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Ibanez GVB36 -- Anyone tried it yet?

#2
I am interested in this model too! I agree, it is a great alternative. Ibanez's new models are fantastic basses for the price. I'm sure, like with most ibanez basses, if you replace the preamp and maybe the pickups, you'll have a totally Killer instrument. I'll probably be purchasing one here in the next couple of months. I'll be sure to write a review for it so you may get an idea of the characteristics.
 
#3
Me too, much the same as for dual action Hipshot bass extender (discussed in a Reggie Hamilton thread over here) the Gerry Veasley36 has already been announced, described and talked about... Still, not a single one's been dispatched. I'd really like to grab one (the GV 1006 is way too out of my reach!) and I'm also curious to know more on the Adam Nitti's, but don't mean to go OT at this very moment.
I'd really like to be able to tell you more, you 6sters!

Cheers,
Wallace
 
#7
I thought about ordering one of these when I was looking for a sixer awhile back. But I played several different basses with the Bart MK1 pickups in them and just didn't care for the tone. So I went with the Nordstrand loaded SR1206E instead.
 
#8
It's almost a completely different intrument. And a completely different sound for sure.
The SR Premium is perfectly crafted, finished and reaches a balance thru warm mahogany body (and ovangkol top) kinda sound, and Nordstrand BigSingles (in soapbar shapes) brilliant growl and punch.

The matter is: let Gerry Veasley clinics alone, what kinda sound's gonna have the "affordable" "30" class level 6er?

Cheers,
Wallace
 
#9
Since posting here before i have purchased a GVB36 :cool: It's a decent bass, but I'm not totally impressed.

:rollno:Cons: The EQ is SOOOOOOO sensitive and will go from 0-100 in 1/8 of a turn.. The overall tone is weird honestly. It'll have overly strong mids and with slight adjustment have overly scooped mids. It's naturally a more brightley toned instrument so i can't cut the highs enough, even with the highs flat or even cut.

The quality of it is unbecoming of Ibanez and i sent them an email because of it, to let them know of their quality issues. The pickup routing is misaligned and you can see where the router went in because that corner is off compared to the other 3 corners on each pickup. The problem corners were filled in at the factory and then had finish applied where the filler was applied. This is on both pickups. The nut is misaligned and is pushed slightly to the C string side. Also, there is still glue on the neck next to the nut, on both sides. At first i thought they were just smears, but they won't come off and they have texture to them. None of these issues affect playability, but for $1,100.. it's unacceptable to me :scowl:

:)Pros: Tuners are VERY accurate and tight. Some of the best tuners i've used from ibanez. The neck fits tight into the neck joint. It balances pretty well when standing with very minimal neck dive. It's not lightweight but it's not heavy either, kind of in between. If you want more of a piccolo kind of feel and tone I think this would be good for that due to the natural tonal emphasis from the woods and electronics.


Overall: I'm not impressed with this bass. If they made an SR506 with this string spacing, you'd be getting a better bass IMO. It's not worth the $1,100 for a new one, but if you're wanting to try a bass with narrow spacing, just wait a few months and try to find one used. Mine's not up for sale yet because I'm still trying to love it, but there is a 50/50 chance that it may be available in the future. I own almost 20 Ibanez SR basses ranging in all years of production from old to new, so i have a lot of experience with Ibanez SR basses specifically. I tried to be as detailed as i can in this and if you have any other questions, I'll do my best to answer them, so feel free to respond to this post or PM me. Thanks for reading!

Ross
 
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#10
You know I was so interested in this bass, but hey: an SR1206 can apparently make it better, I start to think (what the hell!)

Thank you so much my friend...

I'm partially disarming my consistent GAS (will go elsewhere!)

Cheers,
Wallace
 
#11
I LOVE IBANEZ BASSES!!!! and i had so much hope for this bass too man. As much as i want to say it's awesome, it's just not :( I have an SR1405E, so i know that the Premium models are GREAT basses to say the least. I'm sure you will be very happy with a SR1206. I want to get one of them too, I just can't stand the ovagnkol top.. It's so ugly to me. I may still get one, but it's getting painted for sure. Sorry to be a buzzkill for your GVB36 GAS, but your money will be much better spent on a 1206.
 
#12
I've had a GVB36 for about two weeks now. I was holding off posting a review till I had at least a couple of practices under my belt with the bass. Seeing the timelyness of this thread, I'll give a quick impression here.

Build Quality - Here's where Ross's review and mine differ the most. My GVB36 is flawless. Perfect in every way. I can't find one little thing wrong with it. I also have an NYC Sadowsky and a Lull. To compare all three basses, you couldn't tell that the Ibanez costs half to one quarter of what the other basses cost. There are things that justify the additional cost of the other basses (USA made, chambering, proprietary hardware, etc.). My point is that for the price, the build of the Ibanez is outstanding.

Electronics - This is where Ibanez saved money. From what I'm hearing and what I've read, the pickups might be passable. The preamp on the other hand needs to be recycled and quickly. The blend knob is more like a three way toggle. And the three positions don't even sound remotely related. EQ for a decent neck sound and the other two are horrible; eq for a decent bridge sound etc. etc. There are a few good sounds in there (bridge solo'd with bass and mids boosted and the highs cut or both pickups with a slight boost in the highs) but there aren't enough.

