Ibanez BTB400QM

2003 Ibanez btb 400qm made in korea if im not mistaken.
Came in a nice red color. same features as all others havesaid.
I got this bass for 210 dollars (including shipping) with a free 110 dollar hardshell case off ebay brand freaking new! Lots of knobs on her , lets you shape the sound to perfection.

I play punk,jazz, a little metal, and some funky stuff. this bass suits it all, although i wish it had a more bassyer tone, this thing is a mid range monster, so its hard to kill the midrange, even with cutting it all.A neat thing about it is, with all knobs turn up, tap a tune , and mess with the mid frequency knob, it sounds liek a wah pedal!

The bass came to me with the neck way to stright and the action was to low , wich caused buzzing on evertyhing, i did a little truss rud adjustment and raised the action , now its fine no buzzing no wheres.

This bass can definatly be used by even a pro at big gigs no problem, its build like a freaking tank , ive droped it a few times, and acidentaly droped other basses on it, no scratches at all! id definatly gig with out a backup. It always stays in tune.

After playing many basses and owning a few of my own, id say this is a great bass all around, Awesome looks, awesome sound, great playability, rock solid. And since i paid less then half of what id have to pay at a music store , its a win win situation!

As above.. My likes are wide variety preamp.

Sound can be weak on the top end, But if you are looking for low end this thing can thunder. I like it, I was able to dial anyhting I wanted. I bet 90% of the idiots on here who gave it a bad sound didnt even have fresh batts in it, or have no patience to go through the EQ. I give it a 9 because i still cannot find the hi-mids and Hi end

Decent... I bought it used with some missing knobs.

This bass has to be prefessionally set up!!! IT has to be. You cannot do it yourself, no matter how great you think you are. IF you dont know a good lutheir then dont get this bass, Once this bass is set up it is a beatiful bass to play on, but before it is proerly set up it sucks.

As far a the retards who claim the cannot get rid of the buzz above the 15th, then that just shows that they cant set up a bass. My Luthier Set it up perfectly afteri spent hours trying to set it up.

I give it a 7 because the factory set-up was that bad.

Now here is where this thing has pissed me off... I have had two problems.
1. the upper horn screw stripped once... easy fix.
2. When changing the Batts for the 1st time, the Preamp fried... Dont knwo how or why, but it smoked and died(all i did was switch batteries fellas). After 4 months at the shop Ibanez finally sent my luthier a new preamp... since then it has not had a siblge problem. Im pretty sure this was a Lemon pre-amp so dont let this stop you.

LAme.... Took 4 months for my second pre-amp to show up.

I like it, Its my main gig bass, I would take it anywhere, and It playes good enough for me. I wouldnt get another one though if it were stolen, I would get an Iceman bass... Not that I dont like it, but I wouldnt shellout the cahs to play something I already played for a while. I like new basses.

i'm assumming it's a 2003 model since i bought it in 2003. i bought it at a local store.
BTB4 neck
5pc. Maple/ Walnut Neck Material
Basswood w/Quilted Maple top Body
24/Medium frets...25 on D@G strings
Rosewood Finger Board
Mono- Rail II bridge
IBZ DFR-N4 Neck PU
IBZ DFR-B4 Bridge PU
Pearl Dot Inlay
SN : Hardware Color
Vari-Mid IIIB (18V)

my style would be considered "all over the place" and it suits it just fine. i mostly am i heavy rock to heavy metal person though. currently i have no amp other than going straight into my Behringer mixer and into my computer. there is no noise that my ear detects. with a little tweaking this thing can achieve any concievable sound i think. perfect for a studio bass. i haven't been on a stage with it, but i would say that with a nice amp it would be just as at home there as a studio. likes? eveything!
dislikes? not a thing.

action was a little low for me, but i think the store might have had something to do with this. nothing was amiss when i purchased it.

i've only had it a few months, so this section is a little useless to me. i would take this thing with me as a main instrument though, no worries!

no need for this yet!

i've been playing for about 20 years. i have a Yamaha guitar and my little "persoanl studio" that i'm working on getting setup. if it was lost, i would get another one, no questions asked. if it was stolen, i would kill the SOB! i'm an Ibanez bass man, i had a SR800 when they first came out and i absolutly loved it. there's nothing bad about this bass that i can think of. i did a lot of "online" shopping looking for a bass. it wasn't until i visited the store and actully picked it up that made a decesion. it was this or another of the Ibanez line. i layed out my needs and it came down to versitility. this thing felt solid and had a great tone without an amp. the fist thing that got me was the finish, so f'n beautiful, the next was the solid feel and awsome sound...un-amped! i just knew this was the one!

