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Ibanez basses, 1979-1987
- Thread starter bjelkeman
- Start date
Not nearly in as good shape as the one you describe, but in LA. Vintage 1986 Ibanez RB650 Roadstar II 2 Bass Guitar Black Japan original case | eBay
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Thats the one id like, I used to have a white one which id prefer to find but thats not bad and local. I will have to watch that, thanks!
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Maybe you wouldn’t mind writing a mini review?
My Destroyer is a 2014 reissue....on the PJ model, like mine, the main difference from the '83s (besides the inlays) are the pickup positioning - on the 2014, the pickups are proximal to each other whereas the '83 PJs the pickups are much further apart (and further still on the late 70s Destroyers, which were well made Explorers with PJ pickups), so my review would be pretty invalidated for the purposes of this awesome Ibanez thread and review database
I stumbled across this post this evening. Nice find! I started with a used Ibanez Blazer in 1980. In 1984 I purchased a new MC824. It is still my bass to this day. Still all original (except strings). Don't gig anymore, but when I attend open mics/jam sessions and take her out of the case, the bass gets a lot of looks.
Ibanez Roadstar Series II RB850 - 1984
Description: The RB850 is a passiv bass that many people I have talked to like the sound of. This is probably largely due to the two humbucker pickups that it comes equipped with. I think the first version of the RB850 came in 1984 and was available as passive basses until 1987, when a new version with active pickups arrived. But still with passiv blend, volume and tone controls. More about the 1987 model in a later review. These basses were made in Japan.
The body is in basswood with a maple bolt-on neck. 34 inch with 24 frets with a fretboard in rosewood. This model was first available in black, purple, white and red. I have two black 1984s and one red 1987. The 1984 models weigh in at 3.5 kg and has quite a lot smaller body than the other P-bass-like Roadstars and Musician basses. The body shape reminds me of a Spector or some early Warwick basses. The RB850 came with the generally hated boomerang shaped strap buttons. Once you put the strap on, it is nearly impossible to get it back off again.
The pickups and the electronics are special for the model years 1984-1986. It is the Ibanez J6 pickups that look pretty cool, but sound even better. Both the volume and the tone controls are push-pull switches, to change the pickups from parallel to serial (I think). Some people say it makes a big difference, but I think the difference is quite subtle. The RB850 came with fairly boring plastic knobs for the controls.
Sound: This bass has a full tone when you use the neck pickup and a more mid focused sound with good attack with the bridge pickup. But the real thing happens when you mix the pickups. It is a really meaty sound, but still a bit mellow compared to a modern bass. The blend control has a notch at the middle and this is also where the bass has the best sound, according to me. That balance control really gives a nice way to quickly change the sound of the bass, I much prefer it to two volume controls. If I play finger style I generally use the bridge pickup. With a pick I use a more even blend (middle) or even just the neck pickup. (Mix to taste.)
As a passive bass it is, like the MC800 described above fairly noisy. This is a bass I wouldn't mind putting copper foil inside to lessen the influence of electric fields.
Playability: This bass is really light and has a great sound. The neck profile is normal for this periods basses. The neck is varnished, 41 mm wide and 21 mm thick at the first fret. (Love the necks, but then I nearly grew up with this neck profile, so no surprise there.)
Summary: After a few days use I fell for this bass. It is really nice to play and lightweight. This could be my only bass. It has growl and this to me feels like a bass made for rock! I liked it enough that I ended up getting a second one, which probably was a bit mad, but there you are.
Next bass discussed will be the Ibanez Musician MC924.
Description: The RB850 is a passiv bass that many people I have talked to like the sound of. This is probably largely due to the two humbucker pickups that it comes equipped with. I think the first version of the RB850 came in 1984 and was available as passive basses until 1987, when a new version with active pickups arrived. But still with passiv blend, volume and tone controls. More about the 1987 model in a later review. These basses were made in Japan.
The body is in basswood with a maple bolt-on neck. 34 inch with 24 frets with a fretboard in rosewood. This model was first available in black, purple, white and red. I have two black 1984s and one red 1987. The 1984 models weigh in at 3.5 kg and has quite a lot smaller body than the other P-bass-like Roadstars and Musician basses. The body shape reminds me of a Spector or some early Warwick basses. The RB850 came with the generally hated boomerang shaped strap buttons. Once you put the strap on, it is nearly impossible to get it back off again.
The pickups and the electronics are special for the model years 1984-1986. It is the Ibanez J6 pickups that look pretty cool, but sound even better. Both the volume and the tone controls are push-pull switches, to change the pickups from parallel to serial (I think). Some people say it makes a big difference, but I think the difference is quite subtle. The RB850 came with fairly boring plastic knobs for the controls.