String Spacing - This is probably the most controversial aspect of the bass. While I'm not very picky about things like string spacing or neck shape or number of frets, etc, 14mm is a noticeable difference. It's taking me a while to get used to it. Now, I can go back and forth between this bass and my others.

I purchased this bass to work on solo and chordal playing. And that's where it excels. With my other basses, four note chords were a stretch. With the GVB36, four note chords are easy and five note chords are a possibility.

The 14mm spacing has also helped my right hand technique in that with the strings closer together, I need better control of my right hand fingers. I can't flail away because my finger bumps into the next string. So my stroke is now more compact. And this is carrying over to my other basses.

Based on the build quality (of mine at least), the increased chordal soloing opportunities and the increased control of my picking hand, I'd definitely recommend checking out this bass.
 
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#13
Yeah, the string spacing takes getting used to, but it'll surely make your right hand way more accurate. I adjusted really easily from the 16.5 of my other Ibanez basses, but anyone coming from 18, 19, or 20mm string spacing is gonna have a bit of adjusting to do. I totally agree that the preamp is garbage too ha ha I'd still try to find a used one, but trying one out if you have the chance is totally worth it.
 
#14
Hey! If you guys want to see my GVB36 in action check out my video. This is an original solo bass composition that i wrote during my recent deployment to Afghanistan, entitled "Family First". It was written for all of my family, friends and supporters of my solo bass music. For anyone who checks it out, I want to sincerely thank you and I hope you enjoy it.



Thanks!

Ross
 
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#16
I took time to watch other vid too...

Maybe I come late...

I know you can be considered a somewhat Ibanez man... and the foray in the Warwick camp confirm it to me more than less

But have you ever thought of a Yamaha TRBJ1006... no on/off
switch to disengage active electronics there, but I understand
you use it widely...

I dunno, but your style could be IMHO very well served by the brilliancy of Yamaha soapbars... So, before suggesting you the
"pro" Yammy models up there... I really think a TRBJ1006 can help you out for good.

Cheers,
Wallace
 
#17
Wallace320 said:
I took time to watch other vid too...

Maybe I come late...

I know you can be considered a somewhat Ibanez man... and the foray in the Warwick camp confirm it to me more than less

But have you ever thought of a Yamaha TRBJ1006... no on/off
switch to disengage active electronics there, but I understand
you use it widely...

I dunno, but your style could be IMHO very well served by the brilliancy of Yamaha soapbars... So, before suggesting you the
"pro" Yammy models up there... I really think a TRBJ1006 can help you out for good.

Cheers,
Wallace
Click to expand...

Thank you for watching man! I have 4 vids on youtube right now and i still have 2 more songs to make vids for but they are quite the challenge ha ha. I also play a '94 Warwick Thumb but not as much as my Ibanez basses. The Thumb is for band related stuff and the Ibanez basses are for my solo stuff. I don't play Yamaha basses because the string spacing is too wide for me and the necks are way too thick. The Thumb has a really thick neck too, but it's tone and string spacing totally make up for the fat neck. I've played 16.5mm for 14 years and anything wider feels unnatural to me. I also don't play passive basses at all, they don't have the tone shaping possibilities that active basses provide. I'm the kind of guy that the more knobs, the better, because i can dial in my tone to a specific sound and can adjust it without having to go back to my amp. I have a couple of early 90's Ibanez basses with J pickups, but nothing fancy for electronics, just the Ibanez AFR pickups which are not very good. Thank you for the suggestions and I'll try out a Yamaha again next time that i get the chance, just to see if i can digg it, because of your suggestion.
 
#19
The tone was better than I thought it would be (knowing the bass). Very good job; I enjoyed listening to it.

*** Before sending this, I listened again thru some good headphones. It sounds way better than the first time. Getting that tone from that bass, I'm guessing there was some radical eq'ing going on. Comparing it to your Rainy Day bass, I actually like the GVB36 tone more. Warmer and wider where the Rainy Day bass has more lows and low mids. It also sounds like different strings on the two basses. ***

As an aside, I can't imagine the developers at Ibanez putting that pre in that bass, playing it, and saying "we have a winner here!". I'm thinking it was the bean counters spec'ing that pre without ever hearing it.
 
#20
LeonD said:
The tone was better than I thought it would be (knowing the bass). Very good job; I enjoyed listening to it.

*** Before sending this, I listened again thru some good headphones. It sounds way better than the first time. Getting that tone from that bass, I'm guessing there was some radical eq'ing going on. Comparing it to your Rainy Day bass, I actually like the GVB36 tone more. Warmer and wider where the Rainy Day bass has more lows and low mids. It also sounds like different strings on the two basses. ***

As an aside, I can't imagine the developers at Ibanez putting that pre in that bass, playing it, and saying "we have a winner here!". I'm thinking it was the bean counters spec'ing that pre without ever hearing it.
Click to expand...

I have been messing around with EQ settings and Rainy Day was the first song i ever recorded a vid of, so that was my first try. It has a chorus/flanger effect on it too and the effect takes away from the tone drastically. In person, there's no comparison, the 1405 has got the tone and versatility to boot. They are both strung with the stock elixers. You can see/hear how much more the GVB brings out the brightness of the strings. I spent forever EQing my markbass to get the GVB to sound good. One of these days i'll actually record MP3's and not rely on the camera mic ha ha
 

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