Sounded like some Rush being played on the Ric. The secret to Geddy Lee's tone is how hard he digs in while finger plucking. Almost like he is trying to make the string touch the pickup. It is the main component of his tone sounding like he uses a pick even though he plays finger style.
Great compilation! Love your playing. The Flatwoods on the Fender's was the sound I prefer. That bird's eye Sterling sounded delicious. I loved the Ric's, particularly in the higher registers. Thanks for posting this video.
I was hired by a blues project once . We were booked at this club that had an in-house bass amp ... If I can recall , I remember a 300 watt head , and a 8 10" speakers . Wow , the sound engineer made me sound like a star , I was totally at ease .
@@santosmadrigal3702 never played in a band but i can understand where your coming from ,love the down to earth nature of your vids,positive information,,,thanks
@ProgRockJock - Awesome bass demo compilation! For someone that's shopping around for their 1st bass of good quality, this video was very helpful. I always loved a thick funk tone and had assumed that I would love the P-Bass tone the best, but the tone & versatility of the Stingray seems to be pulling me to it. 🙂
Thank you! I'd go with the Stingray. I posted a video a while back about why. Plus, if you're on a budget, you can't beat their quality at such a low price point.
13:34, Yes you can hear it definitely sounds better than both of the others. Makes me realise though that my rick copy is actually ok (with a new set of strings!), and I still can't justify spending £1500+ on the genuine article...
The JetGlo (Black) Ric was at Norman's Rare Guitars in California. Rob said he'd let it go for a good price but keep in mind the black and the orangish Rics had a common issue where the G-String rides close to the edge of the frets, as demonstrated in the video. The other 2 Rics were for sale at Atlanta Discount Music.
@eckie4679 Same here, but technically I've had 4 4003s (Jetglo) because I had to send the first 3 back due to massive QC issues. First one: They forgot to glue the binding properly on the bottom of the neck near the body, so it started separating after a couple of days. Second one: The plastic cover over the bridge pickup (painted to look like chrome) was cracked in 2 places (probably happened during shipping) and whoever applied the lacquer to the fretboard did so with a barrel & mop. Third one: The neck pickup stopped working entirely after about a week. Thought it was a rick-o-sound issue but no, it just packed up completely. Fourth one I still have (regrettably) but seldom play because I grew to dislike it's plank-of-wood feel and weak output. That and the frets started to wear prematurely. I think they're made of chrome painted butter. If I ever need to play Round-About for a gig, I might dig it out of it's case. The accompanying case is actually nicer than the bass. £2.4k for a nice case that came with an unfit for purpose waste of wood, metal & plastic inside it.
A good video for content is the basic set up how to video. Especially if it is easy might get recomendations. I am still trying to find an easy way to do a setup. I was in a band from june 1 1998 till may 31st 2000. during covid decided to play just for the fun of it and try to learn a little theory.
Unfortunately, I'm not the man for setups. Dave's World Of Fun Stuff is great for that...and through his channel, I just found out that I was on the right track to adjust my truss rod before messing with the bridge, which I've received some criticism in the past. It's never too late to pick it back up, especially to learn some theory. The pandemic brought a lot of us musicians back from the dead 😉
. *The Stingray not only sounds EPIC...* *...it's also a work of unbelievable beauty.* I'm guessing if you let Tony Franklin play it, you might not be getting it back anytime soon.
my 2012 Ric did the same thing the bridge was not aligned correctly and it was easy for the G string to slide off the neck and didn't line up correctly with the neck pickup i had to replace the bridge with a Hipshot to correct the problem, you'd think a bass as expensive ($1950) would be perfect
I have so much history with ADM, stretching back over 30 years. George is such an awesome guy! I bought countless amps from there...most of them, actually, as well as some of my first "old P-basses" before the vintage craze. One of the last basses I bought from him was a beautiful 1967, sunburst P-Bass. I saw him the last time I was in there and he looks the same!
Probably a bit of an odd thing to notice, but I love slightly dead roundwounds and those Rotosounds have aged very well on the Precision. Jazz bass player myself but have been thinking about going for a Precision with a Jazz neck or (gulp) modding my Jazz to put a P pickup in the middle. The Sterling Stingray sounds unbelievably good before you even think about how comparatively inexpensive it is, considering one of those for a B standard bass. Very impressed by your intonation and control on the fretless examples, your extended time on fretless you previously mentioned is evident.
