Ibanez BTB405QM

My Ibanez BTB450 QMHS Professional Bass Guitar is the last bass I will probably ever have to buy. There's so many features to these instruments, that I'd be here forever but the bottom line is I didn't have to spend 5K on an Alembic to get the EXACT sound and tone that I wanted. I'm considered a very fussy player, and I have no problem with that monicker. My bands are always in hgih demand, and we arm ourselves with suitable gear, only high end stuff.

The BTB450 wasn't cheap, it was almost $1200, plus another 4350 for a fitted heavy duty case. But it was well worth it!

Since this this series has been discontinued, the demand for this instrument seems to have gone through the roof. I'm happy I have mine, and I never let ANYONE touch it, zero, nadda, no one, because it can't be replaced. If Ibanez decides to re-issue this series down the road and I hope they do without changing anything, then I will get a couple, but at least one at the very minimum. I've never
picked up an instrument in my life that felt as perfect right from the start as this one. I actually didn't let go of it when I first played it until the salesman had found me my high end heavy duty flight case and it was inside. Only 4 of these got to L.A. not a whole lot were made. I consider myself lucky that I was in the right place at the right time, truly blessed.




And again, if I could by another one, or even two I would(I know I'm dreaming since, every session player here seems to want to buy mine...)

Oh yeah, Bartolini Pickups rule!

Nothing gets close! I'd easily compare this bass to any Alembic I've ever had.

Perfect from the moment I picked it up.

I won't gig with it in a live situation, it's my studio bass only. Far too precious to take on the road. Too many risk factors involved with an instrument as fine as these are.

Nothing to repair, the person(s) who set it up are true masters, asn I wrote them a letter thanking them, which they replied to personally, which was very impressive.

I've been playing for 40 years, had literally hundreds of stringed instruments. There are few that will touch this bass in so many ways, I actually want to finish this review to go play it :D

I bought my 405 new from George's Music in Orange Park, Florida back in 2002. It's a fretted five-string, 24 frets, quilt-maple top with basswood body. It has all the standard features everyone else here has mentioned-three band active eq with variable mid selector. The neutrik locking jack is awesome. Every bass and guitar should have this feature, IMO. The monorail bridge to isolate the strings is nice, too. And I like that it's a 35" scale. The neck and fretboard are to me incredibly comfortable.

Okay, so I'm Ibanez' demographic. I play metal. I play through a Genz-Benz GBE 500H with a Triad cab. Through this set up, this bass sounds absolutely great. Of course, I've played it through other rigs and it still sounds great. The eq with the variable mid makes for a ton of tonal diversity. Rich highs. Thundering lows. You name it. I've used it for both stage and studio. It's excellent for either.

When I bought it the set up from the factory to the store was fine. I may have had to adjust it a tad, but overall it was set up well. I love the qm finish over trans black. Online pics really do it no justice. No flaws that I could see. And the pickups were adjusted perfectly to my liking. In fact, I don't think I've ever had to adjust them as a result.

Will it withstand live playing? Well, I've gigged with it countless times in the last 7 years since I purchased it. The hardware seems built to last and I've cemented some schaller straplocks/buttons into it with Gorilla Glue, so they're going nowhere. The finish still looks great. Of course, I try to take immaculate care with my gear, but there's been no chipping or fading. I would gig without a backup for sure.

I haven't had to deal with Ibanez, so I have no idea how to rate them. Time will tell, I guess.

I've been playing over 20 years, now. I own a G&L L-2000, an '86 Peavey Foundation, another Iby (Roadstar II RB850). The BTB is my only fiver and I've owned several others at the same time I owned this one. The BTB has been the only one to survive trimming down my fiver collection to only one bass. Don't be put off by the Ibanez name or image. While I do use this bass to play metal, it could easily be used in a setting where jazz, latin, funk, country, r&b, pop, or anything else imaginable is the style. It's that versatile.

I bought it used. It was made in 2003 in Korea. The color is honey sunburst - very nice finish BTW. For specs visit the manufacturers site. Nice feature to mention is the locking jack socket - saved me couple of times since I mainly play in blues clubs where you always can find beer-heads who think it's funny to pull out the cable from your guitar while your playing. Plus the EQ is very versatile for a stock guitar - there are very few guitars where you can adjust the mid level, and here you not only get to adjust it, but you also get to adjust the mid sweep. For me, considering the price paid, it's a 10.

