dave_bass5

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.

Nice. My first gig will be this Sat. Im forward to hearing the bass through a loud rig, but a bit apprehensive as I know it's going to sound very lively, and quite different to what Im used to. I hope I can tame it within a few songs.

New review up on a German website. It's not a perfect translation but it's readalbe (and quite funny in places) https://translate.google.co.uk/translate?sl=de&tl=en&u=http%3A//www.bonedo.de/artikel/einzelansicht/sire-marcus-miller-v7-alder-5-ts-test.html

I know it can be said as hype, mainly due to the low price and name attached, but as an actual owner I can only agree with all that was said in the review. It's not a must have bass, but at that price and quality it's no wonder they are selling fast. It looks like Thomanns is now the only place you can get them, even Sire have sold out and there won't be any more for a couple of months apparently. At least this will give those thinking about getting one a bit more time to read user reports and see if they are all loved a few months down the line. I know mine will be, although ive also decided to keep my TRBX as well both nice basses but both very different.

Actually, for those not on Facebook this is it. I don't know who the guy is, so take it as you will. Sorry about the formatting, this is how it comes off FB. Wassup groove family??!! Here's the unsolicited review From my tech, Robert Scoby... Pay close attention...he's telling the whole truth cause he doesn't benefit from this at all!! For those interested, here are some initial thoughts on the Sire Marcus Miller bass (Alder w/ Rosewood). 1. Out-of-the-box, the bass is setup very well. The neck is straight (almost too straight = +.002@7th fret). Action is a bit high (1st string = .115, 5th string = .137 both measured @17th fret). Nut action is perfect, very comfortable at the 1st position. The bridge radius matches the neck well. It appears that someone took some time with it before it left the factory, which is rare in this price point. The finish is good, not Pedula or Fodera good, but the colors are blended well with little or no wave showing. It appears to be a good quality acrylic or poly. No vintage nitro here for 500 bones. 2. Pros…… The electronics are on-par with any high end system available (Bartolini-Aguilar etc) and I am picky when it comes to preamps. Only the potentiometer quality being a bit questionable. The pot shafts are a bit weak and bend easily and the tapers are very sensitive. The wiring is first rate. It has the look and feel of traditional cotton wire, but is actually a textured PVC coating. The layout of the preamp board is clean and simple-with a gain-match mini pot mounted on it to even out the change from passive to active mode. The PASSIVE TONE is exceptional. The alnico pickups are wound beautifully and have a perfect midrange growl. I would put it up to ANY strong vintage Jazz Bass. The ACTIVE tones are versatile and work well with the pickups. The active circuit is equipped with separate Bass / Treble and Mid Boost-Cut / Freq Sweep. The sweep’s detent position is so good that you could just leave it alone and adjust the gain only, but it is still there to be used if needed. There is a lot of controls going on in a minimum of space to it takes a bit to get accustomed to the lack of real estate on the control plate. All cavities are shielded in traditional graphite paint-which is done very cleanly. The neck is comfy, even if it is a bit wide for a 5 string. The wide feel may be due to the 7 inch radius, but then again I have Hobbit hands and prefer a slimmer traditional JB neck. The frets are thin but tall (my personal favorite) at .080 x .046. Think Lakeland. 3. Cons….. The tuners are terrible…period. Overly tight and notchy even without being strung up. They do their job but that’s about it. I recommend swapping out for some nice Hipshot replacements as soon as possible. They have to save money somehow. The Bridge is, well, bulky and cheap feeling, definitely not elegant to say the least. The main gripe is that when top-loading the strings, the strings enter directly beneath the intonation screw-not beside it. This causes a sharp sideways pull on the string just to get it to line up on the saddle. When bottom loading, the strings line up straight and true. 4. Summary…. I want one for myself….I will be talking to Jackie about that soon. Overall is far and beyond better than any Squier, Ibanez, Epi or any other brand I can think of in the 500.00 range. I dare say even better (in some respects) than a Skyline. I never had an option to get an instrument of this quality on a budget when I started to play 35 years ago and as I understand it, this bass is aimed at the beginner market or a solid backup. I regularly work on instruments in the 1K range that do not sound or play as well out of the box. It’s not a Smith or Fodera, but then again it’s not meant to be. With just a little bit of setup-love rubbed on it after purchase, I would have no issues pulling a gig with it. I personally would spend an extra bill-and a-half and upgrade the tuners and can live with the bridge. There is absolutely no need to change any part of the electronics…the pickups and preamp are that good.