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THE TRUTH ABOUT: Ernie ball music man | History Defined

“I got to design a guitar that gave me exactly what I was looking for in contrast to my Strats”: How Cory Wong embraced humbuckers to reimagine Ernie Ball Music Man’s iconic bass for a signature electric with “that George Benson sound”

With the funk guitar maestro’s signature StingRay II now available in an affordable Sterling By Music Man version, Wong checks in to talk about the making of a dual-humbucker doozy and what it gives him that the Strat can't

MusicRadar

“It's cut so that you can have boobs and play guitar, which is so awesome”: Olivia Rodrigo raves about this guitarist's signature model – and reveals why she's adopted it as one of her go-to guitars

In 2016, Annie Clark, a.k.a St. Vincent, rolled out a game-changing signature with Ernie Ball Music Man that would forever change the face of guitar ergonomics

Guitar World

“Nobody can play better than that guy, man!”: In a new in-depth interview, guitar virtuoso Steve Morse discusses the supernatural powers of John Petrucci, Eric Johnson, Angel Vivaldi and Deep Purple legends Jon Lord and Ritchie Blackmore

His new Steve Morse Band album Triangulation is an audacious work of instrumental rock

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“Yes, I know, I have no respect for an instrument. To me, it’s a piece of wood until you make it into a useful tool”: Steve Morse on the time he took power tools to his guitar so he could play a Deep Purple show with a broken wrist

Upper-fret access, the DIY way... Do not try this at home. But as the former Deep Purple guitarist explains, you can't stand on ceremony when you need your guitar to play how you want it to

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“I have guitars at my cheese shop. You can come in and trade guitars for cheese, or vice versa”: Spinal Tap’s Nigel Tufnel is open to swapping guitars for artisanal cheese – but here’s why you won’t sell him on amp modellers

As Spinal Tap prepare to make a triumphant return to the silver screen, lead guitarist Tufnel admits he's still addicted to pushing air

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“I imagine myself painting a picture. Before I only had 24 colors to use – now I have an infinite amount on my palette”: Meet Ben Lechuga, the Steve Vai-championed Chilean virtuoso who has gone fretless – and why he’s never going back

Lechuga won a Steve Vai scholarship in 2011 and now plays with David Maxim Micic and teaches for Ernie Ball Music Man, and going fretless, he says, has made totally rethink his playing

Guitar World

“Since I bought that bass, that just really changed my career”: He’s worked with the Who, Jeff Beck, Beyoncé, NIN… Now Pino Palladino teams up with Ernie Ball Music Man for a signature StingRay inspired by the fretless bass that started it all

Available fretted or fretless, the Pino Palladino StingRay is resplendent in 79 Burst – and there's a super limited edition Icon Series model that replicates all the wear of his original

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“I said to my tour manager, ‘I need 350 bucks,’ which he wasn’t happy about. That bass changed my career”: In 1981, Pino Palladino bought a fretless StingRay that altered the course of his musical life – now it’s been recreated as a signature model

In 1981, Pino Palladino bought a fretless StingRay that altered the course of his musical life – now it’s been recreated as a signature model

Guitar World

“I played the jam with Eric Johnson, Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. I was like, ‘Uh, yeah sure. I’ll come and play G3!’”: All That Remains’ Jason Richardson on surviving the ultimate virtuoso jam, despite fearing improv – and why theory is not 'law'

AntiFragile finds All That Remains dialing up the action with dual solos and some of the most ferocious metalcore you will hear this year. Here Richardson talks technique, tones and explains why dynamics are essential

Guitar World

“I love my Strat; I’m a Strat guy through and through, but I just needed a guitar with humbuckers”: Cory Wong on the making of his signature StingRay and how Vulfpeck just, y’know, made an album during a show

The funkmeister guitarist is back with a whirlwind of new recording projects in his wake, and a fresh new signature guitar by his side

Guitar World

“I look up the tracks, I’m like, ‘Oh, that’s him.’ It’s the tone, the touch, the feel, the voicing choices”: Rhythm guitarists are harder to identify on recordings than lead players. But there’s one rhythm king that Cory Wong can pick out without fail

The Minneapolis maestro is a self-confessed rhythm guitar junkie, but one player bends his ear more than any other

Guitar World

“Everything a great beginner guitar should be”: Sterling By Music Man Intro Series Cutlass review

The refreshed Cutlass is a sweet-looking vintage-ish S-style, but could this be the next apex predator in the market for entry-level electrics?