Black Stain one made in 2001 Korea

everything as above

No straplocks means 9

Good for metal/fusion rock/modern jazz but not for classic jazz or ballads, becouse of growling mids that are difficult to be removed either by onboard EQ and outboard compression and EQ

I saw some reviews saying that this bass has a bad slap sound, I connsider it great but still not for nice jazz.

It's hard some times to play with pick on this one maybe becouse of string tennsion.

There is no noise no at all in all settings

I connsider the sound of this bass as growly/hard/heavy byt variety of sounds it can make is wide almost too wide due this EQ.

For me sounds great best with good amp

Action can be kept realy low. factory setting was OK. When I was buing this bass it was strung with Elixr strings which are great.

Two soapbars are set up perfectly no need to readjust.

Finish is Ok gets dirty fast in my opinion. Pots get dirty fast too.

It needs new straplocks when bought for 100%, those made by Ibanez don not hold strap and don't stay in the body.

All screws should be tightent.

After 2 years finish dosen't seems to wear off at all.

Becouse of the contruction of monorail II bridge strings sometimes bail. But it happends only with old strings so no need for backup.

N/A

Try it if you do'nt like it don't buy if you do buy. Just this. geat bass

look at the others

ive been playing all kinds of music on this bass in the last year that i have had it and you can make almost any sound you want from this bass.

i got this used but when i got it it was almost perfectly set up, i jsut like the action a little lower than it was

this is very reliable and durable as long as you remember to change the batteries for the active eq every so often, and all you have to remove is 2 screws and they are easy to change

never had to use it

i love the feel of this bass and the electronics are pretty good too, i dont think I'll be replacing it any time soon

Check the ibanez site for a full list

fully kitted out, locking jack, isolating bridge, 18v EQ, 35 in scale etc

this sounds great for anything ive played, i havnt been playin for that long, but my friend has, and he loves this bass, my trace elliot amp always helps though i suppose. the pickups are a little too quiet for my liking, but thats nothing. you can pretty much get any sound out of this you want.

it was set up beautifully by the man in mccormacks, batteries were low but that doesnt matter, people complain of all the fret buzz, but i barely get any..at all, everything was fine. it came with elixer strings too. it looks beautiful very nice finish.

seems pretty durable, ive whacked the headstock off walls and roofs a few time, but no marks and it stayed in tune, i could proabably gig with this without a backup. had no probloems with the strap locks or anything for that matter. pickups get a bit worn from the strings when you slap or whatever. the laminate on the body looks like it could b easily damaged though

never had to use

year warranty from place i got it from.

great bass, reccommend it to anyone, id love to try the 5 string version.

See previous review for feature details. This bass should come with straplocks (seen durability).....

Battery compartment should be accessible with no tool.

I use it to play Jazz, Blues & Rock. I play fingerstyle and slap a bit. Dial in a good slap tone IS possible but you need adequate string for that.

The preamp allows for some heavy tone tweaking although not all sounds are musical.

I guess my next statement could be said of any basses but I feel it's particularly true of the BTB: the BTB needs suiting strings to have a good tone. The BTB basic tone is not very "woody" it's rather brittle sounding string and it can sometimes sounds artificial and harsh with some stainless steel string.

The sound is very versatile. Whereas it may lack in the "woody"/traditionnal tone department this bass really shine if your looking at "HI-FI" kind of tone.

All in all for its price it's quite good. But it simply isn't in the same league as, say a StingRay, Sterling, a Cirrus or Warwick. Still for the price it is quite good.

For me the sound versatility (thanks to its preamp) was the deciding factor in getting it!

For slap I string it with DR High-Beam or Low-Rider.
For other style I prefer the Sunbeam or some old High-Beam.

When I got the bass it had a REALLY bad setup, too much bow, high action, crappy string. AND battery were almost dead.

The finish though was perfect even though it was a demo model. Neck was sound and the fret were properly filed.

One pot is a bit scratchy though.

After changing strings and adjusting the bridge the action became somewhat ok although I experienced quite a bit of fret buz. I tried various string height adjustment to compensate but to no avail.

