The SR line - especially the SR500/505, and higher (with Barts) are very nice basses with very nice slim necks that sound fantastic. 
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Played An Ibanez SR500
- Thread starter Stampy
- Start date
I don't know what Ibanez did in the SR500 series, but it was something very right.
I had an SR505 back in the day, and even after having owned a 3 different Musicman basses, a Warwick Corvette 5, and a plethora of beater basses, the SR505 is still my favorite. I highly regret getting rid of it.
It's light, balanced, easy to play, and very tone-friendly. The only minor thing that gripes me about it is that the finish is somewhat delicate. Mahogany isn't the hardest wood on the planet, so if you're not gentle, you can muck up the body with some ugly scratches.
If they made an SR505 with a harder body wood or a polished finish other than that ugly one that the SR700s come in, oh man, I'd be all over it...
I had an SR505 back in the day, and even after having owned a 3 different Musicman basses, a Warwick Corvette 5, and a plethora of beater basses, the SR505 is still my favorite. I highly regret getting rid of it.
It's light, balanced, easy to play, and very tone-friendly. The only minor thing that gripes me about it is that the finish is somewhat delicate. Mahogany isn't the hardest wood on the planet, so if you're not gentle, you can muck up the body with some ugly scratches.
If they made an SR505 with a harder body wood or a polished finish other than that ugly one that the SR700s come in, oh man, I'd be all over it...
I have owned the sr506 for 1.5 years and have not disliked one second of it. Very playable. Great tone from gritty buzzy solos to round deep keep the band rooted lines. The one thing I wish they'd done is to put slightly better electronics in it. There is a bit of hiss, not to the point of being terrible but it's noticeable. Keep new strings on it and It'll treat you well. I've actually been contemplating getting the 4 string version.
It was prolly a 3500/5500 head (they're identical except the power: 350W/500W) matched with a VX410 (if it had paper cones) or a 410XL (if it has aluminium cones) cab + 1 VX115 (paper cone) or a 115XL (aluminium cone) cab.
IMO the paper cones sound better, but the SR will eat them alive - mine were broomy to the point of distorsion. It's a bass that sends a hot signal and you need a rig that can match that. If you're going for the SR500, consider another brand for the amp & cab.
if they made if with other wood it would sound different. The mahogany gives that tone it has.. also, the thin finish let's the wood resonate more
One other thing, if you decide to buy sr500, go with older versions (up to 2007). On new ones (2008) they replaced wenge/bubinga neck with jatoba
/bubinga. Maybe jatoba is fine but I would always choose wengeGood amplification goes a long way for a solid tone. IMO, a crappy bass through a nice amp will sound miles better than a nice bass through a crappy amp.
The SR505 is a good buy. There are others as well (ESPs, Yamaha BB615, ...).
The SR505 is a good buy. There are others as well (ESPs, Yamaha BB615, ...).
I had my SR505 for a couple of years, and there were 2 major things that bothered me. The first was the input jack - it was very, very snug. Not a problem in and of itself, but the placement is very awkward, meaning that the only way I could get my cables out (especially my wireless transmitter) was to pull on the cable itself - I couldn't get a good grip on the plug. That's a great way to destroy cables.
My second major gripe was the overall tone of the bass. I was going for a shiny, fresh tone, but once the strings broke in I could no longer get my sound. I used stainless strings and tried a bunch of different brands, but it didn't matter. I now new strings are always more zingy, but I can leave strings on my Warwick and my G&L forever and still achieve what I'm looking for with only minor tonal compromise. I was constantly fighting with the SR505.
Again, it was a good bass and I recommend it for someone that is looking for a round sound with some versatility, but in the end it wasn't for me.
First I apologize Stampy because I'm poluting his thread with this post.Yesterday, I played the SR505 (again) and it wasnt that good as I remember. After that I played the warwick corvette (can't remember what exactly was the model) and was nicely suprised. Here in Croatia, you don't buy that kind of basses every day. So, in your humble opinion, what's the best investment between that two basses?
Thanks.
K
Thanks.