As I mentioned before, I play in blues clubs, so you have probably already figured out that I play mostly blues. I also play rock and some metal on various occasions, but modern blues is mine main focus. And I must admit the sound suits my needs very well. It's not very classic, but I never expected it to be. I actually like the growl and crystal highs this guitar produces - it suits my technique and blends nice into the music my band plays. I play it through Hartke 5500 and two Trace Elliot 1048 cabs and never had any complaints about the sound. So I guess it's 10.

The guitar is quite heavy, not as heavy as the classic bases, but still. I never adjusted the rod, I was satisfied with the factory settings. I only adjusted the ridge a little bit, but nothing radical. Action is quite low, but there are very little fret buzz - unless of course your technique is poor, then you will always get the buzz no matter how high the action will be.
The neck is just the way I like - thin and wide. It's a matter of taste. I have some friends who prefer the neck to be thick and narrow, like Warwicks or Musicmans five strings, but I prefer the other way around so the Ibanez is ideal for me. The electronics are very well designed - it runs on two 9V batteries, and it's very economic on them. I haven't changed mine for a year now, and I've been playing it on daily basis, so I give compliments to the people who designed the electronics for this guitar.
There is one thing that I don't like. The bridge construction prevents you from using string repaired on-the-spot. When I broke my first sting playing this guitar at a gig I realized I didn't have a replacement for it, so I repaired it quickly as I used to do million times before just to find out that the string repaired this way won't fit into the bridge. Since then I always have a set of spares with me. If you want to revive a broken string to use it with this guitar, you need to unwind it to a certain point and then carefully wind it so that it's not wider from what you get at the store. It's not a great drawback, but noticeable for players low on budget.
I give it 8, because I would like it to be slightly lighter. And there's this issue with the bridge.

The only thing that broke over the four years I own this guitar were the little plastic gaskets on two tuning machines, and they broke only because I disassembled them once and then screwed them to tight while assembling then, so it's kinda my fault. Haven't encountered other problems so far. Definitely 10. It's not idiot-proof, but you may rest assured that it won't break on its own.

Contacted them once, when I broke the gaskets I mentioned above. They didn't want to sell me the gaskets, so I asked them to sell me new tuning machines. It turned out they haven't had any at the moment, and that wasn't going to change for a next month - and that was far to long for me to wait. I had my friend, who works in a machine shop, make me new brass ones. They turned out to greatly improve the tuning machines precision, so I had my friend make me more of them. But even though the story had a happy conclusion, I didn't find the customer support very helpful. But they did pick up the phone and answer my email so I guess I'll give them 3.

In the past I experimented with few guitars, and after few disappointments I found a guitar, no - a whole series of guitars - I felt was designed for me. It's the Ibanez BTB series. I played Music Man, Warwick, Fender, Cort, Yamaha, and many more. Some of them I liked, some of them not, but the Ibanez BTB was the guitar I felt in love with. If I would be stolen or destroyed I would definitely buy one again and I would only trade it in for a higher model of the BTB series basses. The BTB 405 QM has a very good price-for-money factor. Even bought new it is still much cheaper than the basses its competing against.

Korean-made, with excellent craftsmanship. 24 frets on the high strings, 22 on the low strings. It's a bolt-on neck, made of 5-ply maple and walnut. Has two bright single-coil Ibanez pickups (as opposed to the muffled sounding Bartolini humbuckers in the 450 series). It has an 18-volt active 3-band EQ with sweepable Q, along with a master volume and pickup blend (and all knobs except master volume have a center detent). Also unusual is the Mono-Rail II bridge, with a separate fully adjustable bridge piece for each string. It has a transparent finish over a figured (quilted) maple body. Neck scale is a bit longer than normal, at 35, which gives the low end a little extra tension but also more depth.

I expected a bright sound, but I was really surprised at the the brightness. Also, if you work the EQ, the low end seems to be fairly subsonic, with some extreme depth to the overall sound. However, it is a bit thin in the mid range.
This makes it the perfect complement to my Spector 5-string, which has humbuckers and a growly midrange and low end. I expected to use it in a completely different way, but I really like it, now that I've got it.
This is more appropriate for funk, jazz, and probably country (not that I play much country, the closest I get is a ballsy alternative version of Bad Moon Rising), but I could see someone playing Korn, and other music with that kind of jangly top end and deep low end. I don't use it that way, now, but I might in the future. My sound is more hard rock and alternative, but it leans more towards an old Geddy Lee sound, with a lot of mid punch and thick low end.

