tbonesullivan

I don't think my Stingray is routed for the 3 coil, and honestly I could care less about having a single coil sound. I now have the pickup at a level that is nice, and no note weirdness except on the top two E string frets. I have the treble side a bit higher as the G is always kinda weak. I'll see how this goes. Also lowered the Carvin's pickup a bit, and got most of the warble out of that. I think I never had issues before because I used to use a really high action, like .120" or above. I tried to bring it down a bit closer to "factory" specs, and that's what caused the problem on basses with the big magnets. I mean they are huge compared to the magnets in standard P or J pickups, even G&L's MFD versions. Live and learn. Now if it only it was that easy to fix sound issues with a trombone.

Well that's good. I have always heard good things about them. Question now is, how much do I really like the stingray? It's got a nice sound, yes, but it's kind of a beast. Though, that's where the good sound comes from. Do you know if the Barts are wired series or parallel? Or do they have enough leads to do series/parallel wiring? Because that would be awesome.

Issue is I play finger style, and lights just don't work for me on a 4. on 5 I can deal with them. I really like the tone and bigger thump I get from mediums. I also like to control the volume with how hard I play, and lights just flop around too much on the A and E. Hmmm.. I wonder if the Bartolini MM pickups have less magnet pull. they don't seem to be pole-piece based, though they are all black so I'm not sure what the insides look like.

could just be that my stingray is cursed. Of course, their "stock configuration" is for their light gauge strings.

I'm using nickel plated steel, medium gauge. This happened with both Labella and D'Addario strings. I may just have to keep the pickup lower. It doesn't seem to impact the sound or volume very much at all. I shoulda figured those big Alnico magnets were the culprit. I'm going to continue messing with it. I like the sound definitely, but I am one who does play up there, and with my SB-2 and Carvin B5 the notes up at the top are perfectly in tune and without any warble. My two basses with big beefy humbuckers in the bridge position? low string warble.

Looks like there is no need for clamps. I have an official diagnosis. I bottomed out the pickup. the warbling was then gone. It's stratitis, on a stingray. now I've gotta figure out what a good pickup height is that won't give me this problem. Also probably should lower the pickup a bit on my carvin. So, according to EBMM: "The factory specifications for the pickup height is 6/32" or 4.76mm from the top of the plastic pickup cover to the bottom of the G string. The angle of the pickup is set fairly level, so the larger strings are naturally a bit closer. If you haven't already adjusted the pickup or changed to a very heavy gauge string set, you shouldn't have to do any adjustments on the pickup." Is this supposed to be with the top fret held down or something? My pickup wasn't even that close, but it did this. Maybe it's because I'm using heavier strings? I use medium gauge roundwounds.

Checked that. nut slots look fine. Plenty of wrapping to keep the angle steep enough. I think i'm going to bottom out the pickup, and see if it might just be a case of "stratitis" on a stingray. of course, right now I've got to go to a bbq/concert, so I'll do it later today. I used to have a Fender Jazz Bass (MIM) that had that annoying break angle problem on the A. So I got a mini string tree and all was good. the MM design is pretty good for keeping the break angle steep, and the tuner posts have a taper that pretty much pushes the string right to the bottom.

Ok... update. Just changed the strings on the stingray. it's still there. I can hear it with the bass unplugged. made sure all of the bridge and neck plate bolts were tight, as well as all the other screws on the bass. Looks like it's time to clamp something to the headstock.

What, no Richard Wright from Pink Floyd? I love the keyboard stuff on their albums. Also, keys on Led Zeppelin albums were I believe played by John Paul Jones. Not saying he's up there with Billy Preston, but definitely added depth to some good Zeppelin songs. Also, NO RAY CHARLES??? "Breaks my heart, kid that young going bad'

nice guitars! also, incidentally, I believe that is actually "Aztec Gold" finish on the Studio.

have you tried just leaving the case open for a few weeks? that often helps.

