1985 Ibanez Axstar Bass Black

The ironic thing about this rare-ish Axstar bass is, we purchased it from a guy that's known worldwide for selling 'Bursts. Talk about a duck out of water! Yessir, this booth at the Dallas Guitar show was lined up with exceptionally expensive Les Pauls and here this bass sat, all alone in the corner. Well, I could not stand for that, so I slyly slid in there and scooped it up. The best thing about the deal was when the seller said, "Oh, here's the original case that goes with it." Now I know why they say "grinning like a Cheshire cat."

This Axstar is reminiscent of a Steinberger in that when you dial up the neck pickup, you get a deep, round tone that's perfect for R&B or funk. I'm not much of a thumper, but this bass delivers tons of heavy tone if you want to get down with some pluckin' and poppin'. Now go back to the bridge pickup and you'll get a very mid-rangy bark that's Jazzy, distinctive and will cut through any wall of guitars. Blend the two pickups together and you'll have a nice, aggressive Rock tone, especially when played with a pick. The twin Axstar pickups are well-balanced and versatile.

Now to condition; As with many gloss black basses, this one has no less than one zillion surface scratches, dings, doinks, boinks, and bumps. It's been played plenty over the last 38 years and it shows the scars of many a battle. That said, the controls and electronics work nicely and the bass is as solid as a rock. If you want to get your '80s on, this is one unique bass with which to do exactly that. Lest I forget, the package comes with the original hardshell case, so you won't hear "Comes in a gigbag, man" here.

Please call, email or PM with any questions and as always, thanks for stopping by!