It has jumbo pickups, which are finished properly but still are a tad rough on my left hand, once in a while. I didn't have any major issues with it, after I put two batteries in it, but I had to unscrew the back cover to get to the battery slot. It also has a locking 1/4" jack, which is absolutely great.
The neck is a bit wide, but that makes it pretty easy to play slap and funk. I don't play that style much, because I have to slap the crap out of my old Jazz Bass to get a good sound, and my Spector never sounded really great, when I played that style. The BTB is a slap and pop machine, though! We play one song that has a lot of slapping and popping, and the rest of my band about passed out, when I played it the first couple of times on the BTB. It just sounded so good, with that style. They are asking me if I can play more in that style, now.

The only real gripe I have about it is the strap buttons. They are in a good location, and they are plenty strong, but they keep slowly working themselves loose, and I have to keep tightening them up.
I'd use it without a backup, if it were my main bass. Although I use it in conjunction with my main bass, I could easily pick this up and finish a show, if something happened to my other bass.

Haven't dealt with them. Some okay info on their website, but not much is model-specific.

I've been playing about 24 years. Did some studio work when I was younger. I play it through a Peavey BAM 210 with a 15" extension cab. I like this bass a lot for slower songs and songs that my guitarist plays acoustic guitar on. It is fast, smooth, and quiet, and I sometimes use it for very fast low-end lines.
The 18 volt output is pretty hot, but the 9 volt system on my Spector actually produces larger peaks at the input on my bass amp.
I expected a slightly different sound, but I am happy with the sound I get from this. This guitar is a big part of me getting rave reviews on my tone from a lot of other musicians. I just played with the EQ until it sounded good, and apparently a lot of people like that sound...

Korean Production 5 String Bass Guitar.

See my Review of the BTB 455QM

The quality on the 450 Series seems to be just a little better than the 400, or it might just be me becasue I was shipped one with a Truss Rod protruding from the Neck.

The difference in this instrument of the 400 Series is the 400 does not ahve the Bartolinin Mk-1 Pickups.

This means that the 405 does not sound compressed, adn is considerably Brighter than the 450 Series.

What a Bassist is Dreaming of is this Bass. Everythng that you need to just to drop it off to your favorite Action Wizard and go gig.

See my Review of the BTB455 QM

The Pr-Amp is just as versitile and I Like it over the P/A on the Warrior, which was a Bartolinin to my recollection.

The Sweepable Variable Mid Control beats out a 250, 400, 800 tri position variable switch any day.

There might be more that the Bart accelerates at, but for me it is not worth spending 8X as much, and on stage I am happy with what this Bass does.

400 v. 450 series - This Bass is very ready to Rock and spit high-end.

The Tuning Keys are not mounted at the stylish angle of the 450 Series.

I have not been able to detect any discerable difference in teh overall Quality of the 400 to the 450 Series. SOme might feel a difference in the necks, but if there is any difference, it escapes me.

The reason there are no more collor offerings in teh BTB line up may be due to some problems with matching, as one will see at the colored part of the face of the neck at the Body.

But I really wanted a Blue Bass, so I bought one.

It is an Ibanez. See my BTB 455QM Review. In Firearm analogy it would be...its an AK-47, it is unstoppable.

No dealings w. the Co.

Never needed help.

One YEar warranty.

See the BTB455QM Review.

I wanted a BTB 455 in Blue.

This is all I could find.

Thought about replacing the pup's w/ Bartolinin's, but it was not worth the hassle, and I saw an instrument with Brighter output as a nice option to keep.

5 string, neck spacing is just right, solid, stays in tune very well, graphite nut, quilt maple top with transparent blue finish, 3 band EQ and soapbars. Satin chrome hardware is unique, Claw shaped body looks sexy, both according to the ladies, and to my eyes when I let ladies try it on! You can't go wrong!

The 3 band EQ can dial in practically any sound you want and the soapbar pickups are on the bright side, but I like bright pickups so its all good. VERY little noise, even with the trebble cranked and playing under fluorescent lights.

As soon as I got it, it was set up. It played real smoothly the way it was set up. The blue finish is really pretty. There was one small chip missing from the finish when it arrived but I covered that with a sticker. Besides that, I couldnt ask for more.

This thing is built like a tank. It could probably take a beating, but I like it too much to test that out. After upgrading from my budget OLP bass, I am happy I got this. No adjustments have been needed. It could gig without a backup but dont think Im gigging this one. If something happened to it Id go crazy.

Havent needed to deal with em yet

Ive played for going on 10 years now. Ive owned many a bass, all cheapos until this one. Ive played on more expensive basses at stores but this one is just as good as some of the more expensive warwicks at a fraction of that cost. If it were stolen, I'd go crazy, I'd cry and then save up and wait until another one just like it appears on ebay. Pity it had to be discontinued. This is my dream bass and I finally own it. I dont need to regurgitate a lot of money on a custom made one when everything I'd ask for was already built into this one for less than that. Nothing comes close.

