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Ibanez Premium BTB1936 Bass Guitar - Sunset Fade Low Gloss

6-string Electric Bass with Curly Maple/Walnut Top and Back, African Mahogany Wings, Panga Panga Fingerboard, 2 Humbucking Pickups, and 3-band Active EQ - Sunset Fade Low Gloss
1 Write review Item ID: BTB1936SFL
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Ibanez Premium BTB1936 Bass Guitar - Sunset Fade Low Gloss
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Stunning Curly Maple/Walnut BTB with an Aguilar Voice

Sweetwater carries a broad selection of the very finest instruments, and the Ibanez Premium BTB1936 6-string bass runs with the best of them. Don’t let its gentle price tag fool you: this instrument’s boutique heritage strikes you right away with its stunning curly maple/walnut top and sleek panga panga/purpleheart through neck. The BTB1936 bass delivers monster tone backed by equally impressive sustain and stability. The 7-piece neck is graphite reinforced, with gold tuners on one end and a gold Mono-rail bridge at the other. A pair of top-drawer Aguilar DCB dual-ceramic-magnet pickups and custom Ibanez electronics with 3-band EQ complete the setup.

World-class Aguilar DCB pickups plus masterful tone shaping

There are many great reasons world-class bass players swear by Aguilar DCB bass pickups, which make them an obvious choice for Ibanez’s BTB Premium models. These dual-ceramic-magnet pickups give your BTB1936 an extended range of tonal versatility, offering a fine balance of responsive attack, prodigious sustain, and complex harmonics. And you’ll be impressed by the extended tone-shaping options the 3-band EQ delivers. There’s also a 3-mode midrange switch, which allows you to sculpt your overtones to fit any musical genre or playing style.

Neck-through design ensures exceptional sustain

Generations of innovators and top-tier manufacturers have relied on neck-through designs for superior stability and sustain. Pick up an Ibanez BTB1936, and you’ll experience everything neck-through construction has to offer. You can feel the BTB1936 vibrate clear through its ultra-stable 7-piece panga panga/purpleheart neck, right down to the strap peg. The extended sustain doesn’t just add body to your tone, but it also provides a greater tonal balance that you’ll hear in every note you play.

Mono-rail bridge enhances definition and sustain

Ibanez specified their excellent MR5S (Mono-rail) bridge for the BTB1936. Unlike single-body bridges, each Mono-rail V saddle is completely separate from the others. This does two things for you. First, since they aren’t connected, the saddles create minimal sympathetic vibration. This prevents unused strings from ringing. Second, each saddle is double-anchored, allowing energy to transfer efficiently between the string and the body. As a result, bassists here at Sweetwater are raving about the BTB1936’s astonishing clarity and sustain.

Ibanez: a brief history

Ibanez began its life in 1908 as the Hoshino Gakki company in Nagoya, Japan. However, the company didn’t get into the guitar business until 1929, when they started importing Salvador Ibanez guitars from Spain. In 1935, Hoshino Gakki began building Spanish acoustic guitars under the "Ibanez Salvador" name, which was later shortened to "Ibanez." Although Ibanez began manufacturing electric guitars in 1957, the company was relatively unknown in the West until the 1960s, when they started producing guitars based on American designs. By the late 1970s, Ibanez had stopped producing derivative instruments and had begun manufacturing the innovative original guitar and bass designs that the company is now known for. Ibanez is also famous for their effect pedals, most notably the Tube Screamer. Sweetwater is proud to offer to you such a fine line of distinguished musical instruments.

