Which Ibanez EHB?

[visog]

So team, the range has been out for a couple of years. Where have we landed on the best electronics, FF vs standard, and configuration 5 or 6? How are the new proprietary humbuckers doing vs. Barts or the Nordstrands? Opinions welcome... Currently focused on the (relatively) new EHB1006MS but happy to take other suggestions. 

[lemmywinks]

The BTB multiscale 6er has the T1 pickups as well so there's videos out there which all sound great. I wish they'd do the other 1000x series with them, I'd buy one for a spare then!

 

[Machines]

It depends what you want from it really, you can break the differences down to scale, pickups and cosmetics (as the EQ is the same on them all)

 

The multiscale one is not as 'big' as e.g. Dingwalls, and is a 35" at the B string. I had a 34" EBH1505 and the B was fine but probably wouldn't handle being drop tuned as well as the multiscale would.

 

Regarding the 1005 vs 1505, the latter more expensive one has 'better' Nordstrand pickups and a fancier finish with the burl top. Personal preference is the key point here - there are plenty of YouTube videos that can help, this is the best I found:

 

n.b. I sold my EHB1505 to go towards a Dingwall NG-2

 

 

Edited October 7, 2022 by Machines

[tauzero]

Mine's an ETB1265MS which had been fitted with Aguilar DCB pickups but has the original electronics. Judging by Youtube videos (not the ideal source), it's a good upgrade - certainly the bass has great clarity. The preamp is very good, I don't feel any need to replace it. I think it's the most attractive finish as well, which is nice.

[fretmeister]

I put the Aguilars in my shorty fan fret I used to have.

They were a big improvement on the stock Barts.

[Vin Venal]

I had the EHB1005SMS for a while and really liked it. While the bartolinis probably weren't the best choice, you could kinda make up for them with the excellent pre-amp, but I think in the long run I'd have been looking to put something with more clarity in there.

 

Everything else about the bass was spot on, especially the aesthetics - most comfortable easy bass I've played.

[lemmywinks]

For the price of a new Bart equipped bass (circa £800) you could get a used Nord version. A standard scale 1505 in the burst finish recently sold for £825 (seller was offering £800 to watchers though) and there's a 1505MS on there at the moment at £799 with no bids.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/234719734332?epid=3047087185&hash=item36a662ea3c:g:e6YAAOSwqqJjOujR&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAAoH8iK1sNYhF0xIUpAFqGg1LpqNPCDP3KWSu%2BuD81%2B0TjDplacn7WtJ%2FY0RMxvZ544yqlo9DLzS4WgZKNulCi4DpFLNw0CsaZ5LZseYVmiR%2B15jYou7cdV6fivwRomFpxAkr%2BuDjdujQLsDefi1%2BLsCCHm9s8bUm8Wsa3JWforTpyjj15odSC%2BbpF6ydHVpnJfnxudU%2BtHpeGMJZ6h6cQ3DM%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR96KmPL2YA

 

A few dings on there but the PLF colour is very easy to touch up with a blue Sharpie, made the little knocks on mine disappear in a few seconds. Looks like the seller has been careless when snipping the ends off new strings there which is something to watch out for.

[Machines]

On 08/10/2022 at 11:33, lemmywinks said:

A few dings on there but the PLF colour is very easy to touch up with a blue Sharpie, made the little knocks on mine disappear in a few seconds. Looks like the seller has been careless when snipping the ends off new strings there which is something to watch out for.

 

I colour matched mine almost perfectly with some acrylic art paints the kids have. It was actually a lot more purple than blue but came out looking as new from a couple of feet away.

[lemmywinks]

47 minutes ago, Machines said:

 

I colour matched mine almost perfectly with some acrylic art paints the kids have. It was actually a lot more purple than blue but came out looking as new from a couple of feet away.

