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MattMann

Member
Joined
Jul 27, 2005
Messages
6
Hello everyone. Matt here, and this is my first posting on the forum. Just wanted to introduce myself and say hello.

I found the forum yesterday and read some posts that helped answer my truss rod adjustment questions. When I got home last night, I easily made the adjustment to the neck, and it seems to have worked just fine.

I’ve been playing bass since around 1979 (played trombone from grade school through college jazz program), and joined my first rock band during my early college days. First bass was a Rickenbacker 4003. Still have it and play it from time to time. Also own one of the Fender 57 reissue P basses. Played it for years during my days of playing in a band in Salt Lake City during most of the 80s. Recently I picked up a decent Ibenez on E-bay (well, my guitarist actually bid it for me as I’m not familiar with purchasing things E-bay yet and I don’t have a paypal account set up). I also have a Sigma acoustic bass that I use for jamming on the front porch with friends. There have also been a few basses that I’ve had but sold over the years.

I’ve always admired the Music Man bass products, but never thought I’d own one myself however that recently changed. I had an older friend that owned a Stingray 5 string (he was one of my homebrewing buddies). He also owned a lot of other different instruments (wide variety of guitars, basses and even a keyboard or two). He really couldn’t play guitar or bass too well and we mainly hung out due to our common interest in homebrewing. I think he planned on spending more time working on his musical interests as he just recently retired from his career at Disney.

Well, my buddy passed away in April. His cousin came back to the U.S. (from Brazil) to act as the administrator of his estate, and a couple of weeks ago I asked him about the 5 string Stingray. It had not been sold yet, and he gave it to me for $400.00 (I assume I got it for a great price).

The thing is, I’ve never played a 5 string bass before. I’ve got a hip shot on my Rickenbacker and Ibanez so I can play drop d tuning (which occurs in around 1/3rd of the tunes I’m currently playing in my band). Plus, having that low B string in the way of the E string seems like something that will take some time to get used to. Don’t get me wrong; I’m happy to have the bass but I’m not sure how much actual use it will get right away.

I don’t think my buddy Steve ever played it (more than an occasional couple of minutes here and there or when he showed it to me). I’m not sure when it was manufactured, but this bass is factory fresh and does not have one single scratch on it. It has an orange(ish) sunburst finish. I’ll have go to the EB website and read the faq’s and other material on how to operate the switches and different nobs (again, I don’t know the first thing about this instrument at this time.. well except how to make that correction to the truss rod). It’s without a doubt the heaviest bass I’ve ever owned.

I noticed a 5 (or was it 6) digit number on the bridge piece. Is this the serial number for the bass, or the part number for the bridge (want to check out when it was made according to the site mentioned in one of the stickys).

Any good tips (in addition to practice, practice, practice) in making the adjustment from 4 string (with drop d) to 5 strings?

Do you who own both 5 string and 4 string basses find yourselves playing the 4 most often and just using the 5 when you need those lower notes?

Thanks for reading my long post, and I’m sure I’ll be back with more questions. By the way, I live in Pasadena CA., which I believe is not that far from SLO. What’s this meet up on Sept. 17th all about?

Matt
 

higher1

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 20, 2005
Messages
300
Location
SF Bay Area, CA
congrats on that superb buy!

400 dollars ? you stole it!

I too own a honeyburst SR5. the number on the bridge is the serial #.

as far as the controls:
the knobs are (back to front) bass,mid.treb,vol all +/- on the tones.
the switch is for coil switching.

as far as 4 vs,. 5 I prefer the 5'er over everything else. once you get that groove... theres no goin back!

and welcome to the bastion for EBMM freeeks!
 

basspastor

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 18, 2003
Messages
450
MattMann said:
Hello everyone. Matt here, and this is my first posting on the forum. Just wanted to introduce myself and say hello.

Welcome to this ........ :confused: :D
 

Mobay45

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 3, 2004
Messages
4,597
Location
Home of the Bongo Birthday Bash '06
Welcome!

If the police come knocking on your door, we don't know anything about the steal you got.

I switched from 4 to 5 in the early 90's and then back to 4 in the mid 90's. About a year ago I decided to switch back to 5 again and I've never looked back. Screw all of that drop D stuff. It just confuses me even though I've got a hipshot de-tuner on my P bass. I may be wrong, but I think that once you get that Stingray dialed in, you're mates are going to love your sound. Enjoy and come back often.

By the way - We have a rule around here. The bass doesn't exist until we see pictures. If you can't post them, someone here will help you.

Check in the special events forum for information about the open house that happens in September. You might still be able to get signed up for it.

Larry
 

MattMann

Member
Joined
Jul 27, 2005
Messages
6
Hey, thanks for the warm welcome everyone!

