BaggyMan

Had some play time and I think I have the skinny on it. The barts are not very clear, not a pickups to match the quality of the build in total. The Glockenklang is good all round pre amp and a better fit tonally than the markbass i think. Overall its a very modern sounding bass and expecting it to have musicman or P bass characteristics isn't really the idea of it, so that my bad for not letting it have its own style.. I tried it through a markbass amp and it sounds great, through the my darkglass amp, not so much lack definition in the bottom end for some reason. Changing the pickups and pre have changed it for the better in the end, just not in the way i expected. Like i say a journey.

I'll admit i bought a space 5 on impulse, having loved the vibe of headless basses since way back in the 80's when i owned my washburn force 42...not heard of it well see below.... a wish i hadnt sold it bass tbh. Anyway I bought a secondhand Space 5 the main idea being its a little dude of a bass and handy for small venues and jam nights. First up its a lovely build, very nicely put together, good materials and the spec and reviews indicated that it was going to be a fun bass, bart Mk1's and markbass pre. But no, the sound was muddy or woody and a bit hollow and not to my liking and there was no 'snap' in the sound. Folks are pretty down on Bart Mk1's, especially cort in house ones, so i went a bit giddy and bought some aguilars.. fitted and well still not distinctive...so pre amp swap then ( i like modding basses usually to good outcomes, so happy to fiddle as its not one of my 'front line' basses)...but this one I dunno. Dropped in a glockenklang three band this week. Still not there. Something like £200+ worth of pickups and £100+ of pre amp and no real change (ok some but not £300+ worth of enough) So pondering this on the way home from a gig last night and my next thought was perhaps its actually the pickup placement. Might drop in some dual coils and parallel/series them to see where we go from there. And before everyone kicks off with whats the point , why did you buy in the first place etc, i enjoy the journey, have turned the cheapest of basses into great gig machine in the past with some choice mods. Just surpised how wild the changes i have made have made only a small amount of difference. coil tap/series parallel mod coming up. Washburn Pic grabbed from the interweb..not my bass.

Its one I had laying around, i think its by a chinese company called Donlis. Its a good higher output type jazz pickups and does a great job. Going forwards I may looks at delano who also do big pole jazz pickups. For now this is as good as the original and a better balance in terms of the output https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32867705703.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.57.4581P1aAP1aAWL&algo_pvid=214ba381-7e3f-425e-87f9-f3b7ee2d3602&algo_exp_id=214ba381-7e3f-425e-87f9-f3b7ee2d3602-28&pdp_npi=4%40dis!GBP!16.09!16.09!!!20.26!20.26!%40211b698e17299496958354213e9d6e!12000034714672003!sea!UK!760833171!X&curPageLogUid=fwvxSc4CaGM9&utparam-url=scene%3Asearch|query_from%3A

Put mine through its paces and it running like a champ. Mods: Changed out the neck pickup for higher output, control knobs.

Been using this chopped carbon wrap on scratchplates.. the one on my z7 fits well enough to not need screws..really pleased with look without the screws. Swapped out the neck pickup for a slightly punchier big poled version. Better volume balance and a more cohesive look.

On the way to a gig...'did i leave the gas on? was there something in the oven???....oh shiiiii..."

I have seen models across the range with horrendously dark necks and board where you really couldnt see the fret markers. I hard a P5 that was close to being too dark. .I think you are right the sugars/sap crystalise inconsistently across the timbers used some do are ok, some go dark..

I took a sneaky pick at the pre amp. It has an adjustment pot. Suspect a tweak will help. And then I notice thats been said on other post ...sigh Welcome to overlabouring a point (or pot) post club

Did a full gig this weekend with the Z7 and overall very happy with it. The neck dive issue wasnt really there so not going to bother with Ultralites or whatever anytime soon. General weight of the bass is good so happy there, Sounds wise i like the neck pickup as a blend option to round off the 'stingray' (there i said it) tone and drop in some bottom end. The neck pickup is quieter than the Mman bucker and i 'may' think about swapping that out in the future for a more powerful/stacked and noiseless alternative. The steel fret aren't any great difference to the standard old school one's but i supect they will last longer. Rolled edge on the board is just plain lovely. Comparing it with previous V7's and V3 i found it say better in the mix for the sort of music i play, so i doubt this will be on ebay (or here..) in the near future. She's a keeper.

