petebassist Posted November 6, 2018 Share Posted November 6, 2018 Anyone bought one of these, I don't think they've been out long? There's a fretted and a fretless version too. I like the look and the sound, though I wish they had a thumb rest above the strings a bit like on the similar Cort B4 FL MHPZ, which has a Fishman Piezo and a Bartolini mag pickup instead of just the piezo on the Ibanez, I don't think you can order the Corts in the UK, only from Thomann. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sambrook Posted November 6, 2018 Share Posted November 6, 2018 I have the fretted 5 string, and it's a real grower. I liked it enough to buy it, obviously, but changed the strings--white nylons, E-C, and it's just got better and better and better. Goes from db to acoustic guitar convincingly, and a real solid presence. I've gigged it, with compliments on the sound, and it's really easy to play. Great neck, too. I'm a fan... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petebassist Posted November 6, 2018 Author Share Posted November 6, 2018 Thanks for the update @Sambrook, d'you miss having a thumb rest? i usually play with my thumb on the end of the neck to get a mellower tone and on the fretless I tried in the shop the action was too low for my heavy hands (I usually play upright). I thinking about putting my own thumb rest on, you can buy rosewood ones on eBay. And interesting about the strings, I was thinking about some labella tape wounds, as I mainly play jazz & rootsy stuff, will lookup yours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sambrook Posted November 6, 2018 Share Posted November 6, 2018 Don't think I've ever used a thumb rest, just the floating thumb thing. The strings are La Bella white nylons. Awesome strings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4000 Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 I didn't like the fretted but really liked the fretless. Unfortunately I find the body uncomfortable (just me, I find most things uncomfortable these days) otherwise I'd have bought one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petebassist Posted November 7, 2018 Author Share Posted November 7, 2018 @4000, hi mate, I've just bought the 4 string fretless today. TBH I preferred the top colour of the fretted, but I wanted the fretless tone so compromised on the aesthetics. I spent an hour trying it out, and took my KK Sound Pure Preamp to see what I could dial in, in addition to the built it tone control. I like the simplicity of the single volume and tone, and I got a really nice sound without my preamp from the piezo bridge pickup. It's gonna be my rehearsal/tiny gig instrument instead of the upright, so looking forward to trying it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petebassist Posted December 23, 2018 Author Share Posted December 23, 2018 Plugged my SRH500 Fretless into GarageBand last night and recorded some tracks to see what kind of tone I could record. Here're a couple, with the out-of-the-box 60s Combo GarageBand amp and 60s shuffle drums, and the bass and mids turned up, and a bit of drive to try to fatten up the tone on the So What track, but clean on the EveryBody Wants To Be A Cat jazz standard. Still stock strings at the moment, which I'm enjoying, so I'll leave on for the time being then I'll probably try some tape wounds. https://soundcloud.com/james-bllonde/fretless-bass-line-so-what https://soundcloud.com/james-bllonde/everybodywannabeacat I'm just using this as a rehearsal instrument at the moment, so I don't have to drag my double bass along, so I made a couple of adjustments to slightly raise the action to take off some of the mwwahh that it had originally, which sounds great but not exactly what I need right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storky Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 1 hour ago, petebassist said: Plugged my SRH500 Fretless into GarageBand last night and recorded some tracks to see what kind of tone I could record. Here're a couple, with the out-of-the-box 60s Combo GarageBand amp and 60s shuffle drums, and the bass and mids turned up, and a bit of drive to try to fatten up the tone on the So What track, but clean on the EveryBody Wants To Be A Cat jazz standard. Still stock strings at the moment, which I'm enjoying, so I'll leave on for the time being then I'll probably try some tape wounds. https://soundcloud.com/james-bllonde/fretless-bass-line-so-what https://soundcloud.com/james-bllonde/everybodywannabeacat I'm just using this as a rehearsal instrument at the moment, so I don't have to drag my double bass along, so I made a couple of adjustments to slightly raise the action to take off some of the mwwahh that it had originally, which sounds great but not exactly what I need right now. Very nice tone. Ive got the 5 string fretted, but don’t get as good a tone as that! I like the bass; I find it light and comfortable but the sound is a little nasal. I’ve changed the strings to la Ballas as have others and it is better, but I’m still not totally happy with the sound 😏 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obrienp Posted March 17, 2020 Share Posted March 17, 2020 On 23/12/2018 at 22:10, Storky said: Very nice tone. Ive got the 5 string fretted, but don’t get as good a tone as that! I like the bass; I find it light and comfortable but the sound is a little nasal. I’ve changed the strings to la Ballas as have others and it is better, but I’m still not totally happy with the sound 😏 Just reviving this thread as I stumbled on it by accident. I have had a 4 string fretted version since they were first released in the UK and I love it. It's light, ergonomic and easy to play. However, the point of this post: the drawback of all piezo based pickup systems in my experience is that they can produce a tizzy, brittle tone at some