- The Aria brandname was changed to Aria Pro II in late 1975, though this has been used mostly (but not exclusively) for electric guitars and basses. All guitars were made in Japan until 1988, when production of less expensive models was switched to Korea. Vintage 1980’s Aria Pro II ZZ Bass Deluxe.
- Posted January 29, 2018. There are Arias and there are Arias. An SB from the late 70s, especially if it has ' The Aria Pro II' on the headstock is a great bass and will be still be holding its value. Unfortunately there's also a lot of very ordinary and average instruments with the Aria name on them.
Aria Pro Ii Bass Serial Number
Aria was formed in Japan in 1953 by Shiro Arai as Arai and Company. They began retailing acoustic guitars in 1960, although the company didn’t actually start manufacturing their own until 1964. Aria arranged for Matsumoku, the musical instrument maker, to build the guitars for them under contract. Arai and Matsumoku started building acoustic guitars in 1964, and then electric guitars in 1966, using Arai, Aria, Aria Diamond, Diamond, and much less frequently, Arita brand names. The Aria brandname was changed to Aria Pro II in late 1975, though this has been used mostly (but not exclusively) for electric guitars and basses. All guitars were made in Japan until 1988, when production of less expensive models was switched to Korea.
Aria Pro II did some copies of famous American guitars like the Fender Stratocaster and the Gibson Les Paul though it also did its own style of guitars. In the 70s and early 80s the company came into its own in the United States with a series of high end professional instruments. The company had professional endorsements from Herb Ellis, Yngwie Malmsteen, Neal Schon, John Taylor, and many more. Cliff Burton of Metallica used an Aria SB Black N Gold I as well as an SB-1000 bass but was never an official endorser.
Here is the Aria Pro II ZZ Deluxe Bass. These were manufactured between 1982-1987.
Ash body, maple neck, Dimarzio pickups. Brass nut and bridge. The Aria Pro II PE-350CST is the perfect mix of playability, versatility, and affordability. PE-Series guitars have a lightweight, streamlined design, that includes the Aria exclusive, heel-less cutaway neck joint. These guitars are nicely accented with gold hardware and a triple lined binding that hugs every curve.
Hi there!
Today we are looking at a bass that is pretty darned close to one that I bought new back when I was in college. This is a 1987 Aria Pro II XRB-2A bass, finished in transparent red over a flamed maple top and back. These models were made from 1987 to 1989, and were some of the last Aria instruments that were made in Japan before production moved to Korea.
If you remember the mid to late 1980s, there was a lot of metal music floating around, and everybody knew that if you wanted to bang heads, you needed a pointy headstock on your guitar. This bass delivers exactly that and more: a Precision Bass body, a Jazz Bass neck, P-J active pickups, AND a pointy headstock. Boom!
Aria Pro Ii Bass S Bay
I am pretty sure that all of the XRB basses came with alder bodies, but this one is unique and I have never seen one with the figured maple top and back before. But I figure the body is still alder underneath, as it weighs the same as other ones that I have owned - around 8 ¾ pounds. The body is nicely contoured without losing the pleasantly traditional Fender shape.
The body is loaded up with a set of Aria P and J pickups that are powered by a 9-volt preamp. The controls include a master volume control (that can actually be clicked to an off position), a tone knob, and a blend knob with a center detent. The blend knob seems like overkill as there is also a 3-way pickup selector switch. The other toggle switch changes the electronics from active mode to passive mode, though there is no real benefit to this as the tone is about the same in either setting, though it would be handy if the pre-amp battery happens to go dead at the most inopportune time. Maybe the pre-amp is crapping out on me…
My favorite part of this Aria bass is the neck, which is eerily similar to the one on the Fender Jazz Bass Specials. The profile is very similar and easy to play, with a thin jazz profile and a 1/5-inch wide nut. There is clear glossy poly sprayed on the back of the maple neck, and the rosewood fretboard has 21 frets with tiny dot markers (for some reason the marker for the 21st is missing). There are no string trees, as that pointy headstock is tilted back 14 degrees to hold the proper string tension across the nut.
Aria Pro Ii Bass Stb Series
The condition of this XRB-2A bass is amazing, and there is almost no wear and the only blemish is a little cracking in the veneer around the output jack. The bass plays well, but it sounds kind of meh. I like the idea of this bass a lot (and part of that is probably sentimental value) so this one might be a candidate for a pickup change, and I am thinking of going with a set of EMGs.
I will let you all know what happens!
Aria Pro Ii Bass Sb-1000
Mahalo!