Ibanez SR500 Electric Bass User Reviews at zZounds

"The Ultimate Bass" submitted March 23, 2009

By a customer from sympatico.ca

Overall

Sound

Features

Ease of Use

Quality

Value

Manufacturer Support

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Active Musician, Rockin Outer

Music Style: Punk, Rediculously hard rock

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Sound: The sound of this bass is incredible. I used to play a gsr 400 and this sounds just like that but on a a$$ load of steroids!!! The poppy, solid, deep tone of this bass is absolutely unbeatable. The Bertolini pickups cannot be beat. The tone control knobs offer more control than you can imagine. You don't realize this untill you actually get to play it LOUD!! Feature: THE PICKUPS!!! Bertolini MK1's honestly cannot be beat. I'll be honest, I'd never heard of Bertolini before I bought this bass. I was EMG all the way. But honestly, these pickups are just unbelievable. They perfectly balance the deep low end, the crisp mids and the ear piercing highs. The 3 way EQ lets you control these with almost rediculous minutity. lol if you know what I mean. Ease of Use: It feels just like a gsr but somehow, feels completely different at the same time. The weight is average, as with the gsr but the quality of build is uncomparable. It's solid body and thin reliable neck are built to perfection and can't be beat by any brand. Again, the pickups make easy work of sounding good. The EQ knobs are CRAZY!! Quality: I've owned this guitar for 4 years and I play a lot of shows. (Punk and HARD HARD rock) There is absolutely NOTHING that has let me down. I do regularly tighten all the tuning pegs, bridges and pickups. This guitar is as tight as the day I bought it. It breaks in really well. I find that it is perfectly molded to my playing style without taking away from it's solid as a rock construction. Value: I've played $4000 basses and HONESTLY I like this bass the best out of everyone that I have played. If I won $10 million dollars tomorrow I wouldn't go buy one of those $4000 basses I would go buy an SR in every color. I know it's hard to believe, but TRUST ME. BUY THIS BASS!!! lol Manufacturer Support: As I said, I've had no problems with this bass at all. The Wow Factor: Just look at it. Overall: I will love this guitar untill either I die or it dies. I have no doubt I will buy at least 2 more of these before I'm done. I might try the 5 string.

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Ibanez SR500 Bass Customer Review submitted March 14, 2006

By a customer from EXECPC.COM

Overall

Sound

Musical Background: 40 YRS IN THE BUSINESS

Music Style: CLASSIC ROCK

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Sound: THIS BASS "LIVE" SOUNDS AS IF IT CAME DIRECT FROM YOUR FAVORITE CD. DEEP AND CONTROLABLE "EQ" RIGHT FROM YOUR POCKET PODS. IF YOU NEED A SOLO, JUST CRANK IT!! FABULOUS NECK - LOW AND DESIRABLE. I WON'T BE SEARCHING FOR ANOTHER BASS FOR QUITE A LONG TIME. t o m

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"SEXY!!!!" submitted November 24, 2004

Overall

Sound

Quality

Value

The Wow Factor

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Sound: The active pickups and the EQ controls give you unbelievable versatilty of tone.. The sustain is prodigious for such a light bass. Quality: Would give it a 10 but the finish (which I love aesthetically)probably won't stand up to the road. Normally this wouldn't bother me but it is so sexy when new. It needs a input jack as already the timber around the jack is starting to scuff. Value: Great value. Manufacturer Support: NA The Wow Factor: It's so sexy it sizzles. What a sensuous looking and sounding bass. Overall: This one is a keeper. I will probably pick up a 5 string bass in the next 12 months and I have no doubt it wil probably be an Ibanez

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"good, very good man!" submitted August 23, 2005

By a customer from msn.com

Overall

Sound

Features

Quality

Value

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: 4 years playing bass

Music Style: soft roc k

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Sound: the sound is great, the pickups are design to give you a wide range of sound. rock to jazz, it don't matter. Feature: the body design is great. And I also like that is light-weight. the only thing I wish if it came in a diffent color. Quality: Ibanez it's becoming to be the Honda of instruments. little at a time Ibanez it's proving itself to set and go above the standard. Value: I gave it an 8 because if you're like me,when it comes to buying instruments you can never pay ticket price. bargain dude bargain!!!!! I paid 500 bucks plus a free gig bag The Wow Factor: the young player always wants flashy and shinny. this bass it's for the guy who apreciates quality rather than the looks. Overall: overall this pruduct is the best for my budget, my personal taste, and and my ear.

