LeftyJ

This is me with my Longbow (I'm the big guy on the left): I once noticed one of these on eBay a few years ago and wanted one badly but didn't buy it because I feared it would just be a gimmick. After that, Longbow went out of business for a couple of years and they became impossible to find. I then found the one on the right secondhand and bought it immediately. It is the standard model (righthanded, 30") but because of the strap button placement I had some balance issues with it when playing it upside down. All of a sudden, in October 2009, they popped up again on eBay in offers by Longbow themselves, so I sold it to the other guy in the pic and ordered a proper lefty (and 32" scale this time). Longbow is/was a small American company that makes these of a single quare piece of solid figured maple. They're very well-made and have some interesting features. The pickups, for example, are custom-made stacked humbuckers and the ABM Mueller monorail bridge parts are recessed into the body with 'string-through-body' stringing . Mine has the regular pickup placement, but they were also available with 'EB pickup placement', with the pickups in the famous Gibson mudbucker-position for an even deeper tone. The sound is somewhere between an upright tone and the tone of a fretless Precision, and very dynamic. These came stock with flatwounds, and they're still on mine. They don't come with a gigbag, but they fit into a rifle bag perfectly so that's what I'm using. You should see the look on peoples faces when I walk by with it . It was even more fun when I still had long hair and a long black coat.

[quote name='Bassassin' post='815239' date='Apr 22 2010, 06:32 PM']Yes - they do. I've currently got a 1981 Ibanez Musician guitar I'm restoring, and it's missing a lot of its original parts - 4x Sure-Grip 1s, Gibraltar bridge, Quik-Change tailpiece, brass trc and Velve-Tune tuners.[/quote] Are you sure that's a Musician you're describing here? Other than the 8-string MC980, there were no Musicians with separate bridge and tailpiece and I don't think there has ever been any Musician with more than 3 Sure Grip knobs. The EQ knobs have always been smaller plastic knobs without the rubber. EDIT: Oh wait, completely missed the word [b]guitar[/b] there Nevermind. Carry on as you were

