The New Sterling By Music Man DarkRay

[@ifoundit5476]

It feels like a missed opportunity not to have bite/growl options and the blend between Alpha and Omega channels like all of the pedals do. Makes it seem like the better call is just to get a Sterling and an Alpha Omicron pedal at that point.

[@thierry18]

It definitely is, but I guess the appearance is the main selling point

[@budverissimo1]

Or buy a USA stingray on reverb for 800, a DG pedal and save money

[@honeybadger1810]

Yeah but this is ALL black.

[@bobbyzig3879]

@@budverissimo1$800 for USA stingray?? Lol

[@rainypath96]

just turn your volume up on your normal sterling and get the same distorted tone lol

[@Viper-dz2kw]

Using the pickup selector to control the effect has gotta be the smartest way to do onboard effects I’ve seen yet, it’s so annoying when it’s a mini toggle placed in a really awkward spot

[@TheGissy77]

The only issue with your reviews is that you play so amazing and tough that all the basses you play sounds amazing 😂

[@izzyroxx2922]

Pretty true 😆😆 had the same thought

[@muhammedkasal]

While watching your videos i feel like i am in a Bass lounge where i sit and talk with my friends ^^ Keep going on man love your work.

[@patrickhunter]

Dude YES. Thank you so much for the kind words, it seriously means so much brother!🤙

[@omni-c]

I just picked up the bass, and this channel so far as been really helpful on seeing different bass types and there tones, thank you Patrick!

[@Tbag0069]

Just got mine on Tuesday and absolutely loving it. Feels fantastic and sounds amazing.

[@negativetwospade7188]

Amazing playing and review as always Patrick!!! I’m definitely going to pick up this absolute monster very soon!

[@patrickhunter]

Thanks for watching, friend!🤘

[@joshlawless1022]

Damn that was quick! Thanks for doing this, Patrick!

[@dmbrooksonbass]

I've watched quite a few review videos for the SBMM Dark Ray and you're the only one whom has made it sound good and the only one to mention the internal switches. Good work, man !

[@BassBajo]

I just ordered mine today in part thanks to your review. Cant wait to get my hands on it.

[@usmcyounggun6879]

A 5 string would have me very interested!

[@JoshuaMRichard]

Looks amazing and sounds amazing!!! Would love to pick one up some day.

[@pclindholm]

Love that tone

[@lakselv3768]

Amazing Patrick!

[@patrickhunter]

It's so ridiculous and SO fun!

[@jasontrujillo2859]

I'll have to pick one up some day these are awesome

[@patrickhunter]

Dude they're so damn fun!

[@rickhurst9058]

Played a few small bar gigs recently where I've barely had room to put a pedalboard - one of these plus a headstock mounted tuner would be perfect!

[@julianbrum3828]

Beautiful bass, really sick concept. But for the same price (if not less), you can get yourself a standard Sterling Stingray and a POD GO that has a Darkglass Microtubes mock up effect that you can really fine tune, but also many other effects you can dial in! But I get why someone would want to get this bass! Very intriguing!

[@TheUnerdanielson]

Seen the advert pop up for this line and was searching for more info. Nice to see your one of the first to get a review up Patrick. Have to agree it’s a great bass but with that price being halfway to an American made Darkray I’d be tempted to grab the full fat American and also have the other colour options.

[@rome8180]

I LOVE my Sterling Ray34. My best friend is an EBMM-sponsored artist. I've played his two EBMM StingRays, and I have to say I honestly like my Sterling better. I find the neck far more comfortable, and I don't feel like I'm losing anything meaningful in quality on the rest of the bass. I'll probably get one of these Sterling DarkRays eventually, but I'm going to wait to see if they release other colors. I understand that with "dark" in the name, it makes sense to release an all-black bass. But black basses just aren't my thing. I hope they release it with the option of the starry night finish you can get the EBMM StingRay in.

[@billyjay1]

Wow thats a nice sterling!!!

[@dissonantgrooves]

kinda hard to justify the 'affordable' cost when i got an ibanez btb805ms for the same price.

[@patrickhunter]

Dude I want to try one of those so bad! How do the fanned frets feel?

[@dissonantgrooves]

@@patrickhunter pretty amazing honestly, i think its a little less intense than the dingwalls fan. very easy to adjust to. i definitely recommend giving one a shot!

[@NickHollowKnives]

Agreed, I have the BTB605MS (I'm not too sure of the differences, maybe the top wood?). It's a fantastic bass. I personally like my Dingwall much more, but the Ibanez used price is hard to beat.

[@Unchainedmaple888]

I seriously hope that Sterling makes a short scale version of this with a sparkle finish

[@zacharydesjardins3701]

I hope they make a Dark Bongo and make a Sterling Version!

