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Ibanez BTB multiscales…sheesh

#381
mundee said:
I have a question about the hard-shell case please. Just looking at pictures it appears more like a hybrid gigbag.. can this keep the bass safe being checked in on flights?

ibtb65mscem_9.jpg
Click to expand...
It's pretty rigid and tough, but I won't trust the baggage handlers with it.

You can usually bring instruments as carry-on and the crew will store it in the coat cabinet on the plane for you. That's probably th safer way to go.
 
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#382
I had to send my BTB605MS back to Ibanez for warranty replacement, I waited until I received the replacement before making this post, to avoid having to wipe egg off my face in the event it was user error. However it wasn't. With only 1 month left on the warranty, the neck had warped backwards, slamming the strings down to the frets. No open notes would play, even with the saddles at maximum height, and the dual action truss rod maxed to add as much relief as possible. I felt confident that there was no mistaking the issue, I've dealt with warped necks before, but usually it's a slight twist, not a backbow.

Yesterday, the replacement (brand new) arrived. However, this one has an issue where the active volume is about twice as loud as the passive volume. I know it's not by design, because the one I sent in wasn't like that, nor is my BTB806MS which has the same preamp and pickups (albeit 6 string vs 5 string). I mean active mode on those basses were ever so slightly louder, but not double volume. I even used the same battery in the 605 and 806 last night to make sure the problem wasn't a dead battery. Both basses have brand new strings, and the same brand. I also compared the wiring to be sure everything looks the same on both basses, to ensure the 605 isn't accidentally wired in the +6db boost mode on the preamp, and it isn't.

I'm going to mess with it tonight, do some recording with both basses in active and passive mode. I expect when I do, I will see that the passive mode on the 605 is too low, not that the active mode is too loud, but we'll see when the meters light up and the DAW captures everything visually.

I suspect a bad solder joint somewhere in the passive tone path of the 605. I emailed Ibanez asking if there is an internal trim pot, despite me not finding one. If I do find a bad solder joint, I'll ask them if they will allow me to repair it without voiding the warranty. I would rather spend 30 minutes removing the nuts from the pots and fixing a bad solder joint, then wait for ANOTHER replacement, but I guess I'm getting ahead of myself.

This isn't a complaint post, I'm a big fan of the BTB series and have used them about 15 or 20 years starting with the BTB405QM, as well as Ibanez instruments in general. Warping necks isn't a new concept, it can and does happen from time to time, so can wiring issues. No big deal. The 806 I bought from Sweetwater has been rock solid, probably due to their inspection and testing, so definitely don't let this spook you away from the new BTB's.
 
#383
castlev said:
I had to send my BTB605MS back to Ibanez for warranty replacement, I waited until I received the replacement before making this post, to avoid having to wipe egg off my face in the event it was user error. However it wasn't. With only 1 month left on the warranty, the neck had warped backwards, slamming the strings down to the frets. No open notes would play, even with the saddles at maximum height, and the dual action truss rod maxed to add as much relief as possible. I felt confident that there was no mistaking the issue, I've dealt with warped necks before, but usually it's a slight twist, not a backbow.

Yesterday, the replacement (brand new) arrived. However, this one has an issue where the active volume is about twice as loud as the passive volume. I know it's not by design, because the one I sent in wasn't like that, nor is my BTB806MS which has the same preamp and pickups (albeit 6 string vs 5 string). I mean active mode on those basses were ever so slightly louder, but not double volume. I even used the same battery in the 605 and 806 last night to make sure the problem wasn't a dead battery. Both basses have brand new strings, and the same brand. I also compared the wiring to be sure everything looks the same on both basses, to ensure the 605 isn't accidentally wired in the +6db boost mode on the preamp, and it isn't.

I'm going to mess with it tonight, do some recording with both basses in active and passive mode. I expect when I do, I will see that the passive mode on the 605 is too low, not that the active mode is too loud, but we'll see when the meters light up and the DAW captures everything visually.

