mcnach Posted May 21, 2016 Share Posted May 21, 2016 Well, I've had it for a couple of weeks now but I've been busy, which also means I have had a chance to use it beyond the initial 'wow' period. Still wow. What a bass! I can't believe these things go for such -comparatively- low price. I see it often compared to a Stingray, and it's obvious why... but I don't think it nails the Stingray sound. Is this a bad thing? Not at all... if it did I'd have no use for it as I already have a Stingray and a USA SUB Now, mine has been modified, so I don't know exactly how it sounded originally. Mine has a Bassculture pickup replacement (big polepieces like a MM pickup, set in rosewood instead of plastic, beautiful). I have the original pickup too but I'm not in a hurry to try it. The ash body has such beautiful grain that the transparent pickguard is very welcome... I also have the original black pickguard but again, not in a hurry to put it on. I saw it, and I had to have it... natural ash and maple, I'm a sucker for that combo... an I was curious about the ATK for some time. So... first impressions... this bass is heavy. It doesn't bother me, but it's heavier than my Stingray. I can use it for two hours in a row no problem, but I know some people would not find it comfortable. The neck is clearly modelled on a Stingray. It has a similar width, depth and profile. I use a Stingray most of the time and this one feels so similar... Sounds... well, I have to disclose now I'm using [b]Ernie Ball Cobalt Flatwounds[/b] here. The strings it came with were not to my liking and had been on for quite a while already. I had these flats to try so... I went for it. These flats are unlike any other flatwound string I've tried, and I've tried many. Basically, you get the smooth feel of flats, with a very nice tension (a bit lower than I'd expect for this gauge) with a nice bounce to them, and they sound very much like roundwounds after you had them for a couple of weeks or so and they lose the initial overly bright zing that I personally don't like. They have a great midrange presence, lovely definition on the lower notes, and as much brightness as you'd like... which you can tame with the onboard EQ to get a more standard flatwound sound, yet with a better definition than pretty much any flats I've tried. The lower notes are very well defined, tight, and you can get a very nice fat 'finger funk' type of sound with this bass and these strings. Slap? You can slap on flats and you may like the sound but it's... a particular sound. You can easily slap with these and most people won't even realise they're not roundwounds (assuming you are not after a really bright tone). This bass has a 3-band EQ. I am not sure if the centre detents correspond to 'flat' on this bass, but I find myself boosting bass a *tiny* fraction, and mids either at centre detent or cut a *tiny* fraction, like 1/6th of a turn or less. Treble I leave alone, or I cut a fair bit for a rounder sound. It sounds fat, with similar presence to a Stingray, maybe a bit more middy? It is heard with clarity in the band mix, but it's not 'in your face'. It does not sound like a Stingray to me... but it's definitely close, unlike most other basses that I hear people say 'Stingray-like' this one can actually get close. But if you want a Stingray sound, go get a Stingray, or a USA MM SUB. Even my dear old OLP that I modified with new pickup and electronics sounded a lot more like a Stingray than the ATK300. But, it is in the ballpark, close enough. If you just want a bass that sounds great and you like Stingrays but you don't need the specific sound... this should be on your list of basses to try. As long as you don't mind the weight. It feels much like a Stingray and it sounds like a Stingray that grew up in another country so it speaks with a distinct accent An accent that is perhaps more low-mids rich. With the particular pickup I am using, anyway. The bass has a 3-way switch. From what I can tell, the bottom position is the full humbucker with coils in parallel (Stingray like). That's my favourite position. It is fat yet refined. The middle position is just one of the coils... I can't recall which one. It doesn't sound all that different with this pickup/strings... you can hear it alone, but in the mix I doubt it'll come through. The top position is the full humbucker in series. That is a bit louder, fatter, and generally more aggressive. It is a good sound, but a little too much for my liking. My MM SUB has the pickup wired in series and it's a great punchy sound. This one is a bit muddier, but not a bad sound. It definitely has its uses. Switching between parallel and series can be a cool thing to have, as it can get you that extra ooomph at the flick of a switch. If you're in a three piece band and find you want to fill in the void left by a soloing guitarist, that can be a good way to do it, especially if using an overdrive, as the extra output would give you some extra dirt too from the pedal. I will mostly use in the parallel position, I think. I'd describe this as the bass for the person who is in love with Stingray and already owns one or two and wants a slightly different flavour. Or the bass for the person who wants something that has similar characteristics as a Stingray but doesn't have to have a Stingray necessarily, and enjoys a slightly different look. I love it. What a beast. I'll take pictures properly later, but here's one for starters. I have just moved and the first thing I took to the new house was... amp/cab and a bass. Get your priorities right 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkHeart Posted May 21, 2016 Share Posted May 21, 2016 Nice..I do like the ATK`s I picked up a mint ATK200 for a mere 120 notes a month ago, its the one with the triple pickup and Ive got so say its one of the most versitile