Ibanez BTB685 Terra Firma Electric Bass, 5-String

No longer available at zZounds
The BTB685 Terra Firma is a sustain machine, thanks to the extra mass and extended neck-to-body contact area provided by its unique single-cutaway design.

What's special about this item?

Feature: What it does:
5-piece maple/bubinga neck Smooth feel; increased midrange bite
EQB-IIIS 3-band EQ A power boost with a midrange switch
Mono-Rail II bridge Perfect tuning stability and resonance
Bartolini BH1 pickups Tight, focused tone with a huge depth

If you're looking for that new bass tool to enrich your creative palette, The Ibanez Bass Workshop may have built your next instrument. This new product group focuses on combining unusual concepts with the bass-building virtuosity on which Ibanez has built its reputation.

"Endless sustain" may be the most overused catch-phrase in the bass business, but curb the cynicism: The BTB Terra Firma (BTB685MSC) gets you as close to that physically impossible objective as you're ever going to get without electronic gimmickry. But sustain is only half the story.

A longer 35" scale ensures plenty of tension on those 5th strings. Thru-neck design, Bartolini BH1 pickups, and the unique approach of the Mono-Rail II bridge--which isolates each string as if it had its own separate mini-bridge--come together to deliver sonic richness throughout the instrument's frequency range. The Ibanez EQIIIS 3-band EQ with mid-frequency switching, ensures you'll easily find the tonal sweet-spot you need in any given musical situation.

Features:

- 5 piece maple/bubinga neck
- Rosewood top/Ash wing body
- Maple fingerboard
- Bartolini BH1 Pickups

- Neck: BTB5 5pc Maple/Bubinga neck-thru
- Body: Rosewood top/Ash wing body
- Fingerboard: Maple
- Inlays: Abalone dot inlay
- Nut: BLACK TUSQ XL nut
- Frets: Medium frets
- Neck Pickup: Bartolini BH1
- Bridge Pickup: Bartolini BH1
- EQ: EQB-IIIS 3-band eq w/Mid frequency switch
- Bridge: Mono-rail II bridge
- Hardware Color: Cosmo black

For support or warranty questions, please contact the manufacturer:
Phone: 800-669-8262
Web: https://www.ibanez.com/usa/support/

Reviewers gave this product an overall rating of 5 out of 5 stars. (2 ratings)
Submitted January 7, 2016 by Joe S in Atlanta Georgia area., GA

"Solid Bass, Excellent Quality, Unbelievable Sustain"

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
Verified Customer zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
I expected this bass to play, sound and look great. It exceeded all my expectations and I now consider it among the best musical instrument purchases I've ever made. The BTB685MSC is a delight to play; my only disappointment is when I need to put it back in its case.

Sound
This bass has been tuned as B-E-A-D-G. With the original factory-installed strings (Elixir), the sound and playability are both excellent. The touch is silky smooth with a deep, rich bass on B-string. I've adjusted the active tone controls with 50% boost on bass, flat on mid-range and 25% cut on treble. It provides a perfect tone for my finger-style method of playing. With it's wider string-to-string spacing, it's easy to control and play well (i.e., compared to other 5-string basses with closer string spacing).

Features
The Bartolini pickups match this bass and its factory installed strings perfectly. There's a wide range of tone adjustment to fit nearly any style of playing with very little unwanted noise. With all settings set flat (at the indent), the bass may sound a bit "bright", which is easily adjusted by boosting bass and cutting the treble.

Ease of Use
I thought this bass would be noticeably heavy (or too heavy). However, it's so well balanced (no neck dive) that overall weight wasn't a problem for me. Since natural materials are used in construction, weight of these basses can vary somewhat (perhaps +/-8 read more oz between different units). Mine weighed 10 lb 1 oz, which seems to be a typical mid-range weight for BTB685MSC. I've played lighter 5-strings having noticeable neck-dive that actually feel heavier after gigging for 60 minutes. The need to constantly prop-up the neck of a lighter (but less balanced) bass can make them feel heavier. The neck of this bass is well-balanced and I found it very easy to play. The bass arrived with nearly perfect setup (low action with no string buzz). The only adjustment it needed was very slight change of intonation on D and G strings.

Quality
I've owned a previous Ibanez BTB bass that was perhaps 4.5/5.0 with its quality of construction. The earlier bass had sharp edges on frets and some rough areas on the neck. This experience made me somewhat hesitant to purchase another, but I really liked the design concept of this instrument. The BTB685MSC is designed to satisfy the needs of a bass-playing enthusiast. Unlike my previous experience with the BTB basses, there were no quality issues at all with the BTB685MSC. I expect this bass will play reliably for a long time. Ibanez quality with this Indonesian instrument seems to be much improved from 2 years ago.

Value
The normal selling price of the Ibanez BTB685MSC represents excellent value compared to other instruments of this same quality. I obtained a comparative price-match from Zzounds after providing information that another supplier offered a lower price. I'm quite pleased with this instrument as well as lowest pricing obtained from Zzounds.

Manufacturer Support
I haven't needed any factory service with this instrument. I visited the company's web site to lookup the "playing weight" of the instrument, but couldn't find it posted (shipping weight that's posted isn't really useful to a performing musician). Although omission of this important weight information seemed odd, it didn't prevent me from ordering the instrument. I knew from my prior experience with Zzounds that the bass could be returned if it was unsuitable for any reason.

The Wow Factor
The instrument has instant visual appeal and its unique neck-through design makes it a standout. I've received many compliments about the well-crafted appearance of the bass. But this is more than a "trophy bass" for me - it's the best-sounding and most playable bass I own, which has helped to elevate my playing ability to a new level. I plan to keep this instrument for a long time.

Musical Background:
I've played and performed on bass over 30 years. I consider myself a semi-professional enthusiast.

Musical Style:
My playing interests include soft rock, smooth jazz, new country, classical orchestra and worship.
read less
11 of 11 people (100%) people found this review helpful. Did you?
Thanks for your opinion!