Holy crap... mind blown.

My GSR200 was about $200. My SR650 was about $650

Ibanez usually does that so you know what you’re getting yourself into price wise

Aren't all Ibanez models names for the price already?

What’s the music with the incredible singing during the incantation?

Welcome aboard!

@@LowEndLobster You missed opportunity to say welcome to the shore lol

Maybe we'll see you in the Discord channel

Thanks Jeffery! Happy to deliver :).

Thanks Victor! I'm going to do a more in depth sound comparison where I play with the EQ of both in my next vid, so we shall see! You're right about the genre thing though, I think these basses appeal to many but the nords will definitely make you metal/prog heads happy :)

LowEndLobster just an update. I received the big splits from Nordstrand (in p4 housings). Fit pretty perfectly ( maybe about a mm smaller) and they sound much more full range than the barts. Great upgrade and still less money to put them in than getting the 1505 in the first place

I somehow forgot dude even has a lobster hand, which adds to the unbeatability

Ahaha thanks man! Don't let me stand in your way. There's plenty of room in the youtube bass space!

Thanks Chris! That means a lot :).

yeah. the 1005 sounds so dead and we know it's not the strings because our Lobster here puts the same fresh set of strings on each bass he reviews.

Thanks Wambo!

Thanks Oggo! Wrapping up a few other videos before filming the next bit of the EHB series. I'm excited to see how the Aguilars sound too :)

Hahah thank you :). The trick might make another appearance in an upcoming video.

@@LowEndLobster perhaps 1980's Bubba Bear will resurface again too 😂

Thanks Tony! I really should hahaha, I try from time to time but I need to do more! I really appreciate the feedback :) I don't know how I got the most wholesome KZfaq audience ever.

@@LowEndLobster your a fun guy to watch and someone who is educated. Keep up the awesome work!!

Thanks diabloman! We'll definitely be snagging one when they're available :)

Thank you :)

Thank you!

Thanks!

XD Thanks Budd!

Awesome :) So glad you found the video helpful! I did a few more vids on the EHB series including a pickup swap on my EHB1005MS, be sure to check those out :)

Sadly they're different sizes slightly. I do have a set of Aguilars coming for the green one though :)

That black bass comes with pseudo Bartolini pickups... not the real Class A pickups... That's why the much lower quality... and you see it in the price... the version of that black bass with real Bartolini's is much higher

Thanks Ross!

@@LowEndLobster yeah real curious!!

@@dnp41 It's coming! The pickups have been sitting on my desk for a couple of weeks now haha. I'm so behind on these videos, but I work a full time CyberSec role on top of doing this (and being an avid PC gamer haha).

@@LowEndLobster haha you're already putting out a lot of content in a very short time frame :D

I cant waittttt to hear on the change out to Aguilar pickup!! That'll be so exciting!!

The DCBs should fit in either model from what I understand.

Awesome. Thank you

Thanks! Looking forward to filming them. I think the swap should be straight forward as the pickup wiring is basic (the preamp is not). Something like a stingray which as like 80 wires coming out of the pickup is a bit more complicated. I'm going to try and do this one myself, but the Mint-O-Ray will be done with Dom and Third Floor Guitars :).

Haha thanks Paul! I agree, the differences between both instruments are HUGE. They have the same preamp, it's all in the pickups here. The barts were a bit of a let down and lacked that high end sparkle that you mentioned, where the nordies had it in spades (almost to a fault, depending on the type of music you like to play). I ended up swapping out the EHB1005MS barts for some Aguilar DCBs, and that opened up the tone quite a bit while maintaining the more traditional character of the 1005 as compared to the more modern 1505.

@@LowEndLobster First of all thank you for all the great content. :) I was wondering, how do you feel about the 1005 now after you've had the Aguilars in there for some months - specifically in comparison to the 1505 with its Nordstrands? Just visually speaking I much prefer the look of the 1005, but by the time you've spent the money for the pickup upgrade, you almost arrive at the price of the 1505. And you have an unused pair of Bartolinis lying around. Doesn't seem reasonable to me to be honest. 🤔 But yeah. How do you feel about this? Thanks again. 😊

@@demidevil666 Hey! I've had the aggies in here for quite a while and love em. I'm thinking about doing a John East preamp upgrade in the future as well. I still find the Aguilars to be a nice middle ground between the sort of dull sounding Barts and the very bright Nordies. Those barts are long gone too haha. Price wise, it's slightly past middle ground with the pickup costing $283 and the price difference between models being $450. I'm hoping that they include the DCBs stock in an upcoming EHB model as they've been in other recent models as well.

