A few questions about a MM Sting5 H/H

[Sparkl]

Hello everyone It's my first post here, just joined, so I'm new here. I want to apologize in advance if this topic already exists.

So my story goes like this.

I am a proud owner of the Sting5 H/H (ser. E60791), which was made in year 2007, so one of the last stings with those punchy ceramic magnets

I wasn't kind of thinking about tweaking my sting (so, about 4 years, hehe), while I owned a Hartke amp set with HA5500 and the XL4.5 series cab, but now when I got the GK1001RB-II head, which is the thing I want, I want to tweak my sting to get my perfect sound from it, combined with this head. It already growls as hell and the sound is already perfect, but I still wonder if I can tweak it some more to be even better Later on I'm thinking of buying something from the RBH, SBX or maybe NEO series, definately 4x10' and 2x12' or maybe 2 4x10' cabs, or 4x10' and 1x15' cab... Well, whatever It's yet a thing to consider.

I'm looking to get the flea like punchy sound. So, my question is - are there any guidelines on how to tweak the pickups? How to achieve different sounds? And if I screw it up maybe, how do I know, where were the factory settings at?

Ok, the next question is - the pickguard.

I have a sting5 H/H with redburst (or honeyburst, don't know really), and maple neck. And - a white pickguard. For me, it's ugly as hell. I wanted to remove the pickguard and have a Sting without the pickguard, but when I removed it, I actually realised, that where the volume, treble, mid, ... knobs are, is actually a big hole. So that's a no go.

So I started thinking about replacing the pickguard. Now, as I consulted with my good friend, who knows quite a lot about guitars, he told me, that a rostfrei (I hope this is the right word in english - we say rostfrei, idk how's in english ) pickguard should give the bass some more sustain. Now, is this true? Is it a significant difference?

If the answer for the above question about sustain is yes, now I'd like to get a rostfrei pickguard. Is there actually anyway to buy a rostfrei pickguard for the Sting5 H/H model from the EB itself, or do you have to do it custom? Cos I really don't feel like playing with autocad and getting the right dimensions for the cmc machine to cut the precise holes and shape for the pickguard.

Otherwise, if rostfrei doesn't make a significant difference, I was thinking of buying a black or some other color pickguard and the problem is solved. Another reason I hate the white pickguard is cos every single dirt that lands on it is disturbingly visible. I fricking hate that.

Sorry for this exhausting reading, but I thank you for any answers Cheers and have fun with your stings, as I sure have a lot of fun with mine

 

[strummer]

The word you're looking for is stainless, and no I don't think it'll give you more sustain. On the other hand I think a Stingray 5 has plenty of sustain as it is

The Flea sound, well I guess digging in like crazy with your right hand is a good place to start. Others will come along and tell you how to set the eq on your bass, but I think you'll want to use only the bridge pick up.

 

[Sparkl]

I know that, I've got it all figured out for years already, as far as technique and switch position is considered.

Well if the stainless (thanks for the word translation ) pickguard won't make any difference, than I guess I'll just order some darker pickguard to replace this white ugly one. Then it'll be perfect

Oh another question - through the years, the coils started to rust heavily. Is there any way to get rid of this rust or will I just have to get used to it?
I already predict that brushing or grinding the rust of with the screwdriver is bad? What about cleaning the coils with the WD40?

Edit: So you are saying that factory pickup settings are optimized well enough? I mean, in reality, can I profit much, by lifting the coils closer to the strings? Or is it not worth dealing with?

 

[strummer]

Do not put the pick up closer to the strings, as the very powerful magnets will make the sound less than ideal. Factory setting is the way to go!
About the rust: I think leaving the pole pieces alone is the best way to go, and start wiping the pick ups down after playing, since it is porobaly your finger sweat and salts that make them rust.

 

[Sparkl]

Yeah my fingers sweat quite a bit when I'm playing, so I was already thinking that this is the cause for pickups rusting.

Is this rust anyhow affecting the sound quality from the pickup collects? That's my main worry.

Edit: Ok, then I'll just leave the pickup settings as they are. I'm very satisfied with it now, so I won't touch em

The only thing now to get is a black pickguard and it's done.

 

[Sparkl]

Listen I have one more question. I know that this is the mm forum, but would still like to ask something.

Only recently have I learned that guitar cable for connecting a cab and head (in my case the 1001RB-II from GK) is an absolute no go. It can even damage the head.

It's bad that GK hasn't even warned me from doing this in their instructions I got with the head.

