I think they've made too many changes to the 505s. neck thickness, neck material, neck joint, pickup placement, mid switch. It's a little out of hand.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
The Soundgear Club
- Thread starter THE DANiMAL
- Start date
-
- Tags
- club
I got my Bass neck back from the Luthier that put my Bass Clef inlay in my SR1200e today...He did a great job for $60
Now my SR1200e is complete...Though it would be cool to have a back control plate made out of either Ovangkol, Wenge or RosewoodMaybe later
TK - question for you (and anyone else playing a 1205e / 1405e. Does the bass have much for sheilding, and how noisy are those single coils? I play in a church with some inheirent RF interference that my basses seem to pick up like a huge freaking antenna. I had to do some extensive sheilding work on my Fender P/J Aerodyne. I have a Yamaha 5 wire that i bought last year but I just don't play much becase of the noise and I wasnt ready to go down the custom shelding work with it.
In the past I've not been an Ibanez fan, but this one is catching my attention. I may be a convert!
I've got the jatoba/bubinga on the SR700 and plain maple on the SRX. I have to say that honestly it makes no difference to me after the first moment's touch. Once I start playing, I focus on other things. The things that would draw my attention back to the neck (fat neck, sticky neck, poor access to high notes, high action) don't usually happen on SR's.
I've been working with tone a lot lately and trying my two Ibanezes and Fender P in all sorts of different set ups. I wasn't at all surprised that the SRX with active EQ was substantially louder and deeper and brighter than the P, but what did surprise me was that the SR700 was substantially louder and deeper and brighter than the SRX.
I've been working with tone a lot lately and trying my two Ibanezes and Fender P in all sorts of different set ups. I wasn't at all surprised that the SRX with active EQ was substantially louder and deeper and brighter than the P, but what did surprise me was that the SR700 was substantially louder and deeper and brighter than the SRX.
I'm sure I could get used to the Jatoba necks if I had to. The day may come, who knows.
As for your SRX not being as loud, maybe it needs a new battery?
As for your SRX not being as loud, maybe it needs a new battery?
Well, the last time I played a SR505 I loved it and it had a Jatoba neck. Just wanted to see if people thought the wenge necks were even better.
They are, that's why they're on the Premiums, Prestiges and most high end models that are pre-Prestige.
All in all, changes I welcome-- a little more meat, a little less nasalness and twang.
Doctor J said:
Yes you're correct. Have got an EMG 2 band pre on her. The original was the vari mid. Personally I don't like the vari mid too much. Isn't mean it's not good but I felt hard to cut the sound or not easy to cut the sound quick.
Also not sure if the neck is too thin as I found I need to tweak the neck more frequent than my other basses. Other than this, she is really good.
Hmmmm, well...possibly because the wood is more expensive, and I'm not sure it isn't just marketing anyway. The more expensive models have Nordstrands on them and I prefer the Bartolinis by a long shot which come on the middle line basses. Others may prefer the EMGs that are on the less expensive basses. It's all personal preference. The thing is, they have to pick something to change as they move up in models so that you feel like there is a reason to move up.
Here's something interesting - Wenge is rated 1630 on the Janka hardness scale which is a pretty nice high number - higher than maple. (The harder the wood, the less likely the neck is to warp.) Jatoba on the other hand is rated 2760.
For those unfamiliar with the Janka scale, you'll see somewhat different readings depending on which site you go to due to the different species - but they are generally in the same order. As a ball park, many of the familiar hard woods fall in the 1000-1400 range. Walnut, Cherry, Birch, Maple, Beech, Oak all are in this category. That will give you an idea about the Wenge and Jatoba ratings.
Here is one site's list:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
PDGood said:
I'm sure it's a combination of price and the hazards of working with the wood. Marketing could matter as well. I'm sure the switch to Jatoba was to cut costs and keep the pricing the same.
And I agree about the personal preference, everyone has different tastes. Also, the Prestige basses have Bartolinis in them as well.
Wow, 2760? I suddenly have a new love for Jatoba.
One of the things I'm looking for on my next bass is a neck that will be highly resistant to warping. A 5-piece Jatoba/Bubinga neck seems to me like a neck that is very unlikely to warp. I'm sure it'll need some minor seasonal adjustments, but my hope is that it will never require major work.
Yeah, I'd feel really good with that neck - especially since I have one. Haha.
I've been pretty fussy about picking out my basses with regards to the neck. To me that's the single most important thing - I don't get too hung up on fit and finish like some folks do (not that there's anything wrong with that). I've played a lot of crappy SRXs but the one I bought has a neck straight as an arrow, and the grain of the maple couldn't be any straighter. On top of that, I talked to the salesman and he said that that model wasn't moving and he'd had the bass in shop for 6 months. I figure if it's that straight after 6 months in a Guitar Center - it ain't going anywhere. I could've had one in an unopened box, but took the display for that reason. Here it is a year later and it's still one of the best necks I've ever played.
