Stingray SR5 HS Electronics questions.

[tbonesullivan]

Ok, so I've had the SR5 for a while now, and I love the dang thing. Just have a few questions regarding the electronics on this beast.

-The 5 way switch seems to be a little noisy. If nothing is being played, it's dead quiet. If I have a note playing, there is a bit of a pop/click when changing the selector. Is this normal, or should I clean it out? If I need to clean it, should I use just contact cleaner, or cleaner with lubricant?

-There is some background hum on some of the pickup positions, some more than others. All the way towards the neck, which should be the S pickup + Phantom pickup, is dead quiet. All of the other positions have some degree of hum. Nothing compared to single coil hum without any cancellation, but not completely quiet. Is there some adjustment to the coil volumes that I can use to eliminate this?

I should mention I have never had a totally silent guitar with no hum, except in the case of two identical pickups being used in phase cancellation. Even humbucking pickups still have a bit of background hum, unless the two bobbins and poles are completely identical.

 

[Rick Auricchio]

Contact EBMM technical support. They'll give you the exact answers you need.

 

[Movielife]

Hiya. First of all, good choice in bass.

My selector switch pops a tiny bit on all of my basses. I think if it sounds scratchy, it'll be dust and buildup, so turn the bass down and move the switch a fair few times (gently!). It should clear.

I don't think I have any hum from mine, BUT, my old house used to hum more than my current apartment, so it could just be that I have better electrics where I am now, or that I am not near the lights that cause it, etc.

Usually, the hum isn't the bass, but contact CS

 

[jlepre]

I have had many SR5 basses from Single H to HH, and they have ALL been DEAD QUIET. Call Customer Service.

 

[Gravesend Black]

My single H is pretty silent in parallel mode. The series has some hum and single coil is pretty noisy. The only source of that noise is the treble knob. More treble=more noise (for series and single coil). If I cut the treble there is zero noise with every position. That's how my SR5 behaves. Do you guys think that something wrong here?

 

[Movielife]

My single H is pretty silent in parallel mode. The series has some hum and single coil is pretty noisy. The only source of that noise is the treble knob. More treble=more noise (for series and single coil). If I cut the treble there is zero noise with every position. That's how my SR5 behaves. Do you guys think that something wrong here?

Sounds fairly normal to me.

 

[tbonesullivan]

The pickup selector isn't scratchy at all. Just makes a pop when changing positions. I'm used to Pan pots on basses, so this is my first experience with active electronics and a pickup selector.

The hum needs an OD pedal on or volume really loud to be heard. It may just be a case of only the S + Phantom being completely matched. All of the SR5 2007 ceramic positions involve series wiring, so that might be it. It also is influenced a lot by the position of the Treble knob.

I'm going to compare the noise level to my SR4 tonight, and contact CS tomorrow. Don't want to bother them if it's not a problem.

 

[tbonesullivan]

My single H is pretty silent in parallel mode. The series has some hum and single coil is pretty noisy. The only source of that noise is the treble knob. More treble=more noise (for series and single coil). If I cut the treble there is zero noise with every position. That's how my SR5 behaves. Do you guys think that something wrong here?

Shouldn't the Single H have the phantom coil to kill the hum with the Single coil mode?

With my SR5 the level of hum is pretty much the same through positions, except with the neck single. That is completely lacking hum.

 

[drTStingray]

My SR5 has no hum in any of the settings.

 

[tbonesullivan]

My SR5 has no hum in any of the settings.

Even when using bass overdrive?

 

[drTStingray]

Even when using bass overdrive?

Not really - no. To be honest I don't usually use effects but certainly have in the past and didn't notice it.

I once rehearsed at a place which had a dreadful electrical grounding problem and my SR4 used to hum unless I touched the strings. The guitarists Gretch did as well but not as badly. Needless to say the bass doesn't do this anywhere else.

 

[tbonesullivan]

Ok, so what's the best way to contact CS? Use the email contact form, or get on the phone?

 

[tbonesullivan]

Ok, emailed in customer service. Looks like it'll have to go in. Anyone had experience sending a bass home for service? I'm more than a little apprehensive sending it all the way across the country. Definitely going to pop the hood tonite and see if there is anything like a loose wire or dust bunnies in the selector switch.

 

[Golem]

Ok, emailed in customer service. Looks like it'll have to go in.
Anyone had experience sending a bass home for service? I'm
more than a little apprehensive sending it all the way across
the country. Definitely going to pop the hood tonite and see if
there is anything like a loose wire or dust bunnies in the
selector switch.

I sent my SR5 cross country, NY to SLO, in its plastic EBMM
case in a shipping carton, about $75 FexEx. It was still under
warrantee, but the owner pays the shipping regardless, and
they kept in touch by phone. They let me know when it had
arrived and also when they shipped it back out.

$75 is a big bite for me, but soooooprize ! EBMM packed a
new set of strings in it [flats, to match what it was wearing]
and that was kinda like a nice rebate against shipping cost.

Altogether a Better-Than-OK experience

 

[njhammer]

Shipped my Dargie SR5 HS, boxed in its standard case, to SLO from NJ a couple of years ago too. Got it back a couple of weeks later from AJ in tip-top shape and with a nice surprise. Wouldn't hesitate to do it again with any of my EBMMs.

 

[jlepre]

Just pack it well, and insure it. They will send it back to you packed the same if not better.

 

[OldManMusic]

I've done it too. It's hard to trust your baby with the shippers, but you'll be very pleased with the results from EBMM customer service. Like everyone else says, pack it well and insure it.

 

[tbonesullivan]

Yeah, I am far more worried about the shipping than anything else. If I lived within an hour of SLO, the bass would already be there. Gotta see if I can locate a good box. I wonder if I kept any from previous basses.

 

[jlepre]

I would just go to UPS Store and let them pack and ship it. It might cost you a little more, but how much is your piece of mind worth?

 

[tbonesullivan]

I work in the office of a shipping warehouse. I can pack it better than the UPS store any day of the week, and twice on Sunday. All I need is the correct box. I've seen the horrible packing jobs that the UPS store can do when we get returns.

Also we get a pretty hefty discount where I work so I'd definitely ship it here and just pay the warehouse. We routinely ship items in value of excess of $10,000 that are far more fragile (and don't come in a case) without issue. I'm also not in a super hurry to get it taken care of.