No, I've been using this head with the guitar cable connecting the cab for maybe 3 weeks now. But I haven't gigged, and I didn't put the volume to the max never (only up to 3/10).

Is there any possibility that I damaged the head? How can I check the damage?

I'm not connecting the head anywhere now, until I go to the store for a proper cable.

Now my XL4.5 cab actually only supports standard jack cables and no speakons. While the head does.

Will normal jack speaker cable (not guitar cable) be enough or is the speakon an urgent necessity?

 

[Rano Bass]

Is there any possibility that I damaged the head? How can I check the damage?

Now my XL4.5 cab actually only supports standard jack cables and no speakons. While the head does.

Will normal jack speaker cable (not guitar cable) be enough or is the speakon an urgent necessity?

I dont think the head is damaged but when you get the right cable you'll know.

And speakon is not an urgent necessity, regular 1/4 jacks are good.

 

[Smallmouth_Bass]

I put a matte black pickguard on my honeyburst Stingray 5 and like it a lot (I like white too though). However, I don't play in such a way (or sweat) that it makes any marks on it.

 

[Sparkl]

Wow, man, ur sting is absolutely BEAUTIFUL Mine is similar, just not so dark painted. It's more light. I'll post a pic soon, when I'll make photos of it.

Yes, the black pickguard looks absolutely awesome on ur sting I have the option to choose from whatevet pickguard EB has to offer, so I need to decide what do I want I'll post a pic of my bass here, so you'll be able to see what color the body is.

@Rano Bass - how will I know? Will the sound be more distorted, or what signs do I have to look for? I can still put it on the guarantee - my seller will surely do something about it if it's damaged, as we know each other very well.

 

[Ray Salamon]

It's very unlikely that you did any damage to your head at all, especially if you didn't push the volume high. The main concern when using an instrument cable in place of a speaker cable is a fire consideration, as the conductor in a typical instrument cable is too small to handle high current. There's of course other concerns, but again, since you didn't push your amp at all, I wouldn't even think about it. I've "gotten away" with a heavy instrument cable in place of a speaker cable a number of times. While I don't enjoy doing it, it works in a pinch. I would advise getting a proper speaker cable, marking it somehow if it's 1/4" to separate it from your instrument cables (mine are speakon, so that's pretty easy to notice) and carry on.

 

[Sparkl]

Yes, thanks for the info

My friend is going to give me two Neutrik Speakon->standard jack speaker cables (My hartke XL4.5 sadly only supports the standard jack cable), which has been tested to withstand 800W RMS without a problem. I think that'll do the trick

I really hope I did not damage the head, but hey, the lesson is learned - now I finally know that guitar cables aren't welcome behind the rig Better to learn now, than when something will actually go wrong.

Now only to wait for the weekend, so that I collect those speaker cables

Can I expect to get more clear sound from the speaker cables than the guitar cables?

 

[Runnerman]

If you didn't notice any clipping you probably won't hear a sonic difference. The issue is that there is less copper in the instrument wire since it is only used to carry signal current which is in the milliamps. The speaker cable is capable of more current due to more copper (thicker gauge) which is required to power the cab. The real issue is that the guitar cable can heat up over a period of time and the resistance of the cable increases with heat and it creates a thermal runaway situation until the resistance of the cable reaches a point that the amp cannot drive effectively....then damage starts to happen.

If you were not driving your cab at max wattages for extended periods of time, then I don't think you have done any damage.

 

[J Romano]

Really like the bass. The red and flat black PG look really good together.....

 

[Sparkl]

Thx guys Yeah so I got 2 neutrik speakon -> jack speaker cables which are tested to hold 800W of output and now it works perfect Now only to get that black pickguard and we're on the run

Ty for info!

 

[Golem]

`

The very act of using a guitar cable to power a speaker is NOT damaging your
head. It is harmless until the secondary effect happens:

The damage is a risk factor, and occurs precipitously .... when the overheated
light guage conductor in the guitar cable melts some insulation and the signal
conductor gets too close to the ground conductor. IOW a partial or total short
circuit resulting from a damaged [overheated] cable. There is no gradual effect,
where the use of the wrong cable is deteriorating your amp. You either damage
it or you don't. The "accident" either happens or it doesn't.


`

 

[bassmonkeee]

Holy crap--Golem lives.

 

[Sparkl]

Nice, ty for this info. Now I'm not worried anymore I tried those speakons and the head works perfectly, so it's still working