Higher1, I see you live in the bay area. I moved to Pasadena from SF in September 1999. While in SF, I lived in one of the old Victorian apts on the corner of Haight and Market (no, not the brand new building next to the frame shop, they were building that when I left SF. I was next door to that in the older Victorians and used to enjoy playing my acoustic on Hippy Hill and in the tunnel near the arboretum).

Larry, I’ll get a picture of the SR5 for the site asap. I still use an analog camera, so it will take some time but I’ll get that done.

Thanks for the tip about the event on the open forum page. I’ll go check that out. Sounds like a good way to meet those who will know everything I’ll ever need to know about SR5s. Oh, and thanks for the stories about 4 vs. 5 from those of you who went through this yourself.

I don’t know if my friend bought it brand new from a store or from an individual who never used it (just like my friend never used it when he owned it). Question: when someone buys an SR5 from a store, do they usually come with a hard shell case? When I got it, it came in a soft case (I’ll have to look to be sure when I get home, but I think it says “Bass Works” on the bag).
 

Moondog

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 15, 2004
Messages
1,466
Location
Red Bank, NJ
Hey Matt, welcome aboard & good luck w/the SR5.
If that B string gets in the way, cut it off :) I'm a
4-4ever bassist but bought a couple 5's to see
what the fuss was about. 4 to 5 is not a too difficult
transition, 5 back to 4 might keep you guessing.

Be sure to post those pics.

Hard Shell cases were not always included w/the basses.
If you want one, you can call any EB dealer & order it.
 

whamonkey

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 25, 2005
Messages
162
Welcome Matt!
Sorry to hear about your friend's passing away :(, that is a crappy way to get a bass but I'm sure he's glad it went to his bud. Enjoy the 5'er, I absolutely LOVE my SR5 and will say that EB is second to none as far as customer service and quality. Wecome to our little club.......
 

bovinehost

Administrator
Joined
Jan 16, 2003
Messages
18,197
Location
Dall-Ass, TX
I hope my basses, when I depart this mortal coil, go to my friends.

Welcome, Matt. I'm Jack, I play fivers and four bangers and almost all of them are EBMM. Hope there's still time for you to get in on the Open House, although I suspect you'll find us a bit more rabid than you are just yet.

Hang around, though, and you'll get there!

Jack
 

roballanson

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 17, 2005
Messages
1,437
Location
Norwich, Norfolk, UK
Hey welcome along. I am (as it says in the box) Rob. I play four and fivers too although recently just been using the fiver.
Enjoy the wealth of bass and cocktail knowledge you will find here.....
 

bassplayer7770

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 8, 2005
Messages
175
Location
Columbus, Ohio area
MattMann said:
Any good tips (in addition to practice, practice, practice) in making the adjustment from 4 string (with drop d) to 5 strings?

Do you who own both 5 string and 4 string basses find yourselves playing the 4 most often and just using the 5 when you need those lower notes?

Here's a great article on finger-picking technique. With that technique, it should help you make a quick transition.

http://www.adamnitti.com/bass_player_02.shtml

I own both, and I still use both. I just love my 4-string, but my 5-string sounds pretty good too. I've been using my 5-string about 1/3 of the time (1 out of 3 sets).
 

MattMann

Member
Joined
Jul 27, 2005
Messages
6
By the way - We have a rule around here. The bass doesn't exist until we see pictures. If you can't post them, someone here will help you.

Check in the special events forum for information about the open house that happens in September. You might still be able to get signed up for it.

Larry

Hello Larry,
Well, it only took 6+ years for me to try posting photos of that Sting Ray 5 bass! I still have not played it yet. I am updating my insurance, and I want some coverage for a few of my instruments, so that got me thinking about this forum again. When I reviewed my old original post, I was reminded to post photos and since I now use a digital camera... well...

IMG_0021.jpg IMG_0022.jpg IMG_0023.jpg IMG_0048.jpg

The final photo is of my Fiesta Red 57 Re-Issue P bass, the as yet unused Sting Ray 5 bass, and my Sigma acoustic bass. I bought that P bass brand new, and I put that wear on the paint job through years of playing in my band. Lots of good autographs on the back as well.
 

DTG

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 13, 2007
Messages
1,759
Location
Ireland
nice P bass,but man that SR5 is sweet.
I bought my SR5 and had never played a fiver before,it took a while to get used to it and i even came close to selling it a few times.now i only play fivers i still have some 4 string basses but i only ever noodle on them at home.

my only tip is hide all your other basses for 6 months and soon you will have settled in on.

btw i think that is the longest we have ever waited to see picuture of a bass :)
 
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