The most noticeable difference to me was the difference in playing technique. You can tell Chris hits the strings a lot harder from the amount of attack and buzz while Chuck plays with a much softer touch

Sterling lets people afford a Stingray bass for (usually) less than 500$ . Love my minty baby sterling lol

Man, I haven't played much bass since quitting my last band, but hearing these great tones has made me know how much I miss it.

The Sterling sounds better and warmer to me 😮

Got a stingray yesterday and immediately played a gig with it and damn even in this economy, worth every penny. Incredible investment

I enjoy what I'm seeing on your channel, Chris, so thanks! I bought a SBMM Ray 35 about a year before this video because it delivered a sweet, punchy grunt/growl that I want in any bass I consider owning; it's the made in Korea version with a mahogany body and an amber quilted maple top and headstock. For performances, mine goes straight into a Quilter BB800 head into two Bugera 2x10" cabs. I've used this rig for six gigs since I bought it in late 2019, along with a Fender Aerodyne P/J, and was delighted with how the Ray 35 made its presence known. Imo, it's hard to go wrong with about any EBMM or SBMM instrument. Edit: My bass has a Made in Korea decal on the back of the headstock, btw. btw Marcelo Feldman is to blame for steering me in the offshore SBMM direction, so kudos to him and his channel.

The Sterling sounds better because the electronics are basically like the real pre-Special Stingray. Alnico and ceramic both sound better than neodymium, and the old preamps sounded a lot better than the Special preamp too. The Special sounds like a stock preamp and pickup you'd want to upgrade at some point. With the old EBMM electronics you never even think about upgrading.

A better comparison would be the Ray35 to the older EBMM Stingray 5, and not the Stingray Special 5. The Ray35 is en exact replica of the older Stingray 5 with AlNiCo pickup ( 1987-1991 and 2008 - 2017; the Stingray 5 had a Ceramic pickup with phantom coil from 1992 to 2007). The bridge on the Stingray 5 from 1987 to 2017 was exactly the same as the one on the Ray35 with the extra two side mounting studs. The Stingray Special doesn’t have the studs to save on weight, all the hardware was redesigned to save weight on the Special. The older Stingray’s used Schaller tuning machines, which are fantastic. The Ray35 uses Asian-made no-name tuners. The Stingray Special’s tuning machines are supposedly made by EBMM, but seem to be very reminiscent of the Schaller BM Lightweight tuners, except with a clover instead of a Y paddle. The three way switch is Parallel, Series with filter (to sort of mimic single coil), and Series. There is no actual single coil on the AlNiCo (or even the Neo) pickup as it does not have a phantom coil to cancel hum (like the ceramic pickup does - just like the EBMM Sterling Bass has). The Stingray Special 5 is a totally different animal, which is why EBMM tacked the *Special* moniker onto the Stingray name, because it isn’t your Father’s Stingray. But I figured you would research this before doing a 20+ minute comparison with a lot of loose ends.

Great comparison video! Thanks for doing this guys!!

I've owned two EBMM Stingray 5s over the years but sold them because I needed to free up some cash and I don't have to play 5 string very much. I now own a black Ray35 with matching headstock that I bought used, and I can honestly say that I can't feel much of a difference btwn the EBMM and SBMM. I will say I think the frets are a little smaller on the Ray35. Other than that, they sound, feel, and play the same to me.

If you can’t choose, you have the middle version that is the Sterling 5 Ray35 that costs around 1300$ and does the same work as a Stingray

The MAIN point of those new tuners is the LIGHTER weight .... I love them on my Special 5 HH ... great vid!

Your comments are appreciated thanks everyone! Lots more videos coming soon!

Bro sounds like joe Rogan’s little brother

I have both and I use them for different bands. I’ll always wanna play the Ernie ball over the sterling. Never realized about how big of a difference there was in almost every detail of feel until I bought the Ernie ball. Best bass I’ve ever owned.

"Do you have the specs?" "No". End of the comparison

My 2 cents: Get a Sterling, and a Spector Euro! #teamSpector 😊👍

Compensated nut and steel frets also on the USA version plus a nice case. Also 18 volt (2 batteries) on the EBMM version. Lastly, much better customer service.

Parallel is is the first position, closest to the bridge. Middle position is single coil. Series is the third position, closest to the neck.

