Shop Keyboard Deals, Financing, and More

Similar Best Sellers

Ibanez Bass Workshop SRMS805 Multi-scale 5-string Bass Guitar - Tropical Seafloor

5-string Multi-scale Electric Bass with Okoume Body, Poplar Burl Top, Jatoba/Walnut Neck, Panga Panga Fingerboard, and 2 Humbucking Pickups - Tropical Seafloor
$1,049.99

Earn $53 back in Bonus Bucks OR pay $44/month with 24 month financing*

Backordered - More On The Way!

This item requires extra delivery time from Ibanez. Order today to reserve yours now, risk-free, or contact us for more information.

Notify me when in stock
Add to Cart
Notify me about deals

Ask An Expert

Our expertly trained Sales Engineers are ready to help!

What is a Sales Engineer?
Sweetwater Gear Exchange

Have one to sell?
Check out Sweetwater's Gear Exchange!
Learn More

Most Popular Accessories & Related Items

Ibanez Bass Workshop SRMS805 Multi-scale 5-string Bass Guitar - Tropical Seafloor
Backordered - More On The Way! Notify me
$1,049.99
Add to Cart
Add to list
Back to navigation

This article was Written By

Our Product Research Team

Get to know them!

A 5-string Bass for the Seasoned Musician

Built with a poplar-burl-topped okoume body that provides it with fast attack, bright tonality, and a tight low end, the Ibanez Bass Workshop SRMS805 is ready for serious work at every gig. A 5-piece jatoba/walnut neck makes a fine tonal complement while supplying excellent comfort and stability. The SRMS805's multi-scale fingerboard offers optimal tension and playability. Experience superior intonation and vibration transference, thanks to a Mono-rail VS bridge. A duo of Bartolini BH2 dual-coil pickups yields incredible depth and clarity, a 3-band EQ allows for further sonic sculpting, and a 3-way midrange switch rounds out the SRMS805's controls. To top it all off, the Bass Workshop SRMS805 features black matte hardware for a sleek, eye-catching look.

Better comfort, tension, and tone

Multi-scale frets are an exciting new trend in high-end bass guitar design. They yield a longer scale on the bass side of the instrument and a shorter scale on the treble side, offering you better intonation and more consistent tension and attack from string to string. And while getting used to them may look like it will be quite an undertaking, Sweetwater bassists insist that it's a very natural transition. And the better intonation, consistent string tension, and more open tone far outweigh any difference from other basses.

Bartolini BH2 pickups deliver full and balanced tone

Bartolini BH2 pickups maintain a superb balance between the Bass Workshop SRMS805's clarity and depth. They provide complexity and warmth in the mids and low-end depth that won't wash out. Long-blade pole pieces allow these dual-coil pickups to offer hum-free single-coil-style character and consistency. When you want to sculpt your SRMS805's tone, just reach for the 3-band EQ. This active equalizer delivers wide frequency-range adjustments on each band. There's also a 3-way midrange switch that lets you define your instrument's presence. Whether you want round R&B throb or responsive thumb-technique punch, the SRMS805 delivers.

Mono-rail VS bridge for ultimate string isolation

The Mono-rail VS bridge installed on the Bass Workshop SRMS805 solves the issue of too much string crosstalk some other basses struggle with. When you play a string, sympathetic vibrations can set the other strings into motion. But by separating the bridge into five independent "mini bridges," the Mono-rail VS maximizes vibration transfer without interference from the other strings. Ibanez goes so far as to call the Mono-rail VS "the ultimate bridge for bass string isolation." Each bridge is independently and securely locked down to the body for maximum vibration transfer without interference.

Ibanez Bass Workshop SRMS805 Bass Guitar Features:

  • Poplar-burl-topped okoume offers up fast attack, tight low end, and a bright tonality
  • 5-piece jatoba/walnut neck makes a fine tonal complement and supplies excellent comfort and stability
  • Multi-scale fingerboard offers optimal tension and playability
  • Mono-rail VS bridge ensures complete string isolation and maximum sustain per string
  • Bartolini BH2 dual-coil pickups deliver clear and open mids with deep and punchy lows
  • Shape your tone with an active 3-band EQ, complete with a 3-way midrange switch for added versatility
  • Eye-catching black matte hardware

Why Buy Your Guitar from Sweetwater?

See how Sweetwater goes to great lengths to give you the very best online guitar buying experience. From our online Guitar Gallery that allows you to see and select the exact instrument you want to our 55-point Inspection process and our in-house guitar techs, we take the guesswork out of buying your next guitar online.

Additional Media

Warranty Info

Sweetwater's FREE 2-Year Total Confidence Coverage Warranty

Extra peace of mind at no extra cost.

  • Save money with FREE parts and labor
  • Get back to making music with the industry's fastest turnaround time
  • Fix it the first time with our award-winning, factory-certified Service Department
Learn More about Total Confidence Coverage

Free 2-year Warranty

Sweetwater's 2-year Total Confidence Coverage™ Warranty gives you extra peace of mind at no extra cost.

