Baloney Balderdash

It would probably be the way to go if I was doing a lot of chordal stuff involving the low D and G string, but with how low tuned they are I figure the chordal stuff I'll do will mainly be centered around the last high 4 strings C-F-A#-D#, as I expect to use those four strings a lot as I kind of would the 4 lowest strings of a guitar (this just being 4 half steps bellow regular E standard guitar tuning), with the low D and G mainly being the "bass" area strings. I did consider tuning the bass D-G-C-F-A-D though, exactly like a guitar tuned in D standard tuning, just an octave bellow, but after some pondering I ended up deciding that D-G-F-A#-D# would likely make most sense practically with how I was going to use the bass, so I have ordered the strings accommodating that tuning with proper tension, using the D'Addario String Tension Pro online string tension calculator app. Damn changing the strings is going to be expensive, especially since I have to buy individual strings with this tuning I plan to use, and because I prefer balanced tension strings for bass (something I actually have begun doing anyway for all my basses, cause there are not many truly balanced tension string set options out there, and I prefer my string tension to be as uniform as possible. I feel for guitar it matters less, or even is desirable, but for bass I feel balanced tension makes most sense). Also kind of wonder if I should maybe have ordered a proper looper pedal to go with it, as I think that would pair well with a 6 string bass, instead of the 49 key midi keyboard with weighted keys (so they will feel more like proper piano keys, instead of wet dough to play on) I ordered. Think that'll be the next musical equipment I need to order then (thinking of getting the EHX 720 Stereo Looper or perhaps the new 1440 one).

This absolutely astonishing beautiful song :

Volunteers (by Jefferson Airplane)

Think you have misunderstood something, I am tuning it to D standard tuning (D - G - C - F - A# - D#), not A standard tuning, as in 2 half steps bellow regular 4 string E standard tuning, which would be 3 half steps higher than regular 6 string B standard tuning, and there's no open A at all in D standard tuning on a 6 string bass, also I have ordered the right gauge individual strings to accommodate they will have proper tension, so no. And the reason would be that I am mainly going to use it for more melodically based work, with no need of going as low as the low B. Also, yeah, Ibanez makes some amazing quality instruments for the money, even my 4 and 5 string Mikro Basses are great instruments, as good as perfect fretwork and all from stock, even if belonging to Ibanez's entry budget line of instruments that would be the line just bellow the one the Ibanez SR306EB belongs to, so this ought to be a step up in terms of quality. Will do an update once I have got it home, set up, and had a chance to try it out properly, though it'll likely not happen before towards the end of next week.

You could claim that being able to adjust the pickups and better upper fret access would be an advantage of the Ibanez over the Harley Benton, and judging from reviews and YouTube demos it sounds better too, to me at least, many mention the Harley Benton sounding boomy and muddy, whereas there seem to be a lot of praise of the pickups in the Ibanez, finally to me the Ibanez also looks much much better. The only disadvantages of the Ibanez over the Harley Benton, from what I can see and to me personally, would be the fact that you can't run it in passive mode from stock, as you mention, which though would just be a matter of always making sure the battery is fresh and keep an extra one, just in case (there's easy access to the battery compartment at least), and that it has slightly wider string spacing, though to some that would actually be an advantage, well and then the price obviously. Hard to tell for certain though, when I haven't actually personally played any of the two basses in question. In any case I have already ordered the Ibanez, so no turning back, unless I return it again, but if it works as it is supposed to and live up to the impression I got from the reviews I've read and the YouTube demos I watched featuring it that won't happen.

