think you might want it for an investment only.
However, for me, I would believe this to be a keeper, so the $250 is well worth it, even if that is the going rate.

3 Likes

I like good bursts and that one is not bad at all :slight_smile:

4 Likes

For sure, it is a quality burst.

1 Like