steve-king

Hi all, I've been hanging around the forum since October, so I thought it was time to introduce myself. I'm a classic mid-life-crisis player - took up the bass at 37 and I'm now 40. You couldn't find my talent with a microscope, but finding that I could play a bit (just at home and occasionally in church) after 30 years of thinking that it was beyond me was an amazing feeling! I've played a borrowed Ibanez CT for the last year and a half, which replaced my eBay mistake - a Stagg that I should never have bought. It has been a great bass, but the owner is now back from south America and wants it back . I tried a Tanglewood Curbow 5, but couldn't get on with it, so replacing the CT will be a Ibanez K5 - an extra string to play with was too tempting! - obtained yesterday via this forum. Amplification at home is an Ashdown Perfect 10 - I've had it for a month and at £58 secondhand, I am very impressed. It can even handle the B string at practice voloumes. So, that is me. All that remains is to say a huge thank you to you all for your advice in response to various posts I have made over the last few months as I tried to choose the new bass. Thanks for your tolerance of stupid questions and your friendly advice! Regards, Steve

Without wanting to hijack this thread, is anyone able to explain the differences between the SR and SRX series of Ibanez five stringers? Do the SRX models have the SR5 neck? Can anyone help with a link to information on the weights (I had no luck on Ibanez' own site). Thanks, Steve (hopefully joining you in 5 string land very soon!)

Ibanez CT - borrowed from a friend who will want it back this month......so I'll just have to get an SR505!

I agree, I wasn't suggesting buying a Canyon III, it's just interesting that the reviewer said the I was a better buy than the II. [/quote] I love the look of the Canyon III, but there is no 5 string AFAIK. The II got the nod over the I because of the through neck which I like. What I really want is the SR505 body with a Canyon II through neck! Regards, Steve

Thanks all. I can't see weights for the Lakland or K5 on the net. Can anyone assist? A bad back makes weight a real issue - I play for fun, not pain! Any other suggestions? Regards, Steve

All, I am about to spend part of an inheritance from a much loved Nan on a bass. I did this with a hi-fi amp when her sister (my great aunt) died 10 years ago. I'll keep that amp forever. Now I can actually play an instrument (well, sort of!), buying a bass seemed the obvious thing to do with Nan's money. You can imagine that this bass would never willingly be sold! So what to buy? Light and five strings are both key. Probably £300-£500. New or secondhand. I've tried the Ibanez SR505 (very playable, well made, surprisingly light, nice shape and finish) and the Tanglewood Canyon II 5 string (small body, light, great sustain - though the example I tried had poor quality finish). I love them both for different reasons, but can only have one! I tried a Curbow, but for some reason it didn't feel right (though I thought it was idnetical to the Tanglewood?!) Any thoughts? Anything else I should try? Thanks in advance.... Steve

I was in Denmark Street last night trying the Canyon II 5 string. It is, of course, very light as a result of the body size. I think that the neck might droop with a smooth strap, but you should be ok with a suede one. The quality of the finish was disappointing - there was dust in the laquer giving a noticably rough feel to parts of the body. The sustain seemed to be really good to me (but I am a novice, so your mileage may vary!), and it was certainly easy to play - everything seemed to fall into place for me at any rate. As an engineer (albeit a civil engineer!) I like the through neck, and the neck/body join is well shaped. Hope that helps! Steve (BTW, I am about to start a thread asking for opinion on the Canyon vs the SR505 - perhaps some members might make comments there that help you)