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Ibanez SR5BBLTD: Poor Man's Fodera

#83
fwiw, my nose is firmly in-joint. I have no issues with Ibanez or the bass in question - I was just clarifying some details about Fodera pricing, and offering a factual reason why a Fodera is a "rich-man's Fodera" :D

Since I have a Smith as well I clearly have too much money. Or at least spend too much money on my basses. Then again, a day job and 500+ gigs in the past 5 years helps me rationalize the tools... :eek:
 
#85
Dr. Cheese said:
View attachment 509951View attachment 509952

I just played it today. Beautiful fit and finish. It has an ash body with a Buckeye Burl top and peg head with a Wenge and Purpleheart neck. Slim Soundgear neck, but I found it quite comfortable to play. The preamp and Nordstrand Big Singles sounded great. This is a really decent poor man's Fodera.

It is worth the $2,499.
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Oh, great. Thanks to you, my office mates are stampeding away from me because of the HORRIBLE case of GAS you've just given me.

Man, that thing is gorgeous.
 
#86
nostatic said:
fwiw, my nose is firmly in-joint. I have no issues with Ibanez or the bass in question - I was just clarifying some details about Fodera pricing, and offering a factual reason why a Fodera is a "rich-man's Fodera" :D

Since I have a Smith as well I clearly have too much money. Or at least spend too much money on my basses. Then again, a day job and 500+ gigs in the past 5 years helps me rationalize the tools... :eek:
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I didn't know you had a Smith, I find that surprising actually. Which one do you have?
 
#90
also fwiw, I find that the Premium Ibanez models have their own voice as well. The Nordy single coils give it an "I wish my J-bass sounded like this" sound. Since I really don't like JJ basses, it isn't my thing, but between their build dimensions (fairly thin/fast necks, downsized bodies, alternative woods like wenge, etc) and the sound, they can be a perfect bass for some, especially considering the price.
 
#94
From what I gather there's the Ibanez Premium, Prestige...then there's the custom shop stuff. I haven't played a CS Ibanez, but they scream quality just from the pics. They're definitely up there with the top boutiquers.
 
#95
OldDirtyBassist said:
From what I gather there's the Ibanez Premium, Prestige...then there's the custom shop stuff. I haven't played a CS Ibanez, but they scream quality just from the pics. They're definitely up there with the top boutiquers.
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You have to be an endorser to get an LACS Ibanez. For regular folks the Prestige stuff is the top of the line, made in Japan. the Premium stuff is made in Indonesia, but those builders were all taught (to some degree at least) my the J Craft Team in Japan.
 
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#98
jim777 said:
I never would have guessed you had a soft spot for a Smith :) Have you played the Emperor 5 Standard fretless yet?
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I try to keep an open mind about instruments. There are certain things that certain instruments do really well, but nothing really can cover everything I need - or at least every sound that I want to try and get. Plus my playing has changed over the past few years (by design), and I've gone through a lot of tools trying to figure out what works for me, what doesn't, and how I can stretch what I'm doing. I've played the E5 standards - very nice instruments but I prefer 18mm spacing on a 5-string, am not crazy about offset body shape (e.g. J-bass, which is what the Emperor is close to), and the dual coils really aren't my thing. But Fodera frankly makes the most comfortable neck profile I've ever played - and I've played a lot of great basses.

Back semi-on-topic, the Ibanez body shape is reminiscent of the Fodera Monarch, which is reminiscent of a P-bass (tweaked for 24-fret access). So most things tend to be related. Once you get to ergonomics it becomes highly subjective.
 
#99
NeonVomit said:
I've heard... the Euros I've played have been pretty awesome, but I figured I might as well spend more and get the real deal since I'm already splashing out (been saving for about a year now). I'm looking for a really good 4 or 5 string to compliment my Warwick - something of similar quality - and to be honest I sort of... well, 'forgot' about Ibanez stuff. This thread has really gotten me thinking about them again. From what I gather the Prestige line is up there with the very best in terms of quality and craftsmanship, and with the additional advantage of being cheaper than either the MM or Spector.... as well as lighter, since the W is pretty damn heavy.
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Check out the ATK1205. Japan made Prestige model. Very comfortable to play, quality is on par if not better than a Stingray and much more versatile. Shameless plus here but I do have one in the classifieds. The day it shipped out a bass I had been trying to find for two years came available. Decisions decisions and selling the ATK is a very difficult one. Ibanez is putting out some very high quality great playing basses these days.
 

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