2006 with Bartolini. The string spacing is just perfect for slapping. The Bridge is very special: I don't know if it is sonically better than others, but it looks very cool. The mid frequency sweep button is very appreciated. Neutrick locking jack is now a must-have for me. I'll keep this bass for a long time. Tons of features for the price.

The sound is clear and precise. The Bartolini pickups do a really good job combined with the mid frequency sweepable EQ. The B string is thight. By blending different amount of each pickup, you can get very good sounds.

Really beutiful bass for the price.

I expect this bass to stay in my arsenal for years.

I had a thight budget, but needed a lot of features in a good sounding bass. I got it all and more with that one.

Features as per previous posters and here:
http://www.ibanez.co.jp/eb_page.php?PAGE_ID=284&COLOR=CL02&AREA_ID=3

I wanted a flexible-sounding bass as it needed to cover all my playing roles, from church through to "pub" gigs and home recording. It is an incredibly flexible bass and is able to offer smooth single lines and bright percussive taps and slaps. The active 3-band EQ allows a lot of sound shaping.

The shop I bought it from set the bass up for me, so I can't comment on the factory set up service, however, there were no obvious flaws or set-up mistakes

I've only used this a couple of times at church so it's too early to say. From my previous experience with Ibanez guitars, I don't foresee any problems

1 year warranty through the shop I bought it from

I've used and played a number of basses, but this one is proving to be the best - even better than Fender Jazz basses, which I have a lot of affection for. I can't believe how easy it is for me to play, and how quickly I adapted to playing with the extra low-B string. Recommended

It's a 2005 Ibanez btb, it was hand made in japan. it has a fretted neck with 24 frets on the D an G strings and 23 on the B E and A strings (looks kinda cool to me). It has a beautiful Big leaf oak top and is painted in some kind of honey-like color. The active electronics contain a volume, bass cut/boost, treble cut/boost and a pickup switch (neck/bridge). It also has a equalizer on the bass itself. Big neck made of maple and rosewood with two (!) trussrods and a five piece back with double skunk stripe.
Its a briliantly featured thing for the 560 euro's I paid.

I play all kinds of styles from jazz to rock and it can handle just about anything! the sound ranges from muddy double bass (neck pu and treble cut) to wooten-alike growling (both pickups bass and treble boosted), you can even get a jacostyle sound out of it (on an ibanez! -wow-). you can let the sound range from warm fingering to cold slapping using the EQ (I always boost my low-end). It's briliant for both studio and stage work. I love it!
downside: the active elctronics ar somewhat difficult to maintain control of, your sound can be just as bad as it is good.

the set up wasn't al that good at first, a lot of fret buzz at the low end and some loss of tone at the high end. fixed it by putting on thinner strings and just tightening the trussrods a but.
The action is comfortably low and gives enough punch without having to dig into your strings. I have to note that my hands are quite big so I prefer the big distance between the strings (almost 1.8 centimeters) over the smaller distance of, for example, a five string jazz bass.
the rate for this part is my out-of-the-box rate, after ajusting it (takes half an hour) it will be 10 out of 10

simple: it stands everything, the bolt on neck feels great, the hardware is solid and doest flaw or break and I have been gigging with it for one year now without any backup.

didn't need any.

I've been playing for 3 years now and this is the best bass I have played so far (believe me, I did a LOT of research). the bass hasn't been letting me down so far, just make shure you change the batteries often (once maybe twice a year). I love the looks an feeling of this thing just as much as the sound. you do need to spend an couple of sunday afternoons to get your sound right because it can be quite a hassle (especially live). overall I'd say this is one of the best around, just try to look trough the metal image of ibanez and you'll see a fine bass that can be used for any style of music.

Made in Korea, 22/24 frets, quilted maple top, 3 band active EQ, Ibanez soapbar pickups, Maple/rosewood neck with rosewood fretboard, heavy duty monorail bridge, stable tuners, 35" scale, came used with hardshell case.

sound was pretty good. Personally, I thought the B string was a bit muddy. But the rest of the strings were very punchy and modern sounding. If you're into that tone.

Fretwork is pretty good compared to other imports. Finish was flawless. Hardware is heavy duty.

This thing is a tank. The hardware could withstand centuries of playing. Double truss rods are interesting to get used to.

N/A never had to contact Ibanez.

It was a nice bass. I've since sold it, just not my tone. I reccomend it for anyone playing heavy rock.