Came across your channel from your full album cover of Justice, wow! I’m a metal drummer and do covers as well...I think it would be a bass and drum collab! Let me know what you think🤘🤘

The control config is right on the StingRay 5 page. Forward is series, middle is series with a filter, and back is parallel, in the latest version. In older StingRay 5s, it was series, single (with a phantom coil), and parallel.

I agree with Alex.....cant compare in all honesty because of the styles and technique....one guys is a Rocker the other SMooth Jazz ....75% of the sound comes from the hands..

Those two screws on the sides you have on Sterling bridge are used to prevent saddles from moving sideways. Tbh, Stingray special should have kept them as well...

That 3 way, does do that , front towards neck is series, middle is single, and back is parallel, parallel is classic stinger tone that a 4 string comes with

Good comparison. But yeah, we must comment that the american is a Stingray Special and the Ray35 is modeled after the previous model. That would be a fairer comparison.

How the hell did you know I was considering a 5 string Sterling

One thing you guys didn’t touch on is resale value. Used Stingrays sell for 1800+ and will continue to go up as the new instrument price does, so they’re a really great investment long term (although why would you ever want to sell it barring financial disaster?), especially if you buy used to begin with. Regarding Musicman vs. Sterling, I have a 5 string Sterling 1H, and a 4 string Musicman, and the differences are enormous in terms of quality of build and materials. I have to use my super wide strap for my chonkyboi Sterling, and it still crushes my shoulder and back after an hour or two, meanwhile my Stingray Special gets a thinner (but nicer) strap yet I can still play for hours on end to the point where my feet get tired before my back or shoulders do. My 5 string is a fine instrument, and is better than any of my other basses in the same price range, the Musicman is just that much better, and from this bassist’s opinion, absolutely worth the cost of admission.

Just bought a Sterling Stingray SS-4. The fit, finish, sound & playability exceeded my expectations. oNe LovE from NYC

Sterling sounds more "beefy & thick" to me & that's what I like! I have both also and my Ernie Ball 'feels' better but when playing on my live shows, I like my Sterling sound better...😎

Far too much talk, more playing, cmon!

I have a EBMM Stingray and a SBMM Stingray. There is a difference between the two (nut, neck finish, tuners), but there is not $2000 bucks difference. BTW, you are not an expert if you didn't know who Zzounds was.

The Sterling pickup is ceramic.

All my music man pickup mods that are on a three way blade are wired series/split/parallel (or series /single/parallel)

I have to say that this was the video that did it for me. I've been mulling over whether to buy the SBMM Ray 5 or the EBMM SR Special for over a year. I know that the Sterlings are pretty good, but I have a Ray 34 that I bought new in 2012 and I've never been quite satisfied with it (Build quality is great but the tone was never quite there - not Stingray enough for me). Anyway, I'm a 5 string guy, so it was going to be either the Ray 35 or the Stingray Special. I wasn't sure if I wanted to pay the extra $1,700 for the Special (The HH model). My mind, however, was finally made up after seeing this video. I'm now the proud owner of a 2021 EBMM HH SR Special. Was it expensive? Yes. Was it worth it? Absolutely! I'm very happy with my purchase and I have this video to thank for it. Cheers!

I enjoyed it guys thanks as always for another great vid 👍

I just ordered mine from sounds and can't wait to jam

I love me Ray 35, sounds amazing!!!. Great video!! Love it

this guy sounds like Joe Rogan

Joe Rogan played bass guitar so well his hair came back 👏

Just want to say thanks again for having me on the demo. I know some details weren’t 100% covered and we knew you guys would have the info to do the rest of what we missed justice! We got lots more videos planned! Thanks again everyone and let me know what else you would like to see!

The Sterling Ray35 is INCREDIBLE. I have two of them. As compared to the appropriate EBMM, I cannot imagine the EBMM is at least A THOUSAND dollars better than the Sterling Ray35. I think that is the absolutely crucial question. With regard to the EBMM Special… that is enough of a different instrument with different features/specs from the Sterling Ray35 that I don’t think it’s really an apples to apples comparison.

I really believe the differences in body, neck and fretboard woods between models, makes a huge difference. I prefer the alnicoV pickups and light punchy basses. My Sterling has a roasted maple neck and fretboard with nyatoh body. It's outstanding.

