Ibanez or Sire???

[Low end rocker]

Hello everyone!

I'm looking in to buying a new bass that's bellow £800 thay have 24 frets and is active. The two that I like the look of the most are the Sire Marcus Miller m7 and the Ibanez sr500. Does anyone have any experience or opinions on these basses, and could point me in the right direction?

Thanks!

 

[bholder]

Good choices, those are the best "bang for the buck" brands under $1K, according to some of us. I have and love the M7, but don't know the Ibanez, sorry.

 

[eccles77]

If you are looking for a versatile bass, I would go for the Marcus Miller M5. It`s the same bass as the 7 (I think) but without the fancy top and a bit cheaper. I had one and it was excellent and very well made. The pickup selections available are all very useful and quite different from each other. The only reason for moving it on was I prefer traditional styling. And it was light which cant be said for most MM`s.

Watch Low end lobster`s vid below. This is the one that made me get the M5. He`s the man!

The SR500 is a proven warrior but I have never been keen on active Ibby`s even the more expensive one`s. The neck is thinner and less of a handful than the MM if that`s important to you. And the paint finish on the SR body can look tatty after a while as it has a habit of wearing but not in a nice way.

You would really need to try them out as they are quite different and the views are only my experience of both models. Oh and the resale value is crap for both of those basses if that is important to you. Good luck!

 

[A9X]

The two that I like the look of the most are the Sire Marcus Miller m7 and the Ibanez sr500.

I'm a bit of an Ibanez fanboi, but the M7 I very briefly tried, I like a lot, but not enough to get me to spend the difference to change from my Conklin.
I love the SR necks and body shape, but as has been mentioned the finish is a little fragile on these. For your budget you could get a much higher like Ibanez second hand and it will feel the same as the 505 in your hands. I picked up a mint '08 SR706 with OHSC for about 100 quid more than the new bottom of the line 6 (SR256B) not long after I bought it. The 256 is a great bass, but the 706 is just nicer in every regard. Though the body and neck woods are different, they feel the same.

 

[Low end rocker]

Thanks for all the responses! I prefer natural bodies which I why the mm appealed to me more. But the ibanez is more "name brand" if you know what I mean. At a gig an ibanez might be pointed out more than a MM. But if there is a better sound on the MM then that's the most important thing!

 

[jd56hawk]

Thanks for all the responses! I prefer natural bodies which I why the mm appealed to me more. But the ibanez is more "name brand" if you know what I mean. At a gig an ibanez might be pointed out more than a MM. But if there is a better sound on the MM then that's the most important thing!

Exactly, as a bassist, I'm all about tone...even though I go out of my way to get something someone else will look at and say "Wow!"

 

[RattleSnack]

I had Ibanez SR505 with mahagony body, and loved some things, disliked other. Bartolini MK1 pickup were a bit too polite although the preamp was very good. General ergonomics and neck were great, but body finish is soft and damages easily. Take a look at photos of any used one, they often have visible scratches. You may or may not be ok with this.

 

[John Patten]

I second RattleSnack’s comments about the finish. I replaced the pups and preamp in mine with true Bartolini parts (that is, not the Ibanez-licensed versions), and it sounds great, plays great - but is showing wear after just a couple of years. Unless you’re a really, really gentle player - like someone who only taps — or don’t care what the body looks like, skip the Ibanez…

 

[jj.833]

I was recently trying Sire M5 and was not satisfied. The unamped sound was quite dull, while amped there were too many pots to tweak, but no matter the tweaking the overall sound was still generally the same, only more or less artificial. I was very surprised, as I had about five Sire jazz basses in my hands, and these were exceptionaly good basses for the money, way ahead of Squiers or Fenders in that category. It might be just me, of course; I confess I like Fender style basses.
I can't say much about Ibanezes except that for many years, many people around me play them and keep them. And if I could get my hands on Ibanez Roadstar PJ from 80s, I'd buy it, as this might be one of the best basses I ever had in my hands.
Whatever your mind decides on, you would be wise to go to a shop and check it yourself. You would be unwise to order it from an eshop. Despite all the CNCs, PLEKs, and quality checks, the bass still either plays alright, or it doesn't.

 

[Benj-jammin]

Maybe think about something like this - a used SR800? Lacquered, gloss finish - you won't have the scratch issues that you often have with the 500, unless you gouge it with long fingernails or something like that. Just my 2 cents.

 

[el murdoque]

Hello everyone!

I'm looking in to buying a new bass that's bellow £800 thay have 24 frets and is active. The two that I like the look of the most are the Sire Marcus Miller m7 and the Ibanez sr500. Does anyone have any experience or opinions on these basses, and could point me in the right direction?

Thanks!

The answer is yes!

 

[micahwc]

I had a SR years ago, I loved it and it's one of the basses I regret getting rid of.

 

[ItsmeSantiago]

My issue with Ibanez is they put cheap preamps in all of their sub-grand instruments. The last handful of SR models I've played have had really bad frets and cut my hands up, but that could just be bad luck. With that said, every BTB I've owned, once the preamp was swapped, sounded great and had great playability. If the M7 is an option, I'd look at a BTB.

Every Sire I've played has been better than ok, but not as fantastic as my friends seem to think. They sound good, but something is off in the playability for me. I say this, while considering getting a D5...

I'm a mess. Sorry.

 

[themickster]

Ibanez SRs feel good in the hands and is all soft curves in the body. 500E upwards have an active/passive switch.

 

[equill]

I'm an Ibanez fan, but Sire's Marcus Miller series sound like they're also good value.

They're also different varieties of bass, so you're not comparing one P/J with another. If you like a thinner neck, the SR is a good bet; if you like them chunkier, the Sire may be the winner.

So I say you should try both if you can, and go with the one you like best. If you can only try one, buy it if you bond with it, and buy the other one if you don't. If you can't try either, pick the one that looks better to you, and hope for the best.

If somebody makes a fuss about the name on the headstock, that tells you they're probably listening with their eyes, so their opinion doesn't count

 

[asparaguspee]

I’d get the Ibanez, I’ve got a 500e (as well as two Sire’s), but that Ibby is something special. Mine has flatwounds on and its got this addictive smooth thump.

 

[user362432]

Anything, but Ibanez.

 

[Big Markus]

Hello everyone!

I'm looking in to buying a new bass that's bellow £800 thay have 24 frets and is active. The two that I like the look of the most are the Sire Marcus Miller m7 and the Ibanez sr500. Does anyone have any experience or opinions on these basses, and could point me in the right direction?

Thanks!

I've played most basses at that price range over the years. For what it's worth, I prefer the Cort A4 or A5, or B4/B5 over both the Sire and the Ibanez.

 

[UNICORN BASS]

Couple of points about the SR 505, the finish issues don't affect MIK models, only MII. That said the MIK ones are quite hefty and they are prone to fret "sprout". Here comes the but, i can pull an amazing range of tones depending on the amp used, plus they are super comfy to play even if like me, you have large hands. I prefer mine to any of the MM basses I've played.

 

[nutdog]

I've had an sr500, 600 and currently a 650. The 500 was the brown mahogany and I never had finish issues. The 600 and 650 were natural ash. Some people don't like the pre and pickups on the 500 but I swapped to a bart pre and didn't notice a difference. Swapped it back. They are consistently light, mine were/is sub 8lbs.

I have a sire v3 4 and 5. I really like them but sires can be heavy if you're not careful. Both are under 9lbs but I've seen plenty over 10, which kept me from trying one until I could verify a lighter weight.

Otherwise, it's a toss up.