SumOne

It does look interesting, I'm tempted regardless of what pedal catagory it gets put into! I suppose it fits more in the realms of high-end EQ pedals like the Empress Para EQ, WMD Para EQ, Sine Effects Mega Para, Source Audio EQ2, Boss EQ 200, none of which have DI features or would generally be called Preamps. It seems to me that adding the LFP and HPF makes it something I'd want to use at the end of my signal chain though (whereas I might want an EQ without those features to go in in other signal chain places - to do things like adding mids feeding an overdrive) so I'd like it to also have DI features and not just by adding an adapter as I'd want it to have a separate XRL out with ground lift and a pre/post switch (e.g. to select what's sent depending if it's going to FOH or FRFR speakers) as well as a separate output to the Amp. That must be what a lot of customers want as lots of combined EQ/Preamp pedals incorporate it, the trouble is that none of them seem quite as good on the EQ and HPF/LPF front as the Genzler though so it is currently sitting in my Thomann shopping basket - it's payday after all! ....I haven't clicked 'buy' yet though, the main competition for me is coming from the Fishman Platinum Pro. Edit: I've gone for the Fishman. It looks like it's got a decent EQ, and HPF, and LPF of sorts with the 'brilliance' control which is +/- 7db at 5kHz and it has the notch filter. If it was all about the EQ and HPF/LPF I might have gone for the Genzler, but the Fishman has loads of useful additional features too: DI (XLR with pre/post, ground lift), phase, FX loop, Tuner/mute footswitch, Compressor, Boost (with footswitch), takes batteries (that last 30hrs). I'm hoping it'll be a decent EQ pedal up there with the best of them but also a decent DI, and a useful tuner and compressor for times when I can just throw it in a bag to take to band practice to cover all the main things without even needing a power supply.

I've been trying to get a Diamond Bass Compressor Jr for quite a while now.....guess I might have to wait a lot longer.

Nice one, yeah the Bass Direct XJ 4.6kg weight puts me off a bit (and the £1,799 asking price). GuitarGuitar have second hand XJ and XP (each £1,699) so I think I'll ask if they can get both into one shop for me to try at some point....I do need to sell a Bass first to afford it though so probably shouldn't get ahead of myself. Their XJ is the lightweight version (well - relatively I assume! they don't say the actual weight) so is probably the front runner for me: https://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/product/px211130377695006--xotic-xj-1t-5-lite-pre-owned

Xotic Basses - what are y'all saying?! I played an Xotic XP 5 a while ago (the one pictured below, at the Bass Gallery) and it's given me a dangerous case of GAS. Really nice tones that are consistent across all strings, comfortable to play, very low action with no fret buzz. I expect the XJ is just as good so will make an effort to try one of them too. Anyone here own/owned one and have anything positive/negative to say about them? Anything in particular to look out for with them second hand? As far as I can tell the disadvantages seem to be the price (not quite up there with very high-end Basses, but they are about £2,500 new and usually about £1,700 second hand) and they are quite heavy: this one looks a good deal at £1,449 but is 10lb 12oz / 4.8kg and even the 'lightweight' versions are a not particularaly lightweight 9lb 7oz/4.2kg (considering I had a Sandberg TM5 SL that was 3.3kg).

Yeah, I'd probably be better off selling the Bass and using that plus upgrade money on a new Bass. I do quite like the idea of slightly modifying it to have a small degree of customisation and to slightly better fit what I want from it though (even if it is just the equivilant of adding a bodywork kit and lowering a car - not really making it any better for anyone else and actually limitiing it's resale, interesting to do though and makes it feel more personal). Actually, thinking about it a bit more I reckon the ultralight tuners would be a waste of money as the Bass is well balanced and reasonably light and has the smaller Fender tuners anyway so the weight saving would small, the active preamp might be good but it's probably not doing much that a Preamp/EQ pedal wouldn't do without any fitting hassle. I think new pickups could potentially make a worthwhile difference - but how much difference (and if it's a difference I actually like) I'm not so sure.

I'm eying up a few upgrades for my US Standard Jazz Bass V: Pickups - DiMarzio ultra Jazz. Preamp - A John East J retro. Tuners - Hipshot ultralight. But it's about £400 of upgrades on £900 worth of Bass and probably doesn't increase its value by much so I'm not sure it's worthwhile in resale terms. Perhaps worth it for me keeping the Bass long term though. Or Preamp/EQ Pedals are an easy alternative.

