Beaver Asks: Difference In H, Hh, Hs ?

[Sonnyonbass]

You guys are so wanting me to try out a Bongo!

Have a Sterling H, Stingray H and a new Stingray HH in the house.
Really like the H Stingray but I think the HH gives me more control over my sound and is a bit more "sophisticated" and "modern" sounding. I REALLY dig it.
Although sometimes the front pickup can get a bit in the way when playing certain slap stuff. The sound when slapping is phenomenal BTW.

Can't wait to hear what a bongo HS sounds like. If I like it I buy 1 immediately. The design really grew on me. When I was shopping for my first SR5 I saw 1 up on the wall but never tried it.

So Beaver, have 1 in stock when I visit somewhere in October.

 

[JimB52]

I like my Stingray traditional single PU
Bongo HH
Sterling HS

 

[robinje]

I'm new here (HELLO), but following this thread closely. I'm probably gonna buy a new Stingray HH or HS soon, but am unable to check 'em out in person. I'm torn between these two, and am curious about the tonal difference bewteen them. The MM web site description of the pickup selector positions mentions a "phantom coil" in certain positions on the HS model. What is this? Since the neck pickup on an HS is single coil (and presumably less output), does that mean there is a big drop in volume compared running this pickup alone compared to the bridge humbucker alone? Sorry for all the questions, but I want to be sure I understand the configurations completely before ordering up my new axe.

Thanks!

 

[MrMusashi]

id have to agree with jack on the hh bongo if youre goin down the jazz / precision soundalike road. pickup blend all the way back, pull of a lil twist of bass and tweak the 2 mids till you got it the way you like it = meaty jaco sound
pickup blend all the way forward, a lil extra treble everything else flat and youre in p heaven. you still dont get that peaky highs that the p got, but youre close.
and then: you got unlimited options in between there.. put the blend in the middle and you got a thunder sound like nothing ive heard. its borderline too chuncky/thick/fat/big!!!!
then you can play with all the eq controls after that.. man you will be spending hours and hours just fooling around, finding your fav sounds
heh.. i really should write down the fav settings cause there are so many i forget em all the time

MrM

ps: i love all my basses.. the 30th sr4 for its meaty sound, the 20th sr5 for the INSANE b-string and the lovely smooth smooth neck, the bongo hh for its versatility.. they all excel in their department

 

[Slapfest]

Beaver,

I still cant go past the good ol' single H stingray.
As mentioned previously, all other configs DO share a common foundation in their tone that defines them as Musicman basses, although there is still a lot of variation available.
But for me, the single H Stingray's tone IS the seed that spawned the whole family.
Tonewise - it is still easily 'holding its own' against all of its newer 'cousins', and will probably do the same for another 30 years.
Because it has the original Musicman bass sound that inspired many to buy them, play them, and to even keep making them.
And although You cant get Jaco from a 'ray, if you darken the tone controls a little, and play with your right hand back further toward the bridge, you can seriously increase the bite and acheive some great mid range cut that has a similar effect.
I've owned and gigged some really flash and very expensive basses, but in the end, I'm very happy to be playing a Stingray.
Its the only time that I'm not fiddling with controls and thinking about tone.
The tone is all there,..... and the rest is in your hands

 

[RobertB]

ps: i love all my basses.. the 30th sr4 for its meaty sound, the 20th sr5 for the INSANE b-string and the lovely smooth smooth neck, the bongo hh for its versatility.. they all excel in their department

And I was just reflecting tonight on this fact (as far as I'm concerned) about all EBMM basses: if for whatever reason you could only have 1, and you didn't get to specify ANYTHING about what you got ... just a "draw an EBMM from a hat" type of deal ... you'd still be more than alright, no matter what you ended up with ... you'd love it for its own characteristics. And that's saying alot.