Ibanez ATK300

My ATK is a little different than the others i've seen because it has a flamed koa top and it has an alder body, while most are supposed to have Ash. mine isnt nearly as heavy as my ash bodied Peavey T-40.

it has all the standard features. the pickup selection is NOT single/parralell/series, it's actually top coil/bottom coil with trebkle boost/series. unfortunately, i think mine has top coil/top coil with treble boost/series; at least that's what it seems to do when i bang on the pickup with a screwdriver.

it also has a maple neck, and active 3 band preamp. inside the control cavity there is a little trim pot (i guess!) that lets you cut or boost the treble even more and you can set it to your liking, i just left it where it was because it sounds fine like it is. but i thought it was a cool feature anyway.

i'll give it an 8 for features, it'd get higher if my pickup selector wasnt whack. the koa top looks very nice, but i could do without the flame. i dont know, flame tops just dont do anything for me, but it looks fine anyway. it has a clear pickguard, but i took it off because it was really thick and i didnt like how it looked either.

I play lots of different stuff, so that doesnt matter. i have a yorkville BM200 which is a VERY good combo amp that gives a very uncolored sound, it just lets your bass sound go through. with the first pickup selection, there is a good amount of mids and bite. it sounds great fingerstyle and for slap as well. it's not quite as 'growly' as a fender jazz bridge pickup, but it does a good job growling anyway. sounds very nice, and the EQ works great to get it to sound like whatever you want it to, especially in conjunction with your amp's EQ. the middle pickup selection sounds kind of screwy. it sounds just like the first one, but it has a LOT of highs. like someone boosted the 10khz up about 6db. i dont like this setting very much, and you cant make that treble boost go away really. it's the top coil, and i think it's supposed to be the bottom coil. maybe thats why it sounds bad!
the series mode sounds very MM Stingray-ish. with the right EQ settings (not a lot of EQing really) i can nail rage against the machine's "take the power back" bass tone very well. i cant help but slap all day when i'm on this selection. slapping the open E has a very loud bite to it that i really like, especially when you tune to D, which i dont do very often. it has sort of a cut midrange, but it still bites and cuts through really hard. it's hard to explain, it sounds pretty close to an MM from the recordings i've heard, but i've never played an actual MM stingray, so i dont know exactly how close it nails the tone. all i knwo is it has a sound all of it's own and it's a very good sound. very gig and studio worthy. i'd say it's 100% gig and studio worthy, it sounds very expensive, but it isnt!! very impressive, especially for an ibanez, which im usually not very fond of. i'd give it a 10, but im still bummed about minme having the screwy swtich. also, i use DR Hi beams on this bass, so i have no idea what it sounds like with nickel wounds or flats, but i think using nickels or flats with this bass would just be stupid!! also, there is NO hum, EVER. thats why there is that 3rd coil in the middle of the humbucker, it keeps the hum away for good!

i bought it used, but it was set up just fine. i didnt need to change the action, it's nice and low and buzzes a little bit but i think it sounds fine, i think the fret buzz helps give it a more growly biting sound sometimes. and it's not a LOT of fret buzz or anything of course, just when you play hard.
everything else is fine, it plays like a dream and is VERY comfortable. icouldnt believe it. the neck is also really fast and smooth, i love it.

it's sturdy enough. not as soild as my peavey t-40 but it's as solid as the incredible hulk.

i'd gig with it, but i'd take a back up, just like i would with any bass. it's very dependable, i dont think reliability is a very big issue with ANY bass as long as u dont play baseball with it.

i have no idea. ibanez's website is pretty helpful though, has wiring diagrams and manuals for older models, like the ATK.

the only thing i dont like is how i cant get the bottom coil in single coil mode. but everything else about this bass is great. plays great, sounds great, looks good, it's not heavy, and it was only 300 bucks. i think it's a very good MM for people who cant afford an MM or wont pay that much for one, like me. i usually dont like active EQs on my basses, i like passive ones, but i think the preamp is a good thing with this style of bass. it's a very good investment, even though it isnt good for ALL types of music. it'll work well with most rock and funk and maybe even blues, but i think i'd be pretty out of place for softer music types, unless u cut all the treble and then it'd just sound bad. maybe then the nickel wounds or flats would help, but this bass is meant to be slapped if you ask me. thats what i use it as and im very very happy wiht mine! i'd definately recommend it. i'll give it a 10 for the "bang for buck" factor, but really, with a bass like this, why spend over 1000 on something that is just a little better???

