Ibanez BTB1205E

What year was it made? Don't know - probably 2005
24 frets on D & G string only
Controls: volume, blend, bass, mid, treble, mid shift switch - 250, 500 or 1000hz
Pickups: Two Bartolini soapbar - Don't know details
Preamp: Bartolini
Body & Neck materials: Mahogany body w/flamed maple top - Neck is 5 piece Maple/walnut
Finish: Natural
Body Style: Radical Jazz style - very curvy horns
Bridge: Ibanez Monorail
Tuners: Gotoh
Neck/scale: 35" scale, neck is wide across the nut, but thin front to back.
No accessories included with mine.

Overall, this is a very warm-sounding bass. With the neck pup soloed, it gives a very convincing, warm Pre-CBS Precision tone. So nice! With the bridge pup soloed, it has a 70s-type Jazz bass tone. Very burpy and articulate. When both pups are on full, it has its own, unique sound. This leads me to believe that the two pickups are voiced very differently, not like the same pickup in two different locations. The closest bass to which I can compare this bass' sound is the Peavey Cirrus. If you know what a Cirrus sounds like, the BTB1205E sounds similar, but noticeably warmer, and more Fender-like. I used to own a Cirrus. I'm currently playing my 1205E through a Hughes & Kettner QC310 amp, which is a warm-sounding amp. I might add that this bass has a warm tone through any amp. The electronics are silent. I think this bass excells at Motown, Surf, Blues and any music with a classic Fender bass tone.

The action, fit and finish on this instrument are top-notch, and not only on mine. I bought my bass in January, 2006, and also played a 1206E the day I bought mine, and the craftsmanship was the same - EXCELLENT! In the past year and a half, I've played two other 1205Es, and their fit and finish was the same - EXCELLENT! Congats to Ibanez on their consistency and fine craftmanship!

The construction and hardware on this bass indicate that they will last for years. I am also the original owner of a 1979 Ibanez Musician, and that bass has laughed at Father Time. After 26 years, the only problem is a scratchy 3 way selector switch. The body and neck are fine. The frets could use polishing or possibly a fret job.

I've never had to contact Ibanez about a problem in the past, and I don't think I'll have to so in the future. But, you never know.

I have been playing since dinosaurs walked the Earth. If this bass were lost or stolen, I would definitely buy another. What I love most about this bass is its tone: very warm and 60s-ish. The neck is also very comfortable. The neck is similar in feel to a Peavey Cirrus' neck. It has a killer B string. The Elixir strings that came stock sounded very good, but I replaced them with Fodera Diamond series extra-long nickels,(.44 - .125) and like the sound of these even more. Nice and warm. By the way, whichever strings you choose to put on, make sure they have a tapered B string. I installed one set which didn't, and the B string sat up much too high on the saddle. I've mentiond a warm tone a few times in this review, and that's this bass' strongest point. If you don't like a warm-sounding bass, then I don't think this instrument would be right for you, but if you do, I strongly advise you to put the BTB1205E on your short list of basses to try out. Some people may have a problem with the name, "Ibanez," but I assure you this bass is second to none. I am hesitate to give out 10s to anything, but I reread my review twice before posting it, and honestly think this bass deserves it.

Korea-made. Mahogny and Maple body. Bartolini mics and amp.

Well, I had huge expectations for this bass, but I was disappointed. The bass is sounding muddy. And you never can escape from that muddiness! Maybe that because of the mahogny wood.
And the Eq is also a little disappointing. Why? I believe the hz settings, bass and treble, is not on the best possible set. So when you turn the bass eq pot, you cant change the sound that you really want to change.

This is this bass strongest card. Good!

This bass is a rock

Haven't needed it..

Well, for me, two thing counts: the sound and the neck.
This bass has great neck but bad sound...

Bought this bass brand new from Ibanez's representative in Finland. Made in Indonesia (I believe).