Slightly dead roundwounds is not an odd thing to me. In my opinion, they're the best of both worlds. I can't tell you how many people would approach me after a show and ask me about my tone with that old black P-bass. The Jazz bass is great. I always admired guys like Matt Sharp who rocked the Jazz Bass. Plus, I must say that I love playing my Jazz bass with a fresh set of EB Super Slinky strings. It gave it a whole new life. Before modding that Jazz, you might want to consider finding a PJ Deluxe (Passive/Active). This was my first Fender bass and I absolutely adored the tone, but not the purple finish, so I basically gave it to an old friend of mine who would later sell it off. However, PJ Basses usually have a Precision body, so if you modded your Jazz with a P-pickup, that would look pretty cool! The Sterling Stingrays, especially the HH really make it hard for me to pay $2,000+ just for the EB logo. I appreciate your words about my fretless playing, but I would not want to cut heads with my 19/20-year-old-self. I'm not lying when I tell you that I slept with that Pedulla, sometimes between me and my girlfriends back in those days. That's honestly what it takes to really own that s#!t.
@@progrockjock Picked up the dead rounds trick from Ben Shepard of Soundgarden, he puts heavy Dunlops (55-110?) on his basses and leaves them on until they break. The core of his sound is about having that attack that quickly decays down into something murky but rich, almost like an upright played with a heavy hand. (considering his favorite musician of all time is Charles Mingus, the voicing makes a lot of sense) Every time I see a really good fretless player, it's because that's all they do all day long. Monstrous skills and dedication. I want to play upright as well one day, so I figure I'll have to approach a fretless instrument sooner or later.
I really dig Ben Shepherd too! I didn't now that he played on dead rounds. I also didn't know he was a Mingus fan! I've always used ghs pressurewound strings on my fretless basses. I even soaked them in rubbing alcohol once to clean them and it gave them a nice sound. I tried playing a variety of basses over the years and nothing speaks to me more than my Pedulla. I wish I owned a fretted one. I would probably sell all of my other basses...yes, even the BFR Stingray. It's beautiful and easy on my left shoulder due to it's weight of 7.5 pounds, but my 9.2-pound Pedulla buzz bass has a neck that was made for me. I owned an upright bass for years but I didn't have what it took to stick with it, so I sold it off.
@@noyd4172Rotosound 66 strings are the only set I've ever heard that sounds good even when they die. I am a big fan of new strings, if I had the money I would change them literally every month, but rotosounds I always keep on my bass for longer periods of time.
This is so helpful, thank you SO much, but can I ask what would you say the Hartke KB15 lacking of compared to your BG500? Is the BG a tube or digital?
You're welcome! For the record, I have ALWAYS wanted a Hartke Kickback since they started making them. In my opinion, it is better than the BG500. KB15 is also solid state just like the BG500, has better compression and it's way easier to carry around. Plus the wedge design turns it into your own personal monitor.
Sounded like some Rush being played on the Ric. The secret to Geddy Lee's tone is how hard he digs in while finger plucking. Almost like he is trying to make the string touch the pickup. It is the main component of his tone sounding like he uses a pick even though he plays finger style.
Great video. You can’t go wrong with any of those basses. I enjoyed watching and listening to your bass playing
Thank you! I agree about those basses but I'm still searching for the next great bass...
Great demonstration....I love your passion for this amazing instrument.
As usual, amazing content.
Thanks, man!
The fretless and guardless Reserve Stingray sounded great, would of loved to hear Sledgehammer on it.
Everyone is calling for the Sledgehammer...
That Fretless StingRay is beautiful in both looks and sounds. ❤
Hats off to guys on YT who do this sort of thing. And for that bit of Rush also!
Great compilation! Love your playing. The Flatwoods on the Fender's was the sound I prefer. That bird's eye Sterling sounded delicious. I loved the Ric's, particularly in the higher registers. Thanks for posting this video.
Thank you!
That was cool!
Thanks!
Thank you for watching!
tone-fest.really highlighted the different { voices }of the individual instruments,, interesting ,,Thanks
I was hired by a blues project once . We were booked at this club that had an in-house bass amp ... If I can recall , I remember a 300 watt head , and a 8 10" speakers . Wow , the sound engineer made me sound like a star , I was totally at ease .