I hate to mess with truss rod myself and so I kept the "bow" as is for a while (After seeing the kind of setup the shop had done I guessed I was better to do it myself...)

After adjusting the truss rod properly the action became REALLY good.

I should state that I've been playing guitar for 2 years and I started on bass a year ago. This BTB is the first bass I got.

Adjusting to a 35" scale was long for me. For the first few months any bass I'd try (and I tried a few) would feel better than mine. I especially dig the StingRay 5 neck and some Spector I tried.

Now I must say I love the action AND the neck but it was long to adapt to it

I haven't gig with it but it is really well built. I was playing (without strap lock) and the strap got loosed I was standing and the body it the floor quite hard while the headstock hit the wall and the neck bounced on the edge of a desk......

Results:
Well the wall got a ding the headstock is still immaculate
The fretboard got a very small ding but the edge of the desk lost big chip of wood.
The body had no mark but the cord plugged in got bend.

The bass was slighlty out of tune!!!

I guess that's what I would call durable.

Not contacted so far

As mentionned previously I've been playing only 1 years. I also own an ATK 300 fretless.

It took me quite a while to actually love the bass but now I really like it. Would I buy it again? Well given more money I would definitively upgrade but given the same budget YES in a wink.

For the price a very good value and it is not a one trick pony.

And to those that find it sounds synthetic or sterile try putting some DR Sunbeam on!!!

Read the other reviews or the Ibanez website for a list of features.

The only thing this bass is missing is a whammy bar! I believe it's the latest edition 2002 one, which will probably be the last BTB for the time being. The guy in the shop told me Ibanez have stopped selling them as they are too feature rich for the price. I didn't want to, but I liked the passive pick ups with the active preamp, I play some songs with distortion and this bass is easier to control feedback with than any of my other basses. The long neck is good for detuning, one band I am in plays in drop Db which I think this bass was built for!

I play slap and finger style, and I think this bass sounds great for both. I spent a day playing every bass I could get my hands on in London. I really liked the look of this bass so I thought I wouldn't like it's sound, but I couldn't help liking it. I knew I was going to buy it so I asked the guy in the shop to set it up for me, after 3 set ups I found the one that worked for me and the sound suddenly became amazing. I think this bass likes to be played hard as it sounds best when I really thump it.

You can use the tone controls to shape your sound quite a bit. You can get honkey Jazz or Music Man tpye sounds and then you can also make it growl like a P-Bass.

Its' not noisy at all. I think the electronics are pretty good.

I think you must get the shop to set up the action for you when you try it out. I had the action changed 3 times. Because it's such a precise neck I think you notice more when the action doesn't suit you. I've managed to get the action really low now, well much lower than I've ever had on a bass before. The neck is pretty wide, which is what I was looking for as it lets you play harder.

The pickups sound great, not played around with them very much to be honest - not felt the need to.

Overall the bass seems pretty well made, I could see a couple of screws needed a tighten when I bought it. I suggest going over everything and making sure its tight as I think the factory QA is a bit slack. Or do what I did and get the guy in the shop to sort it out for you.

The finish on the body is really nice, I got the black finish looks better than my friends Carvin which is a similar bass to look at but it cost 3 times as much.

This bass is solid. All seems fine on that front. Maybe the only gripe I would have is that some things needed tightening in the shop, but everything has stayed tight whilst at home.

Never had to use it. No comment.

I've been playing over 10 years. I own a Fender Jazz, a Westone Thunder 5A, a Honer B-Bass IV and now this one. Out of all of them I think the Ibanez is the best all rounder. I bought it mainly to play heavy rock as none of my other basses liked being tuned down to Db. The long scale of the Ibanez really helps this. Also the Ibanez makes me play harder and has helped me progress a bit more with my playing. The wide neck is well suited to my style.

When I bought the bass I spent a day trying out basses in 5 different shops in London, I tried everything, I was prepared to spend a great deal more than the #400 I spent on it, but this bass sounded better than basses over twice as expensive - and it played much better than them too.

Once I got the action sorted I was amazed.