[size=4][b]Please note this was written from a lefty point of view - as I originally wrote it for the leftybassist.com-forum. Most basics are also relevant for righties looking for an old Musician and wanting to know more though, so I thought it would fit here quite nicely. Besides a review, this also sums up a brief history of the Musician series to better understand the differences between the various models that have been around. It does not cover the full evolution of the MC-series though, it stops where Ibanez ceased production of lefthanded versions.[/b][/size] I know it may seem odd to review a bass that's more than 25 years old and hasn't been produced since. But I also know there are many lefties out there who are looking for these and who may be eager to try them out, so I thought it might be a good idea to discuss these basses here, and the difference between the two versions of the MC924L that have been available. Owning both versions, I can easily compare them. [size=4][b]History and specs[/b][/size] When the Musician series were introduced, together with the Studio and Roadster range, they were the absolute top of the bill in the Ibanez arsenal. The first Musician basses featured sandwich bodies, and all Musician basses had laminated through-body necks mounted at an angle. There were both active and passive versions. The first run (of 1978) included the 22 fret MC800 and MC900. The jack was mounted on the face of the body rather than on the side, as on later models, and was a notorious weak spot as the wood surrounding the jack was fairly thin. Many MC800's and MC900's found on eBay show cracks in the wood around the jack. The MC800 was a passive version with just one Super 4 singlecoil positioned close to the bridge, with a rosewood fingerboard. The MC900 was an active two-pickup model with an ebony fingerboard. Both had a 5-piece maple/walnut neck through body and mahogany body wings with ash facings, and were available in both a natural finish and a Dark Stain finish. In late 1979 Ibanez switched to 24 fret models with deeper cutaways, which shared most of the specs of the 800 and 900. The single pickup model was discontinued and replaced by the MC824, a twin-pickup passive model with a rosewood fingerboard. The MC900 was replaced by the MC924, and the preamp was modified slightly and now also featured a preamp gain pot to cut and boost the overall EQ level. This feature was discontinued again in late 1982. An 8-string MC980 (that was discontinued shortly after) and a fretless MC940 based on the MC924 were also introduced. An MC940 can easily be distinguished from a defretted MC924 by its position markers on the face of the fingerboard. On the MC924 there are large dots positioned on the middle of the fingerboard, whereas on the MC940 there are small dots positioned near the edge on the treble side of the fingerboard. [b]The MC924 was also produced lefthanded, and some lefty MC940's are known to exist.[/b] In 1982, Ibanez abandoned the sandwiched bodies and switched to solid ash body wings. Bodies were more ergonomically sculpted, the hardware was replaced and the bridge was placed slightly further backwards, enabling a tighter neck joint at the 17th fret instead of the 18th. The headstock was also shortened slightly, creating a more compact and ergonomic instrument. The neck was also a fraction thinner and narrower. The Super 4 pickups were replaced by the new Super P5S splitcoil and Super J5S singlecoil on the MC924 and MC940. A single-pickup model MC824 was reintroduced too, with passive electronics and a quadracoil Super J6 humbucker that was switchable between series, parallel and (humcancelling) singlecoil modes. The preamp gain control was abandoned, and the pickup selector switch was replaced by a balance pot. Also introduced were two new colours besides the Dark Stain finish that had been available on the previous models: Polar White and Metallic Black. [b]The MC924 was produced lefthanded, but according to catalogs only in the Dark Stain finish. Peter McCulloch (pjmuck) once linked to a website of [url="http://d1058730.i105.quadrahosting.com.au/shop/product_info.php?cPath=23&products_id=1280&Global-Vintage=l4g58g216h8hi5686tuqk32is0"][u][color=#0000BF]an Australian store who had a Polar White MC924L in stock[/color][/u][/url] though, but this is probably very rare.[/b] In its 1982 appearance, the MC series evolved further and went through various hardware and electronics changes (2-band EQ, two J6 humbuckers). Sleeker versions of the MC were also introduced, before finally evolving into a shape very similar to the Soundgear series, which was introduced in 1987. I won't discuss these later versions here, as no lefthanded versions of these are known to exist. Therefore I don't think they're of interest here. [size=4][b]My Musicians[/b][/size] The basses I own both are MC924L's, one made in 1981 and one made in 1983. The 1983 already has the newer preamp without the preamp gain pot and with a balance pot. Both are finished in the wellknown Dark Stain finish. In the picture below, the 1981 is positioned to the right and the 1983 to the left. The 1981 is completely stock except for the thumbrest that was added by the previous (first) owner, and is in near-perfect condition. The 1983 has been modified (I won't use the word 'upgraded' here) with gold Schaller tuners replacing the original chrome Ibanez VelveTune II tuners, and the body is well-worn with several battle scars, but the finish on the neck is still perfect. They look very similar, but the