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The Ibanez Club (Part 5)

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#401
jg42 said:
Wow, I thought I was the only one. I was expecting much more from Nordstrands. Don't get me wrong, they are not bad, just not that "crazy awesome" which some folks claim.:hiding:
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I don't have anything bad to say about them, they just don't stand out. That can be exactly what some people want - a bass the blends into the mix, but I have a P bass that does that as well as anything and is warmer, which I prefer.

The Barts have a lot of character - warm and woody, and when you can hear it (low volume gig or studio setting), it's really wonderful. In louder volume settings, so far I haven't found a way to keep that from getting lost with my current rigs. That's really disappointing because my SR700 (with Barts) is just THE most comfortable and fun to play bass ever. I just can't gig it in most circumstances.

As a result the basses I play most often are the two cheapest ones I own - a Peavey Zodiac which sounds just like my vintage P only with a little more clarity and the SRX3 which has a lot of those same Fender-ish qualities - with more punch and all the pluses that active electronics bring to the table. Bandmates agree with these choices. Of course, this is with my style of playing, through my rigs, playing the type of music we play. YMMV.
 
#403
I've got this beauty arriving tomorrow from e-Bay. :hyper:

Serial# C407868

:help: please!

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#406
I've got an Ibanez TR Expressionist 4 string active bass - I've been having problems when I DI my amp to the mixing desk and have had my amp fixed - the repairer said there were no problems with the DI on my amp and it is an 'earthing' problem, so I am thinking the problem may be with the electrics in my bass?

Anyway I am trying to find a manual / owners handbook for my bass so I can take it to a repairer and see if the electrics are all working as they should be (I've taken off the back cover but I don't have a clue what wire should go where)

The Ibanez site has manuals, but they are only listed in year order and I have no idea what year my bass was made (It's korean so I suspect late 1990's early 2000's?)

any advice would be helpful!
 
#407
Epitaph04 said:
The times I've tried a Premium SR, "blends into the mix" was the last thing I would have used to describe it's tone.
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Yup, that's why I say YMMV. :) Your playing style, eq settings, rig, tone goals, and music choice may be completely different than mine. One thing I've learned on TB is how differently two people can hear the same thing. Nothin' wrong with that.
 
#408
PDGood said:
The Barts have a lot of character - warm and woody, and when you can hear it (low volume gig or studio setting), it's really wonderful. In louder volume settings, so far I haven't found a way to keep that from getting lost with my current rigs. That's really disappointing because my SR700 (with Barts) is just THE most comfortable and fun to play bass ever. I just can't gig it in most circumstances..
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This is why I got rid of my SR505. It was great playing on the B and E strings but everything else just blended away regardless of string choice or rig.

OTOH my SR1205e cuts through the mix very easily and has such good tone I get asked to play it a lot. It competes with my Fenders for playing time and is such a comfortable bass to play its ridiculous.

As you say, YMMV of course :)
 
#410
When I blend the pups on my SR505 towards the bridge pup, it cuts through the mix like a hot chain saw through butter.
Very versatile and great sounding bass. I've used mine in rock, country and jazz settings and always get compliments on the tone.
 
#411
christle said:
This is why I got rid of my SR505. It was great playing on the B and E strings but everything else just blended away regardless of string choice or rig.

OTOH my SR1205e cuts through the mix very easily and has such good tone I get asked to play it a lot. It competes with my Fenders for playing time and is such a comfortable bass to play its ridiculous.

As you say, YMMV of course :)
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To be fair, I haven't had the chance to play Nordstrands in a band situation. I've played them extensively in stores and A/B'd them at length to the Barts when I made my purchase, but really playing in a band is a whole different animal. So maybe I should be more open minded about them.

The good news here is that it sounds like everyone is making their own decisions based on what they hear, which is how it should be. It bugs me when people flock to something just because of the name or the price tag.
It's not important that we all come to the same conclusion. It is important that we not be suckers to hype and follow our own path to what works for us.
 
#412
My SRs have no problem whatsoever cutting through. On the other hand, the Premiums I've tested sounded more aggressive and in the same time fuller than the regular SRs. So I don't think those qualify as ""blending in" basses - they can really cut through if you need them to.

I'd say it's rather the player's style and the rest of the gear that make the SRs not stand out in a mix. The SR50X for example was made for cutting through, that bass is hard to tame even with extreme settings, it's just in the nature if that beast to make its voice heard :)
 
#413
woody357 said:
I didn't expect this, but I like the sound of my new 1206E more than my MM Bongo 5er. We'll see after a use it on a gig!!!
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Is that the Premium with the big singles? Yep IMO single coils and humbuckers are very different animals...that's why I want a Premium 5er! To compliment my Bongo's fat growl with a punchy, articulate snarl!
 
#415
Epitaph04 said:
Is that the Premium with the big singles? Yep IMO single coils and humbuckers are very different animals...that's why I want a Premium 5er! To compliment my Bongo's fat growl with a punchy, articulate snarl!
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Yes it is the Premium, and my Bongo is the HH5er. I have a gig coming up this weekend, and really want to use it, but I'm new to a six, so I'll wait!
 
#420
I also have an SR300DX and an SR505. In my experience, I completely agree with your assessment. I love them both, but they are very different animals. I feel the 300 is in your face, with little subtlety, but not as articulate as the 505. The 505, however, has to be tweaked a bit to get the sound I want. I play metal, so I want that snarling sound, but maybe a restrained dog growl? I can get great sounds from both, just different means to the same end. I actually just bought a 406 and will be tweaking for quite some time now to find "the tone" that I like on it. If anyone has suggestions, I'm willing to try them out!
 
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