Final update (now with audio sample) : Original post : Just got my yearly revenue of streaming/playback money from my music production and it excelled all expectation, almost thought that it might had been a mistake. I am not complaining though. So I decided to use most of the money on musical gear, among that a 6 string bass, which is the Ibanez SR306EB in the weathered black finish. This is going to be my first 6 string bass, and I am really looking forward to get it. I am going to tune it in D standard tuning though (D - G - C - F - A# - D#), as in 2 half steps bellow regular E standard 4 string bass tuning, and I've ordered strings to accommodate that too. I'd imagine it will be very useful both for my progressive psychedlic stoner rock bass/vocal and drums duo that I have with a drummer friend of mine and for my drone/ambient solo project. Generally it gets really good reviews and the demos of it I have been able to find on YouTube sounds great too. Looks like this (Nyatoh body, 5 piece Maple/Walnut neck, 24 medium fret Jatoba fretboard, 54mm nut, 16.5mm string spacing) :

Well, that certainly got me reconsidering. Luckily my yearly revenue of streaming/playback money from my music production excels all expectations, just checked my bank account and got a minor shock of how much it was. Almost thought it might have been a mistake. Anyway that means that I can easily afford the Ibanez SR306EB, plus some other musical equipment I have been wanting for a long time, so I think I'd likely end up getting that Ibanez 6 string bass, in the weathered black finish with black hardware.

Don't use gorilla glue! Fill the hole with wood glue, then squeeze in as many wooden tooth sticks, matches, or similar thin wood sticks that will fit into the hole, as you can into the hole so they sit tight, break or cut them off at the surface of the hole and wipe off excess glue with a moist cloth, then screw the strap nut back in and let the glue dry (usually wood glue will take 24 hours to completely dry), this will with guarantee make the strap nut sit more securely in the bass than it even did before.

I Remember (by Low)

Another option is buying the Zoom B1 Four or G1 Four, and by staking 5 of the fully parametric equalizer models in a patch you get a 5 band fully parametric equalizer much much cheaper, and since it is just an EQ I wouldn't think there would really be much of a difference quality wise, at least not something you will be able to hear, not even with the bass soloed and specifically focusing on listening for differences. So if 5 EQ bands is enough for you and you don't need any of the other functions unique to the Source Audio I know what I would get, you could even program several 5 band parametric EQ patches with the Zoom and swap between them if you need different presets.

I consider getting the Harley Benton B-650 Progressive Series 6 string bass in black finish. Would be my first 6 string bass, though if I get it I will tune it in D standard tuning, as in the lowest string just being 2 half steps bellow regular E 4 string bass standard tuning. It gotten some great reviews and I like the fact that it got a more narrow fretboard than most other 6 string basses on the market (unless you go shortscale Fender Bass VI type instruments, but that is too narrow string spacing for my taste, and I actually want to go regular 34" scale too), with a just 51mm nut width and 16mm string spacing. Not too pretty though in my opinion, but honestly not something that really bothers me much :

Elevator to Hell :

Yes, exactly. The relation between scale length and a perceived tension (aka stiffness) is easy to understand intuitively though without much explanation, just think of a wooden stick laid out between two raised points (sort of like a simple bridge (not a string bridge but an actual bridge)), the longer the distance between the two points the stick rest on are the less force it will require to bend the stick on the middle (the less stiff it will be), which of course applies in reverse too, the closer the distance between the stick's two resting points are the harder it will be to bend (the stiffer it will be). In terms of strings on an instrument this translates to not only how easy a string will be to actually bend but also how much force is required to fret it, and just in general the overall perceived tension, which equals the actual physical stiffness, of the string (the two raised points here of course being respectively the nut and the bridge saddle, and the stick the string in question).

Honestly I like how it looks. Not that I would buy it though for that price, even if I had had that kind of money.

I have never been a big fan of basses and guitars with a blue finish, always though it looked kind a tacky and smarmy, but man I absolutely love that Midnight Blue finish. Absolutely gorgeous, might even prefer it to my otherwise number one favorite finish: matte black. I hope other companies will copy the Midnight Blue finish, cause the only Fenders I could imagine I'd ever might actually buy and own would be a Telecaster guitar, and that exact design might actually be one of the few I'd imagine that Midnight Blue wouldn't suit too well, and beside I'd love to own a bass in that finish, and that is definitely never going to happen with a Fender. And yes, definitely with black hardware and a very dark fingerboard.