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"Outstanding instrument overall. Active EQ allows the bassist a variety of tonal possibilities. Very playable, fast neck!" submitted March 24, 2010

By a customer from yahoo.com

Overall

Sound

Features

Ease of Use

Quality

Value

Manufacturer Support

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Active musician, Home recording original music

Music Style: Rock with an alternative, Jazz style of fusion.

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SPOTLIGHT REVIEW

VERIFIED BUYER

zZounds has verified that this customer bought this product from us.

Sound: This instrument produces a very distinguishable sound. Other musicians who use a variety of different basses have noticed this after playing my bass. I thought maybe it was just the Elixer strings that came on the bass out of the box, but I just put a set of Ernie Ball's on it and still it has a similar excellent sound. Very versitile to get whatever tone you desire once you get used to adjusting the active EQ. Sounds great playing live and I've had great results recording with this instrument due to the outstanding tonal versitility. Feature: Top quality hardware and electronics, especially for a bass in this middle price range. Ease of Use: Very playable, fast neck. I'm a rythym guitar player, lead singer, but I play bass on just a few numbers with a duo project, so this bass is perfect for me. I don't have really long fingers but can get around fine with the SR500. Quality: You can tell when you handle a well made instrument. Even though it's an overseas produced bass, it seems to be put together extremely well. I think Ibanez has really improved the over quality of it's guitars. (electric, acoustics as well). To compete in this market you can't continually make garbage and expect buyers to be satisfied. Well done Ibanez. Value: Definately worth the price. 5 piece neck, active electronics are often found on much more expensive instruments. Manufacturer Support: The first one I ordered had a serious neck issue. Even my experienced and super talented set-up guy (who's also a luthier)was not able to get the string level consistant and intonation correct. It would have required removing frets and heat blocking the neck. I was beyond the 30 day store warranty, so I had to contact Ibanez. It did take some persuasion and going up the ladder of the customer service dept. At first they expected me to pay for shipping, then I was worried they would just crank the truss rod and return the bass to me. After explaining the situation to the director of Ibanez's customer service dept. I received a new bass suprisingly fast at no further cost to me. Just got a lemon the first time. Happens sometime, I guess. The second one is excellent no issues. The Wow Factor: Very nice looking instrument. I like the natural finished mahogany body with the black chrome hardware. The "I want it factor" influenced me alot before I bought this beauty. This bass receives compliments for it's appearance whenever I play out with it. Overall: This one is a keeper. I go through alot of guitars (six strings). I won't be selling or trading this one. It's just an overall sweet bass. I noticed alot of complaints about the soft mahogany finish being easily damaged. This can be kept to a minimum if you handle with care. I've had mine for almost two years, played dozens of gigs, and it still looks near perfect. I really take extra good care of all my instruments and gear. If it were lost or stolen I would shop around to find a worthy replacement or just buy another SR500. I like everything about this bass and really can't think of any negatives.

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"This bass is hands down the bass for the beginner, intermediat, and profesional bassest. Its well worth the cost." submitted January 28, 2006

By a customer from hotmail.com

Overall

Sound

Features

Quality

Value

Manufacturer Support

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Active Musician

Music Style: jazz, christian rock, funk

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Sound: This bass has wonderfull sustain, but the tone is compermised slightly. deep rich tone or can be modified for a more grungy, muddy sound. Feature: bartollini mk-1 pickups make this bass fun to play with. The bass has volume, pick-up selector, bass, mid, and high. This makes tweeking with Eq easy and fun. Quality: My personal bass has been knocked around and played often, yet the usability of this insterment has never gone down. The finish is fantastic it allows for true tone and still protects the bass well. Value: The quality of the bass for the price is fantastic. I payed 700 for the bass, case, amp, strap, cord, and all. (i have a beringer 30w amp) Manufacturer Support: Although my bass is awesome the support by ibanez was poor. I ordered a case and it took more than a month to recieve it. The Wow Factor: This bass is lite, sleek, and fast. The croud always looks at this bass in awe. when i switch to my schector 5 string my shoulder hurts. that bass is 3-4 pounds heavier than my sr-500. the finish causes people to say to me, "that is a beautiful bass" Overall: I have no need to buy another four string bass. i have purchased a five string, but i have looked at numerous other basses and always go home and play my sr-500. nothing is quite like it.

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"I use the SR500 for recording with Sonar (I don't care much for keyboard bass sounds), and it performs well in this role. I'm a" submitted February 16, 2008

By a customer from yahoo.com

Overall

Sound

Features

Quality

Value

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Active Musician/Recording/Producing

Music Style: Rock/Folk/Etc.

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VERIFIED BUYER

zZounds has verified that this customer bought this product from us.