K
I got an SR506 last week, and I'll just add my +1 and say that the SR500 series is a steal. I cant find any flaw in its construction, the low B is thunderous, and the tone is very punchy and clear. I guess the only negative would be that little bit of hiss from the preamp, but yeah, it's not too noticeable unless you boost the high EQ more than a little... but I just keep that knob flat anyway as there is already plenty of high end for my tastes to begin with. A sweepable mid would be nice too, but I guess you can't have everything. 
I heard the input jack being a little tight yes I noticed that too, not a big deal to me though. Kristijan_og I have never played a Warwick Corvette but I know they are expensive 1,000 and up I think.
if they made if with other wood it would sound different. The mahogany gives that tone it has.. also, the thin finish let's the wood resonate more
One other thing, if you decide to buy sr500, go with older versions (up to 2007). On new ones (2008) they replaced wenge/bubinga neck with jatoba
True, but they could very easily just do a mahogany back with a harder wood on top like they do for the BTB Prestige models (mahogany back, maple top). I personally like the sound of a dense body wood like maple.
Well it's not truly active. It has an active pre-amp. The pickups are still passive. Try an Ibanez SRX3EX outI went into my local Sam Ash just to get some instructional books and of course I still had to walk in the back to check out there stock of basses. I noticed on a stand there was a Ibanez SR500 in the brown mahogany color(I guess thats the only color available for that bass.) Then I noticed it was an active bass and I have never played an active bass before so I tuned it and asked for a cord. I plugged it in to about a 1,000 dollars worth of Hartke amplifiers(head with equalizer,and two stacks of speakers) and it was the most glorous thing I have played in my short bass playing career. No I am not sure if it was the bass itself that made all of the sound difference over my GSR200 or the 1,000 dollars worth of amplifiers over my tiny Hartke B150 amp but I was in heaven. I played tiny bits from Rushs Tom Sawyer and Freewill also The Whos Baba O'Riley and it didn't want to leave I wanted it all to myself lol. Yeah so what truly made the difference the active bass over my passive one, or the awesome amount of amplifiers I was playing through. The bass was tagged at 599.99. I had no where near the money for it so it shall stay there until it goes on sale or they want to make a deal. So yesterday was a glorious day
How dare you wreck my story! Just kidding lol. I will look at that because I would like to get an active bass this time.
That's not a problem, because when you buy a bass here..your keeping it for 4 years min
So, the money is not the problem. Let the best bass win
IMO you can get a better bass than a corvette for its price.
IMO you can't get a better bass than an SR505 for the price. You can get an comparable (but different) bass, but not a better one.
That said, ignoring the price tag, I'd take the corvette. I prefer the tone on the double buck ($$) model though, if you can get it.
IMO you can't get a better bass than an SR505 for the price. You can get an comparable (but different) bass, but not a better one.
That said, ignoring the price tag, I'd take the corvette. I prefer the tone on the double buck ($$) model though, if you can get it.
The tone of the SR500 blows the GSR200 out of the water. From the lowest notes to the highest it was superior!
Sounds good lol!
What is superior my EMG P/Js or the Bartolonis and Active Pre-Amp in the SR500? btw my GSR has active pickups but passive tone controls.
I was looking at Stingrays but in all honesty I can't afford one and I prefer the neck on the Ibanez. I'll probably keep the GSR and put the lower 4 of a 5 string set on, that'd be quite nice.
What is superior my EMG P/Js or the Bartolonis and Active Pre-Amp in the SR500? btw my GSR has active pickups but passive tone controls.
I was looking at Stingrays but in all honesty I can't afford one and I prefer the neck on the Ibanez. I'll probably keep the GSR and put the lower 4 of a 5 string set on, that'd be quite nice.
if they made if with other wood it would sound different. The mahogany gives that tone it has.. also, the thin finish let's the wood resonate more
One other thing, if you decide to buy sr500, go with older versions (up to 2007). On new ones (2008) they replaced wenge/bubinga neck with jatoba
I have tried a new 505 and the jatoba/bubinga neck sounded just fine. I have searched talkbass about jatoba and saw that it's not a crappy wood, but I don't know if it's as good as wenge in 5 piece necks. Anyway, tight B and great low-mids really turned me on about this bass, I'll probably get a 505/506 next month, just trying to decide which
