Ibanez IBZ10B Bass Practice Amp Review

The Ibanez IBZ10B combo bass practice amp offers some decent tones, but can't handle much beyond solo practice and low-volume jamming without drums.

This is the amp that comes with many Ibanez starter packs, so it's either "free" or $70 from Musician's Friend. It has a three-band EQ, Presence dial, and a headphone out jack. That's pretty much it.

What would have been helpful was a CD input, so you could plug in your iPod or other MP3 player, and jam along with your favorite tracks. Other practice amps in this price range, like the Peavy MAX 126 have them.

Overall, the tonal variety in the IBZ10B is pretty good. You can actually get a (low-volume) dub-reggae sound through the relatively small six-inch speaker. Punchy mids that cut through electric guitars are there. A bright, snarling treble is easy enough on Jazz basses. With only Bass, Mid, and Treble dials, it's easy to sculpt a rudimentary sound.

While brighter in tone than, say, an Acoustic B10, that can actually work to the IBZ10B's favor. Apart from the varied tones it creates for bass, when the owner upgrades, the IBZ10B can be used to good effect with drum machines, keyboards, even guitars.

While some complain about buzzing coming from the IBZ10B, I've only had that problem with my unit when it is to be expected: running split-coil pickups at different volumes or playing directly in front of the amp. House current may also create some humming, but that's not necessarily the fault of the amplifier.

My biggest complaint is the IBZ10B's volume. Using my passive SX Jazz bass copy, the tiny speaker is pushed too hard even at two o'clock and "farts out." Playing harder at even lower volumes produces the same result. But since this amp is really not meant for anything more than practicing alone, it's not a major fault.

It lacks some useful features for a practice amp, but the Ibanez IBZ10B bass combo has a nice variety of tones. It can be loud -- not drowns-out-the-drummer loud, but enough to compete with an electric guitar or two, and a practice amp really doesn't need to do more than that.