Learn More about Total Confidence Coverage
Tools Icon

Save money with free parts & labor!

Fast Icon

Get back to making music with the industry's fastest turnaround time.

Award Icon

Fix it the first time with our award-winning, factory-certified Service Department.

Back to navigation

Tech Specs

  • Number of Strings: 5
  • Left-/Right-handed: Right-handed
  • Body Shape: SR
  • Body Material: Okoume body, Burled Poplar top
  • Body Finish: Gloss Polyurethane
  • Color: Tropical Seafloor
  • Neck Material: 5-piece Jatoba/Walnut
  • Neck Shape: SRMS5
  • Neck Joint: Bolt-on
  • Radius: 12"
  • Fingerboard Material: Bound Panga Panga
  • Fingerboard Inlay: Acrylic special inlay
  • Number of Frets: 24, Medium
  • Scale Length: 34"-35.5"
  • Scale Length Type: Multi-scale
  • Nut Width: 1.771"
  • Nut Material: Plastic
  • Bridge/Tailpiece: MR5S Mono Rail
  • Tuners: Ibanez
  • Neck Pickup: Bartolini BH2 Humbucker
  • Bridge Pickup: Bartolini BH2 Humbucker
  • Controls: 1 x volume, 1 x balancer, 3-band boost/cut EQ, EQ bypass switch, 3-way Mid frequency switch
  • Strings: D'Addario, .045-.130
  • Case/Gig Bag: Sold Separately
  • Manufacturer Part Number: SRMS805TSR

What Makes Our Sales Engineers Great?

Sweetwater Sales Engineers are a world-class team of experts dedicated to you. Hand selected from across the globe, each brings a wealth of experience and expertise in the world of music gear to provide you with unparalleled service completely free of charge. Friendly relationships, real trust, and the right gear are only a call or a click away!

Back to navigation

Customer Reviews

Write your review
Rated 4.5/5

Looks and play's amazing

Straight out of the box, the intonation and action were set perfectly. Plays so smooth that the the transition from a single scale to a multi scale wasn't even noticeable.
Rated 3.5/5

Not Bad

I had a chance to play one of these at another store, and it wasn't as terrible an experience as I thought it might be. This is the first time I've actually tried one of Ibanez's multi-scale SRs. Being a big fan of the series, this SRMS805 felt right at home.

Even after only a few minutes, the frets felt more natural than I thought. With my shorter fingers, getting into the weird places you don't normally play is a little awkward; not too many play in the upper register on a low B but I was able to dip in around the 15th fret without straining too much. That might be in part because I am more at home on the 1206E and have to stretch to do those digital gymnastics anyway, but I digress.

The Bartolinis sound, well, like modern Bartolinis. Nothing spectacular. Comparing to the Norstrand Big Stacks on my own Ibanez, the sound is a little warmer, and a little flatter, to my ears. Playing on an old Hartke combo probably didn't help much, but the controls at least scoop and cut pretty much the way my Premium does.

As far as the looks go, I've never been a huge fan of high gloss finishes when it comes to luthier lookalikes. The effect is pretty stunning up close, but from a distance it just looks like a lot of glare hiding the burl top. I still prefer the low luster, natural look and feel of my 1206E and this feels like it wants to slide right off my lap. That's about the only issue I've ever had with the SR series: the lower-end models all have this same issue, and it's disappointing to feel it in a mid-range botique looking instrument.

Fit and finish were otherwise great, a testament to the quality we're seeing overseas these days. Thirty years ago something like this would have looked and felt like a much cheaper instrument, but I think Ibanez has a lot riding on the quality of the midrange basses these days. So the quality control, as important as it is to the industry, is commanding from this line of guitars.

I just wish the designers had put a bit more thought into the end of the fretboard past the nut: they can be forgiven for sheepishly chopping it off straight across instead of blending it in better with the headstock thanks to the fact that there's still enough real estate on the B-side to keep it from coming apart. Just try not to look, that's all. Similar minor gripe is with the individual bridges and how the B-string bridge comes right to the edge of the bass. Looking at these factors, you can tell that these multiscales are definitely just adapted versions of their stock SR design, not designed around the diagonals. Hopefully in the future, a custom shop BTB might take care of this.

Overall, it's a great middle ground for anyone who wants to try multiscale bass: the only real compromises center around the foundation of the classic SoundGear design. It's a solid bass, don't get me wrong, but it feels like Ibanez shoehorned the multiscale craze into an average solidbody. And that's okay, because I don't think it will disappoint anyone. But I don't think it will impress too many either, so I expect to see many of these for sale on the used market in about ten years. If you don't mind the glossy finish, and the price isn't too high for an experiment, I say go for it. Your mileage may vary anyway. We're all different anyway, especially we bass players.
Music background: Session bassist - 30 years
Close Close $2,000 Pick Your PRS Giveaway -- input your email address below to enter or click here to learn more.

See giveaway details & rules or check out our past winners!

Success!

Your email, has been entered to win this giveaway. Good Luck!