One QC issue: The action as delivered was way off too high. Not really an issue until i tried to adjust the D string saddle. The allen key/wrench spin in the hole. Luckily i have a bunch of old scrap bridges and harvested two allen screws off an old Ibanez bridge which were a straight swap. Worth checking yours folks...

yep my bad ally knobs!

And finally, it be here. Not quite the over the top fab grain of one i have seen on the owners page (pic shown for reference ...omg thats perdy) My new ride has landed safely without the QC issue of some poor souls here. First impressions Neck Dive: a little but not on the strap Heavy?: No 9lbs and a bit. Lower horn embarassment?: Yeah a bit noticeable, access is a lot better for the dusty end but looks better in the flesh Controls: I quite like the knobs, a bit sadowsky like and definately better quality than the really cheap plastic ones one my v3, v7 etc. But still plastic (even on the sadowsky metrolines they are aluminium) Neck: Rolled edge is great, no fret sprout Pickups: Mman pickup is very articulate and quiet. Single coil on the neck position has 60Hz noise at high treble settings (Nordstrand drop in perhaps). Took a peek under the controls plate, spareate pre to the controls, getting a parallel/series switch will be a squeeze so probably wont attempt. Four wire Mman pickup though so technically possible. Looks like wired in series. Am I happy with my purchase: ?. Yes, first impressions are good, pre amp seems a bit tighter voiced than the v7 (maybe thats just my looks like a stingray so must sound like one eyes..), hardware looks ok. Just for a laugh a laid a musicman scratchplate over the pickup etc. Looks like the Mman is about a cm further forwards towards the neck. Edge of the plate overlaps the control panel. De-condoming the scratchplate the drills holes are tidy as is the routing, so it can be 'topless' without looking crap. I so want to add the musicman style lugs to the bridge....i have some...it may happen Anyway check this.. Mine's a more modest

Gah! Andertons had my delivery on 'Next Day' and that was to deliver...yesterday. If its parcel farce i'll be very grumpy. Soooooooo damn close. Still...Christmas soon.

Good luck with your focus on that....

Good point i'll do a back to back comparison when the Sire arrives.

I have owned a few Sires over the years (early adopter in fact had one of the first batch of thomann swamp ash V7's series 1, 11lb of pure boat achor though..) In some ways i personalise them as time goes by based on playability , bridges and sometime pickups or knobs etc. If neck dive is an issue, machine heads is an easy fix (had a V3 with that) Have seen a few more extreme mods (Mman at the bridge on a V7 for example.) but digging holes in a bass is a risky venture. All in all if done well a mod can ehance the playing experience (v3 cheap machines being a big one). With the Z7 i am hoping not to have to deal with neck dive. Back to back comparison with the Nordy might be fun. My original V7 series 1 had a Nordstrand pickup upgrade and that took the bass to a whole new level, shame i just couldnt handle the weight of the beast.

Me to 'shipped' notification came today...

Ok,folks, even though i am thoroughly pumped for the arrival ...whenever that is, of my Z7 i potentially may well add two mods (not anytime yet...) but both reversable but stay with me... 1. parallel series/single switching on the humbucker Could well open an interesting option tonally. Depend if its a 4 wires or 2 wires pickup. 2. I have a spare neck position nordstrand big blade pickup. Hmmm might try a comparison Modding is a divisive thing for some (leave it as stock they know what they are doing etc etc) but I have found that many Mman at the bridge basses in the past have a plumped for a series..or paralell option. but i find the Lakland 55-02 i have, has series/parallel single switching and is very handy.