Going from the 6 bolt pattern to the 5 bolt pattern wasn't a "sacrifice" for the sculpting. It was to improve the access to the higher frets making it easier to play up and down the full fretboard.

It’s 10x the cost🤷🏻‍♂️ Screw that

Just found this channel and it's pretty great. I've got a 4 string Sterling

MusicMan definitely sounds better, but I don't know if it makes up for the $2,000 difference between the Sterling By MusicMan

Pretty sure the middle position is single coil.

Does anyone here know a good website to get those US style tuners, electronics, and bridge etc so we can upgrade our Sterlings if we want?

I have this Ray 35 and I love it. Very easy to play with this small neck. The strings are now very low and you fly over the strings. Great feel to play. With the Darkglass Vintage Deluxe and Subway 800+ I get more bite for a Myung / Harris Finger lover out of the Sterling. Sterling could make some better colors at the Ray 35 series ;-) Update with the ABM from Ashdown it is better with the tube and gerat EQ.

sounds like your stingrays action is lower too, pretty clicky

I have a pile of the old OLP basses, all five string. I modded them all to be fretless with epoxy resin/superglue fingerboards. I’ve been removing the preamps, just using the blade switch and a master volume push/pull tone pot. My two Tony Levin models still have the stock preamps and alnico coil pickups, but I’ve added the blade switch coil tap mod.

You can get a great sound upgrading your sterling pickpup with seymour duncan bass line

Should have been Music Man vs Stingray vs OLP I have a OLP MM5 with 15mm string spacing and custom made Nordstrand pickups.

I'm thrilled with my Sterling by Music Man Ray 35 and don't see the need to spend a whole lot more for the USA model.

I bought a EB MM StingRay Special first and a year later I bought a Sterling 25 to be my commuter bass because my EB MM bass was too good for me to learn how to play and have it all used up by the time I’d become a better player. Yes, the EB MM is a major treat to play and I can see why it costs that much more than the Sterling, however, the Sterling is a bass that can handle anything you throw at it on stage, in the studio, and on a personal inspirational bases, it’s a keeper. I bought the EB MM at Zzounds because of the “Play as you Play” plan. Therefore, the expensive price didn’t hurt my wallet much, at all. Same with the Sterling. They both sound great, (the EB MM WAY BETTER), at the end of the day, it’s all about the FINGERS!!! The rest is all bla, bla, bla!!! I loved your show👍🏽 Sumbi

Would be interesting to see a comparison between a pre-EB Stingray and a modern Stingray Classic.

Awsome😎. Thank you and God bless .

The switch is reversed on them as well

The biggest difference I hear is in the highs. The Sterling just sounds scratchier and rougher than the Stingray to me. I appreciate the more glassy, clear highs from the Stingray.

I heard that on the sterling te 3 way switch is backwards, that could be why he likes it the other way on the stingray, I've never played one tho. American made right here lol

I have a Sterling Ray34 HH 2022 model & it sounds fantastic & plays really well, 1260 quid against 3000. No brainier for me, Sterling pound for pound better value. Although if money no object would have got US version

I have recently got back into playing and the Stingray has always been on my wish list. I have been watching tons of videos describing both the EB and Sterling. This was by far the best I’ve seen with side by side comparison and some brutally honest commentary! I am looking for deal on one or both if I can find it. I know it’s a pipe dream lol. I’m going to try to find used EB and possibly a new Sterling I already have my eyes on one with an HH configuration. Well, thanks again!

You may want to review the EBMM SR5 manual for what the lever switch positions indicate, before you make a video speculating about the obvious.

So much fret buzz . Clank Clank Clank.

What is the difference: Sterling by Music Man StingRay5 HH vs stingray35HH

This has to be sponsored by PBS because it’s public utility !

Where can I find these tuners from the USA?

Spector 👌✅️✅️✅️

Is it that hard to go to the companies' websites to see what the different settings of the selector switch are? I know it's there because I've looked before. Pickup information too.

Great vid! I'm thinking is it worth getting a Sterling and upgrading it! But then that cane be asked of any budget brand. Is the wood worth the better hardware!

I'm a huge Music Man fanboy, and i would love to own either one of these basses. Great video as always.