 

I think wax crayon would work as well, I used the furniture touch up kits (essentially the same thing) on a couple of basses and they worked wonders even with quite large/deep gouges. That's the problem with this type of soft finish on stained bodies - the bare wood looks really bad and knocks/dings are hard to avoid

[Machines]

5 hours ago, lemmywinks said:

 

I think wax crayon would work as well, I used the furniture touch up kits (essentially the same thing) on a couple of basses and they worked wonders even with quite large/deep gouges. That's the problem with this type of soft finish on stained bodies - the bare wood looks really bad and knocks/dings are hard to avoid

 

That contributed to me shifting it. Sounded great but I managed to ding it more than once just practising at home sat down by a desk. Didn't fancy putting it through a few gigs. Never had such an issue with poly finishes.

[lemmywinks]

@visogThere's an EHB1506MS on Facebook for £1100

https://www.facebook.com/groups/BassPlayersMarketUK/permalink/5851594744852105/?sale_post_id=5851594744852105

[thebassist]

I bought an Ibanez EHB1506MS-BIF and it arrived today.

Ergonomically it is just brilliant, very light and it’s very versatile too.

Unfortunately the build quality is pretty awful.
The top wood is ludicrously thin.

There are big gaps around pickups and a host of other small problems related to finish/QC.

It’s a real shame because the instrument is so very well designed and thought out.

[Lfalex v1.1]

I had thought to look into an EHB 1506 or 1006.

Or a similarly priced Dingwall.

The Ibanez score highly due to my ability to use my string of choice (Elixirs) and their compactness. 

One of the 6- string Combustions looks rather nice,  but I get the feeling that I'll be stuck with their strings,  which my sweat will eat instantly. 

[visog]

I went for a new EHB1006MS in the end. No complaints about the build quality. Not wild about the finish colour but I bought it for the form factor which as you say @thebassist, is really good. 

It's light, balances well and with active and passive electronics, is great for long sessions at the DAW.

I agree with your point about strings @Lfalex v1.1, the Dingwalls look really good but not wild about sourcing extra long strings - not that I should worry as I rarely change mine.

Only complaint with the Ibby is that the ramp is too shallow to be usable out of the box so I had to jack mine with gaffer tape layering which you can just see below.

This pic has reminded me to remove the pick-up plastic scratch protectors!

 

Edited January 6, 2023 by visog

[visog]

PS they've just released a fretless version too now... https://www.ibanez.com/na/products/detail/ehb1005f_1p_01.html

[franzbassist]

On 06/01/2023 at 16:33, visog said:

 

I really want to dabble into sixes again, and when I do this is the bass I'll go for.  Well not visog's actual bass of course, but this model!

[Woodinblack]

I have the 1505, the one with barts isn't something I would consider having had enough ibanezes with and without barts. I like it and I like the finish, although would also be fine with black too or even grey. Its a very useable bass and I like fan frets. As others said the strings aren't as long as other fan frets, I was very keen on getting a spector dimension but the price went up just when I had decided and then there was all the faff with the pickup.

Still interested in the shorter scale one (unfortunately only barts so would need work) and the fretless.

[visog]

On 05/04/2023 at 12:18, franzbassist said:

 

I really want to dabble into sixes again, and when I do this is the bass I'll go for.  Well not visog's actual bass of course, but this model!

Would highly recommend you try one. That middle-C to high C range speaks so clearly for chords and guitar lines, yet the bottom goes all the way down to a thunderous low C and a final B below that.

 

I know people say you don't notice the fan frets... I do! and the headless means you'll be on the wrong string and fret all the time but I'm getting used to it. Build is great but the form factor is killing: muchio strings, light weight, good balance and passive mode for long sessions. Absolutely great workhorse. Got my GB here for luxury and it has the hi-fi tone but it eats batteries and is heavy. The EHB is my 'does everything' beater!

[Kev]

I don't know why Ibanez persist with the chinese licensed Barts, they're terrible things IMO.  So dark and lacking any real excitement in the mid or highs, it's no wonder Bartolini gets a bad name when these licensed jobbies are in so many budget instruments (US Barts are a completely different kettle of fish).  I'd much rather they put Nordies or any other decent pickup in and dropped the preamp to save costs etc.