[@stinky_nut_blast]

A life saver in situations when you play so loud, you can only tell if you're clean or distorted by the colors on your guitar.

[@allendickeson442]

Id have to play one myself before jumping the gun on this one. Its a rad concept and glad its more affordable than its high end predecessor but never had a good experience with the stingray basses but hey too each its own.

[@andreasvet4461]

So far theres one online store in UK with them added at £1899. Thats $2313. Id love one but thats crazy money.

[@jamesmacleod671]

It is, for a bass with just an added distortion effect. Better to just get a cheaper normal sterling ray and put it through an effects unit or pedal.

[@mitchfindergeneral]

I'd love to see a review of the Jackson Spectra JS3V. It's a pretty budget friendly 5 string with some nice features, but nobody has ever done a professional review to my knowledge. I want to buy one, but money is tight and it almost seems too good to be true.

[@b1lly137]

So I am not a pro by any means, but I bought this when I was on a budget and it is a solid bass for the money. It sounds good, the neck is a little thick for my liking, but not in a bad way, and it's got great versatility. The only issue I ever had with it was qc, but if you have a file, some Allen wrenches and a sautering iron you can fix all of that stuff in an afternoon. Solid bass for the money imo.

[@bobbyzig3879]

Definitely sounds more fizzy and thin than the actual AO pedals.

[@bjoernzimmer4029]

Tabs please!! Please Mr Hunter. Your riffs are so awesome ❤❤❤

[@4deuce31]

Now that's a Stingray I'd play ❤️‍🔥

[@dchauser4]

I need to have that outro on repeat here recently. It's been hard to motivate myself to practice as much as I should. On the bass, $1400 is just astronomical. I paid just shy of $1100 for my Sterling by Music Man, and even that I felt was too much for the bass. Granted, that may be tinged by the fact I just don't like the way they feel/play and ended up selling it.

[@oliverjohn2633]

Fun fact...its 3 grand for you guys its 8 grand here in austrailia for a ebmm darkray lol

[@fistinair1979]

At that rate you might as well fly to the States for a vacation and bring one home with you. Haha

[@NickHollowKnives]

I had a few thoughts about this bass while watching. For some context, I typically buy American production/Custom Shop level basses. 1. I'm so glad they listened and did a Sterling version of the Darkray. While the original had a lot of hype, not everyone wants to spend that much. 2. It's a little disappointing this version doesn't have the Starry Night finish as I'll be completely honest, that finish almost convinced me to buy the Ernie Ball version. I'm realistic though, and they probably kept finish options to a minimum to keep production costs lower. It's still great that the overall aesthetic and roasted maple neck stayed consistent. It's a little odd that the neck profile is different, but I'm assuming this may be a Sterling thing. 3. While I do not plan on buying this bass, (I have been getting dark glass pedals/amps instead) $1,400.00 is not a bad price at all compared to the American version. I understand people are comparing it to regular Sterling costs when that's not really a fair comparison (the market is not the same). Most people who buy this are people who wanted the American version at a lower cost. I will say, in my limited experience with Sterling basses, they have blown away most basses in their price range.

[@kameronwraithd.k.5363]

It´d be so brutal to have one in the future that has the DUALITY Fuzz circuits xD

[@ShoesMagoo]

Did you put the tuning machines through at least a couple of detunings and retunings? The black hardware on some of the other SBMM higher end basses have had a serious manufacturing/QC issue with these destroying themselves on use over the past couple of years. Hopefully they got it resolved for this model.

[@Devilmang]

Definitely holding me back from pulling the trigger I had one of the sparkly purple sterlings and the tuners were junk.

[@sicilianmammalian]

We need a comparison of having it on board vs having it as a pedal

[@andrep0wly35]

Best demo so far from this bass, but it doesn't sound like what I expected

[@t.c.v.t.]

Oooooorrrr, you could get the pedal and get slightly different flavors of that tone with all your basses and not pay three times or more for that circuit.

[@JVMC_ZR1]

To be honest I think this bass isn't for anyone. You'd get a better tone with the Stingray and Alpha Omega pedal separately

[@57precision]

And you get a mid control with a regular Stingray, so more versatility.

[@joshbeast8599]

Gimme gimme!!🤘🏼🤘🏼

[@geroldjacob1315]

It feels like the overall tone on this is boomy/rounded sound. Tho the concept is really amazing but my taste is on the brighter sound. I'm always looking for that "slapiness" feel of the tone. That's why i love it but at the same time I'm not into it fully.

[@OldPeepaw]

IF this had a neck pickup....mmmm sold

[@gazzy_burns]

These are INSANELY expensive in the UK for a non-US EBMM instrument.