I suspect a bad solder joint somewhere in the passive tone path of the 605. I emailed Ibanez asking if there is an internal trim pot, despite me not finding one. If I do find a bad solder joint, I'll ask them if they will allow me to repair it without voiding the warranty. I would rather spend 30 minutes removing the nuts from the pots and fixing a bad solder joint, then wait for ANOTHER replacement, but I guess I'm getting ahead of myself.

This isn't a complaint post, I'm a big fan of the BTB series and have used them about 15 or 20 years starting with the BTB405QM, as well as Ibanez instruments in general. Warping necks isn't a new concept, it can and does happen from time to time, so can wiring issues. No big deal. The 806 I bought from Sweetwater has been rock solid, probably due to their inspection and testing, so definitely don't let this spook you away from the new BTB's.
Click to expand...

There might be a mini volume trim pot inside the electronics cavity and it’s accidentally turned all the way up. Or you could have a subpar solder joint.
 
#384
Well I did my test, picture attached. I played an open E on both basses (with a pick), in active and passive. The results? The 605 active tone is too loud, while the passive tone matches both active AND passive on the 806. So much for hoping for a bad solder joint that I could easily fix. Let's see what the Ibanez rep says. Hopefully there's either a trim pot somewhere that I didn't see, or he can ship me a replacement preamp board, rather than an entire bass.
 

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#385
So I tried swapping the preamp boards between the two basses and the problem stayed with the 605, so the preamp board isn't the problem. After that, I found that if I set the EQ bass knob to zero, then active and passive sound the same, where the bass EQ should sound at center detent. So what would cause the bass EQ knob to be boost only?
 
#386
Hi everyone!
I have a BTB-806ms since August 2022. I have tried since to adjust the truss rod to my liking (pretty low action) with mitigated success: I have achieved somewhat low action but what bothers me is that there is some considerable relief on the B string side, and I can't go lower than that setup or the high C and G strings will buzz horribly in the 2nd - 4th fret. When measuring relief, the C string has NONE! Is uneven relief normal in such a wide neck? Is my neck warped?
Thanks in advance
 
#387
So Ibanez offered to swap out my bass with the faulty preamp at full cost to them, or ship me another preamp. I opted for the preamp, should be here soon. That's nice, then I can just wire it in myself.

As for the Q about your neck, I notice the same thing on mine at first, but with a .170 where the B was, I decided it's not a reliable straight edge, since the windings are so big and the capo pushing down before the first fret probably raises the string after it, making it appear to have more relief than it really does.

Because of that, I decided to pay more attention to relief off of the smallest string on the treble side instead.
That's my experience anyway, and if the bass side was warped giving more relief on the bass side I would consider it a nice bonus. Some companies plane the fretboard that way from the factory.
 
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#388
I just received a BTB605MS and really like it so far, but the preamp is fairly noisy. If I give it any more than just a slight bump on the treble knob while in active mode I can hear hissing. It doesn't go away when touching the strings, input jack, or cable. Is this just a thing with these basses?

I haven't owned a bass in years, and purchased this to get back into playing. I tried it through two different interfaces (one bus powered, and one with a power supply) and an amp, hissing is present across all three. I've only got one cable to test it with, so kind of hoping it is just a bad cable?

I don't know if I'm just being really critical or if this is something worth reaching out to Ibanez or the vendor I purchased from.

If anyone has some guidance or ideas how to proceed I'd really appreciate it as I don't want to jump the gun and go through replacement headaches if it's something simple to fix (or if I'm just overreacting)

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed] of the problem running into a UA Volt, with direct monitoring on. Controls are centered, except for treble boost
 
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#389
Are you using plugins with overdrive on the computer with your volt? If so that's normal, some of them like the neuraldsp darkglass plugin have a gate setting to mitigate noise like that.

If not, how loud are musical notes in comparison? It's hard to tell what kind of noise floor I was listening to in the clip.

fwiw I got the replacement preamp from Ibanez, bass is 100% now. Shout out to them for giving me that option instead of doing *another* instrument replacement. Also cool that they let me do the wiring myself instead of bringing it to an authorized repair center. I got it done in under an hour at my own convenience and was able to use the bass in passive mode until this all got sorted out.
 
