Ibanez AGB200 Semi-hollow Review

Very nice instrumnet - Does not take short scale strings.

Excellently crafted and sounds great. While it is a short scale instrument, since there's a separate bridge and tailpiece, short scale strings for a solid body don't work - the windings will extend past the nut. Very pleased with it overall.

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Great lil' Bass!

(5) + a few more. I do have (1) complaint however ! 'One lousy job to whom ever put the strings on ,'no biggie they are going to be replaced in just a few with Flat-Wounds anyway. Thanks a million guys ..Especially you A.J. a solid well made Short-Scale Bass with a lotta class . Dan Heynen..

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Amazing, beautiful bass

First of all, if you"re reading this review and haven"t done business with Sweetwater before and wondering what kind of on-line vendor they are, rest easy. Nobody"s got better customer service than Sweetwater. My account engineer, Josh Strid, has been great to work with over the years. Before I get to the bass, here"s a little about me, so that you"ve got some perspective on… read more my review. I"m a retired classic rock musician. Haven"t played professionally in 30 years. But still write and record my own music, and sometimes jam with the guys. Nowadays I play for fun, and buy stuff "cause I can. I"ve got a 1984 Ibanez Roadstar II bass that I just got professionally refinished and set up. This was my go-to bass when I was playing full time. It"s a keeper, ya know? Too many memories tied to it. BTW, I think the Roadstar is a very under-rated bass. A couple of years ago I bought a RIC 4003S from Sweetwater. I had a RIC 30 years ago and always regretted selling it. Now that I"ve got some discretionary income, I decided to treat myself. I don"t need the bass. I just wanted it. But between the two, neither one was my everyday player. You know, the bass that I could grab in a hurry and start playing. The one that I didn"t have to keep in the case. Or the one I throw in the car when I hang out with the guys. The Ibanez is kinda irreplaceable, and the RIC is too expensive to be kicking around. So I was looking for a good, not great bass that - frankly - I just didn"t have to worry about. Enter the Ibanez Artcore. First of all, I think it"s just a gorgeous looking bass. And with it being a hollow body, I figured that it would be a good compliment to the Roadstar and RIC, at a reasonable price. Boy, was I right.Here are the good things about it: ▪ It plays really well... The action out of the box was very good. It"s set up just 1mm higher than my RIC. And with the shorter scale, that means it plays fast. ▪ It"s very comfortable to play, despite having the semi-hollow-body square edges. It"s kinda like holding an acoustic guitar, but with a thinner body. If you"re good with that, you"re good with this bass. ▪ I love the bridge. I play with a pick, and this bridge is very easy on the heel of my hand. Nice and smooth area to rest on. ▪ Controls are easy to get to. ▪ Being a hollow body, it"s pretty light to strap on. ▪ The fit and finish is surprisingly good. I did have to scrape some glue off of the edge of the fretboard (presumably when they glued on the edge binding). But other than that, it looks great. The beautiful glossy finish all around really sets off the two tone body. The only negative I have isn"t about the bass. It"s about the case. I doesn"t fit perfectly. It"s good, and will certainly protect the bass. And since it"s made by TKL, I know it"s quality. But the case is just a bit too long and doesn"t fit the top of the body as snugly as it could. General observations: ▪ The fretboard is laurel. It tends to not have as nice of a color as rosewood, and definitely not as nice as ebony. But a coat or two of F-One oil really brought out the color. In fact, I suggest that Sweetwater should put a coat on before taking their photos. It makes that much of a difference. As far as playing goes, I can"t tell the difference with the laurel. ▪ This may be my imagination, but for the first two weeks I owned the bass, I could smell the finish and I swear the color has deepened a little bit. I don"t know if this is typical of a natural finish bass or guitar. But the point is that it seems like the bass has "cured" a bit. Even the tone has deepened a bit. ▪ You know how guitar and bass fretboards can have either a flat or round profile? This one is flat, just like my RIC. (My Ibanez Roadstar is round, for comparison.) Kinda like the difference between a Gibson vs. a Fender electric guitar. Speaking of tone, like others have said it"s got that classic deep yet bright tone. Not quite a Fender P-bass. Not quite a RIC. But here"s something surprising I found: If I select the neck pickup and plug it into my Fender Rumble amp on the vintage setting, the Ibanez bass sounds like a Hofner Violin bass. I"m guessing because of the hollow body. But whatever… it"s great to use when jamming to old Beatles" songs. Overall, the Artcore looks great, plays great, sounds great. I think it"s a great value, too. I love my Roadstar, and love my RIC. But only on special days. Because now I"ve got an Artcore I love every day.

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The AGB200 Returns!

Often, what we like in an instrument is based upon what we've had prior experience with - its pros and cons. I used to have this bass's little brother, the AGB140. It was a beautiful brown bass with a single passive pickup and a 34" scale. It was from the mid 2000s. But I gave it up due to the lack of much tone control and the long scale length. Now the AGB200 returns with, of course,… read more 2 pickups and a short scale (30") length. This is just the bass for me. The fit and finish are impeccable. Sweetwater had it setup for me right out of the box, although I put some black nylon-wrapped strings on it for some old school thump. The neck is perfect on my bass - low action but no buzzing anywhere. The sound is incredible - almost an upright sound. It is fairly light and with the short scale, it is a very comfortable bass to hold and play. And, of course, it is gorgeous, very classy retro look. Ibanez does it again and Sweetwater makes it easy!

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Ibanez AGB 200

The bass has a deep resonate sound with the semihallow body and humbuckers. It's easy to play, being short scale. It's also a nice looking piece with quality wood all around. Anyone would be impressed with this bass.

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