Same with the SR700. The one I bought has a very straight neck - and I've seen some that were less so. Haven't seen any bad ones, but this is the best of the three I've seen.
I've been pretty fussy about picking out my basses with regards to the neck. To me that's the single most important thing - I don't get too hung up on fit and finish like some folks do (not that there's anything wrong with that). I've played a lot of crappy SRXs but the one I bought has a neck straight as an arrow, and the grain of the maple couldn't be any straighter. On top of that, I talked to the salesman and he said that that model wasn't moving and he'd had the bass in shop for 6 months. I figure if it's that straight after 6 months in a Guitar Center - it ain't going anywhere. I could've had one in an unopened box, but took the display for that reason. Here it is a year later and it's still one of the best necks I've ever played.
Same with the SR700. The one I bought has a very straight neck - and I've seen some that were less so. Haven't seen any bad ones, but this is the best of the three I've seen.
IIRC there was at some point a thread about the hazards of working with wenge on the Warwick forums; the general consensus was that this is a difficult to process wood and the dust is potentially dangerous and poisonous - quoting from Wiki: "The dust produced when cutting or sanding wenge can cause dermatitis similar to the effects of poison ivy and is an irritant to the eyes. The dust also can cause respiratory problems and drowsiness". It's one of the main reasons why W dropped the wenge necks as well.
As for Bartolinis...I like 'em a lot too, but I'm sure you know the ones mounted on the SRs are not real Barts, they're Korean made by Cort - as opposed to the genuine Nordstrand on the Premiums. So there's a good reason for the price difference right there...
Interesting. I didn't know wenge posed a health hazzard. I know cocobola does and some related Brazillian rosewoods.
Yup, I've heard the argument about some Bart's not being real Barts or as good as U.S. made Barts, but again it's all subjective. I like the way mine sound over the Nordstrands regardless of where each pickup is made. I tried the 700 out several times (so I didn't make a rush decision) and compared it to other SRs that had the Nords (a 1200 and I think a 900). It wasn't a close call for me.
Others may prefer the Nords, and no one is right or wrong.
I would love to be able to A/B my Barts to another SR with U.S. made Barts. That would be fun.
My only beef with the 700 is it doesn't fit in a loud mix as easily as my SRX does. Sounds better by itself or in small groups. Would be a great bass for jazz (wish I could go there) and maybe when I get different speaker cabs, more options will open up. For now, it requires more effort with EQ to blend.
Well tbh the Premiums sound killer to my ears - and the one I've tested (1205E) was by far the growliest Ibanez I've ever played - even more than my SRT905DX which is a pretty growly bass. I must get one of these next year (I guess this will be my resolution for 2012, hehe).
@dllcalli: what a sweet kid, man! And good call on that second bass - she's too small to struggle with that SRT all the time. She sure has a cool dad though - not many parents would invest that much into gear just to keep their kids happy
@dllcalli: what a sweet kid, man! And good call on that second bass - she's too small to struggle with that SRT all the time. She sure has a cool dad though - not many parents would invest that much into gear just to keep their kids happy
So... Just realized the neck on my 3005 is thicker then the neck on my 1015. This is seriously the first time I've noticed. So I decided to compare it to my 905. The 905 feels A LOT thicker then the 3005. actually looked up the neck measurements and here's a comparison:
Width at nut
1015 - 45
3005 - 45
905 - 45
Width at last fret
1015 - 67
3005 - 67
905 - 67
Thickness at 1st
1015 - 20.5
3005 - 21.5
905 - 21.5
Thickness at 12th
1015 - 22
3005 - 23
905 - 23.5
Radius
1015 - 305
3005 - 305
905 - 305
Keep in mind, none of them are uncomfortable by any means, just different. but it's amazing what a half a millimeter can do at the 12th in terms of feel.
Width at nut
1015 - 45
3005 - 45
905 - 45
Width at last fret
1015 - 67
3005 - 67
905 - 67
Thickness at 1st
1015 - 20.5
3005 - 21.5
905 - 21.5
Thickness at 12th
1015 - 22
3005 - 23
905 - 23.5
Radius
1015 - 305
3005 - 305
905 - 305
Keep in mind, none of them are uncomfortable by any means, just different. but it's amazing what a half a millimeter can do at the 12th in terms of feel.
Agreed; if you look at the specs, on paper the difference between a SRT neck and a SR is minimal - about 2 mm in thickness - but in reality the SRT neck feels really round, chunky and huge compared to the slim flattened SR neck. Then again, the human hand can detect a difference of just a few microns in thickness, so I guess it's not a surprise those necks feel so different...