frequencies: nasal is another way of describing it. I haven't particularly noticed it on the SRH500 to be honest (nothing like as bad as my Taylor 6 string acoustic) but you can make it sound really good by using an acoustic correction pedal like a TC Electronic Bodyrez, or even better a Zoom acoustic pedal like the AC-2, which has a dedicated upright bass voice. Using the AC-2 and some EQ tweaking, I can get a really convincing upright bass sound. Like they say on the BBC: other acoustic pre-amps are available. Obviously, it would sound even more authentic if it were fretless but I am happy with the sound I can get out of it. Incidentally this works pretty well on my Ibanez Affirma bass, which also has the aerosilk piezo pickup system in the bridge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storky Posted March 17, 2020 Share Posted March 17, 2020 56 minutes ago, Obrienp said: Just reviving this thread as I stumbled on it by accident. I have had a 4 string fretted version since they were first released in the UK and I love it. It's light, ergonomic and easy to play. However, the point of this post: the drawback of all piezo based pickup systems in my experience is that they can produce a tizzy, brittle tone at some frequencies: nasal is another way of describing it. I haven't particularly noticed it on the SRH500 to be honest (nothing like as bad as my Taylor 6 string acoustic) but you can make it sound really good by using an acoustic correction pedal like a TC Electronic Bodyrez, or even better a Zoom acoustic pedal like the AC-2, which has a dedicated upright bass voice. Using the AC-2 and some EQ tweaking, I can get a really convincing upright bass sound. Like they say on the BBC: other acoustic pre-amps are available. Obviously, it would sound even more authentic if it were fretless but I am happy with the sound I can get out of it. Incidentally this works pretty well on my Ibanez Affirma bass, which also has the aerosilk piezo pickup system in the bridge. Interesting about the preamp. I reluctantly sold my 5 string fretted in the end. I do miss it though. I could be tempted by the fretless if I could get a convincing DB tone. i replaced it with a fretless Spector core which is definitely less nasal, but the piezo doesn’t work with nylon strings or even Labellas, so can’t get the sound I want from that either (although it does sound good). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lunatique Posted March 18, 2020 Share Posted March 18, 2020 I have the SRH500F and I love it. It's basically like an affordable Rob Allen, and I'm thankful it exists, otherwise I'd be GASing so hard for a Rob Allen (that isn't to say I don't--but it's well controlled when I have the Ibanez alternative). I love how thin and fast the neck is, how light the bass is, and how simple the controls are. In terms of playability, it's probably my favorite among all my basses. The flatwound strings that came with it are a bit muffled for my taste, so I put La Bella Black Nylon tapewound strings on it, and it sounds more articulate and agile. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grahambythesea Posted March 20, 2020 Share Posted March 20, 2020 I think a more versatile alternative is the Spector Spectorcore. Same type of semi hollow body with a single F hole, Fishman Piezo bridge, but with bonus of a single magnetic pickup (EMG on my model, newer ones have a Bartolini). Excellent build quality- Korean made. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lunatique Posted March 20, 2020 Share Posted March 20, 2020 6 minutes ago, Grahambythesea said: I think a more versatile alternative is the Spector Spectorcore. Same type of semi hollow body with a single F hole, Fishman Piezo bridge, but with bonus of a single magnetic pickup (EMG on my model, newer ones have a Bartolini). Excellent build quality- Korean made. In terms of sound, this has much more in common with the NS Design Radius line of products than the Ibanez SRH series, as it doesn't really try to go for that upright-ish sound at all, while the SRH series is more like a copy of Rob Allen's basses. I guess the choice is down to whether someone wants a more acoustic-bass-ish sound or a more upright sound. I have never come across any bass that can do both. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Blank Posted June 18, 2020 Share Posted June 18, 2020 (edited) I think I’m buying one of these, the SRH500 but only because I can’t get the five string (SRH505) which I think has been discontinued? Anything anyone can tell me about these, good or bad, would be much appreciated. Edited June 18, 2020 by Frank Blank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrixn1 Posted June 18, 2020 Share Posted June 18, 2020 35 minutes ago, Frank Blank said: I can’t get the five string (SRH505) which I think has been discontinued? Did you see there is currently one on reverb - https://reverb.com/item/33975682-ibanez-srh505-semi-hollow-5-string-active-bass-guitar-in-dragon-eye-burst-flat 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Blank Posted June 18, 2020 Share Posted June 18, 2020 11 minutes ago, jrixn1 said: Did you see there is currently one on reverb - https://reverb.com/item/33975682-ibanez-srh505-semi-hollow-5-string-active-bass-guitar-in-dragon-eye-burst-flat Bloody hell I hadn’t, I’ve never used Reverb before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Blank Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 19 hours ago, jrixn1 said: Did you see there is currently one on reverb - https://reverb.com/item/33975682-ibanez-srh505-semi-hollow-5-string-active-bass-guitar-in-dragon-eye-burst-flat Just bought the four string from Andertons. If I like it I might see if the five string is still on Reverb. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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