Ibanez Premium BTB1936 6-string Electric Bass Features:

  • Curly maple/walnut top and back, African mahogany wings
  • TMB6 7-piece panga panga/purpleheart neck-through with graphite reinforcement rods
  • Bound panga panga fingerboard, abalone offset dot inlay
  • 35" scale length; medium stainless steel frets, premium fret edge treatment
  • Aguilar DCB humbucking neck and bridge pickups
  • Custom Ibanez electronics with 3-band EQ
  • EQ bypass switch (passive tone control on treble pot), mid-frequency switch
  • MR5S bridge with 17mm string spacing
  • Elegant gold hardware

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Tech Specs

  • Number of Strings: 6
  • Left-/Right-handed: Right-handed
  • Body Shape: Premium BTB
  • Color: Sunset Fade
  • Body Material: African Mahogany wings, Curly Maple/Walnut top and back
  • Body Finish: Satin Polyurethane
  • Neck Material: 9-Piece Panga Panga/Purpleheart/Maple
  • Neck Shape: BTB6
  • Radius: 37.4"
  • Fingerboard Material: Bound Panga Panga
  • Fingerboard Inlay: Abalone Off-set Dots
  • Number of Frets: 24 (plus zero fret), Medium Stainless Steel
  • Scale Length: 35"
  • Nut Width: 2.12"
  • Nut Material: Plastic
  • Bridge/Tailpiece: MR5S Mono Rail
  • Tuners: Gotoh Machine Heads
  • Neck Pickup: Aguilar DCB Humbucker
  • Bridge Pickup: Aguilar DCB Humbucker
  • Controls: 1 x master volume, 1 x balancer, 3-band Active EQ, 1 x EQ bypass switch, 3-way mid frequency switch
  • Strings: .032-.130
  • Case Included: Gig Bag
  • Manufacturer Part Number: BTB1936SFL

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Customer Reviews

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Awesome Bass, so Why Did I Wait So Long

Let me first state that this is my first review ever, so please pardon me if I seem to stray a bit from time to time, but I'm hoping to provide a push to some of the older ladies and gents like me who were/are hesitant to buy before you try. I also want to give a shout out to Louis Sawyer, my sells representative for going way above the call of duty to ensure that I received this wonderful instrument safely and in record time from Sweetwater's location to Honolulu. More on that later but let me please provide some background information about my music history and why the purchase of the Ibanez 1936 was so impactful, unexpected and important to me.

I just recently returned to playing music after a forty-three-year layoff, yes forty-three years. I do believe that may even be a record, so ladies and gents, it's never too late. I even feel that there were/are many benefits to such a long wait to pick up the bass again (not discounting the nonstop pestering from my brother who is a loyal costumer at Sweetwater). I now have a great appreciation for music as an art form, and not just a lifestyle. During my layoff, I had time to really listen, without the need to learn a bass line, but to feel it, never missing a chance to hum the lines in my head even to the commercials. This also made me realize how great the music was when I was growing up in the sixties and seventies. I fell in love with the bass line from "I Want You Back", by the Jackson Five. I even tried to build my own bass, which was a disaster, but I was at least able to hold it in my hands and pretend to play.

My father who played trumpet earlier in life and my mother who sang non-stop, noticed, but told me that I had to learn to read music and play guitar before I could get a bass. I was 13 at the time and had two paper routes, so my father split the music lesson payments with me. Learn so much from those lessons that it stuck with me for life. As I progressed, my parents purchased a Vista bass for me. I was teased all the time about this bass, but at the time Yamaha and Ibanez basses were something you did not want to be seen playing. Man, how things have changed since those days. Taking classical guitar lessons added a flair to my bass playing, which is why I don't slap my bass even to this day, nor do I use pedals (sorry). For me there is nothing sweeter and more satisfying than the pure clean tone of such a wonderful instrument, with the occasional bite and grit used to accent your walks and runs.

