Help! EQ settings for stingray

[jcater]

I have just aquired my first ever , (second hand), stingray. A black maple 3 eq (E22714) date 4/5/2001.

For the last 30 years i have only used Fender Precision & Jazz's so this is quite a change.I tried the Stingray at a gig last night and was really happy apart from a noticeable drop off on the volume on the G string.

Is this an EQ issue? if so does anyone have any ideas for the sort of settings i need to use. I will try raising the pick up on the G string side, but would be grateful for any advice from players who have been using Stingrays for longer than my 5 days.

I use Thomastik Infield jazz flats & go through an EBS Micro bass into Hartke 3500 with 210XL & 115XL cabs.

Thanks in anticipation

Jeff

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

Welcome to the Forum Jeff.

It's not the pre-amp but rather a pickup adjustment.

Using a 6" steel rule:

Depressing the E string at the last fret....set the distance between the top of the pole piece to the bottom of the E string. Aim for 4/32".

Depressing the G string at the last fret....set the distance between the top of the pole piece to the bottom of the G string. Aim for 3/32"...plus or minus a tad so the volume is even all the way across the strings.

Make adjustments in the play position: sitting down with Bass in lap.

 

[bob atherton]

Hi Jeff, I'm very much in the same boat as you. I too have switched to a MM Stingray from Fender, Rickenbacker and Gibson (les Paul bass).

The tone on the Stingray is just fantastic, EXCEPT, and I'ts a big except for me as well, the drop offf of volume on the G. It's not just the volume being quieter, it's the punch of the note that is just not there compared with the other strings

I've tried all sorts of set ups and eq on the bass and on the amp, but try as I might I can't get the G to do what the other strings are doing. I'm useing DR Sunbeams and wondered if it was that make of string but I used my Fender P the other night strung with the same strings and although the tone was a bit 'sloppy' compared to the Ray, all four strings sounded as though they were working together, not three plus the almost non existant G on the Ray

I hope between us we can sort this out. The Ray is too good a bass to give up but this problem is doing my head in at the moment.

Bob

 

[mobis.fr]

I use Thomastik Infield jazz flats & go through an EBS Micro bass into Hartke 3500 with 210XL & 115XL cabs.

Thanks in anticipation

Jeff

i had the same experience with the TI flats. thats why i changed to 95er fender flats (45er G to 95er E) . they have a nice mid-low growl but they don't have that volume drop on the g string.

edit: but they have a noticable higher tension...

 

[jcater]

Bob

I had a little search around on the internet & found several comments along this line. All i can hope is that adjusting the pick up height as suggested earlier may work.

I don't really want to change the strings - have been using TI flats on all of my Fenders for years now & have never found a better flat string.

Did you try adjusting the pick up height?

If this doesn't work I guess it's back to the Fenders as the main gigging bass. It would be a terrible shame but i'm not sure i can live with the lack of a G string on a permanent basis

I'll let you know how i get on - will adjust the pick up tonight & use the stingray on this Thursdays gig.

Fingers crossed

jeff

 

[bob atherton]

Jeff,

Sorry to say I did the height thing

The trouble is I'm really hooked on the Stingray tone now. I'm now going up to the dusty end of the fingerboard on the D string instead of hitting the G ! Sounds quite good actually, but I would like my G back again

Good luck , Bob

BTW I've also got a Black / Maple Ray, maybe it's a colour thing

 

[RocketRalf]

Just venturing it out there, could it be fret buzz or a non optimal profiled nut that is making the G string vibrate less? My bass is not an EBMM (I wish it were) nor do I have flats on it, but my G string is sometimes perceived as being weaker than the rest. I admit it's fret buzz, I have my action too low.

Why don't you try a different brand G string while keeping the others the same? Classical string players such as violinists and violists do that a lot (having a different treble string than the rest). You may try a higher gauge of the same brand or a totally different brand altogether.

 

[jcater]

Thanks for all the info. I guess i'll just try but it's not sounding too hopeful. Maybe i'll lower the E side of the pick up & try to even things up that way.

I hate the thought that i may have bought a bass that ends up gathering dust & i agree that the tone on the other 3 strings was really nice but..........

It really seems strange to me that there are comments on this here & other places on the net, if this is a defect it seems to be a rather large one.

I just offer up a small prayer that there is an answer out there

Jeff

 

[bob atherton]

Jeff, I did improve things by getting the G side of the pup closer and also making sure that both of the 'feet' on the bridge saddle had equal pressure on the base plate, that made a bigger diference than the hieght of the string to the pup.

Rafael, thanks for the nut idea. I remember many years ago I had a nice Fender Jazz that i couldn't get the A to give me full output. It was the nut in the end. It still didn't have the same output as the E and the D though. Had to go in the end.

I think I could be happy with a Sterling, not that I have tried one yet. I like the idea of a Fender Jazz type neck. As Jeff has said there does seem to be a bit of stuff on the net about G's sometimes not doing the business on Stingrays. Is this the same for Sterlings?

The strange thing about this lack of G is that it only happens when I'm playing with my band. When I'm at home working stuff out it sounds Ok, maybe a touch down but not dropping out like it does when things are cooking.

 

[bob atherton]

OK, I’ve now had a really good look and listen to my Stingray. It is sounding a bit different on the G string when played acoustically, this gives me hope!!!

Taking a very close look at the bridge saddles on the other three strings there is a visible gap at the bottom of the groove in the saddle. On the G there is no visible gap. The saddle grooves are quite rounded at the bottom and I’m wondering if on the G string it is ‘held’ by the saddle in a different way, sort of cradling the string instead of two small points of contact on the sides of the string.