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#390
So I am in the market for a new bass. This BTB805MS keeps calling to me. I have not owned a multi scale bass or even wanted one until I saw this bass. Looks and sounds amazing from pictures and YT clips. How is everyone feeling about their 805 now since owning it for a bit? Is finding strings still a little difficult.
Thanks All
 
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#391
Strings are a little sparse, there's Payson strings which are great, Dingwall strings which are also great, and Kalium strings which are great but the company has kind of a bad rep around here. A couple of other brands have started making them as well, fretnation has the best selection I've seen so far.

I really like my 805! I've had it since October as my main player and my only complaint is it's heavier than my Combustion. Oh, and the locking jack, but neither are a big deal. I've sold every non-Dingwall multiscale that I've bought so far, but I think I'll be keeping this one.
 
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#393
Bozendoka said:
Strings are a little sparse, there's Payson strings which are great, Dingwall strings which are also great, and Kalium strings which are great but the company has kind of a bad rep around here. A couple of other brands have started making them as well, fretnation has the best selection I've seen so far.

I really like my 805! I've had it since October as my main player and my only complaint is it's heavier than my Combustion. Oh, and the locking jack, but neither are a big deal. I've sold every non-Dingwall multiscale that I've bought so far, but I think I'll be keeping this one.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the mention @Bozendoka. All of our string sets are designed for fanned basses. No wondering if they’re going to fit.
DROP F# NS and SS
DROP G NS and SS
DROP A NS and SS
DROP D NS and (SS custom order)
B Standard NS
B Standard SS
B Standard NS-Medium Light
Fanned Flats
Fanned Black Daggers Coated Sets
All made to fit your BTB-MS 5, 6 and 4 string Fanned Basses
 
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#395
Dave_I said:
Is that because of the effects of any gain or something else? Also, if you were to pick one between a 37" and a 34" (or in this case a multiscale version with those on lowest strings), which would be your first choice?
Click to expand...

Not sure what my thoughts were exactly last year when I typed that, but the TL;DR is still the same. So here's my opinion today. Some of this may address your question in the EHB thread as well.

Wrt to the EHB (straight fret) and Dingwall comparison, I prefer the EHB for almost any task. It's my daily player since I bought it. It's mostly about the sound, the EHB (I think largely thanks to the Nordys) sounds better than any Dingwall I played to my ears. Ergonomics is also obviously and very noticeably better.

Wrt to the "metal sound" I mentioned, it's again a combination of Nordys and the metal style you are going after? I play metal with very mild distortion, fingerstyle with a lot of fret bounce, sometimes adding even more top end with a DG X. I personally don't find that the clarity of 37inch does anything for me if I'm riding the B string for a fast death metal riff, and in fact many folks drop tune just to get floppier strings and maximize that fret bounce.

37inch really shines for clean articulate playing. The B string sounds like the other strings even above fret 12. You can incorporate it into your playing for real. With the EHB I find myself avoiding it sometimes. I wouldn't dare touch that B above fret 12, it has a completely different and unpleasant timbre, if it is at all in tune. For the record, I don't think the EHB has a worse B than any other 34er. Same old limitations that apply to every bass. So, my Dingwall plays lots of kpop :)

So EHB vs Dingwall? Definitely EHB. That doesn't answer your BTB question. I still haven't played one myself, so I don't know what it sounds like. If we had a hypothetical 37inch BTB with the identical Nordy sound and at the low 9lbs range, I would probably pick that one as an all-rounder.
 
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#400
So what’s the consensus after all this time? You all still like your BTB 37”?

I don’t play metal at all. I love p basses, have a stingray, but no 5 string.

I have gone down the Dingwall rabbit hole but really don’t need to spend that much since I play 4 strings mostly.

For regular stuff, like Lee Sklar plays on his Dingwall, are the BTB605MS still great?

The EHB looks kinda neat, but I figure for my only 5 string I might as well go 37.

Thoughts?
 

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