I had a Rip Van Winkle moment when I picked up the bass again, because in my early playing days, you normally had one bass. There were no truss rod adjustments, no intonation or bridge adjustments. You played the cards you were dealt. Fast forward to my second summer job at sixteen years of age. I saved every penny all summer long and purchased my first real, professional bass, a 1970 Fender Precision, white with a red tortes shell pick guard for $. Played with several neighborhood and local bands and got my first taste of studio work. I was very excited and thought it would be fun, but the only fun part was hearing the playback. The rest was much harder and took all day to do. I did realize all of my bad habits became clear in the playbacks. There is a difference in playing bass and understanding what and how to play the instrument. Remember there is a point to all this jabber. I grew up listening to soul music being from D.C., but got hooked on rock, progressive jazz/rock etc., and stopped listening to top 40 altogether. My mistake was made clear after joining my first working road band. I mentioned that I don't play slap and Larry Graham was very big at that time. Although I've played with some musicians who have played all over the world and taught at the highest levels, after I stopped playing, I had not learned the importance of playing with the drummer. I was eventually fired from the road band, for playing too many notes, and for being too funky. How can you be too funky in the age of funk? I was told that I was playing fat-back-bass. To this day, I don't know what that means. I did find one important aspect of the bass is that it is the driver of the band, and you can take it in any direction you chose. Being the newest member of the band and changing their sound from top 40 to something else, I'm sure played into my being let go. Knowing your role is important, but in those days, the bass player was mostly for bottom and was asked to stay in the background.

Now to the point of this review. When I started playing, we did not have the wealth of information presented today. We traded basses instead of selling them. I traded more basses than I can count or remember and was shocked to see what they would cost me today: old Fenders, think Telecaster, Ricks and a 1962 Fender six string to name a few. If we could only see in the future. I now have a real appreciation for well-made instruments, even the inexpensive models. Which brings me finally to my purchase from Sweetwater.

Being an old-school guy (my family members call me a caveman), I was very hesitant about buying online, and thought that the only way to be completely sure and satisfied with a purchase was to try before you buy. Sweetwater has completely changed my mind on that way of thinking. I got much better service from them online than I've ever received from an in-person purchase. Mr. Sawyer, my sells rep, worked with me, was courteous and very understanding. He went out of his way to take all of my concerns into consideration, and agreed to hold the bass until I could put the money in the bank on the upcoming Monday. Thankfully that did not have to happen, as my lady stepped in, I gave her the cash and she made the purchase. Being old school, I keep most of my cash in my gas bag. I have a total of nineteen basses, purchased in a nineteen-month period. If that sounds crazy, let me justify it by explaining that I repaired and collected antique pocket watches for twenty-two years, was blessed to have the cash on hand and had some serious catching up to do building a bass collection. My only regret in that I waited so long to purchase from Sweetwater. The Ibanez 1936 was purchased on December 15th of last year and was on this island by 8:00pm that next day. It took two days to arrive at my home from the other side of the island, which was enough time for it to climatize to Hawaii.

In closing, I must admit that with all of my other purchases: 5 Fenders, 5 Ibanez basses, 4 Marcus Millers, Schecter Toxic Venom (an awesome bass), the Jackson Ripper, Ernie Ball Music Man HH fiver, and an Alembic fretless five-string, I still felt like something was missing and I wanted my last purchase to be from Sweetwater and something special since all of my other purchases were made locally. I drooled over this bass for more than a year and now, thanks for Mr. Sawyer it sits in my Ibanez rack. The bass arrived very much in tune, with about a half step down on the low "B". I did raise the A string just a tiny bit before writing this review. It was so well-packed that it could have made a trip to the moon without damage.

One last thing about the bass. I can't believe how beautiful the finish and wood combinations are. The Ibanez necks are always very playable and comfy. The tone is heavenly sweet and plenty of growl when you need it. Very responsive and can produce any tone you wish. I would place it alongside of Fedora and Kem Smith for its construction and tone. Why pay more. For those who say that the tone woods have no effect on the sound, you could not be more wrong. This is my third BTB. I have the 1905 with the lacewood top and back and the BTB846 SC. The 1936 falls somewhere in between these two basses but does require more string muting which I attribute to the maple and walnut top and back. Love the bass, blown away by the service. The old heads reading this review may get more out of it than some of the younger players. Don't wait as long as I did to contact Sweetwater and get the bass of your dreams. No worries and no hassles. Thank you, Sweetwater, for making it possible to acquire my dream bass.
by Moxley, Anthony on
Music background: A Flower Child of the sixties
See also: 6-string bass guitars, Ibanez, Ibanez 6+ string Bass Guitars
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