Neck is 5-part (maple with mahogany stringers), neck-through-body construction. Rosewood fretboard with 24 frets, dot-inlays in the side of the fretboard (mother of pearl, I believe). A pretty wide neck ensures good playing comfort. Body wings are 3-part (flamed maple top and back, mahogany inbetween). The tonewoods are pretty classic, which - paired with the 35" scale - results in a well-articulating, warm and classic bass sound. Body style is BTB, Ibanez's own design. Natural oil finish.

This bass has passive Bartolini soapbar pickups and an active onboard preamp. The preamp is 3-band, so there are three pots for active eq. Also there's a switch to control the mid-frequencies between 500 Hz, 750 Hz and 1 kHz. Besides these pots there's one for volume and one for pickup blending.

Hardware is satin chrome for the bridge and tuners, black for pots. The bridge is Ibanez's own design, monorail-style.

All in all the features are great. Mahogany and maple as main tonewoods are an excellent choice. The bass has also great aesthetic value. Only thing missing are active pickups - other that those, the features are perfect.

I play various styles, and this bass can deliver ten times out of ten. The raw sound is pretty full and round, which I like. Passive pickups unfortunately don't sound as full and rich as active ones (in my experience). The sound is well articulating due to the 35" scale - this is especially noticeable with the B-string. This bass is quite versatile to fit all kinds of music styles. The tonewoods however mean that the sound doesn't have that growl you'll hear (for example) on newer ovangkol / swamp ash -Warwicks. For growl I would recommend some other bass.

I had some problems with the noisy preamp. With all eq-pots at full boost the bass produced quite a lot of unwanted hum. There was also an issue with the balance pot; if the pot was turned full open for neck pickup, the signal would go completely dead. By turning the pot slightly back, the problem would disappear. Bad wiring, I presume. This didn't bother me much, since I kept the balance at 50/50.

I gigged with the bass quite a few times and was completely satisfied with it. I believe it would've worked just as fine in studio, too. Aside from the small issues of hum and bad balance pot, in addition to the passive pickups, I really liked the sound of this bass. Very versatile, extremely good for all kinds of music styles.

The local dealer had it set up before I bought it, did a very good job. I kept the action as low as possible, and it played out very comfortably. Very comfortable to play. The body is quite big compared to my newer, smaller Warwicks. Still I found it comfortable whether I played it standing or just on my lap.

I'd actually like to give great credit to Ibanez's Indonesian craftsmanship: splendid work. I found no flaws whatsoever. Even my european-made Warwick (more expensive craftsmanship) had tiny flaws. A real quality instrument.

Gigged with this bass for numerous time plus very much rehearsing. Never got out of tune during concerts of rehearsals. Actually I remember having it in the case for nearly two weeks at one point. Took it out and started playing - still in tune! Very reliable.

The hardware was rock solid, no sings of tear and wear. Some stains were visible on the side of the body where I rest my right hand (mainly from sweaty hands). On the natural oil finish this was visible as a slightly more polished surface. Never tried to rub it off or anything, but it was only visible from a feet away or so, so it didn't bother me.

I changed the original strap buttons to Schaller strap locks. Just a personal preference (20 EUR for strap locks compared to ten times more cost of repairing the damages if it actually fell to the floor...).

Always gigged with it without backup, and still would. Great feel, reliable and solid. Never had to adjust the truss rod after the original set up at the dealer.

Bought it brand new, the price included a case and all kinds of little extras. By the time I'm writing this review I've actually already traded this bass away for a Warwick FNA Jazzman. I was in need of a smaller bass with a more powerful sound, so I settled for Warwick. I would strongly recommend this bass to anyone in need of a well-articulating bass with a good, versatile sound. I just personally like smaller bodies.

Aside from special custom options (flamed maple electronics cavity cover would've been nice) and active pickups, I never felt this bass was missing anything. All in all an outstanding package for little money. Almost amazing, since the bass has expensive features (3-part body wings, 5-part neck, neck-through-body), but he "Made in Indonesia" tag really pulls the price down. So if you're looking for a great bass with good looks and good tonewoods, neck-through-body and active electronics, this is your choice.