1985 Ibanez ATK 300 Korean made. 22 frets, 4 stringer, natrual finish,
One Humbucker and a dummy coil (for noiselessness) at the bridge. Active, soild maple neck (maybe two peice) Ash body (I belive). Cool body style, looks like a old school BTB. Bridge is either strung thru the bridge, OR thru body,,, HOW GREAT IS THAT!?!?!. 3 band eq, with a GOOD pre-amp, unlike other Ibanez basses. 3 way pick up switch for "humbucker", "Single coil", and "Single coil with treble boost" (at least according to ibanez).

Sound? god like tone, it can get nasal and nasty, big and nasty, big and deep, and sorta sounds like a souped up EB With more tone. I like midrange, so i use that alot, becasue it has buttloads of it, but it souds awesome scooped to. this thing cuts thru ANYTHING, It's not to nosey, only if you crank every treble knob you have. The bass leans more to the bright sounding catagory, but it still has a deep rich tone.

I got it used, and it was setup pretty good, the flaws were from the prevoius owner. The neck also plays liek a dream, HELLA FAST.

This thing is a tank, it can stand a world war, let alone a puny "live gig". The finish is great, even after many, many years. The strap buttons are solid, but i'm still gonna put some strap locks on them,,, just in case. It's very dependable, i would gig without back up. the neck is solid, unlike other namless ibanez necks... *cough* soundgears *cough*

Well, i got it used, so i don't need the ibanez support. The thing has never needed repair, it's great.

I own a p-bass, and the ibanz is ten times more soild sounding. If you find one, at least plug it in. If it were stolen, i would find the guy, and rob him of his manhood. my favorite thing abotu this bass is the TONE, And the option of either stringing method. i compared it to a new Stringray, and it didnt come close as far as tones i could get from it. Wish it had a J-Bass Pick up at the neck, but i think the newer ones do.

The Ibanez ATK 300 Bass Guitar is basically a musicman stingray copy. Mine has a Tobacco Sunburst, Maple fretboard and 22 fret, 5 bolt neck. I think this is a good looking bass with a lot of tone variety and nice value. It has an active pickup, volume control, treble control, bass control, mid control knobs, 3-way pickup selector switch and a Triple coil bass humbucker pickup with mode/coil switching. The 3-Way switch can be a little confusing at times. It sometimes makes a huge difference in tone and other times none at all.

I bass in a variety of situations from rock to cabaret to blues. I have a lot more boom than slap in my playing. I play with Fender plastic coated strings to get my tone through an Eden Nemesis cab. Sometimes foot pedals depending on the situation. I find that the bass sounds very good in my club situations. I have heard other players slap and tickle these basses and they are really pretty good sounding at that level too. It has a nice range of sounds. The negatives are in the cable plug. I?ve had terrible problems with mine and have heard the same from other people who have these basses. Because of the plug problems you may hear clicks etc in the studio that you might not catch live. I don't have 100% trust in the electronics but mostly because of all the times I have had to go into the back and resolder wires that where pulled out when the jack came loose. I now have the jack glued down

All in all I like this bass. Especially for it's price. I have heard comments that it is a heavy bass but it feels lighter than a couple of my Telecasters. The frets were fine. I don't have 100% trust in the electronics but mostly because of all the times I have had to go into the back and resolder wires that where pulled out when the jack came loose. I now have the jack glued down and have the back set so that I can remove it without unscrewing it so that I can tweak the circuts as needed.

Because of the cable plug I didn't rate this bass that high for Reliability. I am always a little scared to have it as my only bass. I have no problems with the neck or the finish. I like the bridge and it seems quite sturdy.

Haven't used customer support. I have had to have the plug repaired many times. But they were guitar shops.

When I bought this bass I was primarily a guitar player who fooled around on bass. Now I enjoy playing bass at gigs every week. Would I buy it again? That depends on how much money I felt I was able to spend. It is an excellent value for the money (You can only find them used now but they go very cheap. I?ve seen them go for as little as $150 on ebay. I have considered buying a spare.) But for a serious player you may consider spending a lot more.

I believe this is a 1997 model from either Japan or Korea. It's a 22 fret 4-string with active 3-band EQ. There's one MM style 3 coil (2 coils, 1 dummy) with a 3-way selector swith; you've got 3 choices: single coil (still humbucking), series, and parallel. The pickup is a stock Ibanez. The body's ash with a sunburst finish. The body is kind of like a p-bass on steroids. The bridge gives the option to string through the bridge or the body. The tuners are big open gear, probably schaller. The maple neck is huge, but very playable, and has a maple fingerboard. It was sent in a crappy little gig bag with padding comperable to that of 2 sheets of paper, but it was extremely well packed, so no hard feelings.