I just played the bass again, still with the "baritone slide guitar" strings and tuning, through the ampless setup I made for my Ibanez Mikro bass, and just using the neck (really more like middle position) humbucker P like pickup (did some more research and it's not actual wound as a P, but like a full big soapbar humbucker (or slightly bigger actually), with 2 bar magnets, I think ceramic, though I can't find any information about it on the iinternet, on each side and the full length, just with the pole pieces setup like a P pickup), and it sounded absolutely amazingly awesome playing on the lowest string, tuned to C2 (3 half steps above the low A string on a four string bass tuned in E standard tuning), even if the strings on it is years old and already was used when they were installed and long gone completely dead. So think, at least in the first instance, will just ignore the bridge J like pickup, since the neck P like humbucker fits my tonal preferences so spot on perfectly, actually with some of the same qualities that I like with the DiMarzio Model P installed in my Mikro Bass, just much better, fuller, more articulated and defined (and mind this is with completely dead strings, unlike those on my Mikro), but about equally aggressive, and I think, though it is hard to judge with the strings being raised so insanely high, actually even higher output. I count on getting the D'Addario NYXL gauge .095 to .040 string set that I ordered with the mail service either Thursday or at latest Friday, if I am unlucky. Damn, really looking forward to be able to play it properly, can hardly wait. Seems Christmas will come early this year. These basses are absolutely astonishing quality for the totally ridiculously used prices they go for, and probably already was back when they were released for the price they asked from new. As said I might be biased since this was my very first bass ever, and main for about 10 years forward, but it beats the 3 1000$+ basses I've owned, admittedly with the exception of the Jerry Jones Longhorn, that one was a truly amazing bass too, and I regret much being stupid enough to sell it. I guess I should consider me lucky from way back having stepped on a jack plug that was plugged into my Aria Pro II, breaking a small hole in the thin layer of wood above the control cavity around the front mounted jack output socket, which naturally got ripped out as well in the process (miraculously no harm was done to the actual jack socket or the soldered on wiring), which I in usual impulsive haphazardly style fixed by super-gluing a cut out piece of a tobacco tin box lit and a piece from the lid of a plastic medicine glass together, and then after drilling a hole in the middle of this hack lo-tech patch, to be able to fit the jack socket in it, super-glued to the control cavity side of the hole, which I assumed would make the bass close to impossible to sell for an even remotely reasonable price, or else I by far most likely would have been stupid enough to part with that as well, and while my repair works absolutely perfectly, without any issues whatsoever, and even actually seems to be a quite resilient and sturdy solution (so far it has worked flawlessly for something like about 13 years or so), it isn't exactly pretty, to say the least, and is without doubt an absolutely haphazardly hack job, that just accidentally happened to turn out well as a workable lasting solution, despite the look of it and the unconventional hack job construction.

Was my first bass ever, and I just fell in love with it all over again. Rock solid quality. The neck is a 3 piece maple with the grain going the opposite direction in the center part, making it highly unlikely to ever warp or twist and extremely stable. Rosewood fretboard and ash body. Also sounds no short of awesome. One of the last Aria Pro II basses actually made in Japan, on the highly praised Matsumoku factory, before they moved the production to Korea. The used prices of these basses are absolutely ridiculously low compared to the quality you actually get.

I ordered a gauge .095 to .040 set of D'Addario NYXL strings, as I like low tension strings and a tone that leans towards the brighter end (even though they will still end up having more tension than the ones I use currently for my Mikro, but the longer scale length will help them not feel quite as stiff still), and as I was really impressed with the tone of the NYXL's I tried on my Mikro Bass, sort of a fuller, maybe with a bit more mids than usual XL strings, sort of more linear or in a way more hi-fi tone.

Well the Entwistle JBXN J pickup got screw pole pieces so if I go for that it should be possible, even if the pole distance turns out to be slightly different and doesn't fit the holes in the cover at least I will be able to raise the middle pole pieces according to the arc of the original pickup cover.

Found this doing a Google search on "Aria Pro II Replacement pickups" : https://www.rautiaguitars.net/aria-pro-ii.html The MM/MB-pickup seems promising and should fit perfectly in the bridge cavity.

