How the StingRay HH should have been

[stingrayfan123]

Saw this thread on talkbass which I thought was quite interesting saying how the StingRay HH would be better if the neck pickup was moved closer to the bridge pickup, and I think it's a pretty good idea.

They said this would instantly solve two of the main issues people have with the HH:
- pickup getting in the way of slapping/popping (especially now with the special having 22 frets)
- neck pickup sounding muddy



It would allow for sounds closer to P and J bass

The poll got 25% votes agreeing which is quite a lot considering how purist most bass players are

Curious what ernieball forum members think of this?

Original thread: How the StingRay HH should have been | TalkBass.com

 

[Randracula]

Neck pickup soloed is my least favorite setting on the HH but the other three settings it provides are too good to change it.

 

[drTStingray]

I have several two pick up Musicman basses and whenever I use them, I rarely use the bridge pick up soloed. I play slap and am happy playing it on an HH Stingray, in fact more than happy to as with both Hs selected, you get a brilliant slap tone.

The neck pick up soloed along with the bridge soloed is possibly the least used selection by me but I’ve found it’s far from muddy and it’s really good for reggae. Also, with a tweak of the EQ (upping the mids, bass and treble at centre), I can get a decent Alembic type of sound as used by Stanley Clarke - particularly if playing aggressively.

I think the HH Stingray is great the way it is with 5 very useable and different tones. If you want a good impression of a P bass, the Classic Sabre with single coil (noiseless circuit) neck pick up does a very good version.

I would also doubt the results of a TB poll when people voting may well have never played such a bass, whilst others may have only done so in shops. An interesting graphic though.

Also it needs to be remembered the Precision has a somewhat different construction as well as pick up position - which affects the general sound of the bass as well - a Stingray has a certain sound even played acoustically.

So please, Musicman, keep the HH as it is!!

 

[tbonesullivan]

As people have said in that thread, it's a solution looking for a problem. The HH is very versatile, and while I don't slap, there are plenty of Stingray HH users that do without issue.

 

[stingrayfan123]

As people have said in that thread, it's a solution looking for a problem. The HH is very versatile, and while I don't slap, there are plenty of Stingray HH users that do without issue.

I don't think it's a solution looking for a problem. I have seen plenty of complaints about both the tone of neck pickup and the slapping issue on this very forum, myself included.

 

[drTStingray]

I don't think it's a solution looking for a problem. I have seen plenty of complaints about both the tone of neck pickup and the slapping issue on this very forum, myself included.

I think the neck pick up (soloed) tone is largely dependent on playing style and EQ choice. The slap issue is down to personal preference but, as I’ve said before, I play slap/pop on these basses - it’s not a problem for me. It is true the single H Stingray leaves a lot more space to play that style, but there again the dual H gives a really nice pair of single coil sounds, whilst with both pick ups on, it gives a very full tone which can be scooped if desired - you lose all of those without the second H, and to an extent with the suggested ‘modification’, whilst gaining an approximation of a P sound.

 

[danny-79]

If I want Single H I play the Single H.SR.
For Jazz like tones I play my J bass.
The range of tones I get from the HH (positions 2&4 for example) would be compromised for the sake of thumb space for on the rare occasion that I might want to slap.?
I’ll say no. It’s a solution to a none existent problem

 

[sjhiker]

I prefer both HHs and refer to it as "delivering all four barrels".

 

[danny-79]

I prefer both HHs and refer to it as "delivering all four barrels".

Do you not find it a bit boomy in position three?
I’ve just put my BongoH away and the SRHH is out next so will do some exploring, Personally I like positions 2&4 (but it’s usually found in bridge mode tbh )

 

[Golem]

Too bad the HS is gone :-(

(I gots mines !)

 

[drTStingray]

Do you not find it a bit boomy in position three?
I’ve just put my BongoH away and the SRHH is out next so will do some exploring, Personally I like positions 2&4 (but it’s usually found in bridge mode tbh )

I usually have the bass on centre detent or even marginally cut in position 3. I think the mid is important as it’s a scooped tone in position 3 so sometimes a little mid boost is helpful. Dependent on what you’re trying to achieve, I do similar with position 5 (neck pick up only) - you can get quite an Alembic sound to it (unless you want dub reggae, when boosting the bass is fun)! If you do all this on an HH Special, the combination of the neo pick ups and the more powerful EQ is very interesting (sounds great!!)

