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Ibanez basses played by pros?
- Thread starter jonnybass1
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I've heard the same comment about Harley Davidson.
The Europeans (BMW, KTM, Ducati) and the Japanese (Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki) make motorcycles for riders. Harley sells bikes to posers.
My Fender Precision is definitely the best bass in my collection, but when I can justify the purchase of a Sandberg California, I'm pretty sure that the Sandberg will take its rightful place as #1 in my team. (I've never owned an Ibanez or a Cort...)
Oh, and I didn't notice if anyone mentioned Carol Kaye, who plays an SR700 in most of her interviews on YouTube.
I have the rosewood version of this. Love it. I didn't know there was a maple model.
I have three SR. They are all very easy to play after a proper set-up, light, comfortable to hold, well balanced and good looking. I like that I can get them cheap used but $100 looks like a symbolic price. I paid over 200€ for mine. Well done!
Endorsement is publicity for both sides. Many a professional player will see having their name tied to a brand as a step up the ladder and a boost in serious visibility.
It looks as if the guy never even played it. I have several other basses and this is the easiest bridge I’ve ever adjusted. For what little I gave for it I’m stoked!
You are absolutely right about how well balanced it is also. Super contour body.
Look, Fender is a business. They'll market their basses to whoever will buy them. And why are there so many fans buying Fenders? I'll just say that nobody is posting threads asking which pros play Fender.
Ibanez would do the same in a heartbeat, but Korn fans can only buy so many basses!
(Disclaimer: I own both Fender and Ibanez basses, and even genuinely like Fieldy!)
Tried a fretless and gave up early? Probably. Mine looks a lot like that too. It came with ridiculous action (over 3mm at the octave) and pick-ups were out of phase. I soldered them back into place the next day. As to the body, I'm waiting for an SB900 in the coming days. I'm curious but I expect the SR to be more comfortable.
I understand this perfectly. No need to tell me to look at anything. Fender sell to emulating fools, which are probably a good 80% of the music making population.
Look, Fender is a business. They'll market their basses to whoever will buy them. And why are there so many fans buying Fenders? I'll just say that nobody is posting threads asking which pros play Fender.
Ibanez would do the same in a heartbeat, but Korn fans can only buy so many basses!
(Disclaimer: I own both Fender and Ibanez basses, and even genuinely like Fieldy!)
And why are there so many fans buying Fenders? I'll just say that nobody is posting threads asking which pros play Fender.
The bottom line is that players like the Fender product. Nobody would be playing it almost 70 years later if it wasn’t a good thing!
I have two Fender P's, a Carvin 5 jazz, a Jack Casady and an Ibanez. The Fenders are the best basses I have.
Just because someone prefers one brand over another doesn't mean one is bad. I like all my basses. Let's not get too ridiculous with our views here.
Who am I kidding.
That's half of TalkBass.
Just because someone prefers one brand over another doesn't mean one is bad. I like all my basses. Let's not get too ridiculous with our views here.
Who am I kidding.
That's half of TalkBass.
It's been said already in this post by me and by others, but I'll say it again: I remember a time when it was not cool to be playing a stale, crusty, and boring Fender or clone - especially a Precision. At that point in time, more modern styled basses like those put out by Ibanez were more popular.
But the style pendulum swings back and forth, and what was once stale, crusty, and boring is now classic, road-worn, and understated.
The pendulum will swing back. Who knows, maybe I will with it - I like to keep my options open. Only time will tell.
But the style pendulum swings back and forth, and what was once stale, crusty, and boring is now classic, road-worn, and understated.
The pendulum will swing back. Who knows, maybe I will with it - I like to keep my options open. Only time will tell.
Fender was the Ibanez of the 1950s. They made modern, affordable, good instruments in all sorts of colours that re-sold badly enough for the likes of Rory Gallagher or Eric Clapton to buy one or several used. Hendrix could afford to burn a Strat' on stage too. These bargain prices made the fame of the brand by putting it in the hands of future legends. Rock star histrionics and juvenile fandom did the rest. The instruments themselves weren't great, just good enough and cheap.
I don't mean to trigger any Ibanez owners here but I think this is the case because there is no perceived character established by Ibanez basses. It's just not what we associate to a 'tone' we hear.
Fender tone (P bass tone, jazz tone), musicman tone (SR/sterling), wal bass, alembic, warwick tone. These all have very specific characters. Then there are makers like sadowsky, fbass etc which aim to augment and make 'newer' versions of basses with some of the aforementioned tones.
I don't think anyone knows what an 'Ibanez bass tone' is. It just doesn't seem to have a character that the general populous can associate with the brand.
For example, I think it's dead obvious that Bruno mars' treasure was 100% recorded with a P style bass. I think there's no mistake that RHCP's aeroplane was recorded with a stingray style bass. I can't say I've ever heard a song and felt "that must be an ibby". IMO this plays a huge role in pro utilization as musicians are chasing tones which usually come from benchmarks or their influences and people (non pros) tend to follow their favourite musicians.
Fieldy is an example of an ibby player but his bass tone is arguably not very interesting to the general populous of bass players either - his tone works very well in his specific style but most people aren't into that style. I feel like if you're into the heavier genres, dingwall has established a MUCH stronger 'tone' association in heavier music than ibz in the last few years.
As such, I feel like Ibanez has established itself (rightfully so imo) as a bang for buck type brand in the low-mid level of bass guitars (not saying they don't have high end models). Therefore Pro's who usually tend to aim for higher end gear with representative tones and consider other options first.