My guess is that having the pickup rewound would end up costing more than buying a new one, but then again I never had this done, so I might be wrong in that assumption, also I would guess it would need a new magnet as well, as testing the magnetic pull on respectively the P like humbucker neck pickup and the bridge J like pickup in comparison the pole pieces on the J has a much weaker magnetic field. Finally I would rather want something that adds more snap and bite than something that tame down the humbucker neck, and as I said I don't really mind some space of the bridge pickup cavity eventual not being filled out completely by the new pickup at all. I appreciate your suggestion though. I didn't think of that, brilliant idea, thank you. That might actually turn out to be the best possible solution, if it is doable that is, haven't actually ever had the pickups out to have a look. Though the covers does have an arc, approximately following the fretboard radius, but I guess that technically will make no difference on whatever J pickup it might be possible to fit inside it anyway (except slightly limiting how close I can raise it towards the strings (the pole pieces of the stock bridge pickup, unlike the flushed pole pieces of the neck, are staggered and sticking out a bit)). In case this is actually possible I might consider either the Seymour Duncan STK-J2 Hot Stack Jazz Bass J pickup, or eventual, for a much cheaper solution, but one that seems to get a lot of praise on the internet, the Entwistle JBXN J pickup, utilizing neodymium magnets.

Thank you. Though personally I am not too fond of it's looks. I never really liked white basses, and don't quite understand why I chose to buy it back then, guess it was just the first and best used bass that fit my budget and felt nice to play, and frankly the metallic star stickers and green neon tape treatment that I, as an ironic statement ( ), added back when I was about 18 years old () doesn't exactly make it any better looking, to put it mildly. Add to that that time has not been too kind to the stickers and that it looks much worse than on that picture at the moment. But I can live with that, the way a bass plays, feels and sounds has always had way higher priority to me than looks, though if I ever pull myself together to do it I would love to strip off the paint and give it a matte black finish (I don't see that happening anytime soon though, if ever). However, before I install the new strings and set the bass up, as soon as I receive the strings I've ordered, I am going to give the body a good cleaning with a universal cleaning agent, water and a raspy sponge, and the fretboard with first a moist raspy sponge, and then a cloth with fretboard conditioner, cause it gathered a lot of dust and dirt since the picture in my OP was taken.

So as I wrote in another post last night I fell in love with my first bass ever and old main an Aria Pro II Laser Electric Classic last night. But while the neck/midle position pickup which is an about big soapbar size humbucker, I assume split coil reverse P like pickup judging from the pole pieces, has a quite high output, a nice fairly aggressive character and sounds amazing the bridge J type pickup sounds really weak, thin and anemic, so I am pondering on replacing it. However a regular J pickup won't fit into the cavity as the screw holes on this is at the ends of the length of the pickup, missing room for the screw hole ears on the side, though, except for missing the side screw hole ears, the cavity is slightly wider and longer than a regular J pickup cavity. To be exact the bridge pickup cavity is about 26.5mm (1.043") wide , 119mm (4.685") long, and the string spacing at the bridge pickup placement is about 16.5mm (0.65"). This as far as I have been able to conclude makes room for either a Tele bass type pickup, though the pole spacing of those will be way too close together for the actual string spacing of my bass at the bridge pickup cavity, or a Strat guitar pickup, which, to make sure it covers the strings, would have to be a blade style one, I have checked and the blade would typically be just about 60mm long, while the overall string span at the bridge pickup on my bass is just about 50mm (I don't actually care about some of the cavity being left not filled out by the pickup at all). So far having looked through Seymour Duncan and DiMarzio's offerings for blade Strat pickups, particularly judging from the DC Resistance/Output and tone profile information on the home pages, the DiMarzio DP182 Fast Track 2 blade humbucker Strat guitar pickup seems to be closest to the the kind of pickup I would be looking for, which is high output, pronounced mids and not too pronounced highs, but I am definitely open to other suggestions that'll fit those criteria and will fit the pickup cavity. So anyone got any suggestions to alternatives I should look into for this? Here's a pickture of the pickups in my Aria Pro II Laser Electric to give you a better idea :