Aria Pro II Lazer Electric

This is a 22 fret, 4 String, bolt on necked dual pick up active bass, with black body and Chrome hardware. Not sure about what wood it is but it's very solidly made and quite heavy. They were only made for two years as I understand 1985 and 1986 and were well reviewed at the time (I have the review). The style is quite basic and understated, which may be a reason that it was not a massive seller compare to the stylish Integras.

The sound quality is superb on this bass especially in active mode, as the tone can vary widely, from a very bright metallic sound to a warmer dull sound, thus allowing for many different styles. The active circuitry is very quiet and also very powerful and the pick ups look similar to those on a MM stingray in that the poles are quite large and shiny.

The quality like many Japanese built 80's guitars is superb! No sharp edges to the frets or flaws in the paintwork, quality solidly made Japanese hardware and tuners which look very much like Gotoh tuners. I am in the trade so I bought this directly from Aria in Heston as a recommendation by the top technician there JJ in the late 80's. He had to search for it as it was the last one left from 1986. It was set up by JJ and so the action is great. I did lower the action subsequently and it is now superb but it took truss rod tweaks as well as the string height adjusters as these don't seem to adjust low enough.

Never ever let me down and still looks brand new. I don't use this guitar for my weekly gigs as it is so pristine (only for special occasions), I use a Westone Thunder instead. It's only needed two replacement batteries in the twenty years I've had it. This bass is so well built I can definitely rely on it without a back up, even if it fell from a height I doubt that it would be unuseable!

Never needed any, but the guys at Aria were very friendly and co-operative to me - Thanks JJ!

This was my first bass in 1989 but I am not a pro player, I have played every other week in Church for four years and recently done a Folk festival. These basses seem to be going very cheap on ebay and that is way too cheap for the quality of this guitar, so I wouldn't sell it. I would be gutted if it were lost or stolen as it has sentimental value and the condition is like new, although my Westones are almost as good as this guitar as they came from the same Matsumoku factory.

jap built 1985/86.'Heritage' model. 22 frets,4 string.
2 pickups, split coil pickup(neck),single coil pickup(bridge).Passive with active electronics (18v).3 way selector switch for pickups,a toggle switch for active on/off and 2 control knobs(volume/tone).
Not quite sure what the body is made of but has a nice weight to it,super thick rock hard finish(survived 20 years with no dings reaching the wood!).Lovely shape,looks like an SB elite.
Lovely dark blonde maple neck(bolt on),rosewood finger board with pearloid dots.Aria pro 2 machine heads,2 each side.

To be honest i only use the split(neck)pickup in passive mode,it just sounds so deep and rich.With the active on it is a bit louder bit is too clanky even with the tone set to zero.
I have a feeling there is a problem with the active 'tronics, so i just play it without batteries in.
The bridge pickup is very thin sounding and maybe faulty.
The controls are all noise free and super smooth.In passive mode,the tone contol is beautiful.From thumping to bright,it can be adjusted for any style.The volume control is nice too.Numbered 1-10 i set it about 8.Going up further brings in a nice growl thats sounds very slightly overdriven.
Im giving a score of ten because,even though i only use the one pickup,it's a tone and beef that my other basses simply cannot beat!

Bought it second hand 8 months ago and gave it a service,never had to adjust it since. Lovely low action with only a slight hint of fret buzz on the open A which isnt a problem for me.All bright work still shiny and no rust on the pickup poles.Tuners stay in tune.
Took the back cover off and all nice and tidy in the wiring department,super quality switches and pots.
I'm going to mark this down abit though as the active circuit is faulty.

This beast is built like a tank! Nuff said.

Never dealt with them.

I got a bargain when i bought this for 40 quid.I was just looking to buy a cheap backup bass for gigs and this came up in the local paper,now its my main and favourite bass!If you see one of these for sale,buy it! I think they are becoming quite sought after as they were only produced for one year.
If this was stolen i would cry and search high and low for another.
I love it for its sound but dont like its active electronics, but hey,whatever it costs to make it 'factory new' i'll pay it!

My bass was made mid-eighties (1986) and one single coil and one split coil. It has one tone-control, one for volume and a selector to switch between the pickups. This means simple and easy. Passive electronic.
It was made in Japan and has a somewhat fenderish style to it, mostly jazz but somewhat precision. Head looks like a narrowed and elongated Gibson-head.
Aria in the mid-eighties made superquality basses.

It surprised me with it's good sound, mainly due to it's age and the fact that it has been used for touring. This means it has been dropped and everything else that comes with a 19-year-old beauty!
It suits my playing very good and I can't see any reason to change. It is as good as any fender for more then i've paid. No BS, this is really good.
I play from reggae to heavy metal and, obviously, it's not perfect for everything. BUT it is versitile, as with any fenderish bass it suits most needs, depending on how you use it. If i'd choose to play it with a pick and have it on the split coil that's centered and increase gain, it suits metal more or less. It brings forth a really distorted sound when you put gain to the max. But tweak it and it siuts good for most. And then again it's a matter of flavour, you can get any sound you would out of a fender p-bass with this. I don't hear minute differences as most people seem to do ;)

Being 19 years old it is heavily worn but being dropped and such I still think it works super. I havent had ANY problems with it.

It's like this thing would outlast me, it feels indestructable. i can hardly get the buttons out and everything feels solid. If you don't want it to break, it wont.

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I've been playing for about two years and i love playing it, I wont replace it ever.

If it ever got stolen i'd cry and find something new that feels good.

I love the neck, it's not that thin but it is still very easily played.

It's not new nor expensive, but it's nice for the price i paid.