@@santosmadrigal3702 never played in a band but i can understand where your coming from ,love the down to earth nature of your vids,positive information,,,thanks
@ProgRockJock - Awesome bass demo compilation! For someone that's shopping around for their 1st bass of good quality, this video was very helpful. I always loved a thick funk tone and had assumed that I would love the P-Bass tone the best, but the tone & versatility of the Stingray seems to be pulling me to it. 🙂
Thank you! I'd go with the Stingray. I posted a video a while back about why. Plus, if you're on a budget, you can't beat their quality at such a low price point.
I loved it!
Rickenbacker is one of the only brands that is known for their carved bodies like the one Lemmy Kilmister played.
13:34, Yes you can hear it definitely sounds better than both of the others. Makes me realise though that my rick copy is actually ok (with a new set of strings!), and I still can't justify spending £1500+ on the genuine article...
I feel the same way.
That 19 BFR is so beautiful! I need one to add to my stingray collection, also that orange looking 4003 😍🤘
Thank you about the BFR! Yes, that Ric had a very interesting finish.
@@progrockjock yea man absolutely! I loved that Ric! Are those basses for sale somewhere?
The JetGlo (Black) Ric was at Norman's Rare Guitars in California. Rob said he'd let it go for a good price but keep in mind the black and the orangish Rics had a common issue where the G-String rides close to the edge of the frets, as demonstrated in the video. The other 2 Rics were for sale at Atlanta Discount Music.
@@progrockjock hmm ok, yea I guess I’m used to that issues all the the 5 stein stingrays do the same thing, it kinda sucks makes tapping tedious to do
Crazy part is you can buy a fender P bass, Jazz bass, and a Stingray for the price of a new Ric.
Ha! That's totally true!
And anyone who does so is a bit daft. I know I am 😂. Seriously I’ve owned two - a 4004 and a 4003s/5. Pretty disappointing all round 🫤
@@eckie4679 Then you have Lemmy.
@eckie4679
Same here, but technically I've had 4 4003s (Jetglo) because I had to send the first 3 back due to massive QC issues.
First one: They forgot to glue the binding properly on the bottom of the neck near the body, so it started separating after a couple of days.
Second one: The plastic cover over the bridge pickup (painted to look like chrome) was cracked in 2 places (probably happened during shipping) and whoever applied the lacquer to the fretboard did so with a barrel & mop.
Third one: The neck pickup stopped working entirely after about a week.
Thought it was a rick-o-sound issue but no, it just packed up completely.
Fourth one I still have (regrettably) but seldom play because I grew to dislike it's plank-of-wood feel and weak output.
That and the frets started to wear prematurely. I think they're made of chrome painted butter.
If I ever need to play Round-About for a gig, I might dig it out of it's case.
The accompanying case is actually nicer than the bass.
£2.4k for a nice case that came with an unfit for purpose waste of wood, metal & plastic inside it.
A good video for content is the basic set up how to video. Especially if it is easy might get recomendations. I am still trying to find an easy way to do a setup. I was in a band from june 1 1998 till may 31st 2000. during covid decided to play just for the fun of it and try to learn a little theory.
Unfortunately, I'm not the man for setups. Dave's World Of Fun Stuff is great for that...and through his channel, I just found out that I was on the right track to adjust my truss rod before messing with the bridge, which I've received some criticism in the past. It's never too late to pick it back up, especially to learn some theory. The pandemic brought a lot of us musicians back from the dead 😉
Groooovy 😎
.
*The Stingray not only sounds EPIC...*
*...it's also a work of unbelievable beauty.*
I'm guessing if you let Tony Franklin play it, you might not be getting it back anytime soon.
my 2012 Ric did the same thing the bridge was not aligned correctly and it was easy for the G string to slide off the neck and didn't line up correctly with the neck pickup i had to replace the bridge with a Hipshot to correct the problem, you'd think a bass as expensive ($1950) would be perfect
I appreciate the report!
I believe the last ric you played was a maple glow. Should be the brightest if science of tonewoods is correct.
They’re all maple. Maple glo is just the name of the color
The color doesn’t affect the sound that I am aware of
@@CNick75 There are some 4003s that are walnut.
Atlanta Discount Music. The home of my Ric! Such a great shop.
I have so much history with ADM, stretching back over 30 years. George is such an awesome guy! I bought countless amps from there...most of them, actually, as well as some of my first "old P-basses" before the vintage craze. One of the last basses I bought from him was a beautiful 1967, sunburst P-Bass. I saw him the last time I was in there and he looks the same!
