I bought my SR650 at a local GC...not sure whats up in your neck of the woods. They also had a 755 as well.
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I bought my SR650 at a local GC...not sure whats up in your neck of the woods. They also had a 755 as well.
to the OP.... I like you..... like the feel of most Ibby's and find them to be well built,.....but find them to be very "Sterile" sounding with the one exception being the ATK!
weird my local Guitard Center is busting at the seams with ibby's
What I noticed with my GSR206 is the easiest way to get the sound you want is change strings. Granted you will have to play through a few sets to find the ones that suit you best but the difference, once you find those magic strings, is unbelievable. After going through a few different manufacturers the strings that did it for me are the GHS round core Bass Boomers. A close second were the DR Dragon Skins.
hmmm......
My Ibanez Mikro is the best bass I've ever owned for warm tone/fat bottom end. The Sr500 was just about as good.
The Mikro has GHS roundwounds on it, except for the E-string which is a D'addario ( The GHS E winding length was too long for the Mikro).
I've always liked most Ibby's for their lush fat rich sounding lows.
But...everybody's tastes are different...
My Ibanez Mikro is the best bass I've ever owned for warm tone/fat bottom end. The Sr500 was just about as good.
The Mikro has GHS roundwounds on it, except for the E-string which is a D'addario ( The GHS E winding length was too long for the Mikro).
I've always liked most Ibby's for their lush fat rich sounding lows.
But...everybody's tastes are different...
Oh! Another fan of the GHS round wounds! Maybe they are the "magic string" for Gio's?
My MIK mid 2000's SR505 can do it all, but it is easy to over EQ. I find the later MII Ibbies nice and light but lacking versatility sound wise, just like the OP. Mine also works best with a very transparent amp. Not so good through my Roland XL120, but my passive basses roar!
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I am the proud owner of a new GSR206SM. Their most inexpensive SR series but it has a nice Spalted Maple top over a Mahagony Body. I am making mine better by replacing the Pups and Pre with AGGIE DCB's (G5) and an Aggie OBP3. And yes it will be killin when done. I was fortuante to get the Pups and Pre for only $100. So for a total of $449 I wll have one of the baddest GSR206SM's in the land. No question.
I have this bass. I love the sound and different tone options.
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Here are some sound clips:
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Others on TB seem to be more picky on PUP tone but I love it.
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Here are some sound clips:
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Others on TB seem to be more picky on PUP tone but I love it.
i defretted my super cheap gsr ibanez six string, put in a 3 band bartolini preamp fretless version running into a fender bassman 1200 pro with a fender bassman 810 pro cab and it sounds pretty f'in cool with the mids boosted and highs boosted pretty decently with a touch of low end. very jaco/ primus sounding lol pretty cool for a 250 dollar bass.
For me, it's all about the volume pot. If I dial the volume down to about 7 or less (scale of 10, say), I get a great, mellow 'vintage tone.' This in combination with using the neck pickup hits the spot--almost P-bass like.
I know it sounds too simple, but that's what I've found.
My main Ibanez bass is a 2014 SR1205E with Nordstrand Big Singles (in passive mode). Great bass.
I know it sounds too simple, but that's what I've found.
My main Ibanez bass is a 2014 SR1205E with Nordstrand Big Singles (in passive mode). Great bass.