basses Ive got, Ive strung mine with Fender flats basically cos I like the strings, heaviest bass Ive got though but theyre a very underrated bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machines Posted May 21, 2016 Share Posted May 21, 2016 Wow that was a long review ! My ATK200 I think is more versatile than a Stingray due to the coil switch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twincam Posted May 21, 2016 Share Posted May 21, 2016 Nice well built basses. Very large necks however. And i recently worked on one, It had some of the hardest fret material other than stainless I've worked with, don't know if there all like that but they certainly seem good quality basses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkHeart Posted May 21, 2016 Share Posted May 21, 2016 [quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1463839460' post='3054493'] Nice well built basses. Very large necks however. [/quote] Cant agree with you there, i suppose compared to the waiflike SR series they are but I dont find mine particularily large and this is coming from someone who cant get away with a P neck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted May 21, 2016 Author Share Posted May 21, 2016 [quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1463839460' post='3054493'] Nice well built basses. Very large necks however. [/quote] one person's 'large' is another's 'just right'. I can't stand Jazz basses because of their slim necks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twincam Posted May 22, 2016 Share Posted May 22, 2016 (edited) [quote name='DarkHeart' timestamp='1463842553' post='3054517'] Cant agree with you there, i suppose compared to the waiflike SR series they are but I dont find mine particularily large and this is coming from someone who cant get away with a P neck. [/quote] They are definitely bigger than a modern p bass neck. I would say the atk series is known for having chunky necks. Maybe the base 200 model is smaller but the 300 definitely has a fat neck lol. Edited May 22, 2016 by Twincam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamg67 Posted May 27, 2016 Share Posted May 27, 2016 Happy to read this, I'm picking up a 4 string triple-coil ATK-300 in a weeks time, it's a bit of a "can't afford a stringray" bass but still they seem like such a lot of bass for the money. I dunno if the SR basses put people off the other Ibanez ones or what, but my BTB 6 string is excellent and I reckon with that plus an ATK I'll have have a nice range. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted October 8, 2016 Author Share Posted October 8, 2016 Well... I just sold the ATK300. It sounded great, the neck was wonderful (I like big necks), it looked amazing... but it was a little heavy and big bodied and in the end it wasn't getting used so much. A very young guy came nervously to check it out and took it with him. I hope it gets the attention it deserves now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orangepeelneil Posted September 1, 2023 Share Posted September 1, 2023 I Picked up a 90s Korean made ATK300 recently on marketplace, always liked Kyuss bassist Scott Reader who used them in the 90s. Really impressed with this instrument and build quality. It needed a real good clean, new battery and strings and now it’s sounding and feeling very good. Massive bridge with through body stringing and a satin feel wide neck. It also came with a decent Levys orginal gigbag. Pickup, electronics/EQ and three way switching seem very versatile, I wonder if any other manufactures apart from Ibanez do this method with the dummy centre coil? I have a Stingray and P bass to compare and the Trad (single coil) and Attack (Humbucker) come pretty close to these with the versality of being on a single bass. As widely mentioned, these are heavy, but with a wide strap this doesn’t bother me much (so far) . If you see one of these in the used market I’d really give them a go, you may be surprised...if you can take the weight. Neil 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeftyJ Posted September 1, 2023 Share Posted September 1, 2023 1 hour ago, orangepeelneil said: Pickup, electronics/EQ and three way switching seem very versatile, I wonder if any other manufactures apart from Ibanez do this method with the dummy centre coil? Ernie Ball does. Most Music Man basses in recent years have pickups with a hidden dummy coil below the humbucker. On the regular Stingray there were no switching options, but the Sterling and Stingray 5 have always had a 3-way switch for series/single/parallel switching - and the current Stingray Special does too. I'm a big ATK fan, I've owned two 1996 ATK300's and one ATK305, all made in Japan, and they were great and incredibly solid (and heavy). By the way, your last picture with the controls explained is of an ATK200, which doesn't have the iconic triplecoil but instead uses a quadcoil humbucker with no singlecoil option and no phantom coil. I much prefer the triplecoil 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lfalex v1.1 Posted September 1, 2023 Share Posted September 1, 2023 Nice bass... That pickup and electronics package is ace. I have it in an EDC 715 (minus the mid control) I wouldn't call the mid position "bright", more like "accurate" - assuming the EQ is flat. Still, all 3 positions are eminently usable, perhaps even more so than on the Ray5 or Sterling - I'm not a fan of a single pickup in series, even if it is level-matched to the SC and parallel settings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottomfeed Posted September 1, 2023 Share Posted September 1, 2023 I've got a lot of love for ibanez ATK basses.. my 5 string is my most 'go to' bass, still.. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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