differences discussed in the above indeed produce two very distinctively different instruments. Whereas the 1981 is quite heavy, the 1983 is a true lightweight. Their range of tones is also very different, and ergonomically the 1983 is indeed a more comfortable instrument. I will get into this more closely further on. I acquired both basses for about 400 euros each but I think I have been very lucky. I've seen these sell for around 800 euros in perfect condition. The 1981 came in its original case and even with the original 1981 invoice, and had been stored in its case in the attic for over 15 years. The electronics suffered a little, and both the pickup selector switch and active/passive-switch required replacing. Luckily I could find a pickup selector switch that fitted the brown plastic tip of the original switch! The 1983 came without a case, and the electronics needed some work too. The active/passive-switch had a loose wire, and the bass pot had been turned up so far that it wouldn't rotate back anymore, and the entire pot itself had turned along, and all wires had been ripped off their solder joints. This was easily solved by taking the pot apart and cleaning it, and resoldering the joints. [size=4][b]Playability and sounds[/b][/size] As described above, both basses are distinctively different beasts. The 1981 is a rather long and heavy instrument, smaller players may find it harder to reach the lowest positions on the fingerboard. Being 2 metres tall and having fairly large hands, I personally don't have any trouble with the instrument but I can see how smaller players may find this bass fairly intimidating. The 1983 is more comfortable and easy to play thanks to the reduced weight of the sculpted ash body and the overall slightly more compact construction of the bass, as can be seen in the picture above. The 1981 already is a great player with a fantastic neck, but being dimensioned fairly similar to a Precision neck, it may not be for everyone. The neck of the 1983 feels just slightly narrower and thinner at the nut. I haven't measured them or looked up the neck dimensions in old catalogs, but will do so, as just the words 'narrower' and 'thinner' aren't exactly very specific. In terms of tone, the differences are very large. Both basses produce a wide range of tones, the 1981 being a bit more limited in its tonal options due to the lack of a balance pot. The pickup positioning and type of pickups chosen are different on these two basses, which adds further to the tonal differences created by the different body woods and neck dimensions. The 1981, with its Super 4 singlecoils with large MM-like exposed pole pieces, sounds bright and articulate. The neck pickup soloed sounds big and woody but retains a lot of definition and clarity with plenty of mids. The bridge pickup soloed sounds fairly weak and thin, but adding some bass on the onboard EQ beefens up the tone for a nice Jaco-like growl. The middle switch position produces great tones for both fingerstyle, pickstyle and slap. The preamp is remarkably natural-sounding and adds almost no colour to the tone when the bass is switched from passive to active, and the EQ is very effective. The preamp gain pot is very clever, and has a center indent. In the center position there is absolutely no increase or decrease in volume when switching from active to passive. The gain pot enables you to setup an EQ preset, and boost and cut the overall level so you can switch between two different tones. The overall tone is harmonically richer in active mode though, so I rarely play it in passive mode. The 1983, with its PJ-style pickups, produces a more balanced tone and is more versatile than the 1981. The neck pickup soloed indeed sounds very similar to a Precision Bass, and is remarkably quiet. The tone is a bit tighter and more refined than that of a real Precision though. The bridge pickup soloed, being placed very close to the bridge, again sounds a bit thin and weak. It's warmer than the bridge pickup of the 1981 though. It's not nearly as quiet as the neck pickup, a constant hum is audible when you're not playing. In the inbetween positions of the balance pot this hum is still clearly audible, but quieter than the bridge pickup soloed. [size=4][b]Conclusion[/b][/size] Both basses are great and very refined instruments, and I've quickly grown attached to both of them. The electronics on both basses are brilliant and work great. These basses can easily withstand or even surpass comparison with some high end basses produced today. The 1983 is the more comfortable player of the two and the more versatile working horse. Personally I feel the tone of the 1983 doesn't really distinguish it from its competitors though. Therefore I prefer the 1981, which has a more distinct tone all of its own. I hope this review has been informative and has provided a greater insight in the MC series and the available (lefthanded) versions for aspiring MC owners. These basses are fairly rare, presumably fewer than 350 lefthanded Musicians have been produced. I don't know how many of each version of the MC924 were produced, nor do I know how many MC940's exist and how many basses have been finished in anything other than the Dark Stain finish, but I presume these are very rare as no Ibanez catalog makes mention of them. They definitely are out there though! [size=4][b]If anyone has additional questions about these basses or would like to share their own opinions and experiences with these instruments, please feel free to fire them[/b][/size]