 

Frustratingly, I love the roasted maple neck on some of these, but every one with a neck like that on is equipped with those Barts.  And they're an awkward size to replace too (6 string bass pickup shape, so only bar magnet 6 models will fit).

[Woodinblack]

1 hour ago, Kev said:

I don't know why Ibanez persist with the chinese licensed Barts, they're terrible things IMO.  So dark and lacking any real excitement in the mid or highs, it's no wonder Bartolini gets a bad name when these licensed jobbies are in so many budget instruments (US Barts are a completely different kettle of fish).  I'd much rather they put Nordies or any other decent pickup in and dropped the preamp to save costs etc.

 

It is quite a bad move. i just assumed barts were rubbish, then I got the 5005 and they were fantastic - it gives a very bad impression.

It also makes little sense, they must know they are rubbish, I mean there is actually no cost difference between a bad passive pickup and a good passive pickup.

[lemmywinks]

2 hours ago, Kev said:

I don't know why Ibanez persist with the chinese licensed Barts, they're terrible things IMO.  So dark and lacking any real excitement in the mid or highs, it's no wonder Bartolini gets a bad name when these licensed jobbies are in so many budget instruments (US Barts are a completely different kettle of fish).  I'd much rather they put Nordies or any other decent pickup in and dropped the preamp to save costs etc.

 

Frustratingly, I love the roasted maple neck on some of these, but every one with a neck like that on is equipped with those Barts.  And they're an awkward size to replace too (6 string bass pickup shape, so only bar magnet 6 models will fit).

 

 

It's a Cort thing, they've had that license for donkeys' years and it's just a way to cheaply add name brand spec to an instrument, I've fallen for it in the past. They've slapped numerous names on their in house/offshore pickups over the years like EMG Select, Mighty Mite, Duncan (in the EDB 5 series) etc and have used the Fishman license on preamps as well. I quite liked the Might Mite pickups and Fishman pre (long gone now due to failure) in my Cort C5P, much better than the old Bart MkI and it's dreadful accompanying preamp in the supposedly higher spec B5 I owned (nice bass though).

 

The Ibanez T1 pickups used in that 1006 sound great in demo videos, a vast improvement over the Lic Barts in the other 1000 series.

[franzbassist]

On 06/04/2023 at 22:18, Kev said:

I don't know why Ibanez persist with the chinese licensed Barts, they're terrible things IMO.  So dark and lacking any real excitement in the mid or highs, it's no wonder Bartolini gets a bad name when these licensed jobbies are in so many budget instruments (US Barts are a completely different kettle of fish).  I'd much rather they put Nordies or any other decent pickup in and dropped the preamp to save costs etc.

 

Frustratingly, I love the roasted maple neck on some of these, but every one with a neck like that on is equipped with those Barts.  And they're an awkward size to replace too (6 string bass pickup shape, so only bar magnet 6 models will fit).

 

I had a  Cort SCMS which I dropped US-made Bart pickups and preamp into: the improvement was like night and day, so I agree 100% with this.

 

Edited April 30, 2023 by franzbassist

[JobuDRK79]

Hey folks, Ibanez Germany sent me a couple recently and the EHB 1265 gets my vote for the best one so far. I have tried almost all of them. Here is some vids I did for a closer look at the 1265 and the new 1005 fretless:)

 

 

 

[TheGreek]

I really don't like the looks of these - none of the lines seem to flow - designed by committee??

 

And why are there so many for sale???

[tauzero]

On 03/05/2023 at 17:00, TheGreek said:

I really don't like the looks of these - none of the lines seem to flow - designed by committee??

 

And why are there so many for sale???

 

Not as beautiful as a Sei Flamboyant, but I think they look OK. Well, I bought one, and I wouldn't buy something that I didn't like the look of.

 

In what way are there "so many for sale"? Models? Second-hand?