What bass brands is the closest to sounding like a stingray besides Sterling?
G&L
The Jazz bass with the old Flats sounds almost like a P bass with the tone rolled off.
Great video and playing !
Nice collection of basses & tones too !
what about your amps ?
Thank you!! I use Ampeg SVT 2 & 3 and tc electronic.
Probably a bit of an odd thing to notice, but I love slightly dead roundwounds and those Rotosounds have aged very well on the Precision. Jazz bass player myself but have been thinking about going for a Precision with a Jazz neck or (gulp) modding my Jazz to put a P pickup in the middle. The Sterling Stingray sounds unbelievably good before you even think about how comparatively inexpensive it is, considering one of those for a B standard bass. Very impressed by your intonation and control on the fretless examples, your extended time on fretless you previously mentioned is evident.
Slightly dead roundwounds is not an odd thing to me. In my opinion, they're the best of both worlds. I can't tell you how many people would approach me after a show and ask me about my tone with that old black P-bass.
The Jazz bass is great. I always admired guys like Matt Sharp who rocked the Jazz Bass. Plus, I must say that I love playing my Jazz bass with a fresh set of EB Super Slinky strings. It gave it a whole new life. Before modding that Jazz, you might want to consider finding a PJ Deluxe (Passive/Active). This was my first Fender bass and I absolutely adored the tone, but not the purple finish, so I basically gave it to an old friend of mine who would later sell it off. However, PJ Basses usually have a Precision body, so if you modded your Jazz with a P-pickup, that would look pretty cool!
The Sterling Stingrays, especially the HH really make it hard for me to pay $2,000+ just for the EB logo.
I appreciate your words about my fretless playing, but I would not want to cut heads with my 19/20-year-old-self. I'm not lying when I tell you that I slept with that Pedulla, sometimes between me and my girlfriends back in those days. That's honestly what it takes to really own that s#!t.
@@progrockjock Picked up the dead rounds trick from Ben Shepard of Soundgarden, he puts heavy Dunlops (55-110?) on his basses and leaves them on until they break. The core of his sound is about having that attack that quickly decays down into something murky but rich, almost like an upright played with a heavy hand. (considering his favorite musician of all time is Charles Mingus, the voicing makes a lot of sense)
Every time I see a really good fretless player, it's because that's all they do all day long. Monstrous skills and dedication. I want to play upright as well one day, so I figure I'll have to approach a fretless instrument sooner or later.
I really dig Ben Shepherd too! I didn't now that he played on dead rounds. I also didn't know he was a Mingus fan! I've always used ghs pressurewound strings on my fretless basses. I even soaked them in rubbing alcohol once to clean them and it gave them a nice sound. I tried playing a variety of basses over the years and nothing speaks to me more than my Pedulla. I wish I owned a fretted one. I would probably sell all of my other basses...yes, even the BFR Stingray. It's beautiful and easy on my left shoulder due to it's weight of 7.5 pounds, but my 9.2-pound Pedulla buzz bass has a neck that was made for me. I owned an upright bass for years but I didn't have what it took to stick with it, so I sold it off.
@@noyd4172Rotosound 66 strings are the only set I've ever heard that sounds good even when they die. I am a big fan of new strings, if I had the money I would change them literally every month, but rotosounds I always keep on my bass for longer periods of time.
Absolutely awesome have a wonderful day also I am going to college in Canada where I live in ❤😊
Rush and Metallica but no Motorhead?
Oh, man!...I've actually played some Motorhead on one of these videos but not on a Ric!
Is there a reason for having the bass vol maxed out and the amp on 1 rather than a split?
I never max the bass volume on the amp. The output is already way too bass-heavy, which forces me to cut the video sound down to 50%.
@@progrockjock what I was saying why do you max the volume on the bass
@@dynodansmokingOn a lot of basses, the tone doesn't stay the ssme if the volume is slightly down
This is so helpful, thank you SO much, but can I ask what would you say the Hartke KB15 lacking of compared to your BG500? Is the BG a tube or digital?
You're welcome! For the record, I have ALWAYS wanted a Hartke Kickback since they started making them. In my opinion, it is better than the BG500. KB15 is also solid state just like the BG500, has better compression and it's way easier to carry around. Plus the wedge design turns it into your own personal monitor.
Thank you Bossman! I appreciate it.
The Black p bass and black Ric sounded best
I don‘t dig flats on a jazz. It takes it‘s strenghts away.