Aria Pro II SB-900

1980, Made in Japan (Matsumoku)
24 Frets, 4 strings
Solid-top Oak.
2 volume, 2 tone, pickup sel switch, phase and coil cut switches.
2 MB-1 double coil pickups.
Aria pickups.
Passive electronics
Body solid Oak, Neck Thru: 5 laminate Maple/Walnut,rosewood fingerboard.
Body style... Alembic?
Bridge and nut: brass.
Aria tuners.
Hard Case, Original, Red Velvet Lining

I play mainly rock/heavy rock and it plays this beautifully, but is also very versatile in that any genre sounds great played with this bass. I don't usually use effects with it, so I rely on a strong clean sound as we only have one guitarist in the band. It really adds a defining bass sound as well as a brilliantly defined high. I use a slight mid-scoop when putting it through my bass amp and this seems to suit it beautifully. It plays as well onstage as it does in the studio.

The action is perfect, never needed to change it in the few years that I have owned it. The pickups do their job well, which makes the tone perfect. It weighs a hell of a lot, which means it takes some getting used to, especially when using it for long stage sets. After a while though you get used it.

The bass, I'm afraid to say, has been dropped before but had sustained absolutely no damage. The varnish does get chipped though, if mistreated, but is easily touchupable. Only once have I had a problem where the screw for the strap has come out, but this is due to my energetic and sometimes rough playing style. Was easily fixed by refilling and redrilling the hole for the screw. I never bring a back-up with this bass and so far this has proved fine.

I've never had any issues with the bass to call customer support.

I've been playing for about 3 years now, and this has been my 3rd bass. I have to say I was really impressed with the look, which was the main reason why I bought it. I then found out that it plays better than it looks which means that this is a bass for life. It's so durable and dependable. Every bassist, from every genre of music should own one!

1980, Made in Japan (Matsumoku)
24 Frets, 4 strings
Solid-top Oak.
2 volume, 2 tone, pickup sel switch, phase and coil cut switches.
2 MB-1 double coil pickups.
Aria pickups.
Passive electronics
Body solid Oak, Neck Thru: 5 laminate Maple/Walnut,rosewood fingerboard.
Body style... Alembic?
Bridge and nut: brass.
Aria tuners.
Leather gig bag, unknown it's original.
Photos: http://s254.photobucket.com/albums/hh104/jesuskno/Aria%20Sb900%20Oak%201980/?action=view¤t=2e24314f.pbw

I play jazz and modern jazz, and occasionally pop and rock, this bass attaches to all styles. I use a mesa boogie 400+ with a mesa 4x10 not use any type of effects or compressor, the sound is fantastic. Once a played Alembic Spoiler and was not as good as my SB 900.
The switch allows the entire range of sounds, from dark until the most brilliant. Failure is noisy, perfect for recording studio.
It is a heavy but under very good. I do not dislike anything about it.

The action is low, very easy to play. Sustain infinite, all components are of high quality woods and hardware, all very good, very similar to my Alembic essence. I think it is the best bass that has been built factory.

All materials and finishing are really good, I think it's a bass for a lifetime.

I never help Aria.

I have several bass as Alembic, Fender, Ibanez MC ... And I was looking for a substitute for Alembic to the "war daily," but I was really surprised at the quality of this bass, which exceeds a Fender, Ibanez, Lakland, etc. ... I am really happy to have a SB900. Now I am looking for a SB1000, I hope to find soon.

This is a 1983 Aria Pro II SB-900. Assembled in Japan. 2 passive soapbar pickups, 24 frets, 4 strings, long scale. Its a neck through design of some sort of heavy wood-- I believe ash, rosewood fingerboard. Its a heavy bass but I've adapted well and now the weight only lends, along with the neck through element, to great sustain. The finish is beautiful. Mine is a light woodgrain with super duper gloss. The hardware is brass and blends nicely with the grain of the wood. Pictures/words really dont do it justice. =] Tuners as well as all hardware are A+, stays in tune and perfect inotation up and down. The controls are 2 volume/2 tone each in a spilt knob design, there are also cut switches for both pickups for a thumpy vs bright sound. Its got a brass bridge thats very easy to load, as well as a brass nut. The only thing it lacks is active electronics-- for a passive bass it has everything I need, and fine quality to boot.

I play rock, blues and classical. The sound suits me fine. It has a natural clean tone thats very adjustable with all the knobs and switches that are onboard. The sound is naturally a bit bright, but very clean and clear. I could go for a bit more growl at times. The bass itself is quiet as a mouse, even around alot of interference (IE computer monitors, unshielded speakers, ect.) Its really perfect for anything related to a studio. Its probably best suited for jazz or funk. Did I mention it has a great slap sound? A perfect slap sound. =]

Action is great. This is why I switched over to the early 80s Arias in the first place. The neck on this thing is extremely quick and slender. My hands aren't gigantic like alot of the bassists I see playing out there-- but the neck makes them feel that way. I can reach anything I want easilly. The action is perfect in my opnion. Very low down, no buzzing anywhere and perfect (literally) inotation all the way up and down. I purchased it second hand and adjusted one of the pickups a bit for comfortable fingerstyle play. Thats another little feature thats nice, the pickups have a little stiarstep that works as a perfect thumbrest. Wood is A+, once again, as is all the hardware. I would prefer that the tuners were Brass or gold plated, rather than nickle, simply for asthetics, but thats really my only complaint.

I've never had a problem with it, ever. Some of that I can thank the previous owner for-- he took fine care of the insturment. I've played out at some pretty rough environs, and done my best to avoid knocking it around. I've had no problems and the way this thing is built I couldnt forsee any, either. It looks to be a tank, but I'm not about to put that to the test if I can keep from it. It stands up well.

Never had to contact Aria-- I think its an entirely different company now, manufacturing alot of crap, at least in compariason to the early 80s insturments.

I've only been playing 3 years, but I've owned and played more than my share of basses in that time. I'm 100% satisfied with my purchase, even though I probably could have gotten a simular SB-900 for cheaper somewhere. Bass wise I'm set, hopefully for the long haul. I really love this bass. I've played Fenders, Gibsons, Rick's and whatever else I could get my hands on, but this bass I like more than any of them, especially with respect to playability. It dosnt have the growl that some basses do, or the thump, honestly, but its smooth and tasteful sounding. Its a great bass, as are all the early 80's SB-series models-- don't let anyone tell you otherwise.