My list would be: Accessibility/workflow: I wasn't keen on the hands-on (& foot-on) accessibility and getting used to the preset and snapshot programming mindset. Sounds: Mid-range individual pedals usually sound better (and have better hands-on editing and their individual footswitches) and I don't often use more than about 5 different pedal types so having them as individual pedals is a better option for me. Digital: A nagging issue for me is that Helix things startup like a Laptop or phone. That reminder of it being software with potential for bugs, needing to plug into a Laptop for firmware updates, planned obsolescence and a slight feeling of 'is it going to start up properly when I really need it to' meant I never really jelled with it (in the same way as being quite excited when getting a new Phone or Laptop, but the honeymoon period wears off fairly quickly and there's no attachment to them once they become outdated). I'm not against digital pedals in terms of sound - I like them when they are like the EBS dPhaser, adding a usb socket often adds a world of frustration though.

I'd like to try the Ibanez ergonomic headless multiscale Basses. My last few Basses have all been Jazz types so it might be an interesting diversion. And I think Source Audio might be releasing an updated version of the C4 synth pedal with more hardware controls. If that's not a ridiculous price then I'll be keen.

Donstrumental with 5x Robbie Shakespeare Basslines

Reasons I've owned multi-fx including Helix Stomp, Stomp XL, Effects, and various Zoom pedals: They seem cost-effective, sensible, convenient. Reasons I no longer own any multi-fx: Most of the best things in life don't tend to be cost-effective, sensible or convenient!

I am tempted to get a Fishman as a single 'all in one' (well, all the most important things) easily transported option for band practice - especially as it can be battery powered. I know things like Zoom multi fx also do that but having tried a few they never quite do it for me for sounds and accessibility (and don't have things like XLR out and fx loop). For various reasons Helix don't ever do it for me beyond the honeymoon period either (having owned the Stomp, Stomp XL, Effects) mostly due to workflow/accessability.

I find the whole argument of 'why get an expensive Bass' a bit like saying 'why get an expensive watch....my £30 Casio tells the time more accurately than a £10k 1960's Rolex' , or 'my £500 sofa does the same job as a £5k sofa' etc. Even if more expensive Basses aren't technically any better than cheaper ones (but generally they are) there is more to it than just 'getting the job done' for the cheapest amount - after all, we're not talking about if it's worth spending a lot on something purely practical like a shovel, a Bass is something that hangs on the wall in your house, that you're seen with on stage, that you play for 1000s of hours potentially for many years, and it holds it's value so even if there's only a marginal improvement (even just aesthetically) I'd consider it worthwhile to spend more (within what I can afford).

Possibly endoresment £ ?

Edit: Repeating myself!

I'm in two minds. I've had a Dingwall Combustion and an Ibanez SRMS805 and neither quite did it for me, partly because plucking through the strings vertically you end up getting relatively closer to the bridge on the higher strings and it's quite annoying to adjust playing style for that. But any normal scale Bass I've had has felt like the B is a bit 'separate' feeling/sounding to the other strings so I'm keen to get a Bass that solves that. Perhaps a higher-end and better setup normal scale bass will do it, or perhaps another try of multiscale.

I like the idea of multiscales, especially for a 5 string: Lower strings (especially the B) tend to sound and feel more even if they are longer than the higher strings, so in theory they solve that issue. But on the other hand it seems plenty of 34" scale 5 strings have good B strings if using the correct string guage and have a good setup and the Bass is made well, likewise for other scale lengths. So perhaps that's a better solution rather than going multiscale. Is multiscale a great development in Bass design and playability or a marketing solution to a problem that doesn't exist to sell more new Basses?