I borrowed this bass for a concert from a friend. After talking to him about it for a while, he told me that these are the features: Ibanez BTB400QM with BTB 4 neck, quilted maple top/basswood back, large frets, Monorail II bridge, dfr-n4 neck pickup, dfr-b4 bridge pickup, Vari-Mid 3 band EQ. Made in korea, medium output passive pickups with active 18 volt electronics. The neck has a 35" scale. The neck is hard to play after learning to play on a jazz-neck, the pickups are really bland (i'll get to that in the next section), and there's a pretty thick buzz around the 12 fret on every string that its owner CAN'T GET RID OF.

I give it a 6 because even though its got alot of features, it still doesn't feel right, and doesn't have a great sound.

I play all sorts of styles, soft rock, funk, metal, punk, classic rock, and jazz. Of the above, the pickups have a very bland tone with no sustain, kind of like a dull *thunk* instead of actually a bass note. At first, i thought that this was because of the EQ. I fiddled with the EQ to no avail. I learned how to play on a \ squier P-special, and i currently own and play the squier and musicman sterling 4. Finally, after 2 hours of playing this pile of garbage before the show, i just decided to use the squier (my sterling was in the shop). The sound on this bass is actually THAT BAD. Side note: If you ever try to slap on this bass, the awful NOISE that is produced will simply make you want to jam sharp things into your ear.

I give this a 4 because the sound is truly "that bad". If you don't believe me, go to your local store and try it. The dull "thud" that ensues after fiddling with the EQ and trying to play will surely convince you that this is truly the worst bass ever.

The finish is definetely the best thing about the bass. It looks so damn cool. The pickups and strings were at the perfect height for my style of playing, although there WAS a nasty buzz around the 12 fret (which the owner told me wouldn't go away, after HOURS of adjusting the action and truss rod). There was this thing around the cable input that like locked it in place, which i thought was pretty rad cuz i move around ALOT and a feature like this definetely helps.

I give this a 8 cuz there was some pretty cool stuff about this bass.

Seemed pretty durable, although the owner told me that when he got it, the straplock on the front horn thingy fell off.

Its a 9, because its solid aside from the straplock.

wouldn't know, its not my bass.

Overall, waht matters most about a bass is the feel and sound, not the look. Whereas this bass is obviously roadworthy and built to last, the sound is terrible and the neck feels like a 5 string. Don't just take my word for it, go out and test this out for yourself so you can see just what i'm talking about.

I think its a 2000 model, but I'm not sure. look at the others for all the specs

you can make almost any sound you want with it. I've played it through several small practice amps, a bassman 100, and a hartkie half stack and it sounded good through all of them. It sounds great for the price.

the action is somewhat low, but i like it, and everything else was jsut fine too.

I've been using it for about 8 months, and I keep care of my stuff so i havent had any problems with it, except when i got the strap button ripped out, but that was easily fixed (just one screw). I would trust the bass more than I trust new strings, so i woudl gig without a backup any day.

havent need it

To me there is nothing better than the BTB bases. I WOULD RECOMEND THIS BASS TO ANYONE AND I CANT SEE MYSELF GETTING ANY OTHER BASS BESIDES THIS OR ANOTHER IN THE BTB SERIES

2001 Ibanez BTB400QMTR...made in Korea...volume, pickup balance, bass boost, treble boost, sweeping mid...passive pickups with active electronics, basswood back with quilted maple top, 35" neck (best feature), I've had it one year

The sound is okay I suppose, could be better. I slap sometimes, it sounds horrible while slapping. I play a lot of Tool, this bass sounds great playing that (even though I use my Fender Jazz for that). It is extremely quiet. No humming at all. I currently run it through a Fender Bassman 200. Great picking bass. You can get just about any sound with this bass, from Jazz bass to a Warwick Thumb.

The action was a little tight when I first got it. Fixed it right away. The pickups were good. It buzzes on the 11 to 15 frets on the D string and 12 to 14 frets on the E. I can't seem to get rid of it.

This bass can withstand live playing. The Neutrik locking jack is a pain in the ass, if you barely touch the cable it has a poppy/crackly tantrum. The bridge is disintegrating despite great care. Good finish. I have my Fender Jazz in Drop D flat, my Ibanez in C, and my Schecter 5 string in F# (REAL low). So I don't really have a backup, but I would definitely use one.

I've only dealt with Ibanez because of my old SR405. The pickups were horrible. The warranty lasted a year. You definitely need it.