Okay, I cracked the ibanez soundgear code. I've been playing for 35 years, pro. Nearly all vintage basses (I lived with a steinberger and an alembic for various periods). I needed a 5 string for my current band. Soundgear was the only option because of string spacing (16.5mm) plus I liked the neck. Bought a SR655. I like the way it feels. Okay, the sound. Terrible. But here's what I did (and there was a lot of trial and error to get here). My Gallien Kreuger amp has 4 eq controls, plus a contour button (mid scoop). Here's what finally got me there: Eq on bass: All at the mid position. Active eq: Engaged. On the amp: Contour button ON. Bass: 12 o'clock. Low mids: 12 o'clock. High mids: turned off. Highs: turned off. (!) I could not believe that this was the eq that did it, but it sounded great. It was warm with just a bit of growl. I play a jaguar which has plenty of growl, and this ibanez might have had just a tad more. I really liked it, and the sound guy loved it. The band I subbed with tonight were all like "it was so smooth, everything was just there." If I were going to change this bass, first thing I would do is drill weight relief holes from the neck, battery, and pickup cavities just to get it a half pound lighter. Then I'd route the neck pickup to have the "p-bass" pickup "not reversed". I'd maybe put in a different pickup, like my jaguar, and use a soapbar pickup cover the whole thing if it didn't look good. I'd swap out the bridge pickup, maybe to a no-noise one. Definitely switch out the active preamp. Those tone controls have only one good quality: (the mid range has a great frequency choice and is awesome for solos and going "super Jaco". For the price I paid, I am really, really happy. (don't touch the highs, unless it's to lower them, lol!)
I have an SR655 and an SRSC806. They both sound great to me though my Mesa Subway amps/cabs. The SR655 has EB Cobalt flats and the single cut 6 has D’Adarrio XL’s. Both basses were purchased used and are terrific instruments IMO.
Just as a point of reference, I also own Roscoe, G.Gould, Yamaha and Modulus basses and the Ibanez basses stand tall in that company.
Just as a point of reference, I also own Roscoe, G.Gould, Yamaha and Modulus basses and the Ibanez basses stand tall in that company.
No, you've found settings that you like for your particular rig. There's no guarantee anyone else will like those even if they have the same rig as you.
This is from an SR fan who currently has 7 of them.
Not at all - refer to my previous post as you're just pushing your preference as being universal because you have NO idea what the rest of us are using, nor our preferences.
Also, what the IEMs sound like to you via them is only marginally relevant to a good FOH sound for the bass in the mix.
I've done a lot of FOH and designed a lot of electronics for audio.
Bear in mind, I was monitoring the bass through in-ear monitors. This are very accurate but very unforgiving. It was much easier to find a workable sound just listening through the amp.
Well, I'll put it to you this way. I forgot to mention that this band I gigged with last night uses in-ear monitors. Those are very unforgiving but also very accurate. It's much easier to get a bass to sound good when listening solely via the amp. If one finds the SR to have a harsh sound, what I posted will give you a good, solid tone. I know many active-bass players, terrific ones I might add, that sound too clicky. The settings I provided will give a good sound that's not too clicky (clickiness/harsh highs seems to be complained about a lot). But there are some variables: The specific frequencies of my amp's tone pots might be tuned differently than somebody else's amp's tone pots. Also, the genre: I know metal cats who love a super clicky sound. My suggestion is, start with my settings, then bump up the highs if you want a super clicky sound. Or if you want a super boomy sound, like for reggae, crank up that bass. These things are a given and mileage always varies.
I think I qualified what I wrote well enough to account for acknowledging varying gear and preferences. Further, I pointed out that some people have a problem with SRs having harshness. My post was "pushing" a possible solution to that, not to "push my preference as being universal" smh
BEAR IN MIND, the original post was about making SRs sound better. I'm not only a bassist but an audio engineer. Not that that makes my opinion God, but I am a qualified voice when it comes to dialing in sounds. Further, I didn't mean to hurt anyone's feelings who like what they got. Just trying to help those who are still struggling with that harshness issue.
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Yeah recently got a SR405EQM and absolutely love the neck, close string spacing and weight.
Though wasn’t happy with the noise from the single coil or power coil PU options.
So ordered 2 Bart 2Jsquared PUs and a bart hr5.2ap harness. Going to run each PU with a 3 way switch series/parallel/single coil.
should be completed in a month. Can’t wait!
Though wasn’t happy with the noise from the single coil or power coil PU options.
So ordered 2 Bart 2Jsquared PUs and a bart hr5.2ap harness. Going to run each PU with a 3 way switch series/parallel/single coil.
should be completed in a month. Can’t wait!