[b]This review was originally written for the leftybassist.com-forum, but I thought it would fit here quite nicely too. So enjoy[/b] [b]Specs, fit and finish[/b] In proper 1975 fashion, this Japanese version has a 3-bolt neck joint with a nice, tight neck pocket and a (heavy) ash body. I cannot tell how many pieces, the glue joints are invisible through the black finish. The neck is a gloss-finished all-maple (one piece, no separate fingerboard, and a walnut skunkstripe) with white plastic bindings and white pearloid block inlays and the period-correct bullet-trussrod. The inlays are very nicely done, there's almost no filler used to cover up gaps. The electronics consist of Fender USA 70's Jazz Bass singlecoils that do their job very well, I've never felt the need to replace them. Unlike the American and Mexican '75 reissues, the bridge pickup is not in the 70's position. Which is odd, because Fender Japan also makes the almost identical Geddy Lee and Marcus Miller Jazz Bass which do have the proper 70's pickup placement. The pots could have been better, their sweep isn't very subtle. The bridge is of the standard bent steel plate type, and the tuners look historically correct but are unbranded. They do a fine job, are accurate and stabile. I changed the tuner of the E-string for a Hipshot BT-2 D-tuner, and the other tuners for the Hipshot HB-2. Not because I thought they needed to be changed, but I could get them cheap off the same eBay-seller I got the BT-2 from with combined shipping. The bridge had an annoying rattle in one of the saddles I couldn't get rid of, so I changed it for a Leo Quan BadAss II. The JB75-US is offered in black, vintage white, old candy apple red, old lake placid blue, 3-tone sunburst and off-white blonde, with both a maple and rosewood fingerboard. The pickguard color varies with the color of the body (and in some finishes also with the fingerboard wood). I got mine secondhand, the serial number starts with an R which dates it to 2004-2005. I suspect the previous owner changed the stock white 3-ply pickguard for a black 3-ply. It also had the screwholes for the bridge and pickup cover predrilled, so the previous owner has probably had those on it. The covers don't come stock on the standard JB75-US, only on the JB75-US/FC (alder body, rosewood fingerboard, matching headstock). I got a new pickup cover for the bass because I think it looks very classy, and it doesn't bother my playing. [b]Sounds[/b] Due to the 60's bridge pickup placing, this bass isn't as punchy and bright as its 1975 example. With the original bridge, it even sounded fairly warm. Slightly turning back the volume of the neck pickup can get you pretty close though. Changing the bridge to a BadAss II did a lot for the tone. The sustain increased greatly, the lows are tighter and beefier and overall the tone has brightened up a lot. I highly recommend this upgrade! Again, the stock pots could have been better. Their sweep is somewhat abrupt, especially on the volume pots. They act a bit as on/off-switches. Therefore, to obtain greater versatility and accuracy, I'd recommend changing them out for better pots. Strangely enough the tone pot does a fine job though. [b]Conclusion[/b] These basses can be had new for about $1300 excluding shipping (and import duties and VAT) from Japan. Personally I would never pay that kind of money for this bass, you can get a new American Standard Jazz Bass for a similar price. Still, this is a very well-constructed and well-finished bass that plays and sounds great. It benefits greatly from some subtle upgrades (bridge, pots) but is well worth that. It's not 100% historically accurate (bridge pickup placing) so if you're really after that 70's tone and vibe this may not fully get you there. The Jaguar Bass might be a worthy alternative, this is available lefthanded too and does have the 70's bridge pickup placing. I got my JB75-US secondhand for about $700 on eBay and to me it was well worth the money. It has quickly become my favourite bass and it suits any style of music I like to play. Some pics from the eBay auction of the bass in the state I got it in (click for larger version): [url="http://s45.photobucket.com/albums/f74/de_slager/Fender%20MIJ%2075%20Jazz/?action=view&current=831c_1.jpg"][/url] [url="http://s45.photobucket.com/albums/f74/de_slager/Fender%20MIJ%2075%20Jazz/?action=view&current=87b0_1.jpg"][/url] [url="http://s45.photobucket.com/albums/f74/de_slager/Fender%20MIJ%2075%20Jazz/?action=view&current=8869_1.jpg"][/url] Some pics of the bass in its current state: [url="http://s45.photobucket.com/albums/f74/de_slager/Fender%20MIJ%2075%20Jazz/?action=view&current=DSC02791.jpg"][/url] [url="http://s45.photobucket.com/albums/f74/de_slager/Fender%20MIJ%2075%20Jazz/?action=view&current=DSC02789.jpg"][/url] [url="http://s45.photobucket.com/albums/f74/de_slager/Fender%20MIJ%2075%20Jazz/?action=view&current=DSC02786.jpg"][/url] [url="http://s45.photobucket.com/albums/f74/de_slager/Fender%20MIJ%2075%20Jazz/?action=view&current=DSC02785.jpg"][/url] [b]If anyone has any additional questions about the bass that I haven't covered in the above, please feel free to ask anything you want and I'll be happy to answer .[/b]