I got the EHB1505MS-PLF because the pick-ups and tone of the wood sounded much better to me. I liked the 1005 as well, but the 1505 was way better for me for the additional $500 bucks I had to cough up! I already have a custom Warwick Thumb bass (2006 special ed "Dirty Blonde") and a Ken Smith Jazz bass that both play and sound amazing, so I didn't want to get an Ibanez EHB1005 which to me doesn't compare to my main 2 basses I've been playing for years. And even though the EHB1505 costs less than both of my other basses, it's definitely comparable as far as quality and tone. Different tones with each of course, but all great for what they are. The EHB1500 series bass from Ibanez is definitely worth the price if you can swing it. The only thing I don't like about it, which can be changed, is the plastic knobs. They seem cheap, and needed to be adjusted because the dual pot knobs rub together and when you adjust one know the other one moves with it. Maybe they used them to keep the bass light or whatever. I don't know the reason, but I plan to upgrade them later to something better. Probably black solid metal knobs if I can find something. I honestly haven't looked into replacing them yet.

I agree... The Bartolini equipped bass sounds like it has a blanket on the tone...

Thanks Rob! My bass signal goes into my Orange CR50BXT, and I go direct from the line out on that into my Focusrite. The bass audio is recorded on Reason 11. I used to have a dedicated compressor long ago, but in this case I believe it's the Focusrite and nothing KZfaq related. I notice that it does a little bit of compression and I think that's where it's coming from.

@@LowEndLobster Focusrite? Reason? Wow I have the same exact setup. My Focusrite is the Saffire Pro 40

Thanks! The 1505 definitely sounded much brighter in comparison. I'm going to have a couple more EHB vids coming soon including a string swap for both instruments and swapping the pickups on the 1005. Stay tuned my friend :)

This video confirmed what I already knew about myself- I greatly prefer a single coil to a humbucker.

Those are great questions! I like the neck a lot. Very comfortable and easy to play for me. I will go into more detail and measurements in a follow up video to address these questions in more detail

Hahahaha that made my morning

Thanks Stewie! That was part of a head-to-head, when I was still working out my format. It got 4/5. It's weakest points IMO are the pickups, but overall I love the roasted neck and matte finish. The preamp is solid as well, though I eventually will swap mine out for fun haha.

@@LowEndLobster Thanks Lobster! I'm really enjoying your channel. I wish you the best of luck!

Thank you! The biggest difference is the texture. The roasted maple EHB1005MS neck is very smooth to the touch, where the EHB1505MS neck is more porous and has a much more tactile grain.

Hey Kra! It's coming, don't worry. I just moved my studio to a bigger space which will hopefully make doing all this stuff a bit easier for me. I will go through the pickup swap process in detail and will provide before and after sound clips Stay tuned my friend!

Thanks Izyggor! I am not sure, honestly. I don't really play in super low tunings so I can't comment with experience. I know the stock B that comes with these instruments is a .130 and the B also is 35" scale. However, if you really want to go very low, then I'd probably recommend something like a dingwall that has a 37" B string and will likely handle down tuning even better. Down tuning that low IMO is hard because there are so many factors that can influence/hinder the B string.

@@LowEndLobster Thanks man, really appreciate your advice! ^^

Thanks Michael! Congrats on your purchase. I'll do my best to get that out!

@@LowEndLobster YOU! You did this to me! I was perfectly happy with the 1005ms I had on back order but this video of yours kept haunting me! So I cancelled the order for the 1005ms and bought a 1505 Dragon Eye Burst that was in stock on Amazon. So, $350 more but I'll get it sooner and have the Nordstrand pickups out of the box. It's worth it to me! Thanks again for this comparison video, I don't think I would have been completely happy with the 1005ms until I upgraded the pickups, this way I don't have to bother.

@@michaelkeefer4293 Glad I could help my friend :)

Thanks Seth, I agree. They're putting the DCBs that I swapped into my EHB1005 (after this vid) into other models, wish they'd throw a set in as stock for the EHB. The Barts do not do the instrument justice!

