NBD: Ibanez EHB1006MS (6-string headless)

[Dayn]

A lot of things happened so to make a long story short, so I ordered this Ibanez EHB1006MS. It was discounted a bit because the end of the financial year is almost here in Australia. It was either this, or the EHB1506MS which has more premium woods and Nordstrand pickups - which I also found on sale, but demos of the Ibanez T1 pickups sounded good to me, and I didn't want to run the risk of getting a crappy looking burl. Plus, this was cheaper.

It's a 32.5-35" scale. It plays like a dream. The shorter length feels so good for the higher strings, especially compared to my 35" Schecter 6-string. It came with a finger ramp and Schaller S-Lock strap locks. Also a locking jack.

The fretboard wood isn't as dark as the photos online make it seem, though it is darker without direct sunlight. It also has some nice depth to the figuring. The only defect I can see isn't a defect - it's just the wood on the back of the neck isn't blemish-free, but that's the wood. It looks and feels great for an Indonesian-built Ibanez.

Best thing? It balances perfectly in classical position without a strap. I can only really play in classical position. The slanted back also works for me. I've seen people say they dislike it, but damn, it all works perfectly for me. Pics below in the morning sun (with the plastic still on the pickups).

 

[AkiraSpectrum]

Looks awesome!

 

[Bloody_Inferno]

Very nice! Was actually planning to grab one of these myself some time...

Congrats!

 

[velvetkevorkian]

Nice one, it does seem like they nailed the ergonomics of these.

 

[crushingpetal]

Very cool!

 

[odibrom]

This is the way...

 

[MFB]

Nice, I still rock my 1005 to this day and don't see it going anywhere

 

[Riverview]

They’re sick . Happy NBD . I’ve played a few when they come in shops and they all sell really quick . I love the roasted maple neck on them , and how light they are . Also , it does save a huge amount of space by having a headstock delete , I was surprised by how much room they take up when playing my normal bass after . I’m a huge BTB guy so I’d always go for those but if they made one of these that that scratched my itch I’d grab one .

Out of curiosity , I believe your model has bartolini’s right ? You’re liking them ? I’m surprised you didn’t like the Nordstrands , in all the sound tests I’ve heard I’ve disliked the barts and would take the nords any day . They were great in my BTB too . Different strokes for different folks ! The short scale SMS models especially the five string would be something I’d love to try one day !

 

[Dayn]

They’re sick . Happy NBD . I’ve played a few when they come in shops and they all sell really quick . I love the roasted maple neck on them , and how light they are . Also , it does save a huge amount of space by having a headstock delete , I was surprised by how much room they take up when playing my normal bass after . I’m a huge BTB guy so I’d always go for those but if they made one of these that that scratched my itch I’d grab one .

Out of curiosity , I believe your model has bartolini’s right ? You’re liking them ? I’m surprised you didn’t like the Nordstrands , in all the sound tests I’ve heard I’ve disliked the barts and would take the nords any day . They were great in my BTB too . Different strokes for different folks ! The short scale SMS models especially the five string would be something I’d love to try one day !

These have the Ibanez T1s, the same as their 34-37" BTBs. I was going to get a BTB806MS with the same T1s in the future, so I at least know how it'll sound. Also, whilst I saw some good burls, I also saw some photos of some really atrocious tops, so I'd rather the almost retrowave aesthetic of the metallic silver.

After playing with it a bit, it's certainly very easy to play. The tone doesn't suffer on the higher strings by being a shorter scale. It plays like a guitar and balances so well. It makes me hope they'll do an EHB with a 34-37" scale.

I also found out that the 17th fret, on the top 3 strings, is ever so slightly raised, like it's not seated properly. It's a mere fraction of a millimetre, and was only noticeable when I cranked the action quite low. It came set up with higher action and it wasn't noticeable. I tried hammering it a bit, and it helped a bit, but still a touch high. I might get that fixed at some point. But that's the only thing - half of one fret. The rest of the frets are perfect, and whilst not Prestige level, are very smooth at the ends.

 

[Shawn]

Looks great. Congrats!

 

[Gtan7]

Nice, i've been eying the short scale versions of these.

Re: 17th fret, i had something like that happen on a Jackson 8 string that had 4 neck bolts of different lengths and apparently put a longer one in a position where it pushed against a fret. So if you have different lengths, something to check (and i color coded the bolts w/nail polish so i know that won't happen again)

 

[Dayn]

Nice, i've been eying the short scale versions of these.

Re: 17th fret, i had something like that happen on a Jackson 8 string that had 4 neck bolts of different lengths and apparently put a longer one in a position where it pushed against a fret. So if you have different lengths, something to check (and i color coded the bolts w/nail polish so i know that won't happen again)

Weird. I double-checked, and the bolts for the neck are only for the 19th-21st frets and up, so I think it was just an improperly seated fret, and the high action they did the setup with didn't pick it up. I'll keep that in mind in future. I didn't even think that could happen.