Guitar World

“We’d play at the Palomino under some weird name – we’d just show up, so nobody would know. By halfway through the set, the place was jam-packed”: Steve Lukather on his secret supergroup with Eddie Van Halen, Albert Lee and Steve Morse

In a recent chat with Rick Beato, Luke tells the story of his all-star jam band based around a group of Ernie Ball Music Man players

Guitar World

NAMM 2025: “I’ve honestly never felt a smoother neck in my life”: Cory Wong feels the humbucker heat as the funk guitar virtuoso and Ernie Ball Music Man team up for StingRay II and StingRay II Deluxe

Wong is still a paid-up member of the Stratocaster club but says he has been on the hunt for humbucker-equipped guitar for years and this is the one

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“I've been a Strat guy my whole life, but this instrument is going to give me options to expand my color palette”: Cory Wong teams up with Ernie Ball Music Man on a StingRay bass-inspired electric guitar – while still keeping ties with Fender

The StingRay II and StingRay II Deluxe offer a six-string twist on the iconic bass design – with Cory Wong-flavored specs

Guitar World

“This bridge is a work of art”: Tim Commerford’s new Ernie Ball Music Man StingRay is a love letter to the pawnshop bass that shaped the first Rage record – and it’s uniquely primed for his playing style

Passive and active editions have been launched, but both come optimized with some clever, player-adjustable additions

MusicRadar

“This is a bass that I fell in love with at a pawnshop and used to play the first Rage record”: Ernie Ball Music Man and Tim Commerford team up for a pair of limited run signature StingRay basses

Commerford's latest EBMM signature collab features a pair of doozies, one active, one passive, both with adjustable thumb ramps, ash bodies and roasted maple necks

Guitar World

“A highly responsive and expressive solidbody electric that delivers world-class tones”: Ernie Ball Music Man Axis review

Once upon a time, it was Eddie Van Halen's signature model. Now, it's simply one of the best high-performance electrics money can buy, and perhaps it's time it should be recognized as a true modern classic

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“I took the neck off my Strat, put it on a Tele, and ended up with my ‘FrankenTele’”: Steve Morse modded the heck out of his first serious guitar, and it became the blueprint for his signature Ernie Ball Music Man model

Unsatisfied with the limitations of his first proper guitar, Morse took matters into his own hands, a lá Eddie Van Halen

Guitar World

“A finish that’s a true work of art”: Tosin Abasi and Ernie Ball Music Man’s Kaizen has a new Gallium finish that features actual silver – and it uniquely oxidizes depending on how you play it

The Gallium Kaizen will react and rust in unique ways, transforming the space-age instrument into an industrial time-worn artifact over time

MusicRadar

“These new guitars set a new standard in aesthetics and performance”: Ernie Ball Music Man unleashes the Heat Treated humbuckers and +20dB boost on Jason Richardson’s new signature Cutlass

Available with six or seven strings, in Kokiri Forest or limited edition Venetian Red, these next-gen Cutlass doublecuts are state-of-the-art shred machines

Guitar World

“Tailored for today's guitar virtuosos”: Ernie Ball Music Man has given Jason Richardson’s signature Cutlass a serious upgrade, with some potentially game-changing pickups

The prog virtuoso's latest signatures make use of some newly innovated humbuckers that are said to be the result of “decades of guitar string research”

MusicRadar

“With any luck we’ll be able to launch these at NAMM but I can’t promise anything yet”: Rabea Massaad says Sterling By Music Man is developing a more affordable version of his signature EBMM Sabre

Massaad says he has already submitted colour finish options and says new pickups are being developed specifically for the model

MusicRadar

Does guitar weight matter? Thin Lizzy icon and Les Paul fan Scott Gorham thinks it depends where you're playing

When it comes to pounds and ounces with guitars, opinions and perspectives can differ wildly

Guitar World

“A vintage-inspired instrument that drips with 1970s tone and a superb feel”: Ernie Ball Music Man brings old-school style to a premium modern platform with the Retro ‘70s StingRay

The original ‘70s StingRay bass was championed by countless low-end legends. Now it’s been revived as a new vintage classic that boasts era-correct specs and impeccable playability

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