[quote name='lanark' post='782405' date='Mar 22 2010, 11:07 AM']You don't get left-handed violins, or flutes or pianos or saxophones or accordians[/quote] Wrong You just need to look harder.

*drools at the Silhouette 20th anniversary*

[quote name='Duarte' post='782320' date='Mar 22 2010, 02:31 AM']They're also doing 'Classic' Sterlings. [url="http://www.ernieball.com/forums/music-man-basses/42125-classic-sterling-torture-abuse-humor.html"]http://www.ernieball.com/forums/music-man-...buse-humor.html[/url][/quote] LOL, that's actually quite funny. Like a reissue of a bass that never existed before

A good number of my basses that I play regularly are considered 'cheap' but offer a lot of value for money and are excellent playing and sounding instruments. My ATK's, my Italia Torino, my Cort Artisan B4. Had it been available lefthanded, I would love to own a Squier VM Precision TB (the Telecaster Bass version, with the big Wide Range humbucker in the neck position)! I'm also strangely attracted to SX, they have some very interesting looking instruments in their range.

LOL By the way, you may be interested to hear there's a lefty JB75-US (black, maple board, white pickguard) for trade on www.zikinf.com as we speak. The seller doesn't want to ship internationally though, and is nog interested in selling it (trade only). I'm not sure what he's after, he's hard to reach and difficult to talk to. I asked him if he was willing to ship internationally, and he responded he prefers not to because of the high shipping costs and duties. When I emailed him there's no import duties within the European Community and I was well willing to pay the full shipping costs, he didn't reply anymore so I gave up. Maybe you have more luck! Pickups were changed to Fender Vintage Noiseless (not my taste), it has a D-tuner on the E-string (original tuner included) and comes with the original gigbag. [url="http://www.zikinf.com/annonces/dispannonce.php?annonce=525165"]http://www.zikinf.com/annonces/dispannonce...?annonce=525165[/url] (sorry for the hijack)

Be sure to do so! It is a great opportunity to meet other lefties and to get your hands on some very elusive and rare lefthanded instruments. Some highlights were two Alembic 5-strings, a Wal mk.2 fretless, some vintage Fenders, Arni's Hamer Chapparal 12-string, my Rickenbacker 4003 and a couple of very nice German boutique basses.

I'm not from the UK, so I won't be able to be there I did attend Arni's Lefty Bass Day at CMS Musik in Duisburg though, and had great fun meeting other lefties (mostly from Germany, but also some other Dutchies and a Danish guy) and playing eachothers instruments. I will try to be there again when he organises the second Lefty Bass Day in September

[quote name='throwoff' post='778422' date='Mar 18 2010, 12:23 PM']My God man! Is that your's? We need to organise a lefty bass bash. And you need to bring that![/quote] No, I wish This is owned by a guy who calls himself Psycho Ward on leftybassist.com. He has the most outrageous collection of lefty EBMM's I have ever seen, including two unique one-offs that were built especially for him. This Sterling is one of them, its preamp had to be handsoldered by the chief designer Dudley Gimpel, because they're made to fit the cavity. I don't understand why the preamp of the HS has to be different from the preamp in the HB, as I always thought the only thing that's different is the pickup selector switch. But apparently there's more to it than meets the eye He was able to get it because he is a close friend of Sterling Ball.

I love the Dargie Delight! I just wish they'd finally start offering the twin-pickup versions of the Stingray and Sterling lefthanded. Currently, there's only ONE lefty twin-pickup (or actually triple-pickup, there's another SC hidden underneath the pickguard) EBMM bass other than the Bongo in existance. This custom and very expensive Sterling HS Dargie Delight (that's not for sale):

I love your Stingray! I'd get a black 3-ply pickguard for it, but otherwise it looks beautiful!

[quote name='rasher80' post='777007' date='Mar 17 2010, 10:09 AM']I'd suggest getting a 75 Jazz, they are highly sought after and are made to a fantastic standard. Plus, they never ever come up for sale (should tell you something about them!) so if you didn't like it, i'm sure someone would have your hand off for it :brow:[/quote] I agree! They're great basses. Could do with better pots and a better bridge, but other than that, they're fantastic. I wrote a review about mine a little while ago: [url="http://www.leftybassist.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=1439"]http://www.leftybassist.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=1439[/url] That Jazz Bass pictured above by rasher80 is the JB75-US/FC, aside from the specs already mentioned it also has an alder body instead of ash, making it slightly lighter and it sounds somewhat warmer. That version is only offered with a rosewood fingerboard though. Personally I would go for the Ocean Turquoise Metallic

How about a Fender HMV bridge instead? It may not be a direct drop-in replacement in terms of mounting screw placement, I'm not sure on that. But it's a nice, solid bridge that accommodates stringing both through-body and through-bridge. And reasonably affordable too.

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='776730' date='Mar 16 2010, 10:34 PM']His shadow on the ground could be a '70s porn star.[/quote]

This thread needs an update 1981 Ibanez MC924L 1983 Ibanez MC924L Both MC924L's 2003 EBMM Stingray 5 (Autumn Redburst Sparkle)

[quote name='throwoff' post='775014' date='Mar 15 2010, 11:44 AM']I was just about to say this is one of those threads I hate being a lefty for but thats quite pretty.[/quote] There are several nice lefty hollowbodies out there. The Eastwood Classic 4 and the Ibanez AGB200 for example. They're both in the same price range as my Italia, and all three are very nice and well-made, easy to play and great-sounding basses, especially the Eastwood. There's a nice review by Ed Friedland on Youtube.