Ernie Ball Music Man gives the DarkRay II bass distortion and polyphonic octave in one onboard preamp

Ernie Ball Music Man has introduced the DarkRay II, a four-string active bass that expands the original DarkRay concept with a polyphonic octave circuit alongside its onboard Darkglass distortion. The new electronics place clean, octave-up and octave-down voices on a three-way selector, while a separate three-way switch chooses clean operation or either side of the Alpha/Omega distortion architecture. The result is a bass designed to cover conventional active tones, synth-like octave textures and driven sounds without relying on separate floor pedals.

The instrument keeps a 34-inch scale, ash body and roasted maple neck, with an ebony fingerboard, 22 frets and Music Man's familiar humbucking pickup format. Its custom Darkglass two-band preamp provides bass and treble controls, plus dedicated level and drive controls for the distortion section. Ernie Ball Music Man lists the DarkRay II at a $3,299 street price in the United States, with finishes including Kryptonite, Dark Rainbow, Dark Coffee and Black Fire.

That added octave circuit is the clearest step beyond the first-generation DarkRay. Rather than treating octave and distortion as separate effects that must be placed and powered on a pedalboard, the DarkRay II combines both at the instrument and lets the player change voices from the bass itself. The company’s own product material also emphasizes the polyphonic tracking, which is intended to handle chords and intervallic playing as well as single-note lines.

For working bassists, the practical appeal is fast access to three very different ranges of sound while keeping the signal chain simple. The price places it firmly in premium-instrument territory, but the integration is unusually complete: the core bass, active EQ, Darkglass drive and octave processing are presented as one purpose-built system rather than a stock instrument bundled with effects.