I play every style, but I favor rock and funky stuff (love the Red Hot Chili Peppers). I can't play without a growl anymore, and this bass hangs with the best of 'em. I play through a GK 700RB and a Peavey 4x10 4ohm cab. The bass isn't noisy at all, with one exception: if the tweeter is on at a fair level and the treble is cranked, you'll get a nasty hiss, as well as a nasty sound from too much treble. I haven't used the tweeter hardly at all recently, but it sounds good either way. This this has a huge, full sound, and awesome sustain (it better, because it's damn heavy). Definitely has a warm, bright sound up front, but a dark sound can easily bet achieved. The bass sounds mostly like a MusicMan, but by switching the pickup selector, you can get 2 distinct other sounds. With a little work on the eq, you can get just about anything. Also, this thing growls like a champ. The harder you play, the more it does so, but a growl free, extremely warm sound can be achieved by playing softly. I love the sound of this bass in the studio, but the onstage sounds that I get are unreal. Unfortunately, it's pretty heavy (doesn't bother me one bit, but I'm just warning whoever reads this. In the end, it's not noticibly better on the stage than in the studio. I like the fact that the bass control doesn't make the sound muddy, and even if you cut the treble all the way, your tone doesn't disappear. No dislikes in the sound department

When I got the bass, it was well set up. After a bunch of shows in different atmospheres (rainy weather to dry heat), the next straitened a little bit, causing huge buzz on the D and G strings below the 7th fret. This was easily fixed by a 5 minute truss rod adjustment. The action is between medium and low. The finish was well done (until i dropped it), and nothing was loose or noisy. The controls and hardware were (and still are) in good shape; no rust. The neck is awesome, but because of that one time where I had to adjust it (easy fix), I'll give this category a 9

This bass definitely withstands live playing. It's a tank. I dropped it when the shitty strap I was using decided to break. It fell right on the body, bounced into the air, then landed on it's back and the headstock (I believe that this was the real cause of the whole neck adjustment thing, but I can't say for sure). I picked it up to find a quarter sized chunk of the finish missing next to the output jack with little cracks along the outside of the missing chunk. I've seen how thick the finish it, and it will never wear off. The hardware was completely unharmed. I thought that my strap button had fallen off, but I turned out to be wrong. They're definitely solid. It was in perfect working order for the whole show after being dropped, and I had no backup.

N/A

I own an Ibanez EDB 690 Ergodyne bass, and a standard P-Bass. I also own a small Peavey Basic 112 for practice between gigs, and a few effects pedals. If it were stolen or lost, I'd definitley get another one. I love the sound, and I don't really hate anything about it. My favorite feature is either the sound i get from it, or the neck. The neck is at the perfect width and the strings are perfectly spaced for slapping. I wish I could get the bass with a finish of my choice (I'd get some crazy big flake finish), but the one it has is just fine. I don't know why they discontinued this thing. If it was because of a lack of sales, that's a shame. The price that I got it for was a huge deal compared to it's actual value, especially for me being the first owner (I got lucky). All in all, this thing is a 10.

4 strings also available in 5. i prefer 4 strings anyday.
Neck Type: maple bolt on neck. 22 frets Three pieces.
Fingerboard: maple fretted
Body Type: Ash. heavy shit but nice. i love it.
Pickup: Active triple coil pickup located next to the bridge.
Controls: Three band active E.Q plus volume.

amazing! using this bass you can totally choose your sound, great for all styles, pick, walk, slap & pop, i tend to pretty much dislike pick playing, i hate the sound of it but thats just me.

i havnt yet used any effect with it, just clean so far. i have no dislikes about the sounds i can achieve, their is so much variety.

i bought it second hand.

this bass feels expenisive, im sure its durable, this is the first bass i ever picked up ITS HEAVY, every other bass i have picked up feels like a little toy, yet i have not roadtested fender or musicman basses, im a relatively new player. the strap button feel very solid, the finish is great. and i would gig with this bass without a backup, i will be very soon.

bought it secong hand!

great bass, feels, looks and sounds very expensive, a real steal for the price they are second hand. if you cant afford musicman or top range fender basses but want the same quality and similar sound get this bass!

