Bass Culture Posted July 9, 2009 Share Posted July 9, 2009 Hi All, Can anyone out there advise as to the value of a 1981 Ibanez Musician that is being offered for sale by a friend of a friend? Being in my mid-forties I'm quite familiar with these basses and, in their day, they were probably seen as on a par with the better Arias - SB 1000's for example. I seem to recall Sting using one for a while too, so they were good quality and popular. Anyway, one's potentially come my way and I'd appreciate any advice from anyone who's more familiar with their value than I as to whether the asking price is reasonable. Here's the seller's description: [b]The Ibanez is full scale, 24 frets, abalone inlays, ebony fingerboard, neck thru construction, active 3 band eq, the works for a live or studio bass guitar. The neck has been repaired and inspected by KGB, it plays great, no issues, lots of marks but then again, it is 1981 and a solid bass guitar.[/b] If I knew how to post a link to the jpeg attachements in the e-mail I've got I could post pictures too. The damage to the neck looks as though it could have been quite bad - possibly as break all the way through just below the nut. That said, if it's been properly repaired (and I guess that's what you'd need to take a chance on) it could end up stronger than it was before the break. Someone's also added a thumb rest just above the neck pickup - I don't recall them having one originally but I could be wrong. Anyway, the seller's after £275. Is this this too much, reasonable or a steal? Thanks, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaggy Posted July 9, 2009 Share Posted July 9, 2009 (edited) [quote name='Bass Culture' post='536289' date='Jul 9 2009, 11:05 AM']Hi All, Can anyone out there advise as to the value of a 1981 Ibanez Musician that is being offered for sale by a friend of a friend? Being in my mid-forties I'm quite familiar with these basses and, in their day, they were probably seen as on a par with the better Arias - SB 1000's for example. I seem to recall Sting using one for a while too, so they were good quality and popular. Anyway, one's potentially come my way and I'd appreciate any advice from anyone who's more familiar with their value than I as to whether the asking price is reasonable. Here's the seller's description: [b]The Ibanez is full scale, 24 frets, abalone inlays, ebony fingerboard, neck thru construction, active 3 band eq, the works for a live or studio bass guitar. The neck has been repaired and inspected by KGB, it plays great, no issues, lots of marks but then again, it is 1981 and a solid bass guitar.[/b] If I knew how to post a link to the jpeg attachements in the e-mail I've got I could post pictures too. The damage to the neck looks as though it could have been quite bad - possibly as break all the way through just below the nut. That said, if it's been properly repaired (and I guess that's what you'd need to take a chance on) it could end up stronger than it was before the break. Someone's also added a thumb rest just above the neck pickup - I don't recall them having one originally but I could be wrong. Anyway, the seller's after £275. Is this this too much, reasonable or a steal? Thanks, Mark[/quote] Good price I'd say, if the condition's reasonable. There was one on BC recently around that or slightly cheaper, but a local shop here was selling a fairly tatty one for £500 last year. The neck repair could be a concern with it being neck-thru, also as I recall it had tuned metal rods in the neck that were supposed to prevent dead spots - have a good close look at the repair and give it a shake to check nothing's rattling in there! I had a fretless one new (due to his Sting-ness) and they're absolutely cracking basses. Edited July 9, 2009 by Shaggy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted July 9, 2009 Share Posted July 9, 2009 You can post pics if you save them on your pc and then upload them to BC as attachments. If the neck repair's good, the price is good too - a nice one of these can go for upwards of £500. The fact it has a repair probably means you have a bit of haggle-space too, you might get it for £250, in fact if it's a private sale, that's what the seller's probably expecting to get. Thumb rests weren't standard on these! Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machines Posted July 9, 2009 Share Posted July 9, 2009 If it's had a bad mishap then £275 is acceptable if it's been well repaired. I bought a 1980 MC900 for £250, cleaned it up and was offered a straight swap for a Musicman Stingray (worth £600), needless to say I accepted . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffbyrne Posted July 9, 2009 Share Posted July 9, 2009 I watched a fine example of one of these be bid to over £800 on Ebay. If the neck repair is good, I'd say take it. G. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeftyJ Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 I have a 1981 MC924 myself and it's a terrific bass. I got mine for 400 euros in beautiful condition and with the original case, which I believe is a steal as there have only been around 350 lefthanded Musicians produced (of which most are of the later model with the PJ configuration and different control layout). I'm not quite sure about prices for righthanded instruments, but a lefty easily fetches 800 euros. If the neck has been repaired well and the bass looks and plays good aside of the repaired neck, I'd say 275 pounds ain't half bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linus27 Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 [quote name='Bass Culture' post='536289' date='Jul 9 2009, 11:05 AM']Hi All, Can anyone out there advise as to the value of a 1981 Ibanez Musician that is being offered for sale by a friend of a friend? Being in my mid-forties I'm quite familiar with these basses and, in their day, they were probably seen as on a par with the better Arias - SB 1000's for example. I seem to recall Sting using one for a while too, so they were good quality and popular. Anyway, one's potentially come my way and I'd appreciate any advice from anyone who's more familiar with their value than I as to whether the asking price is reasonable. Here's the seller's description: [b]The Ibanez is full scale, 24 frets, abalone inlays, ebony fingerboard, neck thru construction, active 3 band eq, the works for a live or studio bass guitar. The neck has been repaired and inspected by KGB, it plays great, no issues, lots of marks but then again, it is 1981 and a solid bass guitar.[/b] If I knew how to post a link to the jpeg attachements in the e-mail I've got I could post pictures too. The damage to the neck looks as though it could have been quite bad - possibly as break all the way through just below the nut. That said, if it's been properly repaired (and I guess that's what you'd need to take a chance on) it could end up stronger than it was before the break. Someone's also added a thumb rest just above the neck pickup - I don't recall them having one originally but I could be wrong. Anyway, the seller's after £275. Is this this too much, reasonable or a steal? Thanks, Mark[/quote] I wonder if its my old one. My one had some bad damage just below the nut. The bass fell over on stage and down a pit. It was in its gig bag but the damage was still done. The crack went all the way through and run down the neck, I think starting from one side moving into the centre. I had it properly repaired by Nova Guitar Centre in Guildford and it was fine ever since. I also think mine had a thumb rest as you suggest. I can't for the life of me remember where or who I sold it to but it would had been around 1996 - 1998 ish. I would love to see some pictures of it, especially where the repair has been done so i can confirm if its my old bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bass Culture Posted July 11, 2009 Author Share Posted July 11, 2009 [quote name='Linus27' post='537076' date='Jul 10 2009, 10:16 AM']I wonder if its my old one. My one had some bad damage just below the nut. The bass fell over on stage and down a pit. It was in its gig bag but the damage was still done. The crack went all the way through and run down the neck, I think starting from one side moving into the centre. I had it properly repaired by Nova Guitar Centre in Guildford and it was fine ever since. I also think mine had a thumb rest as you suggest. I can't for the life of me remember where or who I sold it to but it would had been around 1996 - 1998 ish. I would love to see some pictures of it, especially where the repair has been done so i can confirm if its my old bass.[/quote] Folks, Thanks for all your input. I'm away for the next week or so but when we get back I'll try and post pics. I appreciate your feedback. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tubbybloke68 Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 hi all,275 sounds pretty good to me,obviously it depends on the state of the repair,but having had one since 1981 i can certainly sing its praises.top quality construction and sound .believe me she looks a bit battered these days but its always been my old faithful. these basses deserve more mention than they generally get.all hail the ibanez musician!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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