dave_bass5

And we need Ed to do it, so no one else feels bad about what they own ;-).

Agreed, definitly not sticky. I love my Squier necks, but although they are glossy as well they do get sticky. Not that this bothers me. In fact I prefer the finish on these to the Lakland JO maple neck I have.

[quote name='UglyDog' timestamp='1427984594' post='2736703'] Oh, knickers to the lot of yez Yes I expect mine are nickels too, I just assumed that they were D'Add steels and didn't bother checking the hanging dooflip. I am a tit. I'll probably change them for my favoured Rotos anyway. [/quote] I must admit I thought they were steels as well. I've used these strings for a few years, but this bass sounded so bright and lively I had to go and double check. Funny though, they went dead after just one gig, they dont normally do this on my other bases. I'm looking forward to puttinb a set of balenced tension strings on though, I prefer the feel. I might leave the B sting on though, it's only there to support my thumb anyway :-)

Nice write up, glad you like it. These things are the real deal (as the Americans say). I too used to have a Lakland DJ5 and never felt it really cut it compare to my other Jazz basses. It always seemed too warm. I love useing the bridge pup. As you say it's a very stong pup and takes well to EQ. It's definitly better than any jazz bass ive owned. As far as the strings go they should be nickels. My V7 had a hang tag on it that stated this. Did yours? They are the same as the stings I have on my other basses which are all defintitly Nickles.

Hmmmm, wonder why Marcus never mentioned it to them during thier extensive research. Do you think they have to go and tell him he missed something ;-)

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1427885982' post='2735392'] How long are they here for? Perhaps we could all go out for a drink, or something..? [/quote] They are both called Marcus, it could get quite confusing 8-)

[quote name='UglyDog' timestamp='1427897364' post='2735597'] It's here! It's arrived! And. Oh my god. Pics and thoughts later when I manage to actually put it down [/quote] Welcome to the club :-)

We are all kidding ourselves that these basses are worth the money. I sent mine back. So, if anyone doesn't like their bass....i told you so ;-)

Just a heads up to those getting these basses, they are long. This might not effect most people but i know it has been a slight inconvenience to some, including me. The bass is longer than my 35" Laklands, and any other bass ive owned. Ive had to get a new gig bag to fit my V7 in, it just wouldn't fit my usual bag. Luckily ive also got a couple of official bags coming from Sire as well soon :-)

Marcus only plays like that because he is rubbish with a pick

Mark. Here are the promised shots of my V7 5 string bridge. It looks like there is a lot more travel in the saddles than on the 4. Maybe that's why the 4 strings come top loaded. Chris. I dont play slap, but i aint giving it back :-)

For me smaller tuners would be great. Its only the size that i have a slight issue with, and that just when fitting it in a gig bag.

Haha, dont go there. One thing im happy with is that hopefully Sire have used non standard fittings. This will make it a hassle for me to [s]mess up[/s] mod the bass. Im happy with it as it is......although smaller tuners and a nicer looking bridge might be nice :-)

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1427724093' post='2733455'] I'm not clever enough to figure out if through-body stringing would alter the position of the saddle re intonation? Or would it be just the same? [/quote] No idea. ive read a few comments about it not being ideal but as its working for me im going to stick with it. I dont think my saddles are as close to the hole's as yours. In fact ive also read that the top loading holes are in the wrong position as they can interfere with the intonation screws. Each to his own i guess. EDIT. Looking on the Sire website there is a difference between the 4 and 5 sting bridges. The 5 sting seems a bit deeper, and the 4 sting is secured at each corner.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1427723815' post='2733450'] Oh God, NO!! Shall I send it back?? Taking the plate off and replacing it has made it fit a lot better. The screw still holds firm at the bell point so I'm not going to worry about it. That will be the first and last time the bell plate gets removed, at least as long as the bass is in my possession. [/quote] Haha, no, i wasn't saying its an issue, i'd live with it as well.

I see what you mean, at least in that image. ill check mine out later and see if its any different. It did come strung through body, although im sure all the images/reviews ive seen of the 4 string they have been top loaded. Maybe the bridges are different (other than the extra saddle).