 

[danny-79]

I usually have the bass on centre detent or even marginally cut in position 3. I think the mid is important as it’s a scooped tone in position 3 so sometimes a little mid boost is helpful. Dependent on what you’re trying to achieve, I do similar with position 5 (neck pick up only) - you can get quite an Alembic sound to it (unless you want dub reggae, when boosting the bass is fun)! If you do all this on an HH Special, the combination of the neo pick ups and the more powerful EQ is very interesting (sounds great!!)

I should really broaden my horizons lol ��
But yes neck pickup with bass boosted on the fly, didn’t see that coming!

In all honesty my HH is possibly my least favourite out of all mine, I’ve just never really bonded with it 100%. But I’m also bound to it so we have to get along

 

[kevins]

I’d agree just cause playing above a pickup sounds gnarly, if you’re someone who tries to play as close to the neck as possible, it sounds better to not have to play directly above the pickup

Edit wait no I just saw that image that looks way too funny to do

 

[CW Zing]

I’d say: if your open to routing for a new pickup, it would probably be worth it to get a whole new tone palate.

I’m finding the neck PU way too scooped for the moment. Maybe I’ll try it out assuming desoldering from the circuit board wouldn’t be too hard. I’m a musician Jim, not an electronics expert!

I’ve always been curious what kind of sounds would happen if I put on a single pickup pickguard, slammed the neck pickup flat to the body and went from there. Position 1 would be muted, 2 would effectively solo the neck side coil of the bridge, 3 & 1 would sound similar and 4 would be bridge side coil soloed.

 

[bbjonz]

I’d say: if your open to routing for a new pickup, it would probably be worth it to get a whole new tone palate.

I’m finding the neck PU way too scooped for the moment. Maybe I’ll try it out assuming desoldering from the circuit board wouldn’t be too hard. I’m a musician Jim, not an electronics expert!

I’ve always been curious what kind of sounds would happen if I put on a single pickup pickguard, slammed the neck pickup flat to the body and went from there. Position 1 would be muted, 2 would effectively solo the neck side coil of the bridge, 3 & 1 would sound similar and 4 would be bridge side coil soloed.

I never use the neck pickup soloed and rarely use it in combination with the bridge pup on my SRS 5HH. It’s bridge pup for me all the way. I lowered the neck pickup as far as it would go, which seems flush with the body. Never thought about putting a 5H guard on it but that could be intriguing.

BTW, search Youtube for a single-coil mod to the 5HH. I thought about it but am pretty happy with how my 5HH sounds.

And some of you are probably wondering, given that I don’t like the neck pup, why I use a 5HH in the first place. The answer is because my 5HH weighs 7lbs, 14oz. Haven’t found a 5H in that range, though I know they exist.

 

[Michael Murphy]

Solution: 3H!
Two in the positions proposed by this thread, and the 3rd where the 2H neck pickup currently is. Best of both worlds!
(Assuming there's room there for all 3, without having to push the neck pickup even closer to the neck than the current 2H has it.)

 

[bbjonz]

I’ve always been curious what kind of sounds would happen if I put on a single pickup pickguard, slammed the neck pickup flat to the body and went from there. Position 1 would be muted, 2 would effectively solo the neck side coil of the bridge, 3 & 1 would sound similar and 4 would be bridge side coil soloed.

Wonder no more! It sounds great, exactly as you described with the added bonus that the single-coil approximation in positions 2 and 4 is humbucking.

Bought a 5H guard from the EBMM site and slapped it on my 5HH. Before and after pics attached. I Dartified the back up with some gaffers tape and raised it as high as it would go so that it functions as a ramp. I was quite pleased with this bass before but now it's just about perfect!

 

[CW Zing]

Wonder no more! It sounds great, exactly as you described with the added bonus that the single-coil approximation in positions 2 and 4 is humbucking.

Yeah! I tried it out too and really liked the different new sounds, just on mine though, the new single coil sounds were quieter compared to the position 5 humbucker.

I think now I’ll look into wiring the neck pickup in series to get more gusto out of it. Looks like it’s easily reversible. I did consider routing a cavity to butt-up to the bridge pickup. Couldn’t follow though, after all. I know I’d miss position 2 too much.