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Why do I hate Ibanez SR basses so much?

#61
Wild_Cat said:
That's the case on Prestige SRs with the PWC-3 preamp. They have an active/passive switch, so the preamp is configured for (more or less) unity gain. That way, you can toggle it to your heart's content (or emergency-abort to passive when your batteries run out in the middle of a song :D ) and not have to adjust much on your amp.

Also, for completeness's sake (and because I can't resist an occasion of pimping my own music :p ), here's what my Prestige SR sounds run through a VT, aiming for an oldschool funk tone. Preamp's EQ is flat, and as far as I can remember the balancer is centered, maybe favoring the neck pickup just a little bit.

Click to expand...



That was a really nice clip, too - although I liked the bass work, I thought the guitarist really torn that one up!!!


- georgestrings
 
#63
I used to own a Prestige 20th Anniversary bass before I sold it to a fellow Tb'er.

I thought overall it was a nice bass. I never found it to have low output and the EQ wasn't bad on it. Honestly, I sold it because the neck was a little to thin for me. I was always overreaching on the fretboard.

Beautiful bass as well.

If you go to Youtube and type in "Wise Guys Medford" there are some videos of me playing it. I thought it sounded alright. See what you all think.
 
#67
I don't think the SR gets beauty of the year, but I like mine. ;)
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#73
IngerAlb said:
Try a SRT900DX if you can still find one; it sounds pretty close to a Thumb, but of course it costs less money.
Click to expand...

That sir actually looks like a VERY cool bass. I would rock that. But the problem is for the new price of the Ibanez I can get a used Thumb. The next problem is the Ibanez will never be worth more than half that used and the Thumb will always be worth what I pay for it.
 
#75
ledyard said:
That sir actually looks like a VERY cool bass. I would rock that. But the problem is for the new price of the Ibanez I can get a used Thumb. The next problem is the Ibanez will never be worth more than half that used and the Thumb will always be worth what I pay for it.
Click to expand...

Well I was having in mind the prices for a new instrument (the SRT is around 800 - 900 Euros, while a new Korean BO is around 1700 Euros).

I guess you can find a good & cheap BO and it's a very cool bass, but owning both the SRT and the Thumb I honestly can't see myself paying for another Thumb, rather than another SRT ;) There is of course a difference between the 2, but to me still not enough to justify the price difference.

You are right about the resale value of an Ibanez - it hurts like hell if you're trying to get rid of one, but on the other hand it feeds the market with very good deals on used instruments ;)
 
#76
Distant Cousin said:
I love my SR500, but I'm not mad on the pickups. Thought about upgrading them for a more versatile sound, but I don't know what to go for. It's got Bartolini MK-1s at the moment, any suggestions?
Click to expand...

US-made Bartolini pickups are the obvious choice, but if you want to go wild, you could try Nordstrands -- http://www.nordstrandpickups.com/bass-pickups/index.shtml . All the pickups in the "Signature bass pickups" section are Bartolini-shaped, meaning you they'll fit in your bass as drop-in replacements. Try Big Singles for a tone like this guy's:
 
#77
Wild_Cat said:
US-made Bartolini pickups are the obvious choice, but if you want to go wild, you could try Nordstrands -- http://www.nordstrandpickups.com/bass-pickups/index.shtml . All the pickups in the "Signature bass pickups" section are Bartolini-shaped, meaning you they'll fit in your bass as drop-in replacements. Try Big Singles for a tone like this guy's:
Click to expand...



Ah excellent, would it be worth upgrading the preamp as well?
 
#78
Distant Cousin said:
Ah excellent, would it be worth upgrading the preamp as well?
Click to expand...

Sure, why not?

But a word of caution: upgrading the preamp means putting a real good aftermarket one in your bass -- Audere, Aguilar, John East or Nordstrand come to mind. At that point though, for a pickups + preamp upgrade, you're looking at around $400 worth of parts, which is starting to get pretty close to the bass's price.

Also, the pickups are a drop-in replacement, but since SR bodies are small and heavily contoured, control cavities are quite small, so make sure the preamp fits or you'll have to do some extra routing (protip: get a luthier to do it :p ).

I'm getting my SR 4005's preamp replaced sometime this week (with an Audere 3ZB), I'll keep you guys informed of whether or not extra routing was required (if not here then in the Ibanez club thread).

Note that Prestige SRs (with the PWC-3 preamp) don't have a separate cavity for the battery, so there is more room in non-Prestige SRs (which do have a separate battery housing).
 
#79
I'll give a big +1 to the OP. Admittedly, "tone" is very much a subjective thing but every Ibanez I've heard has been muddy and lacks the "it-factor" my ears are craving. The clip Wild_Cat posted confirms it. The playing is excellent and the bass line is cool as can be, and even though he's going for the old-school funk tone, it sounds like there's a big wet blanket over it. I don't feel that way across the board with any other brand.
 
#80
NKUSigEp said:
The clip Wild_Cat posted confirms it. The playing is excellent and the bass line is cool as can be, and even though he's going for the old-school funk tone, it sounds like there's a big wet blanket over it. I don't feel that way across the board with any other brand.
Click to expand...

First of all, thanks. ^^

But if you didn't like any of the clips I posted, I guess we'll have to agree to disagree, because I, on the other hand, find them to be good examples of how nice an SR can sound ("Hot Pink of Blues" gets me every time, really). Different strokes and all that... ;)

Out of curiosity, what basses do you consider your reference regarding that "it-factor"?
 

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