I've been playing guitar for 3 years and bass for 2. Other basses I own are a Fender 60's Jazz Bass and a Schecter Deluxe 5 String. If this was stolen, I wouldn't buy another one. I would probably get an ESP or Fernandes to replace it. This isn't a very good bass, and the best feature is the 35" neck. It provides good tension while detuned. If you are absolutely desperate, and your last resort is buying this bass, don't.

a and e strings have 23 frets and d and g have 24
Pickup selector and 18volt pre amp + full eq
nice wide neck

Mine came with a really, really low action and the frets buzzed quite a bit particularily on the a string. The eq and pre amp sound really good altough the extremes seem to be the best way to go with it. Overall sound is great almost just as good quality as a 1200$ jazz bass.

5 minutes with the truss rod fixed the buzzing. I figure pick so most buzzing isnt picked up as much so others might have to work longer on it. Even before adjusting the rod, the pickups seem not to pick up the buzzing much, it was really only noticable when i was playing at low volumes. Action is nice, easy to use if adjusting is needed.

I've only had mine for about 4 or 5 months now, no problems so far save for the 1 tone nob for the preamp was lose, nothing 5 minutes and an allen wrench didnt fix though. I've had to adjust the action or truss rod since i got it. It has survived a few gigs and many, many hours of jamming and practicing. Finish seems to be holing up fine.

none needed so far

I have been playing for only about 3 years, but im a quick learning at anything musical. I like to jam on rush song so that should prove my ability. Compared to the average bass today that runs about 4-600 it simply destroys them. It even destroys some of the more expensive jazz basses and warwicks. it is unmatched for its price and quality. I would feel confident going on stage without a back up. Sounds great on my Gk 1001rb.

Korean-made, red quilted maple top. I like the control layout - master volume, pickup fader, bass boost/cut, treble boost/cut, sweepable mid w/ boost/cut. Locking Nuetrix jack is okay - I always loop my cord over the endpin so if I step on it I won't unplug myself! 35" scale is great for me - I play with a pick, and pretty hard. Never any flopping of strings. Tuners were loose when I got it.

Surprisingly good sound - I wasn't expecting much. Good variety of sounds available within what I use. 18v circuit seems pretty quiet. It's well balanced, not too heavy, and I like it a lot more than I ever expected to.

The finish seems a little bit "thick", common with imported instruments. The neck is wide and thick - combined with the extended scale, probably not good for those with small hands. Setup was acceptable when I got it, but since I got it used I can't say how the factory delivered it.

I bought this bass to take the place of my '71 Rickenbacker 4001 that had one of the original tuners disintegrate. It took me months to find the original Grovers for the Ricky, and I played this bass nonstop for many months - indoors, outdoors, hot, cold. No problems ever. No adjustments required, just tune it and play. I wouldn't do any gig anywhere without a backup, no matter what I was playing.

Never dealt with them.

Been playing since 1969. Also own '71 and '72 Rickenbacker 4001s, Steinberger XL2, '83 Fender Precision, Dean Rhapsody 8 string. I liked this one so much I just bought a 5 string version off EBay as well. Haven't received it yet though. I really like the extra string tension as a result of the extended scale - sometimes my Ricky suffers from "string flop" if I'm playing hard - this one doesn't.

2002 model, transparent red quilt top over basswood, satin chrome hardware, dual soapbar pickups (humbuckers?), 35" scale. The body has a nice shape, and feels pretty well balanced. Don't know what strings came stock on it, but I didn't like them at all.

The EQ helps to get a wide range of sounds, most of them I liked. The frets buzzed like a chainsaw (see next section). Playing on a 35" scale took some getting used to, and in the end I hated the extended scale.

The action was very high, and even once I lowered the bridge saddles, it was still high. After adjusting the truss rod, the action improved but the strings buzzed like crazy. The treble tone knob fell off unexpectedly and had to be tightened back down. The finish was real nice, the hardware was pretty decent, and the frets were finished well.

It should be reliable once you tighten down every screw and knob.

Didn't have to call them.

The things I liked most about this bass was the finish and the monorail bridge. The things I liked least was the 35" scale and the fret buzz. An extended scale bass should not buzz as bad as this one does. Not a bad sounding bass, but nothing spectacular about it either. Play one before buying one!

