Ibanez Prestige, "Custom" Bartolini PuP's

Good question. I've always wondered how they compare.

 

I know very little about bartolinis and thus can't answer your question but...

It seems most everyone loves these pickups and I can't stand them from the MK1 to the stock bartolinis in Modulus bsses(I assume these are higher end?).

So this does relate if the prestige has higher end bartolini's I would like to try it out since I feel a bit flawed in not liking any bass I have tried thus far with bartolinis.

 

Yes, they are Bartolini's equivalents of "Duncan designed" pickups. Cheaper OEM pickups with the brand name. Bartolini, EMG, and Seymour Duncan all do it for OEM brands.

 

It may depend on the model and year, but in my 2007 SR1005 they are real Barts. My SR1005 pickups are basically the same as the Bart "RT" model (103 x 30 mm; 16 in top radius).

The RT model is not offered as part of their standard line any more, but are made for Ibanez.

They sound every bit as good as the Barts in my Roscoe.

 

Ibanez occasionally uses real Barts (and used to frequently), but more often than not use the MK1s, which you find in tons of other "economically-minded" instruments.

 

This is true for the non-prestige models, but not for the prestige models, at least for the last 5 years or so.

The Barts that Ibanez uses in the Prestige models have a characteristic curvature to the top of the pickup and thus are easily distinguished from the MK-1s. The following pdf is a little hard to find on the Bartolini site but it shows the differences between the MK and RU.

http://www.bartolini.net/pdf/Pickup Drawings_wDims.pdf

Ibanez has been pretty good about specifying in their catalogs the type of Bart pickup that is used. If it says "Bart custom", it's likely the RU. If it says MK-1 (or MK-2), it's the MK.

 

I own an SR506 with MK-1's and a SR1006EBG Prestige with the custom Barts. There really is no comparison. The MK-1's are extremely thin sounding and lack punch compared to the Barts in the Prestige series bass. I noticed the difference the first time I plucked the strings on the Sr1006. It was very evident.

To be honest, I was always pretty happy with the MK-1's in my SR506. But then I bought the SR1006EBG and I can barely stand to play the 506 anymore, and that's only because of the difference in tone. The bass itself I love. But the electronics in the SR1006 are just so much more superior in tone than the Mk-1's that I don't see how I'll be able to use the 506 for anything other than an emergency backup, unless I decide to change out the pickups and Pre.

 

I didn't say anything that contradicted that.

 

Well the thread is about Barts in prestige basses...