4 string, 34' scale, maple neck/fingerboard, alder body, either string thru body or bridge, one MM p'up, 3 band eq, 3 way character switch. Think Music Man sterling with a bigger, more substantial body, at a fraction of the cost...I have 2 fretted and fretless. I rated it an 8 because a Jazz p'up in the neck pos. would round it out.

I play sessions, Alt, pop, c&w, r&b. with/without pick, finger-style and slap funk. It just jams. A bit on the boomy side, but I like that (engineers don't, tho') nice highs, great texturing mids. I play a Mesa M-2000, and with this bass and that amp, I am set for all occasions.

Both of mine were used, but even still the neck fit is tight and stable. The white finish is perfect, and after a pro setup 2 years ago, i say that this bass is as comfortable as my slippers. As far as Ive seen, standard Ibanez quality.

4 years of super-reliable service. I have averaged more than 3 days a week on this bass.

never needed it.

I own enough basses to get me divorced. I own 2 of these. I want a third. I only play these anymore. you figure it out.

These bases are an attempt at a Musicman style of bass. Made in Korea c 1993. They were imported to the US for only a few years. They are still in production, and now are Lakland-type basses with a single J pickup and triple coil humbucker at the bridge.

22 Frets. Med-jumbo.

4 string.

Solid top - Body is made of ash. Maple neck, with maple fretboard. Fretboard is laquered. Back of the neck is satin finished. The body has a nice amber-burst finish. Ugly pickguard (that I removed). The body style is vaguey Fender-ish. The bridge is a huge, Telecaster-style unit that encircles the large humbucker. It is setup to allow either through-body or through-bridge stringing.

Tuners are standard Schaller, open back tuners. 2+2 configuration.

Neck is 1 11/16" at the nut, but is nicely proportioned. My bass is set up very nicely.

4 knobs and one switch: volume, active eq - treble, mid, bass. Switch allows series, parallel, single coil operation of a single, large, triple coil pickup in the bridge position. The center coil is a "dummy" coil, so even in single coil mode, it's noiseless.

Control cavity is very well shielded, and grounds are good. The battery compartment is a separate cover with brass inserts for the screws to avoid stripping the body. nice!

This bass has a huge tone. The series setting is full and loud. The parallel setting approaches the J-bass sound with both pickups on full. The single coil sound is nice and warm. I reversed the pickup so that the single coil mode activated the coil closest to the bridge. I get a bit more growl and nasal tone that way. The preamp output is easily adjusted with an internal trimpot.

I use this bass with a Sansamp bass DI/driver, and it sounds phenomenal. but then, most basses sound great with the Sansamp... I use various amps, but I'm using my SWR WM10 with 1x10 ext cab a lot these days. This bass sounds great though this rig.

The electronics are quiet, but there is noticeable hiss with the trebloe cranked. I don't use too much active treble, though because this bass is very bright. I'm using DR Highbeams.

This bass gets a surprising variety of tones. In series mode, it's a rock monster, loud and cutting. I like to slap in parallel mode. In single coil mode, with the treble rolled off a hair and the mids bumped a hair, it gets a great straight-ahead quasi-vintage tone.

For those with bad backs, be forewarned. This bass is damn heavy.

I bought the bass used, so I don't know how it came from the factory. It's setup very well right now, though.

There are no defects in the finish. The fretwork is great with rolled edges and level frets. The body is made of 3 pieces of ash, so the grain isn't perfect. It is nice, though. The screws holding the bridge to the body are rusting a bit.

The stock pickguard is tragically ugly. The new ATKs seem to have forgone the pickguard. I removed mine, and it looks a lot better.

This bass is a tank. I have no fear that it will crap out on me. I don't usually bring backup basses to gigs with me.

Never have had to deal with them.

I've been playing for almost 20 yrs. I own a Heartfield DR5 (that I love). I love my new ATK, though. It's really a fantastic bass. Totally underrated. i'd be heartbroken if it were stolen. I'd search for a new one pronto, and the thief would hopefully meet with an ugly fate ( or meet me with my Glock...)

I think the best part of this bass is the sound. It's really clear and bright. Very modern sounding. Great for rock. It's more versatile than people give it credit for, especially with some eq-ing.

Believe early 90's ATK 300 4 string (Japan?). Active three band eq with one soapbar pickup. Three way selector switch. 24 playable frets on a maple on maple bolt on. Mine is a natural finish ...which I HATE..and the bass looks quite retro. But the sounds are many and AWESOME! I use this mostly for studio work and practice as my Jacksons and Charvels look better...and sound close. Body is the typical P-Bass knock off. Mine came with a padded gig bag.