Sound: It sounds great for the price, with a variety of tones to choose from, due to the Bartolini pickups. The bass itself is light as a feather, and the action/feel of the neck is very good. Feature: No case or gig bag - one or the other would have been nice. It was set-up with Elixir strings, so a plus there. Ease of Use: Pretty easy, just play around with the knobs and you'll figure it out. Quality: Nice brown mahogany finish - it's a nice looking bass overall. Value: I paid $430 for a blemished SR500 - I can't see anything wrong with it, so I'm happy with the price I paid. Manufacturer Support: My first Ibanez purchase - so far so good - the SR500 is made in Korea. The Wow Factor: Depends what style you like - more of a modern look to this one. Overall: I'm happy with the quality and the price paid - and zzounds shipped it to me pretty quick, within 3 days.

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"The best for it's price." submitted February 10, 2006

By a customer from hotmail.com

Overall

Sound

Features

Quality

Value

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Active musician, sound engineer

Music Style: just about every genre

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Sound: The sound is great!For the money that you pay, the sound of this bass is incredible. Can get a punchy, strong sound or a mellow soft sound. Sounds incredible either live or in recordings. Feature: The best quality of this bass are it's eq knobs. You have control of the mids, highs, or lows, plus you can blend both pickups. Quality: The bass is built great. The only thing that I would change is the plug hole. The body is beautiful, but you must take care or of it increidably well. Value: For the price, the best bass out there; the best quality and the best sound. Manufacturer Support: I didn't buy my bass from the company;bought my bass in a local music store. I've had this bass for about 6 months and I haven't done any repairs. I really can't say anything bad about the company. The Wow Factor: the lightness and the smoothness is great. No other bass, for this price, looks as great. Overall: I will probably keep this one, but uprade to a 5 or 6 stringer in about a year. I will also stay with the same brand.

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"Music Man Sub or Ibanez SR500, That is the question..... Believe it or not, thinking SR500....." submitted December 30, 2004

Overall

Sound

Features

Quality

Value

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Active Musician, Recording Engineer

Music Style: Funk, Rock, Blues, Bluegrass, Jazz, Hip Hop

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Sound: This has a very punchy powerful sound. The Bartolini pickups give it a very articulate sound. You can turn down the treble and still get a huge punch from the bass. You can also get a very bright funk sound if you wish. I have played for about 3 hours now in the Music Shop and am deciding between the Musicman Sub or this. As much as I really want the Musicman, this seems to really be the better choice. It has the most tonal option of any bass I have looked at so far. I usually would not look at an Ibanez, but I happened upon this. I usually play Fender Guitars. I will say one thing, It has more punch than anything I have seen. I have actually tried Aural Exciters and compressors and such. This needs neither. Feature: The pickups are the main seller. They sound great. A neck and bridge with an adjustment for the between. It has the three band EQ which is either a cut or boost. The electronics are all bartolloni. I think that is the name.... Either way, they are incredible. It is the same company that makes pickups for the modulus basses. The wood is Mahagony and holds a tone very well. It is really hard to beat. The finish may not hold up as well as laquer, but it is a different animal. Quality: This is a high quality instrument. Do not let the name fool you. Value: This is better than most in its range. However, it will not hold resale very well. Manufacturer Support: I don't know. I tried to call them to ask questions, but have had no luck finding a number on their website. The Wow Factor: If I had money for both I would have this and the Musicman. But I may just get this over the Musicman. It is by far superior in punch. Overall: Great bass! Love the punch. It can sound like the lower strings of a Grand Piano. That is pretty much inconcievable for most basses. I love the warm punch and growl. It is also very fast. It is actually making me want to choose it over a beautiful Music Man. "Am I really saying this?"

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"Get One While You Can!!" submitted June 18, 2010

By a customer from comcast.net

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Sound

Features

Ease of Use

Quality

Value

Manufacturer Support

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Active Musician

Music Style: Rock and Roll!!!

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VERIFIED BUYER

zZounds has verified that this customer bought this product from us.

Sound: This is one of the most versatile sounding basses I have ever played!! After playing expensive Spector basses for many years I find that this peice is a perfect replacement at a very reasonable price!! Feature: You name it! the active bertolinis and 3 band eq are a super plus!! Ease of Use: Very easy to just plug and play!! Quality: I biught the blemished madel and can't find a mark on it!! Value: I cannot believe how far Ibanez has come with their quality and Sound!! Ill play these basses forever!! Manufacturer Support: I got online and found parts for this immediately!! Not that I needeed parts but I needed parts for my Hamer which Hamer could not supply me with, i.e. battery box,,,, the Ibanez uses the exact same one. With-in 5 mins I was ordering one from Ibanez!!

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