I’m new to musical instruments and excited to learn how to play bass.
I am finally between the Yamaha TRBX304 in Red and the Sterling Ray 24 Classic in Butterscotch Yellow.
To learn, I will hook these up to a Mustang Micro Plus headphone amp and use my Sennheiser HD558 headphones.
I will play it out of box, no mods.
For now, gravitate towards groove, funk, rock drive and melodic/ r&b flow:
Songs like: “I Wish” – Stevie Wonder, “Express Yourself” – Charles Wright, “Good Times” – Chic, “Feel Good Inc.” – Gorillaz, “Money” – Pink Floyd, “The Chain” – Fleetwood Mac, “I Want You Back” – The Jackson 5, “Soul to Squeeze” – Red Hot Chili Peppers and “Ikigai” – Robohands to list a few examples.
I don’t know if I will ever perform a gig, but I might play by myself, for my wife or if a couple of friends ever get together and play some known songs over drinks.
I’ll invest in a bass amp later if I need to play with others.
Let me know which of the two basses I should buy (TRBX304 vs Ray24CA) to suit my musical style choices.
i personally think of these as being different ends of the spectrum. old school thump vs new school zing. also i have always had a feeling that the yamaha is pretty heavy? i don’t think you could really go wrong with either, it’s just a matter of preference. there is a bazillion fans of both.
edit: i did find a yammie listed at 8.5 lbs which is about the same as a stingray. so no big diff there it looks like.
Yeah, i get that they are different in that way. Weight wise, it is such a task to find the same bass in the same store. Whats worse is almost no GC has either in store and lean on ordering. Their suggestion is to order one and then the other and then choose to keep the one i prefer. Lol way to create artificial demand!
If you can find an older used Ray34CA I’d get it. I’d take the 304 over the Ray24 any day. The 24 really is a disaster. Maybe look for the classic vibe p bass or jazz bass. The 40th anniversary is also another great pick.
A P bass is never the wrong answer when talking which bass to buy. May not always sound “the best” but they always sound good. If I’m struggling to get a sound that I like, my Precision has never let me down.
I’ve found my Ray has a lot of versatility on the tone adjustments and where you pluck the strings. I would be ok with it as my only bass. The signal is REALLY strong. I also love the looks. I have blue with tort pick guard.
My TRBX 304 is also a great instrument. It feels lighter and shorter than it really is. Notably this bass plays individual notes very clearly. I like it a lot but I feel like the output isn’t as strong as my other basses. The tone selector switch is a little cumbersome to use and I’m not used to the tone knobs yet. It has a really thin fast neck which is also nice.
My overall pick would be the Ray 24CA. It’s my favorite of the line and I have thought about (and tried) to buy a 2nd exact copy of my bass. It plays great and even though I like the neck of the Yamaha I think the Ray just sounds and plays better.
I’m a newbie too, currently using a StingRay SS4 MN (Daphne Blue), aside from it being short scale, I’m unsure of the difference between mine and the 24CA. But I have no complaints, and I’m still getting used to it (and everything about bass).
Needless to say if you like Chic, a MusicMan was Bernard Edwards’ main bass, and Flea has used them a bit too.
But definitely settle into something you like and not what looks cool(er) or emulates another player.
Good luck with your choice.
I haven’t played the Ray24, but I can tell you I’ve been very happy with my Yamaha TRBX304. I’ve been playing for about 14 months and have found it to be very comfortable to navigate and I’ve been happy with the sound out of an amp and in recording through a Focusrite.
If you can’t try the specific models, try to get your hands on the same brand at similar price points to see if one feels better.
This is your first bass. It won’t be your last. Don’t stress about making the “perfect” pick. You won’t.
I would loosely vote for the Yamaha. That is probably the most “not-wrong” bass. Great starting point to learn what features you most want in order to guide future buying decisions.
I think you will be happy with either. I prefer the Yamaha, but you can get the sound you want out of either. Since you can’t play them side by side, I’d say pick one and order from GC as they have a very generous return policy, then get the other if you return it. I think GC and Sweetwater have the Yamaha 504 and 604 on sale now. One word of warning, If you buy from Sweatwater, you should be fine, but GC instruments are never (in my experience) set up very well. So, learn how to do a set up.
The Ray25CA is about $525 that’s about TRBX504 range new of course. Check out Sweetwater open box 604FM for $510. That’s a super solid bass with awesome electronic.
Let me clarify on the Ray24 issues. It’s a slab body, no belly carved with upgraded bridge that’s featured on Ray34 but the pickup is from Ray4 and wired in series not the iconic music man style parallel wiring.
The best package for the price “if” you’d consider a short scale is the SS. Roasted maple neck with probably the best electronic of all the Sterling line up. Neodymium pickup, 3 way rotary dial for parallel/ single coil/series and push/push volume booster.
Another good considerations is the Sterling Sterling. Is not as awesome as the old SB14 but it’s pretty solid aggressive bass with slimmer body profile.
True Dat! I think it’s for the lazy peeps who like to switch between single or parallel to Series and needs the volume matching with a push of a button,
Musicman Sterling is my favorite pickup and electronic of the company’s lineup if I can get the electronics for cheap I’d upgrade my other Sterling setup.