2001 made ibanez with 24 frets i belive flame maple to volume pickup selector bass treble and active bass and active treble controls bartolini pictups fat at the nect and i dont know what the back one is i dont like it so i dont play with it on active electronics maple neck transparent red finish monorail bridge system gotoh tuners extra jumbo frets

I play slap and this bass is absolutely horrific for it infac no matter what Im playing Im very disappointed with the sound it is somewhat noisy but I am under the impression that soapbar pickups are all this crappy this is really only good for the ballad bassist which I absolutely dispise. I must say that i dont like anything about the sound

I got it with super high action which i dont like but then i lowered it and it got extreme fret buzz to the point where my tuner couldnt tell what not it was. the finish is about the only thing i like about this guitar i love the finish which is probobly why i bought the guitar (the dumbest thing to do when bying a guitar) also the pickups are extremely high on this guitar

depending on how much abuse you give it it will last the hardware is not strong at all in fact i was playing suck my kiss and part of the tuner snapped off I wouldnt use at a gig without a back up

very crappy the tuner was under warrantee and it took them 4 months to decide to replace there was a one year parts warrantee thats it

I have been playing two years almost I wish i would has ask question you should ask whenm buing something I probobly wouldnt have gotten a straight answer anyway i hate this guitar I campared it to the olp stingray and i wish i would have bought that

-2001 BTB400, made in Korea.
-24 frets, 35" scale
-One volume knob, one pick-up blend knob, 3 eq knobs one is a stacked knob.
-Two Ibanez humbucking "soapbar" style pick-ups
-Passive pick-ups, 18v active electronics
-Basswood body w/ quilted maple top, laminated maple/rosewood neck (m/r/m/r/m), rosewood fretboard.
-Transparent red finish.
-Mono-rail 2 bridge w/ separate bridge saddles for each string.
-Gotoh style tuners
-Fat neck (similar to P-bass, only wider) jumbo frets.
-My purchase included Ibanez Case ($100 value), Levy's leather strap ($19 value) and new stings ($17 value). Included with bass was the two allen wrenches needed for making adjustments on this bass (1.5mm & 5mm) and a cheap instrument cable.

Amount and quality of features are slightly above average for this price-point.

The key to the BTB's sound is the 18v active EQ. This allows the bass to evoke a large variety of tones and settings. I personally use a nice mellow sound with a little bit of mid-range bite, but it's capable of any sound with the right settings.

The basic sound of the bass is nice and clear and the maple top helps brighten the high tones of the bass while the basswood body creates warm lows. The bass is nice and quiet running to my amp or direct into a mixer. In live applications I have been quite happy with this bass and cannot wait to get it into the studio. I am quite satisfied with its sound

The bass required some adjustments before I took it out of the shop. the action was a little low and the blend knob had been loose for the entire time I'd been looking at this particular bass (about 3 months). Beyond those two adjustments, the bass was in excellent condition. Great factory fretwork; the neck action is nice and smooth with no dead spots.

The quilted maple under the transparent red finish is absolutely beautiful under stage lights. It looks like a million bucks! The finish does look a little thin and I could see how it would be quite easy for a "belt buckle mark" to form on the back. It does show finger prints well, but frequently wiping it down (like you should do on any bass) will help keep it looking bright and new.

Overall, all these options are exactly what I'd expect for the price, but well done, none the less.

I purchased this bass specifically for live application with secondary purpose of studio work. While I'll have no apprehension in taking it to live gigs, I will of course treat it with care. It will definitly stand up to live performances.

The finish, it seems, will show average wear for average play; meaning it's not going to wear any differently than any other bass might. I have another Ibanez with a transparent finish that I've played into the ground and it's only now showing minor clouding of the finish where I rest my thumb and where my fingers scoop under the strings on occasion. I expect this bass' finish to perform likewise.

I replaced the strap buttons immediately with Schaller strap locks, but the stock buttons were quite solid and wider than average.

I will have 1 or 2 additional basses at gigs with me, mostly because I use 2 different tunings and the other is fretless, but the other fretted bass can serve as a back up. I will never gig without a back-up bass, but only because as a semi-pro you cannot afford to have a technical problem keep you from finishing a gig. If I were not in the situation I'm in though, I'd gig this bass w/out a back-up.

I expect this bass to last as long as I'm playing bass and I have no intent to quit...

1 year limited warranty from Ibanez.

The company's support has been helpful any time I've dealt with them before, but not above average.

