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NBD - Ibanez SR505E

S

sstillwell

Nov 20, 2008
462
589
#1
Well, I guess maybe I have enough 4-string basses, but that leaves room for more 5-ers!

Picked up a new Ibanez SR505E in mahogany-colored okoume...same as all others of that stripe, it has walnut/jatoba 5-piece neck with jatoba fretboard. Bartolini 2H pups and what they say are Ibanez electronics, but looks an awful lot like Bartolini electronics OEMed for Ibanez (Vol/Blend/Bass/Mid/Treble/3-way mid freq switch/Active-Passive bypass switch)

The Barts are a little darker than I'd normally like, but nothing that can't be EQed around. Maybe look at replacing them with US-made Barts later.

The neck has to be the best-feeling five-string I have EVER played. The action is pretty much on point although I may actually raise it a bit since I'm a kinda ham-fisted player even though I have small hands. Intonation was pretty close to set, maybe off by a cent or two, but it was hanging on the wall of the showroom floor so who knows how much abuse it had taken? Hopefully not much since it was hanging up out of customer reach in the "go get a salesman to get it down for you" area. It's spot on now, at any rate.

First NEW bass I've bought in quite a while...this one's feeling like a daily driver.
 
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#4
I had an SR505 in mahogany several years ago. It was a fantastic bass that weighed less than 8 lbs. and was the first 5 string bass I was happy with to keep around for awhile. This one got me really moving in a 5 string direction in general.

I agree that the imported Barts are dark in tone but there was a rumor or maybe it was actually confirmed that Ibanez put the bridge pickup in the neck position and vice versa. I would search the forums for these threads.

The necks on the SR505 I had was very, very nice!

Congrats on the SR505!
 
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#5
I'll try to get a pic up within the next day or so, but the "mahogany" SR505s are remarkably consistent-looking. If you've seen one, I've pretty much seen them all. No real differences in grain or color. In the meantime I'll post a pic snipped out of a website - it looks exactly like mine. :) At least I'm not posting cat photos...or hash browns. :)

Edit: I guess my neck is slightly darker than pictured here, so yay for me arguing with myself...and losing. :D

IMG_0054.jpeg
 
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#7
Cyborg said:
I had an SR505 in mahogany several years ago. It was a fantastic bass that weighed less than 8 lbs. and was the first 5 string bass I was happy with to keep around for awhile. This one got me really moving in a 5 string direction in general.

I agree that the imported Barts are dark in tone but there was a rumor or maybe it was actually confirmed that Ibanez put the bridge pickup in the neck position and vice versa. I would search the forums for these threads.

The necks on the SR505 I had was very, very nice!

Congrats on the SR505!
Click to expand...

I need to weigh mine, but it feels very light indeed...especially compared to my Alembic Epic 6 or even my old '75 Precision, which is a tank.

I did search for threads and so far I've primarily found banned user SGD Lutherie commenting on it. Since Bartolini generally labels their pickups as Bass/Treble, it'll be easy to check the next time I swap strings. I bought a set of DR Pure Blues which may make the "dark" problem worse, but it'll also take a bit of the "politeness" out of the sound and put some hair on it. If the pickups are truly reversed, it'd be an easy fix and would de-dark (is that a word?) it since I primarily use neck and blend...I rarely use bridge alone.
 
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#9
sstillwell said:
Okay, okay. Here you go... :)
View attachment 3539306
Click to expand...

:laugh: ha! thanks --- your ax looks way better than the goofy website pic! it's truly a sharp-looking piece. it looks like it's playable from the git. thanks for making an extra effort to post a pic of the real NBD! :D congratulations on your new instrument! :thumbsup:
 
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#12
sstillwell said:
Well, I guess maybe I have enough 4-string basses, but that leaves room for more 5-ers!

Picked up a new Ibanez SR505E in mahogany-colored okoume...same as all others of that stripe, it has walnut/jatoba 5-piece neck with jatoba fretboard. Bartolini 2H pups and what they say are Ibanez electronics, but looks an awful lot like Bartolini electronics OEMed for Ibanez (Vol/Blend/Bass/Mid/Treble/3-way mid freq switch/Active-Passive bypass switch)

The Barts are a little darker than I'd normally like, but nothing that can't be EQed around. Maybe look at replacing them with US-made Barts later.

The neck has to be the best-feeling five-string I have EVER played. The action is pretty much on point although I may actually raise it a bit since I'm a kinda ham-fisted player even though I have small hands. Intonation was pretty close to set, maybe off by a cent or two, but it was hanging on the wall of the showroom floor so who knows how much abuse it had taken? Hopefully not much since it was hanging up out of customer reach in the "go get a salesman to get it down for you" area. It's spot on now, at any rate.

First NEW bass I've bought in quite a while...this one's feeling like a daily driver.
Click to expand...

Congratulations! Ibanez makes some really outstanding stuff, enjoy.

If you end up swapping the barts, you might consider going Nordy as an upgrade. I did the US Bart upgrade in a Lakland skyline and I honestly have no idea why they get used in so many high end instruments.
 
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#13
InhumanResource said:
Congratulations! Ibanez makes some really outstanding stuff, enjoy.

If you end up swapping the barts, you might consider going Nordy as an upgrade. I did the US Bart upgrade in a Lakland skyline and I honestly have no idea why they get used in so many high end instruments.
Click to expand...

Looks like the Nordstrands come in Bartolini P2 shape, which is a bit smaller than the MK shape of the H2 pickups, but the Nordy's are actually a few hundredths bigger than the actual P2 size, which makes it just a tiny bit longer than the H2s. It's a tight fit in the body, I'm not sure a bigger pickup would fit.

Answer: Never mind, it should fit. There's around 2.0-2.5 mm clearance total lengthwise (about .15") and the Nordstrands are only .01" bigger than the H2s. I doubt the screw holes would even have to be filled and re-drilled.
 
#17
Congratulations on your new SR505! :thumbsup: I don't know how many basses you own or what your playing schedule is-- but here's a thought. I own two main Ibby's: The SR500L mahogany. It does have Bart's and the V/B/B/M/T setup. The SR50X series comes with Elixer Nanoweb strings. They are dark by nature due to their design of having a thin coating on them. Before you change out the pickups, try a new set of brighter strings. DR's or whatever. The bass might really come alive for you.

The Ibanez SR300EL is the black sheep cousin to the SR50X family. Rowdy, grunty, agressive, and powerful. The neck is a five piece maple/walnut sandwich. This neck is REALLY solid. The action is always low and the neck feels really solid. I only mention my second bass because you might like the two similar yet different tonestyles.
 
#19
alaskaleftybass said:
The SR50X series comes with Elixer Nanoweb strings. They are dark by nature due to their design of having a thin coating on them. Before you change out the pickups, try a new set of brighter strings. DR's or whatever. The bass might really come alive for you.
Click to expand...

I've read that before elsewhere...but it's weird that their web site doesn't mention it at all. I'll give it a shot. I bought a set of DR Pure Blues which aren't as bright as Hi Beams but should be bright enough to let me know the difference.
 
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