Quin

Thanks a lot! I saw that catalog too but unfortunately it has no proper date either :/. U did help me out here! Ill post some pics when I'm back home, but don't expect too much from it... someone abused it quite a bit before me, no pickups or electronics and crack in the body wood... welp i had been looking for one for a year and snagged it for €250 like that

Bassists of the internet,

I'm struggling to date my kawai f2b and I know I'm not the only one. It has two serial numbers, one on the headstock and one under the neck pickup in the wood. One starts with 80, the other 78. The kawai website says they were sold from 1985 onwards but someone told me he bought his in japan in 1981. Does anyone have any clue when they actually started making them? Or else, can owners of any Kawai 80s models tell me their serial number so I can make a list and perhaps decode that? 
I'd love to see if there is a knowledgeable soul out there with wisdom to share,

Have a great day all

Update:

I just went and bought the Ibanez, tested it out there for a while and really like it so far, ill send some pics when im back home

I also just want to say, I'm genuinely surprised by all you kind strangers. I made a thread once before and every time so many people spend their time to help out someone else and i appreciate that a lot

25 minutes ago, Misdee said:

Well,two (or three, if you are now including the Alembic) classic 1980s basses to choose between, all of which have a lot going for them.

 

I must admit to having a preference for the Ibanez; the Musician Bass was one of the basses I most coveted back in the late '70s/ early '80s when they first came out. Sting had one, as did Colin Moulding. Funnily enough, I remember John Taylor from Duran Duran recounting how he had wanted an Ibanez Musician Bass the same as Sting had but couldn't afford one and so bought an Aria SB because it was similarly modern but a bit more affordable.

 

I bought a brand new MC 924 in about 1984 and I remember being so happy I couldn't sleep. I used to get up in the night just to look at it.  Wonderful sound, proper Japanese build quality, quite hefty  weight but most basses were in those days.

  

Aria SB1000 is a classic too, albeit with a very different vibe to the Ibanez. Usually pretty heavy, great sounds available and a very fast neck. Can be prone to the strings whizzing off the edge of the fingerboard due to the way the nut is cut in relation to the narrow neck dimensions. Also, the pickups have been known to become defective over time and are not easily replaced.

 

As for the Alembic, it was a "budget" model at the time, but  as with any Alembic, it was still a pretty big budget. I've played a couple of Spoilers and they were  lush, played effortlessly and had the authentic Alembic tone ect. 32 inch scale so easy to get around on.

 

All great choices. I still love the Ibanez, but don't let my prefences prejudice you. If you can get to play and compare them then that would be the best guide.

. 

Fun story! If that about John Taylor is true, thats pretty funny as I didn't know they were priced much differently. The Mc900 im interested in is for sale for 650£. Is that a good price? also if you don't mind me asking, how much did the mc924 cost new? I have only found one old japanese catalog but its in yen, and I'm curious about the price here in europe

coincidentally, i have been keeping my eye out for the kawais for two years now. I wanted one as my first bass when one was available close to me but thought it was maybe a bit much then... now they havent popped up here for a while (netherlands :p)

(the spoiler i mentioned is in good condition by the way, not any apparant marks)

Thanks for the responses! change of topic might sound a little weird, but I want one of theses as a kind of poor mans alembic. i know they dont really sound the same but i have a washburn eagle and a westone thunder iii from the same time and i like the japanese 80s quite a bit so far. But I do have a possibility to buy an Alembic Spoiler from 1988, but it would cost me around 2600€. I know prices for alembics have gone up but is this worth it? it does have a nice mahogany/flamed maple top

Hey,

maybe a hopeless attempt but I'm really curious about the difference between the old Ibanez musician basses like the MC900 and the Aria SB1000. Does anyone have an experience with one or hopefully both? Is either better than the other in your opinion? I can't decide which one I want to get, as I know they are both great basses. I hope someone can help me out

ill attach pictures of both basses

3 hours ago, neilp said:

Interesting the things people pick on with instruments. I'm an unapologetic Aria fan - I have a pair of SB100s, fretted and fretless and I love them dearly, but I also have a fretless Wal, a P bass and a Jazz bass. It would be difficult to imagine a more diverse collection of nut widths, bridge spacing and neck profiles, but in reality it makes no difference at all. I swap between them all regularly and within a second or two I'm fully acclimatised. I'm not a believer in "I must have THIS nut width and THAT fingerboard radius". Play the bass that makes the noise you need. And by the way, you missed a great bass in that SB700. No comparison with the Westone, a different league

Well, there is an Sb elite I for sale now for 580£, how does the Sb elite I compare to the sb-700? i might just go with that then

One last question, how much of a price difference is there between the Thunder II and III? as it is pretty much the same model. I guess 580£ is still overpriced for a thunder III isnt it?

ironically enough, i was finally convinced to go for the aria, but it's just been sold when i looked it up again... it was for sale for weeks without anything happening so the timing is a bit disappointing.. well, I am starting to doubt going for the westone seeing that it looks a little overpriced, i might be better of waiting for something else. thanks anyway for all your advice kind people

5 minutes ago, Grimalkin said:

 

The SB-R60 single pickup Aria I had, had its own sound, quite middley, but I couldn't describe it as that versatile. Then again, I think the P pickup on the Westone, is a little far forward than you might like, if you're going for '80s definition. I'd be a lot happier if that front pickup was moved back by an inch. Ideally, you need to play them. Are you dead-set on an '80s bass? Older is not always better.

I'd like one, but it's not completely necessary. I just want something unique and those matsumoku basses just appeal to me. I can try my best to play them both, maybe It will clear things up a bit. Thanks

29 minutes ago, Skybone said:

If it were me, I'd go for the Westone, more for the rarity, and the fact that I always wanted one after watching Henry Thomas using one on "Rock School" on BBC2.

 

As much as I love the Aria SB basses, the Westone wins this one. Although it will probably be a bit heavier than the Aria.

I've seen that too, and I really like the sound he gets out of it too. plus, I like the little snowflakes on the fretboard and ebony :p, I wish I could just get both

4 minutes ago, Grimalkin said:

Those two basses are going to sound very different. What kind of sound are you after?

Well, one thing i do find important is that the bass doesnt really get drowned out by the guitar, I play with a little band sometimes but we really play a lot of different genres so that would be hard to say. A big benefit for the westone is that i could switch it active or passive and between pickups etc. But i grew up listening to duran duran because of my dad and John Taylor used an SB700 on the first album, and I do like that bass tone a lot. I'm just slightly scared that the aria is not as flexible as I want it to be

sorry I forgot to mention that I'm dutch, so it was in euro. If im not mistaken 700 euro is like 590 pounds and 500 euro is 420 pounds. Ill add some pics of the basses to avoid any confusion because there are way too many diferent thunder II's haha. and yeah I am really tempted to get the Aria but I have no suitable case and can only use public transport because I'm still a student. Both of them are in a surprisinly good condition too. Im really surprised by all the comments so thank you all :)) 

thanks for the advise, and yeah. I know they are on the heavy heavy side but thats not too much of a problem for me. and yes I reckon there are plenty of better basses but i dont know, i just like the idea of old matsumoku instruments. I have an old washburn raven guitar too and I really want a bass of around the same age I guess. Ill take some time to think, thanks again!

But isnt it a benefit of older basses (around 80s) that when u buy them second hand they only appreciate in value generally speaking? 

Hey,

I dont really know where to put this but I need some advice. I have to choose between a Westone Thunder II bass (the early version with PJ style pickups and neck through, wood finish) or an Aria Pro II Sb-700. They westone would cost me 700 (with original case) and the Aria 500 (without case). Which one gives me the most bass for the money? I cant choose both :/. Im leaning more towarde the westone for the diversity of its sound.

Thanks!!