I bought my Ibanez Mode MDM1006 bass in March of this year (2026), and made it a point (or self-requirement) to make NO CHANGES to the instrument; no mods, no parts swaps, no upgrades - just learn and work with the stock instrument. Then, after 4-5 months, if there was anything I was unhappy with the instrument, then any upgrades/swaps would be justified because I’ve already given the stock settings an honest shot.

I knew I had to start with a pickup swap/upgrade because I believed that the Sonitech Preamp w/ Hexa-Mid system was pretty special and worth keeping - It’s what makes the Ibanez Mode what it is and sets it apart - especially its Hexa-Mid System. What I couldn’t live with was its harshness in the upper-mid and treble area - and that’s even with cutting out those regions.

Finding a pickup set was also difficult due to its routing dimensions. So I was between the Nordstrands Big J-Blade 6 or the Bartolini J66J’s. I figured either of those pickups would’ve worked just fine in place of the stock Delta S6J’s, and just went with the Barts simply because I didn't want exposed pole pieces to be visible.

Now, with the J66J’s, I have:
Fuller low end, Smoother high C, No harshness, Better balance across all six strings, EVERY Hexa-Mid position became useful (there’s six different frequencies to choose from), The Sonitech preamp no longer felt like it was compensating for the pickups, Bass EQ became a tone-shaping tool instead of a corrective tool.

Hope this review makes sense and is helpful. Thanks, Fat Bass Tone, for always having the parts and gear available for extremely nitpicky individuals like myself.

-Niño

I bought my Ibanez Mode MDM1006 bass in March of this year (2026), and made it a point (or self-requirement) to make NO CHANGES to the instrument; no mods, no parts swaps, no upgrades - just learn and work with the stock instrument. Then after 4-5 months, if there was anything I was unhappy with the instrument, then any upgrades/swaps would be justified because I’ve already given the stock settings an honest shot.

I knew I had to start with a pickup swap/upgrade because I believed that the Sonitech Preamp w/ Hexa-Mid system was pretty special and worth keeping - It’s what makes the Ibanez Mode what it is and sets it apart - especially its Hexa-Mid System. What I couldn’t live with was its harshness in the upper-mid and treble area - and that’s even with cutting out those regions.

Finding a pickup set was also difficult due to it’s routing dimensions. So I was between the Nordstrands Big J-Blade 6 or the Bartolini J66J’s. I figured either of those pickups would’ve worked just fine in place of the stock Delta S6J’s and just went with the Barts simply because I didn't want exposed pole pieces to be visible.

Now, with the J66J’s, I have:
Fuller low end, Smoother high C, No harshness, Better balance across all six strings, EVERY Hexa-Mid position became useful (there’s six different frequencies to choose from), The Sonitech preamp no longer felt like it was compensating for the pickups, Bass EQ became a tone-shaping tool instead of a corrective tool.

Hope this review makes sense and is helpful? Thanks Fat Bass Tone for always having the parts and gear available for extremely nitpicky individuals like myself.

-Niño