First step is always to polish the whole guitar. I use preservation polish because that stuff eats through anything. The biggest problem though is the CASE. I would get a towel and get it damp, and then spray it with some 409 or somethign similar, and just rub the outside of the case. You'll get a lot of orange and yellow stuff off. I'd do this several times. THEN, get out some Formula 2000 or other vinyl protectant/restorer and treat the outside. that should help lift more oils and tar out. For the inside of the case, first thing is to VACCUUM it. make sure you get all the compartments, corners, etc inside. You may want to consider using a carpet shampooer on the fuzz, but on the other hand the fuzz often isn't glued down very well, so that would be bad. An the last thing you need is TIME. Leave the case open a lot. or prop it open a little and let it sit in the sun and get nice and hot to volatilize the nasties. I have two guitar /guitar cases that have a lingering odor, but I can tell it's been a while since they have been in a smoking environment, and it's possible it's just the funk from live playing in bars. thankfully, they banned smoking in bars recently, so now I can go, enjoy a show, and actually taste the beer and food.

so, which one is he? I see a bunch of potentially jerky people. The guy with the harley davidson shirt maybe?

Eh. I've seen him live, and I just don't like the "entertainment" style show be puts on. I mean he had one girl on bongos that I am sure I couldn't even hear, and I think she was just there to dance with him on "Wild Night". Everyone has body packs on, never tunes anything. Makes me wonder if they are actually playing anyting up there, or just dancing around. I saw him with John Fogerty at the PNC, and IMHO Fogerty, who went on first, blew Mellencamp right out of the water with his level of musicmanship and songwriting.

The amp is SS, and the stingray has had the issue with two different amps, one in a rehearsal studio, and one in my basement. I'm pretty sure it's someting to do with the basses themselves, either setup, strings, or some weird resonance.

Well, no ceiling fans in the basement, and I've noticed the warble both at home, and in our rehearsal space with a totally different setup. Of course part of me just wants to sell the stingray, and this just adds fuel to that idea.

Thanks! I'll give it a try tonight when I have time. I'm really not sure if it's a new problem or not, or whether I just ignored it, since the notes up that high on the E string really don't sound that good anyway.

The stingray has a set of D'Addario EXL165, which are medium bottoms and light tops, and the Carvin has a set of Carvin strings by La Bella , which are medium but have the same string diameters as the D'Addarios. When I get home I'll try muting the strings on the headstock to see if that helps. Another thing both basses have in common is they both have big alnico pole humbucking pickups in the bridge position.

Yeah, I tried muting the other strings. I even tried massively lowering the pickups, and that didn't help. Could just be that I need new strings, but they aren't even that old.

So, I've actually got two bass guitars with this problem, a Carvin B4A, and a MM Stingray. I've been setting these up for a while trying to get the intonation all right and the action where I want it. I set the action on my basses at .100-.110 inches at the 12th fret, so it's a bit higher than the usual "factory" action, which is usually recommended at 3/32", or .094 inches. relief is about a medium pick at the 5th fret with the 1st and 13th positions held down. I have the pickups at or lower than factory. So, on the high frets on the low E and a bit on the A I get a "warble" in the pitch. It is like the string is not in tune with itself. I have searched, and I've heard everything from a twisted string, to old strings, to the action being too low or the pickups being too high. I checked all that out, and I'm still getting the warbling. Though, it's not like I usually play that high on the E strings, but I don't remember having this before, and now it's there. Help?

THE SUSPENSE IS KILLING MEEEEE

still, the price for that is excessive for something that beat to hell. It's essentially paying $5000 for a body, but you've also gotta do the work to get the old neck off. I mean, maybe if they put a bunch of splines into the neck it might be worth it, but I still don't see who would have bothered doig such a crappy repair job on it. Was it that hard to put in a scarf joint? Also not sure why they wouldn't just take off the whole fretboard.

you can find some P-basses that have J-bass necks. My "P-Bass" is a G&L SB-2, which has the G&L versions of the P bass pickups and J bass pickups. I will say one thing about it: the output of the P-pickup is HUGE. As in, louder than I can get my active Stingray to be. I've gotta keep my amps on "active" mode or i'll overdrive the input stage. It is a great sound though, and you really can FEEL it when you use the P-bass pickup. As for the Stingray, I've got one of those too, and they are just a different kind of sound than the P-bass. They really do "growl" compared to the thump you get from a P-bass. If you like the sound, they are great. If you don't, you won't like it. The same thing with Rickenbacker basses.

Congrats man! Been to heck and back with you already? Sounds like a keeper!

Shellac refin on the Junior? Were they originally finished with that stuff? anyway, all are looking great!