I've pretty much only ever had good experiences with BD. But that's mostly going to the shop to part-exchange Basses where twice they have given as good a deal as I could have expected with a private sale (and quite a lot more generous than any other Bass shop). Also, hassle free experience trying out Basses. And a couple of small postal things (strap and strings) have been all good. The one thing they let themselves down on is that I was almost certain I'd buy a specific MTD but when trying it there via headphones plugged into in a couple of different amps and a headphone amp I could always hear quite loud electrical interference noises that changed pitch as I moved the MTD controls. (tip: always test with headphones as well as cab, the noise wasn't noticeable out of a cab but you'd certainly notice it when recording or headphone practice). I said perhaps it's because it's battery is running low, the assistant just said 'yeah, could be' and walked off....not really giving the impression he gave half a $hit or that anyone would ever check or try to fix it (and the shop only had me and one other customer in, it wasn't busy). Given no offer of a solution I left the shop empty handed. So it's not like they insulted me or ripped me off or anything, just a bit of a shame when a small amount of extra customer service effort could've sold me a Bass.

Yeah - my mistake, the TMB 4 strings are 19mm, the 5 string is 18mm.

They seem to have moved away from the tight string spacing a bit, which for me is a good thing. I think it's just the SR series with 16.5mm spacing now. They have BTB and TMB series 5 strings with 19mm spacing that are not multiscale. Also the EHB have non multiscale versions with 18mm spacing.

That's a useful review thanks, I've been eying up the Ibanez EHB range and I'll definitely try before I buy in-case of QC issues rather than chancing it with a delivery. Luckily most of those things you pointed out are minor screw tightening type things but the dead spots and fret height are more serious so I'll be sure to check for them. The balance with the bottom of the Bass sitting up is a really good observation too - it's the something that might be difficult to notice just having a fairly quick test in a shop or sitting down but long-term it's the sort of thing that gets annoying and affects playability but very rarely gets mentioned in reviews. I find there is an optimal weight for a Bass (about 3.5kg for me) where any lighter than that they can tend to slide around the leg when sitting down or bounce about/lift up when standing up and doing things like slap/pop so the good balance needs to account for more than just not having neck-dive.

I'll give them a try some time, they do look good. On paper it seems like the EHB1505MS are string lengths that I'd want for the B (35"), E (approx 34.5"), A (approx 34"), but I''ve never had a 34" scale bass and thought 'I wish the D and G strings were a bit shorter' either in terms of erganomics for the width between frets or in order to change the tone or tension (likewise regarding the BTB805MS, I've never had a 35" scale Bass and thought 'I wish the A and D strings were longer'). I should give them a go though - perhaps these are things I should have been wishing for!

I like the fact Ibanez are now going for some wider string spacing on their 5's with 18mm on a few of them (ideally I'd like 19mm but can live with 18mm). I had an SRMS805 that was 16.5mm which was too tight for me, it's a good Bass though so I still keep my eye out for new Ibanez Basses. One from 2022 that caught my eye is the BTB805MS 35"- 37" multiscale, neck-thru, 3 band EQ with 3x mid freq points, T1 pickups, MR5HS mono-rail bridge, burl top, £1,059. I imagine it's reasonably light too. One reservation I have is that there's a 35" G and slightly more than 35" D string and I guess about 36" A string, aren't they all optimal being more like 34"?.....it possibly means it has a good string length for the B & E but not optimal for the others. I like the very modern seeming idea of the Ibanez headless multiscale's but 2022 range doesn't really to bring anything new to the table so it's the 2021 EHB1505MS that I'd go for. I'd like to try one vs the BTB, the big differences being headless and that it's 33" - 35". I've never had a 34" scale Bass and thought I wish the D and G strings were a shorter though (wither for tone or erganomics) I'm not sure that's optimal either. For multiscales it seems to me like the more extreme fanning of the Dingwall (34" - 37") is optimal. So I'm not sure, I'm intreagued but I think for me Ibanez have had a good shot on the goal but have hit the post.

Nice, I thought it might need double-ball end strings. And yeah - that's similar to the wall hanger I have so it's handy that works. No sooner have I got a nice vintage type Bass (passive Fender Jazz V with quite a punky/road worn look) and I'm eying up the opposite end of the spectrum with modern, bright coloured, active, headless, multiscale Basses! I'm a bit gutted this year's version doesn't have the T1 pickups (it's the odd one out - they are on the EHB6 and all of the BTB multiscales) and the only colour option is brown.

I like the look and sound of that - if going modern then might as well go all in with active, multiscale, and headless! Have you found any unexpected negatives with headless? I'm guessing limited string choice is the big thing, and not being able to hang on the wall, anything else?