Ibanez SR2010ASC

This is a bass that will make you tilt your head like a dog that so badly wants to say, 'Huh?' The SR2010ASC Ashula Limited Edition by Ibanez takes their popular 4-string fretted SR series and tacks on to additional strings over a fretless section of the fretboard.

Essentially it is like being able to have a fretless and a fretted bass in one bass on one neck. It is tuned E A D G then repeats D and G for the fretless end of the fretboard.

I did not buy this bass but I spent a decent amount of time demoing it for people in a local shop. The bass can be had for right around $1000

Surprisingly the neck is bearable. It is a bit daunting at first, but you will get the hang of it in a few minutes.

A really cool feature is you have two separate volumes for the fretted and fretless pickups. The preamp is the familiar volume, blend and bass and treble boost.

The overall electric tone of Ibanez never really excited me. I have played and owned a few, but never get a tone I'm in love with.

The instruments play and feel great, just hard for me to dial in a sound.

5 piece neck and an Ash body which is reasonably light for Ash. Rosewood fretboard, Chrome hardware and a very cool natural finish.

The most innovative bass I think I have ever seen. If George Jetson were to buy a bass it would be the Ibanez SR2010ASC

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

6-string bass freighted with 4 and 2 frettless (EADG + DG but then tuning can be made)
Ash body finish "limed" off white beautiful! The body is more imposing than a SDGR, it is closer to a JB or old Ibanez Musician
Bolt jatoba and bubinga Ashula (5 pieces)
Rosewood fingerboard with markings on both upper strings frettless
Scale 864 mm (34 ") for 21 boxes or fretlines / Radius 400mm
Sonic Arch neck pickup J / J Pickups Arch bridge Sonic Sonic Arch mini & J
Ashula1 preamp volume / balance / bass / treble + volume / tone for the mini Sonic
Easels monorails MR-4 and mechanical Gotoh black chrome (Part frétée) and chrome (Part frettless) CLASS in detail, I love
Low very good for the midrange It's made in Indonesia but the whole is very good and equivalent to IBANEZ made in Japan

UTILIZATION

The grip is pretty easy (16.5 mm spacing of the strings at the bridge) as any bass IBANEZ, the neck is thin (19.5 and 21.5 at nut to 12th fret) and pleasant but it is a 6 strings therefore quite wide (53 mm at the nut and 85 mm at the last fret). Access to acute is quite difficult to finally frétée part.
The bass is well balanced and not too heavy for a six string, about 4.7 Kgs
Enjoyable to play overall, but I put 7/10 because of the accessibility of low acute

SOUNDS

So the sound is exceptional and I weigh my words .....
I keep telling anyone who will listen that these pickups SONIC ARCH (also equip the Grooveline series) are very good.
Add to that a good body ash larger than usual SR handle hardwoods with good rosewood (ebony good c better but this is good rosewood so it sings well frettless). Also a good cohesion of the hardware (I changed the nut is plastoc initially)
What is very interesting is that the part frétée offers huge and varied possibilities with two microphones so that really contrasted with frettless. It has an independent volume and can therefore be completely cut off. The tone is frettless éfficace and can color the sound waouhhh

OVERALL OPINION

I bought this bass on a favorite. It was hanging in a shop in my area and I finally decided to try it and I went with ....
The concept is great and the bass can be a formidable weapon on stage (in the studio it will be better to make two obviously taken, whatever ....)
In addition, it is because they are small industrial series but this bass is very well finished and very good for a mid-range.
And above all I give a + + + + + IBANEZ to attempt such things as industrial
BRAVO