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Advice needed - Ibanez SR300E or Sire M3?

I have ordered the SR300E in Metallic Gray. Decided to go with what I had played, plus not fooling with the international shipping. I have been curious about Ibanez, so now I can see how I like it.
You'll do fine. I'm partial to the M3, but you really can't go wrong either way.
 
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I tried out a metallic gray SR300E today & was pretty impressed. It blew away comparable Squiers (same price range)
Didn't like the finish at all though, or it would be on my wall now!

The one I had my hands on was on sale, but to get the one with the finish I like is 35% more.

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I tried out a metallic gray SR300E today & was pretty impressed. It blew away comparable Squiers (same price range)
Didn't like the finish at all though, or it would be on my wall now!

The one I had my hands on was on sale, but to get the one with the finish I like is 35% more.

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Yeah, I liked the way it played as well. Looks like mine will be getting here Saturday. That one you have pictured I believe is the Champaigne Burst. I have not seen it in person but looks nice in the pics.
 
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The 300 and 400 series basses should sound very similiar, with the only differences being body woods and finishes. The 300s are all mahogany and the 400QMs are mahogany with a quilted maple top.

Because I'm so happy with my SR406EBCW (claro walnut top) I just picked up a 2016 SR405EQMTGB (transparent gray burst) and it sounds great!

The claro top does make it a little darker.
 
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Thanks everyone for your input and advice on this thread. It helped a lot.
Well, the new SR300E came on Saturday from Sweetwater. Great packing job, box did not have any damage at all and guitar was perfect inside. This is my first experience with an Ibanez, and so far am very impressed. I really like the feel of the neck, both the size of it and the finish (not a high gloss, more of a satin finish). Feels very fast. I am sure you Ibanez SR fans are used to the necks, but it is a nice change for me. The finish was also great, and I like the metallic gray. And the frets were all finished with mostly no rough edges, although the fret ends start to get a little more rough past the 12th fret and up to the 24th. Some day when I am changing the strings I might get out the fret file and hit a few of them, but not a big deal. Setup was also perfect, but I know Sweetwater did a 55 point check so I don't know if they did any adjustments or if it came set up from Ibanez. But the biggest thing is the electronics on the 300E. The combination of the powerspan pickups, the blend, the 3-band EQ, and the power tap switch give a ton of different tones that you can get out of it. I am liking the tap switch, being able to switch between single, double (series), and then the "power tap" position, which seems like it is the single coil but with more low end added in. A lot of variety from one bass. So far I have only put about 5 hours of playing time on it, but looking forward to a lot more. I am sure I will still play the more traditional basses I have, but for now I am going to be grabbing the Ibanez first.
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I just registered here yesterday but I have been lurking for a few weeks now. I had the chance to play a Sr 300e at my local music store. I was really impressed by the tone, especially the jazz bass on steroids tone when I played it through a fender rumble 100 with the overdrive engaged. My very first bass was an Ibanez roadstar 2..mid 80's which I still have.
 
I just registered here yesterday but I have been lurking for a few weeks now. I had the chance to play a Sr 300e at my local music store. I was really impressed by the tone, especially the jazz bass on steroids tone when I played it through a fender rumble 100 with the overdrive engaged. My very first bass was an Ibanez roadstar 2..mid 80's which I still have.
I'm considering the roadstar 2 versus the Sr300e. My natural inclination is to get the older, more pro instrument. But as I have a mid 80s mij fender (with a replacement p neck), would you suggest the 300e?
 
I'm considering the roadstar 2 versus the Sr300e. My natural inclination is to get the older, more pro instrument. But as I have a mid 80s mij fender (with a replacement p neck), would you suggest the 300e?
I would go for the 300e if you already have a fender. My Roadstar had a pretty good p bass tone but not so great on the j bass tone.The 300e I think has a decent p and j tone and sounds tighter, also it's much easier to get around on the 300 neck than the Roadstar neck imo.
 
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