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MTD Kingston KZ6 vs Ibanez BTB's

KZ6 OR BTB 686SC/BTB676

  • KZ6

    Votes: 14 58.3%

  • One of those BTB's

    Votes: 7 29.2%

  • Other...

    Votes: 3 12.5%
  • Total voters
    24
D

denizfikirdanis

Guest
Nov 19, 2015
5
2
30
#1
Hello, i have been looking for a 6 stringer for a while, my budget is around 1k and i dont live in the US so my choices are limited.
Mtd Kingston KZ6 is 1520$ in US it is for 1k in my country(Turkey) i asked the distributer about the price difference and he made sure that these basses are exactly same, and the 500$ discount could be because of some distribution stuff.

Ibanez Btb676 and Btb686sc 1000-1100$

So my question is which one should i buy, does the kz6 have better quality than btb's or the price difference in the us doesnt mean anything? I have tried a btb686sc and i loved it but i am having second thoughts because people buy mtd kz6's for 1.5k and i have the oppurtunity to buy it for 1k.
Also any 6'ers you would recommend around 1k?
Have a nice day and hi from Turkey.
 
#4
Mattsochistic said:
MTD is just a better playing instrument IMO. The neck profile is my favorite!
Click to expand...
MTD for this very reason.
Buy the MTD and upgrade the electronics if you feel it is necessary.
I have 2 of the MTD Kington series. My Andrew Gouche is the top of the line Kingston. My CRB5 is considered an entry level Kingston. Probably because it comes stock as a passive bass. ( Nothing entry level but this bass at all !!) I am 100% satisfied with them both. I purchased them used which makes them some of the best values for the money . My CRB5 had an EMG preamp installed when I purchased it. I can run it passive or active. The AG5 came stock with custom US Bartolini system .
My advice is to buy used if you can. A used Andrew Gouche 6 or ZX6 would be the one to get.

Ibanez sound great and you will most likely not have to upgrade any electronics. They just don't fit my hands as well as an MTD asymmetrical neck does.
 
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#5
LadyLoveStingRay5 said:
MTD for this very reason.
Buy the MTD and upgrade the electronics if you feel it is necessary.
I have 2 of the MTD Kington series. My Andrew Gouche is the top of the line Kingston. My CRB5 is considered an entry level Kingston. Probably because it comes stock as a passive bass. ( Nothing entry level but this bass at all !!) I am 100% satisfied with them both. I purchased them used which makes them some of the best values for the money . My CRB5 had an EMG preamp installed when I purchased it. I can run it passive or active. The AG5 came stock with custom US Bartolini system .
My advice is to buy used if you can. A used Andrew Gouche 6 or ZX6 would be the one to get.

Ibanez sound great and you will most likely not have to upgrade any electronics. They just don't fit my hands as well as an MTD asymmetrical neck does.
Click to expand...
Thank you, thats some great info.It will be nearly impossible to find a second hand 6er for my budget in my country i check everyday to find one, my budget is max 1k so i wont be able to upgrade anything for a while. Are the electronics on kz6 that bad compared to btbs?
 
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#7
I currently hava a Z6 and I have had a BTB676 and SR656. The major differences are the string spacing. The MTD is 18mm, the BTB is 17mm, and the SR is 16.5mm. Also the MTD body is made up of Mahogany while the BTB uses Ash and a top of walnut. The BTB is also neck thru while the MTD is a bolt on. My MTD has been upgraded with a Bart preamp and RJ neo pickups.
 
#9
Robear22 said:
I currently hava a Z6 and I have had a BTB676 and SR656. The major differences are the string spacing. The MTD is 18mm, the BTB is 17mm, and the SR is 16.5mm. Also the MTD body is made up of Mahogany while the BTB uses Ash and a top of walnut. The BTB is also neck thru while the MTD is a bolt on. My MTD has been upgraded with a Bart preamp and RJ neo pickups.
Click to expand...
How were the electronics before you upgraded them? Were they pretty good or just horrible and you had to upgrade? Too bad i cant go to a guitarshop and try this bass myself its painful to find a 6 string bass around here.
 
#11
Bumping this old thread because I just had to make this exact choice! Local music store has a kz6 and a btb single cut. It was a tough decision. The mtd played better on the neck and I liked the wider string spacing, but I liked the tone of the btb better. There was one factor that made my decision a no brainer... neck dive! The mtd neck profile is amazing, but I can't stand holding up a neck when I'm trying to play fast runs and tapping. The btb string spacing may be a bit tighter, but at least I can feel comfortable wearing it on stage! Every person is different though, so my needs regarding playing may differ greatly from others.
I wanted to pull the trigger on the mtd because I've been enjoying the kz6 fretless, but the btb better suits my work needs. It really baffles me that a 1500 bass could be designed with such bad neck dive! Playing while sitting was great though.
 
#12
When I was shopping for my bass I tried a number of 5 string brands including some Ibanez,. I found the MTD K5 had better string spacing and the back of the neck is shaped a lil differently making it more comfortable to place my thumb on the lower back of the neck.

Both Ibanez and MTD are great brands, no matter which one you get I think you'll be happy.

Edit: I dont know about the Ibanez, but the MTD bridge is only top load.
 

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