That's a very good point. I'll be sure to do some "full band" recordings for my next EHB vid. May even have a special guest!

@@LowEndLobster Great video though. Appreciate all you're doing my man

Thank you! I appreciate you taking the time to watch and enjoy :)

I prefer the sound of the 1005

Thanks Steve!

Bass magic previously thought impossible!

art

Hey Rob! That's a great question. They're the original strings, about two months old. Even though I play a lot of the EHB, I'm not playing hours a day on this thing. I'm going to swap both sets of strings out for MJC nickels to do a true apples to apples in a future short video. I don't tweaking the EQ would have done much for the Barts. The Nords are much hotter, and an EQ tweak won't replicate that. I'll be sure to explore the EQs of both basses more when I do the next EHB vid though. Thanks for the suggestions!

Thanks Siva! Welcome aboard :). The V7 and EHB are very different instruments. The V7 is a below average value but not a bad instrument IMO and can be had for a steal second hand. The EHBs are probably priced used where the V7 is new (maybe more), and are a bit more modern. I think the 1000 series is a nice modern/vintage middle ground. Hope that helps :)

​@@LowEndLobster Thank you so much for your quick reply!🙏 I saw your videos on EHB1005 with Aguilar pickup- IT IS GOLD ! did you use Aguliar g5 or g4?

@@ssbmusicspark DCB D4

Jonathan.... EXCELLENT COMMENT! You're right about the scale length of the EHB, it maxes out at 35" (probably to avoid string compatibility issues is my guess). I have yearned for a dingwall, but none have presented themselves to me in an affordable manner (I don't like spending $2k+ on a single instrument). I love ESP instruments and will DEFINITELY snag one of those multiscale ones in the future. Thank you for the tip!

Plenty of folks tune lower than that on a regular 4 string though (34" scale), like for the lowest pitched string they'll use an A or even lower. I really don't think longer than 35" is necessary, but that's just my personal opinion. It's all about personal preference at the end of the day. For me though, the longer it is, the bigger the neck, the more likelihood you're gonna get neck dive, and just the more uncomfortable it is to play.

ESP/LTD is a better bet than Dingwall. That is the China/Asian made ones of course. First, they do have the full scale with low B at 37", as opposed to Ibanez. Probably Ibanez thing is to do have a greater chance of finding "regular" strings that fits, normal long scale. Low B does not start to sound decent until at least 36". No matter what gauge. I bought a 4 string LTD/ESP ESP B-1004SE and modded it in the nut, to take strings for BEAD tuning. A .127 gauge on bottom. Worked a charm. And ESP/LTD came with Nordstrands anyway from the start on. ESP/LTD (and as we have seen Ibanez too) can take and accept a plethora of 3rd party pickups to swap out and mix and match later on. Dingwalls with their, now, rounded shells can take...Dingwall pickups only. Same here, if the Ibanez came in headless with FULL scale fan like, at least 36.25 at the low B, I would - too - buy it in a heartbeat. Longer than 35" IS necessary for a low B. Not maybe playing just low down, and open at the low B, but if you play that low B up around 12th fret you'll certainly hear and feel the differnce, the notes doesn't sound sour (un-intonated) and doesn't fart out on the decay, the sustain is still as long as down there at the first few frets. On the contrary, I would say that longer than 37" is not necessary. Because of the increased stretch and impossibility to find strings for it. Ok, so Dingwals and ESP/LTD is not headless, and Ibanez is, but that's about all there is to it. The headlesses (!?) doesn't neck dive, but believe me both Dingwall, and ESP/LTD do. One of them a lot, but I wont tell you which....;-)

@@henkehakansson2004 I'll have a loot at that ESP at some point! I can stomach spending ESP money, but Dingwall money is a bit steeper ;P. I appreciate the detailed info!