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That is Phil lynott from Thin Lizzy (Boys are back in town)
Exactly. No need to talk negatively about an entire brand, that's just silly. People always tend to talk badly about the most popular brands - same with artists; If your album sells millions, you're a sellout with no talent, making music for the masses. Newsflash: everyone has different tastes! There is room for progressive rock, classical, blues, pop, bluegrass, country, hip hop, and every other kind of music that exists.
Same with instruments. It's great that there is so much to choose from. I went from Fender to Ibanez to Spector. But everyone's journey is different. And nothing wrong with Fender, I just found other brands that appealed to me more. Variety is good.
Actually, some of my favorite players don't even play Spector and some actually play Fenders: Geddy Lee plays Jazz basses and has played Wal and Rics previously. Chris Squire played Rics. John Wetton played a P bass. I think Andy Metcalfe played a P. Stanley Clarke plays an Alembic.
And I love the way Rics sound but I don't like the look or ergonomics. Again, I can appreciate what others do with these instruments, I don't have to love or hate them.
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Fanboyism over 'products' is silly. Equally silly is getting cut when some rando on the internets disses the product you fanboy over. That's just absurd.
Play whatever the hell you want to play.
Play whatever the hell you want to play.
Ibanez has plenty of “pros”. They just aren’t mainstream outside of most metal genres. Instead of just being like everyone else and making their own traditional Fender shaped object, they decided to do things differently. It gets them loyalty from some and sneers from others who prefer (or think they do) more traditional shaped basses.
The funny thing is, the type of folks who dis an Ibanez are the same ones dissing Fodera, Elrick, F Bass, Spector, Warwick, etc because they aren’t a Fender. Most have never played one. If they have they’ve played a $150 GIO that their parents bought them and hated it from day 1 because they were 12 and the bassists in the bands they liked all played FSOs and decided all Ibanez basses must be like that - cheap and different than what everyone else has.
I also think that one of the things that plays into it is that what do all the other major names listed in this thread have that Ibby doesn’t? A USA line. There are still plenty of folks out there that believe it is the end all and be all of instruments to say “Made in USA” on it. “Made in Japan” (as Ibby’s most top quality line is) just doesn’t have the same appeal. Basses are just as much a status symbol to many bassists as anything else (cars, clothes, house, etc). Hmm, buy an American made P or J or a Japanese Ibanez Premium/Prestige? The Ibby is just a great of an instrument (and from my limited experience better) but 95/100 bassists are gonna buy the Fender.
Ibanez does a ton of things right. From everything I read on here about weight, everyone should be playing them. Combine that with the fact that if you want something besides a basic finished maple neck, Ibanez is your answer at an easily affordable price point. Their necks on everything 500 series and above are what I’d consider “boutique” with their raw, unfinished more exotic wood offerings and they feel great in the hand. I happen to love the SR neck profile (not everyone does) but even if you don’t, the raw wood feel is splendid.
If you’re wondering why more pros don’t play or endorse them look no further than your own collection. If you could only choose 1 bass to put your name on to be your “brand” would it be Ibanez?
The funny thing is, the type of folks who dis an Ibanez are the same ones dissing Fodera, Elrick, F Bass, Spector, Warwick, etc because they aren’t a Fender. Most have never played one. If they have they’ve played a $150 GIO that their parents bought them and hated it from day 1 because they were 12 and the bassists in the bands they liked all played FSOs and decided all Ibanez basses must be like that - cheap and different than what everyone else has.
I also think that one of the things that plays into it is that what do all the other major names listed in this thread have that Ibby doesn’t? A USA line. There are still plenty of folks out there that believe it is the end all and be all of instruments to say “Made in USA” on it. “Made in Japan” (as Ibby’s most top quality line is) just doesn’t have the same appeal. Basses are just as much a status symbol to many bassists as anything else (cars, clothes, house, etc). Hmm, buy an American made P or J or a Japanese Ibanez Premium/Prestige? The Ibby is just a great of an instrument (and from my limited experience better) but 95/100 bassists are gonna buy the Fender.
Ibanez does a ton of things right. From everything I read on here about weight, everyone should be playing them. Combine that with the fact that if you want something besides a basic finished maple neck, Ibanez is your answer at an easily affordable price point. Their necks on everything 500 series and above are what I’d consider “boutique” with their raw, unfinished more exotic wood offerings and they feel great in the hand. I happen to love the SR neck profile (not everyone does) but even if you don’t, the raw wood feel is splendid.
If you’re wondering why more pros don’t play or endorse them look no further than your own collection. If you could only choose 1 bass to put your name on to be your “brand” would it be Ibanez?
Well, Ibanez was actually not being THAT different at the time (80s) with their SR line: they were going with a small body + rounded edges + active electronics... sound familiar? Spector did it first in 1977 with the NS2, breaking away from the traditional large, slab bodies with passive pickups (Fender and all its clones). Warwick is the other brand of note that was also "influenced" by the NS2. Others were influenced too, like Yamaha and Aria.
The SR seems to be their most popular line, but I think the Musician, ATK, BTB and AFR stand out more.
If it's build quality, I would easily put my 90s Korean Ibanez up against a modern USA Fender. In fact, I would said the better quality 90s Korean Ibanez I have is a much better build bass overall than either USA Fender that I have. My Japanese Ibanez is nicer still.
Does that mean they are the better overall bass with all factors? Probably not, but the build quality is certainly there.
Sadly, I don't have enough playing experience with newer Ibanez basses to rate them, but I've heard it's a bit more mixed these days?
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