[@kandem01]

Waiting for the sterling DarkRay5

[@danieltaylor4882]

Dang! That is all. Carry on 😁

[@SteveBlancoMusicianWarrior]

And then give you an ebony board, which is proper.

[@ShawnSharkey4]

Were you referring to the truss rod when referring to spinning? I didn’t know what you meant by the nut spinning. Cheers 🍻

[@patrickhunter]

Input jack! Sorry I definitely should've clarified that

[@ShawnSharkey4]

Makes complete sense haha I spaced that; love your channel.

[@pedgedemos]

Idc if it’s impractical or you’d get a better tone with the bass/pedal separately, I WANT ONE

[@alexanderhemming9148]

The better make a Sterling Kaizen guitar and matching bass, that would be sick

[@Bocchi_Mochi]

I got the ebmm darkray for cheap so this thing is nothing to me.EBMM has amazing quality control and nothing else compares

[@arcanesanctuary]

Nice but I’d pay a few hundred more for an American fender it will always have better resale value

[@lemillio5352]

What kind of case does it come in?

[@meyersguitars2196]

Great video and all but I want to know is that shirt two layers or what?

[@HDproducer1]

I was excited to see this model pop up but at $1400 it's hard to justify, with one or the other of the ray34 models being on sale around 6-700 at musicians friend every other sale they run.

[@bluntzera8238]

Hey Patrick, do darkglasses sell this darkray preamp separately?

[@MrTfuzz]

great video and this has nothing to do with you...does the preamp add 1000 bucks to the price because this thing is 1500 dollars..better than 3k sure but damn

[@57precision]

Dark Rays are a niche deal. You are better off just getting a normal Stingray in your price range and then a DG A/O that you can use with all your instruments. This setup will be more versatile too because the Darkray sacrifices a mid control.

[@bassamp]

This bass is now 2400$. Dollar printer go brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....

[@razielkain5458]

Killer content as usual. I appreciate the fact that are doing these "Budget" models, BUT, Why the hell only the sterling shortscale has 22 frets and all the other copies they have 21 frets? It should be half the price but design wise exact copy, or I am the only one feeling this way?

[@blousug]

Beautiful bass!!! ❤❤❤ Patrick, wouldn’t know the weight on this bass? Thanks!

[@Tbag0069]

Just got one on Tuesday and mine weighs 8lbs 11oz. Was the lightest of the lot of 6 available. Heaviest was 10lbs 11oz.

[@honeybadger1810]

There isn’t nearly enough difference between this and the music man to justify an extra grand

[@batuksri]

Nah. Distortion is for guitars. Distortion for bass + distortion for guitar is a route to muddy sonic hell. Else have a big distortion party for every instrument in the band. Send the drum thwacks through distortion FX too.

[@gonzalosanchez6387]

Oh come on. No lefty :(

[@parkerellerbeck1674]

Sterling needs to make a natural finish

[@dantesinfernopurgatory7826]

Enter the Death Ray...

[@febrianpangestu_]

is it a limited serial number?

[@gregorymcmahon8444]

I need an Ernie Ball 4 string with a five string pick guard. Am I wrong?

[@rl-ub9hx]

Yes.

[@patrickhunter]

YOOOOOO that'd be RAD

[@VeitLehmann]

I need a Sabre, but from Sterling, so I can afford it. And with 5 strings!

[@57precision]

Yes the 5 string pickguard is the ugliest part of the SR5.

[@patrickhunter]

A SBMM Sabre would seriously be a dream come true

[@rl-ub9hx]

Does it have the internal trim pots like the USA?

[@patrickhunter]

Sho does🔥

[@Uncle--Fatty]

Pretty BaddAssIndeed..!! the price... (not so much... my suggestion, 200 bucks at a pawn shop, duct tape foot pedal on to bass... Perfect.)

[@mixc8]

LOL good point!

[@buckchoppers2480]

She’s a beauty.

[@nicorepetto5781]

The bass is nice too

[@flynbil]

Sweetwater shows it at $1399.00. Nice bass, but a little out of my reach.

[@thomasdeshais]

WTF twin of my MM Spécial... But cheaper 😭

[@viperBSG]

$1,399.99 USD.

[@57precision]

Yeah I'll pay $500 more and get a used EBMM at this price.

[@PakyMN]

@@57precisionyou’re right, at that price is just ridiculous get the sterling over MM

[@dissonantgrooves]

paid the same for an ibanez btb805ms, multiscale and 5 string and more well built for the same price. its kind of a ripoff for a preamp that costs maybe $150

[@oe3phen]

US MMs going for over 2k these days, right? like 2.3. but I fundamentally agree@@57precision

[@mugurgherghe3757]

What an overpriced squier

[@CathodeRayNipplez]

Guitar is a bit goofy looking but geez your playing more than makes up for it.