@@LowEndLobster Thank you! By and large, if having to chose only between Dingwall and ESP it's about the same high-end range prices (Combustion, vs B-1005SE) I do think ESP/LTD is a sturdier build both in neck and body with it's darker slightly heavier wood. And has slightly better hardware, and definitely pickups too (LTD has Nordstrands). But hey, this vid was all about Ibanez. If Ibanez came with a 4 string headless (they have, but not multiscale) PLUS fanned frets with the low E string set at 36.25" and G at regular 34" I would buy it in a heartbeat and have a BEAD tuned bass and run with that. And of course, with Nordstrands...:-) BTW that's my take on FANNED FRETS PLUS HEADLESS combined. Chances are - thanks to their construction - that you'll can find regular long scale string sets to run on them without having to go on a quest to find only ths or that brand. Behind the zero fret/nut there's very little slack and then the string ends (clamped down and cut), and at the bridge there's very little distance too, towards the ball end. I mean the following beats me, always did and ever will: 1. The reason for having a headpiece on headless that can take single ball end strings, was that you didn't have to hunt down double ball end string sets that only was made from a few manufacturers. You could use your favorite brand of strings. And even those you didn't. Use the same set as regular basses. Find them everywhere. 2. Now with fanned frets and longer scale, and having to hunt down single ball end strings to fit the extra long scale, you anyway have to resort to use manufacturers that makes extra long scale string sets for fanned frets basses ONLY, which forces you to choose between a few manufacturers anyway, and not your favorite brand of strings. And you don't find them everywhere... anyway. Sort of back to square one! Defeats the purpose. Beats me. ;-)

Thank you! I enjoy interacting with folks who are passionate about bass and learning about bass. So glad you're enjoying the content

;P

Thanks Nick! I agree

@@LowEndLobster do you think it’s worth it to upgrade the bridge on a sterling SUB? I really hate the cheapo bridge and I read about people popping a bad ass 2 or 3 bridge. Have you ever looked into that?

@@nurk_barry Great question and YES. I actually used an Albridge stingray bridge on my latest SUB project which will hopefully be premiering in the next couple of weeks. Not many choices outside of the ebay knockoffs for a drop in, but the albridge is great and keeps the look.

@@LowEndLobster that’s awesome Lobster, I’m definitely up for drilling new holes and even adding string-thru ferrules if I have to. I look forward to your next video. 🤘🦞

If I had a choice... 4 stringer, matte black and fanned frets.

These new basses are really great! I wish they did the fanned frets in the 4 strings, I know a lot of four string players like yourself would like those features without the B string. C'mon Ibanez!

Thank you! I'd love to include that, but I can't play with a pick at all. I'm terrible with it. However... I do have something in mind that you may like. Question for you, what is your favorite genre of music?

@@LowEndLobster I really like to play mostly Motown and earlier funk things. But for listening, it's rock music

Reverb is where I found mine. Ebay and talkbass are probably your best other bets.

Hope it helped ;P

Thanks! I just started up my channel back in March. Glad you enjoyed :). Going to be doing a follow up vid with new strings for both of these (just shot it) and will be doing the pickup swap soon. Stay tuned :)

I see it that way too, after having both basses I still liked the 1005 more than the 1505 :: the sound was warmer and I love the Sea Foam Green for the win. Seriously thinking of getting one again 😂

I'm so glad you found the video helpful!

:D Glad you enjoyed this!

Hi Oliver! It should probably work. I'm going to be swapping both sets of strings (1005 and 1505) shortly to a standard long scale set of MJC and I think they'll fit fine. We'll know for sure when I shoot/release the video. Stay tuned my friend!

Indeed, though the housing size is slightly different (1mm narrower, and 1 mm longer), I believe someone was quoted 279 plus shipping for ones that would fit. I want to see how the Aguilars fit into the mix compared to these two sets of pickups. Perhaps they'll be a nice middle ground between the harsh Nordies and the smooth Barts?

Found an overseas dealer that had one in stock back in February and snatched it up. Got it on March 2nd.

Ya spooked me!

I think these nords are 1mm too big in one dimension. I will measure and am going to remember this for the next EHB vid (or at least try). I wish they offered a 1105 or some sort of mid level model with the roasted neck but better electronics. I'm really enjoying the Aguilars a lot

Thank you! How do you like yours?

@@LowEndLobster I don't have a problem playing long hours. The bridge seemed to have some minor defects, but soon it could be repaired easily. The biggest advantage is that it's very light. The sound was very high and bass. The performer's views may vary.

Commenting so this doesn't show up in my not responded queue ;P. Congrats on your 15 minutes of fame in my Q&A! hahaha

Hey David! Sorry to hear about your back. The 1505MS is 7 lbs, the 1005MS is 7.2 on the digital bathroom scale I use. They're very light basses.

My man! Thank you! I can't wait to hear about your 1506 man.

