OLP and Sterling - school me

[1neeto]

Both are gorgeous!

Thanks! Even after a few weeks, I still take a second to look at it.

Sterlings are still about 1/3rd the prices of the USA models. That is a great deal, but still pretty pricey. That being said, I need to look at some of their newer models to see if any of them are close to what I want.

Yeah, they can be pricey, but they start at downright cheap if you go for the SUB series. A decent non SUB Cutlass starts at around $500. The JP series 6 or 7 string start at around $550. Once you start digging into fancier finishes and Dimarzio pickups, they start to creep well into the $1000+ mark.


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[St_Genesius]

I've been kinda eyeing the Sterling version of the Valentine- now that they've added roasted necks, I find them VERY appealing for $650-700.

For my intended use, I wish it had the Silent Circuit, but that's nothing I couldn't fix by swapping in a regular humbucker.

[ICTGoober]

The die has been cast.... Looks good on the kid (he's 15).

https://i.imgur.com/bhKSG3f.jpg

[Mincer]

Those Sterling basses are about the best deal in sub$1k basses these days, provided you dig the MM sound.

[ICTGoober]

provided you dig the MM sound.

Define that for us, would you? I've owned 2 Music Man basses, and with their active tone controls I could basically get almost any usable sounds.

[Mincer]

Define that for us, would you? I've owned 2 Music Man basses, and with their active tone controls I could basically get almost any usable sounds.

Everything Tony Levin has recorded. It is distinctly different than a P or J sound. Sort of a huge bottom and well-defined top (a clicky attack) with not a lot of mids. It is a great sound, but not like a Fender. I'm not a bass player, so I am terrible at describing it. Some bassists hate that sound, but I really like it.

[ICTGoober]

Tony Levin has a great tone - I love it. I bet some of his outboard gear has something to do with it, but it starts with a great bass. I like active circuits for bass - not for guitar.

[Mincer]

I've been 3 feet from Tony and watched him pick up his Stingray into a SS combo amp and that tone is right there. Live, he uses a Kemper to get his tones, but I bet his signal chain isn't complicated. Honestly, I am amazed that Stingrays aren't more popular with bassists. They tend to be a bassists 3rd or 4th bass, not their main one, which is a shame.

[ErikH]

Tony Levin has a great tone - I love it. I bet some of his outboard gear has something to do with it, but it starts with a great bass. I like active circuits for bass - not for guitar.

Hahaha. That's me too.

I love StingRay basses. Cliff Williams has been using one for years. A lot of funk players around here use them. I played in a band with a guy that has a 5-string StringRay. It's my favorite bass next to the Precision.

My SUB Ray4 may be a cheap version but it is a damn good cheap version. While the stock pickup is good, I wanted to swap it and glad I put the SMB-4A in it. One thing I did not realize is that the pickup in StingRays is wired in parallel. That definitely contributes to their unique sound. Many models have switches to go between series/split/parallel but the bare bones StingRay is wired parallel.

[St_Genesius]

I like Stingrays (and that new Snowy Night finish has been calling my damn name) but I feel like a lot of the flexibility of an active EQ is lost on me, as I tend to do the exact same thing on every bass: switch to the pickup nearest the neck and roll the tone all the way off.

[JOLLY]

I just ordered one of these. They are on clearance at Musicians Friend, and I figured for 1/4 of the price of an actual Music Man Stingray, why not? I watched about 10 videos last night, and I really couldn't tell that much of a difference in sound between the Sterling and a real Music Man. I damn sure couldn't tell an $1800 difference in sound.

[ICTGoober]

My nephew has sent videos of the kid playing. He's gotten pretty good, and the bass sounds great to me. Should last him a long time.