What was your first MusicMan?

[2001silhouette]

First was a 2002 EBMM Silhouette pearl teal

I owned that guitar for about 4 hours. I had traded it for a Gibson Les Paul Studio, and the guy that traded had a Line 6 SS guitar amp. The Gibson HBs sounded way different than his Silo's pups, so, not liking change much, he was kind of freaking out. So that night, he came back and I traded back my Gibby.

I later found a "dropped it" chip on the bottom of my Les Paul.....Well, at least I showed integrity by allowing him to trade back.

 

[drTStingray]

Mine was a pre-EB Stingray - I bought it new in 1980 so was probably a 79 model - sunburst, maple board, strings through bridge, 4 bolt neck (in combination with sting-thru quite rare I think), mutes (one of which fell off and was lost at a gig within about a month of purchase - not such good quality control those days!). I sold it for rather silly reasons in the late 80s when I also gave up playing. It sounded great - which is one of the reasons why I've ordered a classic - I bought it because it gave the best overall sound of any bass in that period, and especially for the post disco/disco funk the band I was in played - and my favourite player at the time was Bernard Edwards of Chic! I chose sunburst over natural because it looked so neat and when clean was incredibly shiny.

When I started to play bass again in 2002 I was amazed and pleasantly surprised to find EBMM still made the trusty Stingray - but I wanted to play 5 string to pick up on all that 90s/2000s music I'd missed out on, and also to learn some Stevie Wonder keyboard bass stuff - so after trying lots of different makes, and several Ray 5s (the first I tried was a trans orange in the Bass Cellar in London and I've never smiled so much at a bass sound!), I ordered a natural one with maple neck and a replacement white pickguard (still hankered after the Bernard Edwards look you see!)

I never did understand at the time why some people had so many EBMM basses - but I do now!!

 

[sitonmybass]

My first EBMM was a 2004 vintage sunburst SR5 with a black pickguard and rosewood board.

My first ever 5-string was exactly the same: SR5, vintage sunburst, black pickguard and a rosewood fretboard.

 

[Spudmurphy]

My first is a 1977 Stingray.

I've got a slightly different twist to this thread.
It was a bas player that initially got me into EB guitars - he had (still has) a Stingray.

I got my first Ball in 2005 and the rest is history !!!

 

[MrMusashi]

so when will we see the big al in your sig spud?

the first eb i got was my stealth bongo 4hh.. the first i ordered was the 20th sr5h but there was a loong waiting period.
actually it was so long i ended up getting a pair of 30th sr4 too before the 20th arrived!
but if you wait for something good youre not wasting time! the 20th is a monster bass!!

MrM

 

[metalarch]

For me began listening the sound of Dave Larue and John Myung...so my first EB MM bass was a bongo 6 string...recently I bought a 25 Anniversary BFR 4 string...
You guys can see pictures in the following album:
Ernie Ball Forums - metalarch's Album: 25th BFR and Bongo 6

 

[T Alan]

I waited 9 years for her. She ain't going anywhere.

 

[adouglas]

It was when I really became aware of who Tony Levin is.

At the time I had another brand of bass and I was on this ongoing treadmill trying to find the sound in my head. I was doing all the usual stuff... changing pickups, preamps, bass rigs, trying effects... I was seriously considering a $2500 boutique bass made by a well-respected guy in Kingston, New York as the next step.

I saw the Bongo and for some reason started thinking about one. Then I tried one and that was it. Game over.

That was late summer, 2005. I've never looked back.

The only thing that I've even remotely considered as an alternative is a Big Al 5, and not because of sound... because I love the looks of it. The Bongo does everything I need a bass to do... and everything I ever dreamed a bass could or should do... every single time.

I heart my Bongo.

My first one, which I don't gig much because my H is lighter:

 

[Funky Chicken]

I bought my Sterling used in early 1994. The neck date is 7/8/93. It became my main gigging bass pretty much right away. It's lightweight but solid as a rock.
I bought a 20th anniversary SR in '96 but didn't keep it. By that point the Sterling was so familiar to me that the SR felt emormous. I traded it for a lined fretless Sterling that I kept for a couple of years.
I'm also a guitarist and that's where my GAS energies are concentrated-I think that is a testament to my Sterling-I have felt no need to stray. I'd like to pick up a rosewood necked one to go along with old reliable.

 

[ErlendDL]

My first EBMM was/is my pearl blue Sterling 4H. It's my second bass.

I think I first saw it on a Norwegian store's website, but my sister brought one back from New Orleans for me.

Originally I wanted a honeyburst Stingray 4HH with maple fretboard, but I changed my mind a couple of times, and settled on "either a 30th Stingray if they have one, otherwise I want a blue dawn Sterling HH with rosewood fretboard".

The guys at GC sold her the pearl blue Sterling. Initially I was a bit disappointed as it wasn't exactly the one I'd wanted, but it grew on me, and I think it's probably gonna stay with me forever, no matter what else I get.

I'm also working on getting my 4th bass, and my 2nd EBMM. Only the "handshake" (I'm in Norway, he's in the US, hence the quotation marks) and the payment remains , before this is on it's way to me:

 

[T Alan]

[ ...drooool... ]

 

[JayDawg]

Some of these basses are absolutely beautiful! Makes me wish I had endless supplies of cash.

 

[koentje_bassist]

I was always in the clackedittellyclack-sound from Flea. I really liked his approach on fingerstyle and everything he ever did from the album Californication and the Jupiter-Mars cd's. And the first bass I really could hit this sound, was a Musicman SUB. Also, those Louis Johnson instructional video's with a beautiful natural stingray were drool-material too!
As always, you want the real stuff and I bought a Musicman Stingray 4 later on. And after that one, a couple more...

The musicman sub is long gone now, but I still love that stingray sound. Every time I play or everytime I hear a youtube-player hit those strings on a musicman bass, it just sound right in my ears. Everything seems to be falling in place with the typical stingray sound. And their company rocks!

How can you not like this one:
[nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDmy4_iQU2c&feature=related"]YouTube- Improvisation in the Bass Music Man Sting Ray by Wagner[/nomedia]

 

[syciprider]

The classic Black and Maple combo. I shouldnt have sold her.

 

[njhammer]

Mine was the SUB 5 in June, 2008. Still have her:

 

[mfallmann]

... bought a Musicman Sabre back in 1990, or was it 91? I was stoopid enough to sell it ... I was then away from EBMM for a very long time, until I stumbled across my Bongo.
Now I'm all set for replacing what's left of my bass collection by EBMMs. The next acquisition should be a Fretless 5er ...

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

A brand new 1979 did it for me. This pic was taken about 10 years ago when I t6ook it out of 20 year storage. It hasn't been out of the house since.

 

[slave]

I've been aching for a Stingray forever, but I've finally got my hands on a very nice one

 

[cellkirk74]

wow!

 

[Chuck B]

Recently shown here....

Brownie, made in 1978 and bought out of the display of a local dealer. Still my very best. Never played by anybody else.