Suits many styles well...mine is metal. In the studio I use it through a SansAmp Bass DI box and it rocks! Stage amp is a Hartke HA3500 with XL 4x10 and XL 1x15 cabs. No noise at all. GREAT range of sounds. Hate the look...love the sound.

As the others...poor factory setup...finish is flawless. A little tweeking to get the action where I like it and all is well.

Stays in tune. Hardware is sturdy.

na

Playing for 13 years...would repeat the purchase...sounds alot like my old G&L SB-1 I used to have. Love the sound...hate the look....

A 1996-96 Ibanez ATK bass. 22 Frets. 4 Strings. Single Humbucker coil (with a phantom coil for hum cancelation) with active electronics, high/low/mid volume and coil selection switch. The strings can go through the body or bridge. Basicly is's a MusicMan clone. Ibanez has since stoped making them. They were available in 4 and 5 string models and fretless.

This bass was made to rock. Funk/Rock/Punk/Metal it all does extremely well. The electronics are dead quiet. Played with a pick it's extremely agressive. I play through an Ampeg SVP-Pro preamp through Carvin Cabs and it sounds great. I've even been able to coax more mellow tones from the bass using a muted thumb technique. It would have no problem cutting through a wall of guitars, but the bass is lacking in the low mids growl. If you are a fan of MusicMan's then this bass would certainly be of some interest to you. While it's a blatent attempt to copy the Ernie Ball MusicMan sound/look, it does have it's own voice. Stringing the bass through the body is the only option as I see it, as it increases sustain and adds body to the the sound.

When I recieved the bass it was set up nearly perfect. I think it was set up by MusiciansFriend before it was sent out. I noticed no major flaws. The neck has remained relitivly straight intill recently. I don't believe there is any kind of support in the neck besides the truss rod, and last time I adjusted the neck I detected some minor waving. Even so the bass still plays very easy and relitivly efortlessly. I did notice that there was a slight fret buzz through the bass even after being adjusted (despite this, it adds to the character of the bass). As this is an Ibanez, the quality of the wood is relitivly low (I've heard other stories of Ibanez necks warping...) despite that fact that it is three ply maple. The high gloss black finish was excelent, though some of the screws holding the pickguard have tarnished niticably. The bridge is excelent - one mammoth solid piece of mettal.

This bass has served me well for many years. Due to financial reasons, I've giged with it withough backup (dangerous I know) and it's come through. The recent neck problems have given me cause to wonder on the quality of the wood though. I've also experienced a problem with the input jack. Apparently this has been a re-occuring problem with ATK's. I've taken impecable care of the instrument (never keeping it out of the case or in the cold) and it would probably last for a long while (with trus rod adjustments taking care of the neck).

N/A

I've been playing bass for over 10 years and this has been my main ax for most of them. As I said before it has served me well. In it's price range it's an excelent deal, but it falls short when compaired to higher end basses (as expected). I would rate this bass as a very good simi-pro bass for heavy music, but if your looking for a profesional bass with a little meatier sound and better construction, look at MusicMan's or Warwicks. If your a conosour of the MusicMan sound; this one is a must. It's a good bass but I plan on trading it in soon. If it were lost or stolen, I would get a Warwick - no question, and would not consider another Ibanez.

Same as the other reviews. 3 band active eq. active triple coil pickup, can be string throught the body or bridge, maple fingerboard.
very heavy. Made in Korea from mid to late 90's. This bass has a big body and a big, fat, thick neck, but it is suprisingly confortable and easy to play, and I have small hands. Needs a thumbrest!

musicman stingray type tone. very agressive and bright. Gets a deep warm tone with the bass control turned up, but the brightness does not go away, even with the treble turned all the way down, so you wont get a vintage fender tone. Great for thumping popping and agressive toned rock and funk. Great sounding bass, but that brightness can be annoying if you are used to vintage-type tone. Midrange contol sounds real good too.

Brought used, so I dont know, but it was very well set up when I got it. I did not see any problems in this category.

Extemely solid in every way. I think this bass would be hard to break or damage.

dont know purchseed used

This is a slighly underrated bass, and I dont know why it was discontinued. Doesent sound as good as a Stingray, and not as versatile as its touted to be. I would buy another one of these. Depending on you playing style, you might need a thumbrest. Wide body does not fit in some gig bags.