Your shot looks a lot clearer than mine. I was holding the camera with one hand while trying to keep the bass from falling off a chair lol. i see what you mean about the screw hole, but maybe its just the angle of the shot. This is mine face on. EDIT. Actually, looking at your first shot on in the review it seems your bell plate doesn't quite fit. there seems like a gap between the plate and the PG, and yes, the whole does look a bit closer than mine.

Good idea about lowering the height of the knobs. This is a shot i took when i had my bell plate off :-) As far as stringing through body. Mine is and ive not noticed any issues with tuning or intonation so far.

Yep. I took mine to a 2 1/2 hour gig and never had any tuning issues. I tuned it up at the start (actually just two stings that had gone out due to the gig bag), and never needed to touch them again. I will replace the stings with balanced tension, as i too prefer those. Just need to decide what size B string to purchase as well.

[quote name='zero9' timestamp='1427647312' post='2732664'] Wow, thanks for the review. I was considering getting a 5-string Squier VM Jazz, but this changes everything. More colour / fretboard options with the Sire as well. Brilliant! [/quote] Better get in quick. Ive heard the next shipment of these basses wont be until May.

The B string is very nice. It's solid and clear, at least on mine. Compared to my TRBX (both 34") it's like night and day. In fact I would say, from memory, that's it's better than my old Fender MIA P5 B string. Mine is the same colour as Marks, and I love it.

Great review, and spot on. There isnt one thing in that review I can disagree with, your feelings are 100% in line with mine. The moment I took it out of the box I thought "Lakland....only cheaper". Lakland necks are a lot flatter, but the feel and finish took me back to my old Lakland 5 strings. In fact the tone of this bass would blow my old 55-01 out of the water. I do wish mine was a bit shorter, and lighter, although both are just a minor i convincence and would not stop be buying another. In fact thats what I plan to do later in the year. A nice M3 is definitely on the cards.

Mine was well set up but not for me. I play with a pick so i had to raise the action a bit. That was just a personal thing though, another guy here who plays felt it was perfect (light finger playing). Strings are D'addario XL's so that was nice, as these are what i normally use. Quick crappy phone pic from the gig on Sat.

Right, first gig out of the way and it's all looking positive. This was the first gig ive done without my Darkglass VMTD. I felt it was worth hearing just the bass on its own. The tone was very nice, solid without being boomy (not normally the case with this venue). I mainly used the neck pup as I like the warm round tone, but I did use the bridge pup a few times. The rear pup is very powerful and has loads of growl. There was no drop in volume going from front to back pup. I opened the bass up the other night and turned down the active circuit a bit, it's more balanced with the passive sound now so going between the two was easier. The passive tone definitely sounded more earthy, but lost some of the depth. Certainly usable though. I did fiddle with the EQ quite a bit, mainly the mids, but the rest of the band decided to play louder than we had soundchecked, so I was a bit low in the mix. This made it a bit harder to judge what the EQ was doing, but at no point did I hear anything nasty (at least not from my rig lol). Because the neck radius is quite curved I did have to concentrate more on what I was doing further up the neck. The width wasn't a problem but this neck feels very different to my TRBX so wasn't quite as comfortable and natural as im used to. No bum notes though so it's not an issue. Weight. This bass is heavy. It's just under 10lbs. My TRBX is around 8.5lbs. We played two sets over 2.5 hours. It was fine, but I wouldn't want to do a straight 2.5 hours with it. I almsot didn't take the bass though. I got a new Ritter gig bag for it and the bag is lovely. Fake leather, well padded and definitely the best gig bag ive ever owned. Unfortunately with the bass in it it was just too heavy to put on one shoulder, or even two to be honest. I'm used to lighter so this is just a personal thing, but in the end I put the bass in the only other gig bag that fits and hoped for the best. It was ok though. I'll probably sell the new one or send it back. I have a Sire bag coming at some point anyway. So, all in all, very happy with my £300 bass. I can see it being my main bass for a while, although I'm keeping the TRBX as I love that bass as well. Choice is good at keeping the GAS away.

Haha, I expect it to be very loud. Tbe active side seems very powerful. It's more the top end I might struggle with. When I play with a pick it's white bright sounding, even with the EQ tweaked. Finger style is fine.