Sound: This bass has a full tone when you use the neck pickup and a more mid focused sound with good attack with the bridge pickup. But the real thing happens when you mix the pickups. It is a really meaty sound, but still a bit mellow compared to a modern bass. The blend control has a notch at the middle and this is also where the bass has the best sound, according to me. That balance control really gives a nice way to quickly change the sound of the bass, I much prefer it to two volume controls. If I play finger style I generally use the bridge pickup. With a pick I use a more even blend (middle) or even just the neck pickup. (Mix to taste.)
As a passive bass it is, like the MC800 described above fairly noisy. This is a bass I wouldn't mind putting copper foil inside to lessen the influence of electric fields.
Playability: This bass is really light and has a great sound. The neck profile is normal for this periods basses. The neck is varnished, 41 mm wide and 21 mm thick at the first fret. (Love the necks, but then I nearly grew up with this neck profile, so no surprise there.)
Summary: After a few days use I fell for this bass. It is really nice to play and lightweight. This could be my only bass. It has growl and this to me feels like a bass made for rock! I liked it enough that I ended up getting a second one, which probably was a bit mad, but there you are.
Next bass discussed will be the Ibanez Musician MC924.
Ibanez bass model names during the late 1970s and 1980s
A bit confusingly Ibanez gave the same name to several quite different models of bass guitar during this period. For example, the Roadstar 960 from 1985 has more in common with a Musician MC924 from the same year than it has in common with a Roadstar RB850. The main difference between an RB960 and a MC924 is that the Musician (MC) models have a through-neck and somewhat different aesthetics (RB960 with binding the MC924 with less sharp edges). Additionally we have Roadstar RB630 and RB650 basses which are more like P-bass and PJ-basses. So the RB850 (above) is very different from the RB650 or the RB960, as you will see later.
Additionally it is claimed by some that Roadstar was a spelling misstake and it should have been Roadster, but as we do have a Roadster RS800/900 model as well, that may well not be true. Sometimes it is just hard to come up with good brand names in a foreign language, and this may be one of these occasions.
A bit confusingly Ibanez gave the same name to several quite different models of bass guitar during this period. For example, the Roadstar 960 from 1985 has more in common with a Musician MC924 from the same year than it has in common with a Roadstar RB850. The main difference between an RB960 and a MC924 is that the Musician (MC) models have a through-neck and somewhat different aesthetics (RB960 with binding the MC924 with less sharp edges). Additionally we have Roadstar RB630 and RB650 basses which are more like P-bass and PJ-basses. So the RB850 (above) is very different from the RB650 or the RB960, as you will see later.
Additionally it is claimed by some that Roadstar was a spelling misstake and it should have been Roadster, but as we do have a Roadster RS800/900 model as well, that may well not be true. Sometimes it is just hard to come up with good brand names in a foreign language, and this may be one of these occasions.
They are actually "Roadstar II", so that leads to the story that it should have been "Roadster II", but you know... not terribly familiar with the English alphabet... mistakes will happen...
That and there is no "Roadstar I" series.
That and there is no "Roadstar I" series.
This is my RB850 - I love it and from time to time I'm gigging with it:
I wired the pickup coils in parallel and replaced the balance-pot with a four-way rotary switch.
In the audio you can hear the four positions:
1. neck PU, both coils
2. neck coils of both pickups
3. all four coils
4. bridge PU, both coils
I wired the pickup coils in parallel and replaced the balance-pot with a four-way rotary switch.
In the audio you can hear the four positions:
1. neck PU, both coils
2. neck coils of both pickups
3. all four coils
4. bridge PU, both coils
Nice job! Great playing and those pickups (and your mod) sound great!! I would have a hard time picking my favorite pup/coil selection. And, I bet all 4 work well for different songs and live mixes. My faves are 1-3.
Thank you!
In fact, these three are the settings I use in the band. Most of the time No.2 which to me is quite Jazz Bass-like in the Bandmix, whereas No.3 has got some more low mids and higher treble.
The bridge pickup makes quite a nice soloing sound, though.
An 82 Musician, neckthru, switchable active and passive preamp, sounds great as a P or J copy. Plays like butter! Shame it's yellow
I did gig it for a while, I got mine in 2000-2002, I used it for a while playing in a Basic rock band - Green Day sort of stuff. And I used it for ages as my Teaching bass (instead of my 6). I basically had it delivered into my hands.
A friend of my ex "acquired it" from somewhere, and wanted to know if it was worth anything, and I said nup but I like the way it plays, how about $300 bucks - Sucker.
A friend of my ex "acquired it" from somewhere, and wanted to know if it was worth anything, and I said nup
but I like the way it plays, how about $300 bucks - Sucker.
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