NAMM 2025: Ernie Ball Music Man offshoot Sterling has debuted affordable takes on its futuristic Kaizen model, alongside Rabea Massaad’s signature Sabre and Ryan ‘Fluff’ Bruce’s signature StingRay.
The Kaizen, a collaboration between Music Man and Animals As Leaders' extra-terrestrially talented Tosin Abasi, was first launched at NAMM 2022. New neon colorways and metallic oxidizes-as-you-play finishes have been showcased at the events over the following years, but it's taken until now for the partnership to answer calls for a cheaper Sterling by Music Man version.
With Music Man Kaizens costing up to $3,999 apiece, its innovative array of features isn’t exactly accessible to all, so an affordable option has been hotly anticipated.
Of course, cutting edge components cost a lot, so it’s perhaps not surprising that many of those features have not made it down to the Sterling build – most notably, the Infinity Radius fingerboard and Steinberger Locking Gearless tuners. The multiscale design has also gone.
What’s left is an instrument its creators are still pitching as “ultra-modern,” with Steinberger tuners, a roasted maple neck, and Sterling by Music Man-designed high-output pickups replacing the Music Man humbuckers found on the premium model.
It is available as six- ($849.99) and seven-string ($899.99) versions, while those slim hopes of an eight-string model existing, remain just that for now.
Rabea Massaad joined the Ernie Ball family in 2023 and released two signature Sabres at NAMM 2024. The following summer, the riff machine and YouTube favorite had revealed Sterling alternatives were in the works – and the fruits of their collective labor have now borne fruit.
“Built for modern playability,” the ergonomic improvements Massaad made to the stock model, via recessed carves on the front and back of the lower horn, have thankfully made the jump. Its roasted maple neck features the same comfortable profile, with glow-in-the-dark side markers representing a useful appointment.
Massaad’s signature Bare Knuckle Silo humbuckers were always going to be swapped out for the sake of keeping the cost at a fair level, so it’s no surprise to see own-brand, custom-voiced Alnico 5 ‘buckers in their place. But they offer plenty of versatility with a five-way switch and push-push coil splitting functionality augmenting its Volume and Tone controls.
Aesthetic choices include signature inlays and a luxurious-looking flame veneer top, with locking tuners and a Sterling by Music Man tremolo completing the package.
It is priced at $899.99 and is available in Ashen Burst and Blood Flame Burst finishes.
Lastly, guitarist, YouTuber, and one of the internet’s go-to gear nerds Ryan ‘Fluff’ Bruce has also been received a lower budget take on his signature StingRay.
The full-trimmings model arrived in 2023 and, here, its Fishman Fluence pickups have been swapped-out in favor of a pair of Seymour Duncans, with a JB Jr. in the neck, and a Trembucker in the bridge.
Said to be “built to Fluff’s exact specs,” it again features a roasted maple neck, locking tuners – and it comes strung with Ernie Ball Beefy Slinkys, in the metalcore primed drop C# tuning.
The Sterling by Music Man Fluff Artist Series StingRay costs $879.99 and comes in two finishes: Amana Boat Blue and Rula Thumb Red.
Head to Sterling by Music Man for more.
The trio of drops follows right behind the unveiling of Sterling’s non-signature line-up of electric guitars and basses for 2025. The roster includes a P-90-laden StingRay, a Sub Series Cutlass, and a five-string DarkRay bass, built in collaboration with Darkglass.