There's definitely a lot more clarity with the Nords, but you're right about the smoothness of the Barts. I'm excited to see what other tones different pickups can get out of the 1005 (keeping the 1505 stock).

@@LowEndLobster I think the Nordstrand's have just a tad too much emphasis in the higher mids for my taste. If I could get the warmth of the Barts with clarity on the top end of the Nordstrand's that would be perfect! But everything considered the EHB-1000 with the Barts checks so many boxes for me. :-) And I'm so happy kitty is back!!!

​@@LowEndLobster Would you be willing to demo the EQ, specifically the active treble control? I'm curious if it helps with the relative dulness in the high end of the 1005. Thanks!

@@gregpantelides1355 Absolutely! I'm actually going to do one more follow up video where I swap the strings on both basses to a fresh set and explore the EQs of both a little bit more. Afterwards, the next EHB vid will be swapping the pickups on the 1005 with the Aguilars (they came yesterday and I can't wait to do it!).

@@LowEndLobster Thank you so much! Which Aguilars did you end up getting. I'm deciding between the DCB and the Super Doubles, myself. I love how harmonically rich the Aguilar pickups are.

So the nord dimensions are slightly different than the EHB1005 pickups, but you can order a custom set from Nordstrand that will fit! That's not a bad idea

@@LowEndLobster i actually just watched you Aguilar swap video... I think Im sold.

:)

Heyo! Not really. In bypass mode you can turn down the tone, or with the EQ you can turn down the treble and cut some high mids, but they won't sound as warm as the barts overall

@@LowEndLobster thank you!

Thanks! :)

The Lobster delivers :)

Glad you liked it! The 1505MS is a killer bass. This isn't the last time you'll be seeing either :)

Thank you!

Coming soon :)

Thanks David! Indeed! Great comment :)

Hey TrashPanda! That's a great question. Honestly, I'd start with the Sterling as you can often find them on sale on reverb for as little as $200 ($1000 less than the EHB). If you decide to stick with bass, then you can save up for the better instrument. Both are great choices (and I do have a Sub4 as well that I haven't made a video on yet).

@@LowEndLobster It would be great to see an analysis of sterling on your channel

I'll be sure to do a quick vid on it during my next batch of "fresh looks" (the shorter videos). Thanks for the suggestion :)

I would think so. I don't really use those heavier strings. The top loading mechanism looks to support a wide variety of string thicknesses.

@@LowEndLobster Awesome! Thanks!!

I noticed that as well, the barts are definitely smoother while the nordies are a bit hotter and have more bite. I'm going to replace both sets of strings with some MJC nickels and do a second sound comparison in the future.

I've messed with the barts height and brought them up past where you'd really want them. I was able to get a lot more growl and bite out of them than I thought possible. My initial reaction to the barts was "these have got to go". I've now adjusted that thought and will replace the preamp first and see how that works out before going the nord route. Also, this is definitely a rock/metal bass for me.

Thank you William! I appreciate that very much :). Content will be even better now that I've moved into my new studio/office space in my basement (bassment). Thanks for the sub and take care my friend!

They were when I got it ;P. I'm going to be doing a follow up vid where I restring both basses with the same set of MJC strings and compare the tones.... THEN the vid after that I'll do the pickup swap and test the tones again :)

@@LowEndLobster thanks for all the effort, I am very intrigued by both basses though I am not an ibanez guy.

@@quantumechanical I really wasn't an ibanez guy either... now I have a rack full of em XD.

Nice! I did the same with my P10 and a Flexcore preamp. It RIPS!

Hello! Welcome to the wonderful world of bass :). The 1005 and 1505 fall heavily under the "other" category. The J(azz) and P(recsion) basses refer to basses styled after or influenced by the Fender designs and having the Jazz style pickups or Precision style pickups. Google a picture of a "fender jazz", you'll see it has two long skinny pickups, and "Fender precision" has one split pickup in a different spot. There's also a P/J which has both a P pickup and a J pickup. I hope my videos help you understand bass more, feel free to comment with any other questions! Thanks for watching :)

Thank you! It took a lot to conjure but it was worth it ;P

Thanks! Indeed I think the Aguilars were an improvement over the barts, but I liked the barts over the nordies. Not sure if you can get individual DCBs

It is!

Great question! I believe it's for strap ergonomics so the bass will sit a certain way when you play with a strap.