Sterling/SR5

[Father Gino]

I've got a fretless 96 Sterling & fretless 01 SR5. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I've always heard that the pre-amp and pickups on these two basses are essentially the same. One would think that they would sound pretty much the same, yes? But to my ears the Sterling sounds crisper, harsher, colder than the SR5 which is fatter, punchier, warmer. There seems to be a very distinct difference when I'm playing them by myself. Not that one is better or worse, but distinctly different.

OTOH, I've heard rehearsal tapes (just a couple of decent mics in the room) of me playing both with the same strings & amp and I can barely tell the difference. These tapes were hardly studio quality, but good enough to hear everything and a good mix. Those tapes impressed the hell out of me as to how well I sat in the mix with either.

Am I hallucinating? Deaf? Is it a difference of mass (the SR5 is about a pound heavier), neck mass, different wood? Just luck of the draw? Is it possible that even two SR5s or two Sterlings would sound this different?

 

[maddog]

Just a thought, how much difference in the pickup placement?

 

[Father Gino]

Just a thought, how much difference in the pickup placement?

Well, I've never measured it, but I thought that was the same on all SRs & Sterlings. Instead of being a lazy putz, I'm gonna measure right now... hold on...

They're the same

 

[nun lover]

i remember when shopping for my first bass, i was choosing between a 4 and 5 string version of the same bass. for some reason, the e string on the 5 sounded better to me than the 4. does a 5 p/u pickup lower frequencies than a 4? the only difference i could see was the mass of the neck.

 

[tkarter]

I know I played 3 different SR5s the day I got mine. They all were just a bit different in sound. Not enough to make much difference but.. I heard a little difference in each one.

FWIW

tk

 

[Steve Dude Barr]

remember when shopping for my first bass

Me too..it was between a Kent and a Kingston and I decided on the Kent with a Heathkit amp bought with a bunch of S&H greenstamps I found in the glove compartment of my 3rd stolen car which I blew up in the woods by lighting a rag in the gas tank in the woods of Turning Point Park.

Bought the rig from Greg Prevost with my paper route money at the Great Great House of Guitars in Irondequoit, NY in '71.

 

[Colin]

What's the story with the photo Steve?

Colin

 

[nun lover]

you should tell that at a party sometime.

 

[p5string]

Steve, I live in the area and the House of Guitars & Greg Prevost are still there.

 

[Father Gino]

I know I played 3 different SR5s the day I got mine. They all were just a bit different in sound. Not enough to make much difference but.. I heard a little difference in each one.

FWIW

tk

Nah, this difference seems more dramatic. The low end on the SR5 is much heavier.

 

[hankSRay]

What kind of amp are you using Gino? I know on my GK head theres a little button to press in the case if you are using a 5-string. According to the owners manual, the button makes the amp better handle low end frequencies. I know when I press it in (activating the 5 string mode) when using my Sterling I get much better low end responce. I dont know if this is the same case with you but thats just the first thing I thought of.

 

[Golem]

i remember when shopping for my first bass, i was choosing between a 4 and 5 string version of the same bass. for some reason, the e string on the 5 sounded better to me than the 4. does a 5 p/u pickup lower frequencies than a 4? the only difference i could see was the mass of the neck.

I hear that idea quite often, and I tend to agree, but belonging to the Church of Analytical Contrarians, and holding the office of Devil's Advocate, I'm ashamed I've never run any "objective" comparisons. Outside the church, I suspect the more massive neck lumber, heavier bridge, and the more heavily laden headstock [extra machine head] all contribute. Inside the church, I'd wonder if all of us who have that impression [E-string better on a 5-string] are failing to mute the B-string, so maybe the E-string tone is reinforced by the low tones added from the unmuted 'B', or any other effects that we overlook in our easy assumptions about heavier components. Maybe it's some sort of bleed-over between PU fields. Beats me.

 

[Golem]

What's the story with the photo Steve? Colin

I'd assume that is Turning Point Park. Looks like someplace on the Barge Canal, which runs near Irondequoit [or near anyplace along NY Rt31].

The NY Thruway parallels the canal system, and of course truckers call the toll road the Green Stamp, so I can see the elements of Steve's story all colliding and ricocheting around before it gelled between his ears [not meaning to be overly graphic...]. It must be a true story, cuz I recall an old farmer east of Rochester who lost his life savings of Green Stamps when his truck was stolen. He had a blind dog, and they had been trucking mellons into Rochester to the farmers' market. I don't recall all the details, but I think it was a 16 bar in D minor .......

 

[Father Gino]

I'm playing through an Alembic F1x usually but often use an older SWR SM400 at home or rehearsing. Niether have a 4+5 string switch. I can certainly EQ either bass to sound more like the other, but there seems to be a built in difference in the sound. I'm certainly muting the B string, got my thumb right on it.

I guess the only real question I'm asking is has anyone else noticed this. Is it the norm? I know I've heard that a SR4 is considerably different than a Sterling, but most of the Sterling/SR5 comparisons I've heard tell about say they sound the same. I'd be curious if any of the MM tech guys have anything to say about all of this, but they're not talking.

 

[SteveB]

A local supermarket chain here in Western PA tried bringing back the S&H green stamp thing a few years ago. But instead of stamps, you just earned 'S&H green points' which were accumulated by the store's computers etc.

I think it failed 'cause I don't recall hearing those points mentioned in their advertising anymore.

I use that Thru-way between Erie and Buffalo a few times a year. I would have figured it was the "Green Stamp" because of the revenue the NY state police must generate issuing speeding tickets on it. They have some darn good hiding places along that road!