Need to understand HS and HH alnico Stingray 5's electronics better, pls help!

[Swiss Frank]

Dear MusicMen and MusicWomen:




I'm a happy player and first owner of a 2002 Stingray 5 H. I'm about to upgrade to a new (or perhaps used but newish) HS or HH model.




I have the following questions outstanding after spending weeks looking for accurate answers on the web (such as on these excellent forums; talkbass.com; and others). I've also talked with staff in multiple showrooms without getting answers that agree.




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1. Are Stingray 5 Alnico pickups from 2008 all just one kind (Including all H, HH, HS models)? If not, which varieties are there? (For example, difference in sound? difference in shape? difference in the number of conductors?)




2. Are Stingray 5 pre-amps since 2008 all just one kind (Including all H, HH, HS models)? If not, which varieties are there?




3. Does the Stingray 5 HS from 2008 on have a so-called phantom pickup? Otherwise, do they have an inductor that simulates pickups? Otherwise, how is AC hum prevented?




4. If it is an inductor, is this inductor present on the circuit board of the preamp (and present on all H, HH, HS models' preamp boards)? Is the inductor connected directly to the preamp? Or is it merely resident on the circuit board, but connected to the preamplifier just by way of the pickup switch, and not otherwise connected to the preamp?




5. Are the combinations of pickups on Stingray 5 HS's from 2008 all the same? If not, what varieties are there?




6. Same questions, for Stingray 5 HH's?

 

[Edmang]

Have you tried sending your questions o music man customer service? [email protected]

They would probably be the best source of the information if it is available.

 

[Swiss Frank]

I have, thanks Edmang. No response yet.

 

[Swiss Frank]

OK: I went into a shop and they popped the pickguard of a brand new HS for me.

PHANTOM COIL!

That answers about all my questions.

To make a bass that can do HS AND HH sounds AND is totally hum-cancelling, you either:

1) start with an HS, and replace the neck single with a humbucker.

2) start with an HH, an add a phantom coil.

Whichever way you go you'll additionally have some routing to do, but the wiring is dirt simple.You merely have to add the simplest possible switch (single pole double throw) to connect either the phantom coil, or neck second coil, to the master pickup switch wherever the existing one of those two is hooked.

Given that 80% of Stingray5's are H models, and 80% of what's left are HH models, I'm guessing that whether instruments break or PU's are swapped out, it's going to be FAR more common to find a used humbucker for sale than single coil. And that results in you having a single-coil pickup spare or to sell. (And one use of that would be to give a new H model a true single-coil sound, like the old H models had a long time ago back when they had a phantom pickup too.)

And furthermore, I'm a real fan of the HS sounds: bridge single, neck single. So maybe I can save myself all the work by simply playing the instrument AS-IS!