The nut is one of the newer compensated types and I just made sure the string was seated well in the slot, which it was, as were the other three strings.

I know very well from playing Fender basses for many years that the threaded saddles give a more consistent tone with all four strings as opposed to the slotted saddles.

I’m wondering if there might be some sort of razor saw or file or whatever that I could make a slightly deeper and sharper bottom to the saddle groove on the G, so that it would be held in the same way as the other strings.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I really don’t want to give up on this bass, the tone on the lower three strings is just too good!

 

[rhythmCity944]

I've had this problem in the past with 2 of my stingrays when i aquired them...firstly I made sure my bass was set up correctly i.e. neck relief, intonation, saddle height... then I set the pick up height to stock just like Rod Trussbroken stated. After that I spent probably 2 or 3 weeks playing with the bass in a band situation and had a screw driver on hand and would make fine adjustments to the pickup on the treble and bass side until my volume was equal across all 4 strings...

it took some patience because the way equalization works, you lose certain frequencies when playing with other players and in different rooms and sometimes certain strings boom out and that is what active electronics are great for...in the end I got a perfect balanced tone across all the string

also be sure the pickup isn't too close to the strings on the treble or bass side either...you will lose volume!!!

 

[r goldsmith]

Try a thicker G string - .50 works for me. That and pickup adjustment as per the discussion above, and I've got the fattest mofo G of any bass I've tried.

 

[bradfordws]

Ahhh, the old dead spot problem. I couldn't resist sharing my experience on this topic. I bought a new Stingray back around 1996. I hadn't owned a Stingray for few years prior to this purchase. I had owned several Stingrays and Sabres in the '80's and didn't notice this problem. I did have this problem on the new 1996 Stingray. I suppose the overall volume was lower on the G string, but much more obvious around the fifth fret on the G string. I was totally bummed out about it and went as far as having an aftermarket pup installed, which didn't do any good. I was convinced it was just a bad neck and sold the bass, knowing that I'd want to buy another one asap, only I'd have to be able to try out a few at a time to avoid this situation again. Is it a QC issue? The drag from a QC standpoint is that one wouldn't notice this until the bass is strung up and played at final inspection - and to have to scrap a neck at that point WOULD be a drag. I know Fenders are known for this, although the newer ones are not as bad. Maybe the new graphite reinforced necks make a difference? I also knew at the time that I wanted to eventually get a Sterling, which I did in 2005 finally and I do not notice any dead spots - same with both of my newly acquired Sterling 5's - no problems!

 

[RaginRog]

Sterlings are definitely nice. I had a HS and a standard one. I actually preferred the standard one as there was less to fiddle with when on stage.

 

[bob atherton]

Well after quite a bit of tweaking the EQ on the bass and on the amp I now have a G that I can hear, not quite the full power of the rest of the strings but good enough. I'm really glad that I got this far with the Ray as I just love the neck and the way it plays.

How are you doing with yours Jeff? I don't know if you got my reply to your message, I'm not very good with computers, I did try to get back to you.

I played a gig tonight and just for the hell of it took many of the runs up to the G, it put a smile on my face..!

Thanks for all the advice here. FWIW my wife came to a gig I played just over a week ago and she said the Stingray was the best sounding bass she has ever heard me play, and she has heard me play quite a few. It really punches through the mix like no other that I have owned. It is a keeper for sure.

 

[jcater]

Bob and everyone else that have been kind enough to reply - just to let you know that i agree with Bob's comments, lots of tweaking with the EQ plus some adjustment to the pick up height goes a long way to sorting out the problem.

As i tend to play with quite a light touch with my right hand fingers i also make a conscious effort to hit the g string slightly harder. Whilst not perfect it certainly has improved things enough to let me feel comfortable using the Stingray on gigs. I'm sure i will rotate the Fenders & the stingray at gigs - it keeps life interesting for me but would agree that the tone from the stingray is something quite special.

Thanks to everyone for the advice

http://www.jazbak.co.uk/

http://www.chevronmusic.com/

jeff

 

[pitivw]

Ahhh, the old dead spot problem. I couldn't resist sharing my experience on this topic. I bought a new Stingray back around 1996. I ...
... I wanted to eventually get a Sterling, which I did in 2005 finally and I do not notice any dead spots - same with both of my newly acquired Sterling 5's - no problems!

HI all. Coming late from Spain.
I had got and evertually I have the the same problem yet. As Bradfordws, I purchased a Music Man Stingray 2-EQ MN Black Black Pickguard on 1997 and I found G string volume below the others. Several querys in several forums gave me different answers:
. G String to pickup space
. Battery charge unload
. Pickup defect = G matgnetic power unload.

I love MusicMan neck handling but the G-string problem takes me to purchase recently an ESP LTD D-4 Natural Satin. I don´t have problems spending just 550$ . I didn´t want to change the original pick up and I am using Ernie´s to punch rock trying to be as closer as possible to Entwistle (of course, unable to do as big Johnny) without G string sound. I think MusicMan luthiers realized and changed the four string MM Ernie Ball design but, what stuff they have chaged?. I don´t Know.
A pity...
Cheers

 

[orpheus55]

I have a newer 4-string single H Ray and have not noticed this problem, though I have heard about it--a lot! It was one reason I hesitated buying one at such an expense. I found the stock Slinkys to be fine, but the Stage II flats produced an equally even output. Lookin g at the pickup, I can see it was raised near the G-string; interesting, as it arrived perfectly set up. I think the raised lower end of the pickup is the reson it sounds so even. At least in my case.