If I'm heading into the studio to record or do a live show, the Stingray is a no brainer. If I'm an intermediate player, the Sterling works better for the budget and you can upgrade it too. Thanks.

Bro Has a very similar voice to joe rogan hahah! Great review!

After over a decade of fenders, Just got myself a ray34 to try out new stuff, even with a sansamp I Just cant get THAT click in the tone. Also the on board eq its just too boomy any help?

Sterling with a treble 80%, middle 65%,bass 55%. Is a Musicman killer. I have played in store, and on blind test Sterling won. 50%is a central position of pot.

The Ray 35 sounds a lot beefier to me

Sold my HH music man, it has not powerful enough B strings if I compare to my 3 other 5 string basses. Warwick, spector , and ltd Deluxe B strings is much more better.

Wire the SBMM in parallel and save 1500

I thought the Sterling killed the American

A washtub out of the trash sound good played through Darkglass.

When it comes to sound Yes, Sterling ray34/35 is close to a Musicman specially If you are just a beginner like me with an untrained ear. But when it comes to feel it doesn't compare. At the music store I picked up the cheapest MM and the most expensive Sterling Personally MM felt much much better The wood,knobs,tunners,electronics. everything is supreme. But it was going to be my second bass (first one being a Ray4) I'm such a MM fan but I just don't feel like expending more than 2000$ being a 6 months old bassist And like a said the Ray35 is close in sound(Personally) and for half the price I ended up buying it and I'm really happy with my purchase. Once I make my 900$dlls bass sound like a 2000$ I'll buy a MM that's what keeps me motivated to practice for hours on a daily basis.

I'm lucky enough in life that I've owned only US made StingRays and Fenders and German made Warwicks. Yes, there is a huge difference in quality, and there is also a difference in sound. However, that does not mean that the Sterling Ray35 is not a competent instrument that sounds great and is worth the money.

Chuck rules ! Psyched to see this

Ethereum 🎸

Just go for sterling.

Cool comparison...to my ears, the music man has a brighter sound while the sterling has a warmer sound. despite that, they both have that punch that sting ray basses are known for. I've tried out a sterling sub ray 5 about a year ago and I do dig how it sounds. I was thinking about getting one sometime in the future. that or any other bass that has a music man styled pickup like the schecter stiletto stealth. I've also tried out that bass and I was impressed with how it sounds. so that's another bass I was considering to buy. on another note, I've always thought that zzounds was pronounced "z-zounds", but since you mentioned that website and how you pronounced it, I now know it's actually pronounced "zounds". I use to shop there. they provide good services. anywho, great comparison on these basses.

bass should be played by the same player. Feel has a lot to do with it.

I see stingray i click and subscribe 😁🤘

Twist: in the paid version of the video they admit they prefer the cheaper one so your $5 subscription saves you $1,000

Demm! 3:33 kkkkkkk

Sterling is more agressive. Les defined poor tuners but greqt bass for the price the usa well its premium all the way. And a more even tone less agressive alos light weigjt and stainless steel frets and compensated nut

Sound the same to me🤷🏻‍♂️

My lightest ,"Frankentstein" P-Bass is the best sounding one

You go on reverb and get a used American made, and your still getting one for a way better deal, you can find a killer stingray on reverb for 1000. Just look and bargain with someone who needs to sell it. You will have a bass that u want to keep for life vs, a bass that u will want to see and have no resale value to, then you actually wasted 900 bucks for a bass u are unhappy with. Just get the stingray, trust me. I have 4 and a 5th will b soon.

I preferred the MusicMan when Chris was playing it and I preferred the Sterling when Chris was playing that. I think Chucks preffered tones were just a little dark and muddy for me.

Hey... I thought what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas..... Jk, u guys did a good job

Sustain….this is the difference. The feel you can’t see this. Of course, this a Sterling rice factory in Indonesia. The Musicman Stingray in Luis Obispo CA. That’s it. This cheap Sennheiser headphones (why not a HD25….????)This is a bad video.😮

Zzounds deserves a shoutout. My Jaguar bass and my Jazzmaster both came from them. Probably gonna grab a Baritone from them soon, too.

Yeah great, another Stingray video. Like I didn't have GAS already... 😅

For me, the sound is almost the same… music man worth the money? Honestly… only if it feel as comfortable as you want to play it every single time… but about the sound, not