I've been playing quite seriously for nearly 5 years and have been performing as a semi-pro for nearly 2 years. My other basses include an Ibanez SR800 four string and an Essex fretless jazz copy. This will be my #1 bass. I shopped for about 6 months before buying this bass and quite honestly, it fit all my requirements better than anything else I played (Warwick, Spector, Fender, G&L, MusicMan, Yamaha, Lakland, Sadowsky). But, to each his own. The feature that put it above the rest was the 35" scale. The added string tension was exactly what I was looking for in a new bass. None of the others, with their 34" scales could compete with the feel of the 35" BTB.

In a year or so I may drop some extra cash and have Bartolini pick-ups installed, but other than that and the addition of strap-locks, this bass will stay as-is for as long as I own it.

I love it!

2001 Ibanez 400QM, 4-string, 24 frets, 35' scale, Quilted Mable Top, Basswood back, Transparent Red. Bass, Treble, and variable Mid range. Two Soapbar syle pickups. Passive pickups with active EQ. 18 volt electronics (takes 2 9-volt batteries). Rosewood finger board. Mono rail brigde.

Sounds like an ibanez (which is good or bad, depending on the player). I like the sound a lot, it's tough to get a good sound with the veriable mid though, but you get use to it. The 35' scale is very noticable. Also the width of the neck at the nut is bigger then most four string basss, which is also strange at first, but you get use to it. Good smooth frets, i haven't found any that buzz (yet).

All of this was set very well by the factory. I jus thad to loosen up the neck a little bit, but other than that everything was perfect. The action was nice and low. I had to raise the neck pickup also, but that was just to adjust to my playing style, it also made the bass sound deeper. The paint job is fantastic. The quilted maple looks beautiful under the transparent red finish. All the hard wear is silver and looks great. The Mono rail bridges are great too. Because they are separate from each other then don't cause the other string to vibrate (which was one of the purposes of the design). On my old bass when i played any string the others would lightly vibrate with it. But with the Mono Rail bridge i don't have this problem.

The Bolt-on neck has five strews holding in on tight. No problem there. The strap buttons are really nice too. They're a little bit over sized which ensures the strap will stay on. oh yeah, you really need to keep the finish clean and looking new, otherwise the bass just looks older than it is.

it's a beautiful bass, but it takes some time getting use to. when you get it down though your set for life with this baby.

24 jumbo frets, 4 string, red quilted maple top, 18 volt active electronics, Rosewood fretboard, bass boost/cut, treble boost/cut sweepable mid, locking tuners, two soapbar pickups, mono rail bridge.

This thing gets a great veriety of sounds. With the eq it has you squeeze out just about anything for from classical to jazz, from funk to punk. The lo E string is noticably quieter than the rest of the strings however, this can get very annoying when playing with your band.

This is where I was not impressed. The neck is way to wide (almost like a 5-string)and frets buzz way to much. It's not a very comfortable bass, in fact I don't like it much at all because of these problems. For this price ($650) you want something thats gonna play better than most.

Very very sturdy

Don't buy this bass unless your just in love with because it's playability really sucks. Yes it does have a nice sound but I've played 200 dollar guitars that I like more.

Quilted maple top tranperent red color. 24 medium frets, 4 strings, a master volume, 18 volt active pickups, Bass boost/cut knob, Mid boost/cut, hi boost/cut, and sweepable midrange knobs. Wider neck, not in thickness but in width of fret board. Locking tuners chrome hardware. String thru bridge and two very nice pickups.

Sounds amazing. You can get any sound out of this thing at any time...it's beautiful. The E string is a teensy bit quieter than the other strings , but humming...there is no hum, their is no shitty GSR 200 muffled notes, only clear well defined sound.

Action was a little low, fixed it, frets buzz sometimes, not too badly. Not like the shitness of the GSR 200. Everything else was perfect even came in tune.

Very sturdy. I would use it at a gig w/o a backup. Solid strap buttons, finish is thick, the harware is very durable.

I've been playing for 2 years, I also own a GSR 200, and a DEAN Edge Q4 and I must say that this bass is 100% better than both, well maybe 10000000% better than the GSR 200, but I am extremely pleased with the sound cpabilities and lack of other not so pleasant sounds. Defintely a bass to use in studio and on stage as well. Only other bass that compares from Ibanez in the same price range is the EDB 600, but this beats it in sound range, but if you DONT like bigger necks, don't buy this, get the EDB 600 or 690(very sweet looking bass)
giving up the active electronics, it still has 3 band eq though and has a verythin neck.