lemmywinks

Same here, pal of mine has a Ric he adores and thinks is a legendary classic bass. It sounds terrible and is an absolute chore to play though. If it didn't have the iconic look he wouldn't give it a second glance. Joint first position for worst bass however is a Hofner violin bass (one of the more pricey ones) I used the last time I was persuaded to go to a jam night. Just as clunky as the Ric with a similar amount of useless cosmetic adornments which hamper playing only this time it sounded like mud being played through more mud rather than a choice selection of honky farts like the Ric. I can only assume all the controls on the bass and amp were broken because it sounded the same no matter what. Again the owner was really proud of it and I have no idea why, I've seen his band a few times and the bass guitar and kick drum are indistinguishable from each other in the mix.

These are still a great deal at £45 IMO, wouldn't pay £90+ for one when a bit more gets you the Gator Pro Go but the quality is definitely there. Glad I grabbed two, didn't get any commission from the seller though!

I had an old Hartke VX215 cab which started to rattle and buzz. Get someone to play a bass through it and try pushing different sides of the cab to see if if goes away when you put pressure on them, then when you find where the problem is you can secure it. I ended up doing a crude but functional repair on mine - cut a flap of carpet (like a square U shape), stuck a screw in and glued the carpet back. Repeat this x20 and I had a fully functional cab for years, the guy I sold it too recently resold it on eBay here: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hartke-VX215-bass-cab-cabinet-/183158935358?hash=item2aa51f8f3e%3Ag%3AOtgAAOSwxfdauOsd&nma=true&si=gkQkrxvTDcndV%2BnbZ8ltGoj%2Fe7c%3D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557 You can still see where I repaired it, still going strong though!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CUSTOM-WARMOTH-FRETLESS-JAZZ-BASS-GUITAR/302737553009?hash=item467c907671:g:ieMAAOSweada-Gue

Bought mine on launch and I love it, even though I got rid of my pedals ages ago this (along with a Korg DT10) is the only effect I hung on to in case I need it. Does that synthy fuzz sound so well as well as straight up fuzz (can ape a black Big Muff pretty well), retains low end and plays nicely with active basses too. I tried a ton of fuzz pedals and found this one to be the keeper, sounded tremendous when paired with the drive from an MXR M80, super clear but absolutely brutal.

As long as it's solely about the transaction you're usually good, when people use terms like "liar" or "scammer" then they remove them on request as it's personal.

This. Also if he left anything personal in the feedback they will remove it par course.

The tuners are fine, they work ok and the bass holds tune. However after gigging the bass a ton that's the only real thing I wanted to change. I put a set of Schallers on mine (£40 off here for a 5 string set) and the bass is better for it, seeing as it's my main working instrument that's a pittance for a decent improvement to how it functions. If the bridge was easily swappable I'd have probably replaced that too for something better looking purely because I like the look of chunky bridges.

Looks great, hopefully manufacturers will start using more adventurous fingerboard woods with the issue surrounding rosewood, the fixation on rosewood/maple (or ebony if you're posh) is a bit boring. Some of the nicest fretboards I've used have been wenge, pau ferro and ebanol and they all looked great too.

As if nobody has said this yet, disappointed!

Those bridges are generic types you find on AliExpress, eBay etc. As far as I'm aware they don't offer the wider spacing in 5 string versions so maybe that's why Sire chose them - their 4 strings are 20mm and the 5s are 18mm. I think those bridges on the Dame's are only 16.5mm.

Yep, a well made semi rigid gigbag with deluxe appointments for the price of a pack of strings. What's not to like?

Good aren't they? Brought my second one home today, very comfortable gigbags to cycle with - the waist and chest cross straps keep it sturdy without making you look like a total plank. That's fully laden too, I brought my shopping home in it!

Can the pole pieces not be tapped up from the rear like on Musicman basses? Seem to remember Stingray owners did that to sort the weak G string they were known for.

They have always claimed to have their own factory which makes only Sire basses, not as in a contracted partner but apparently outright ownership. IIRC all the components are made in house too. I paid £290 for mine 2nd hand if memory serves (Alder V7 5 string, burst/tort) and spent £40 on a used set of Schallers. Unbeatable workhorse, there's literally nothing I'd change about it now. If they did a version with lightweight upgraded tuners then it would be the perfect budget pro level bass, should have done that for the V9 IMO.

That was a '76 I think. Showed that to a mate at work who knows nothing about guitars and he laughed his a$$ off. Thought it was a home made effort until I told him the price and how collectable they are then he laughed some more.

That's still a good chunk of bass for £300 if you could do the work yourself, what pickups did the Korean A5 have, Mighty Mites? I have a Korean C5P and it's a hell of a bass, paid £90 plus postage for it a few years ago and I preferred it to the Indonesian B5 I had.

Sire V7 Alder 4 string for £250, that's a £118 saving: https://www.thomann.de/gb/marcus_miller_v7_alder_4_bk_deko.htm Might be worth the risk?

.... by my pet alligator" https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-String-Bass-Guitar-Fretless-Bass-Project-Cort-Artisan-Bass-Straight-neck-etc/192533839244?hash=item2cd3e93d8c:g:3NgAAOSwwP5a4xY5 Shame as that would be an extremely nice bass without the chewed up fretboard.

It's actually a bit nicer looking in real life, darker than it shows in photos which never seem to reproduce the colour accurately. The flame maple is a veneer rather than a proper cap, looks cool to me anyway. The body is from a Hohner Professional JJ..

Had a quick look on eBay at lunch, there's 5 string Sei and Pedulla lined fretlesses on there at the moment. Nothing nice in my price range though.....

Mine have just arrived, crazy bargains for £30! Loads of plush padding, protected area going down the length of the strings/headstock, seam running the length of the zip to keep water out, great quality fittings and feels very rigid. Not as good as the Gator Pro Go I use (the expensive one) but not too far off and nothing can touch these for the silly price they're going for. All straps and handles feel built to last and there's some handy storage options on the straps and on the back behind the headstock as well as a velcro neck block. Glad I bought two and not just the one! Only complaint is that it's a little big compared to the Gator, it looks like it will fit big bodied basses though, the max length seems to be 120cm and the max internal body width is around 40cm if that helps.

If everybody else thinks you're too loud but you're struggling to hear yourself then the solution probably isn't buying a different amp which does pretty much the same thing. Get an amp stand so you can angle your cab up at you or if you do want to change rigs then get something that can be kicked back into a wedge format (Markbass did cabs and combos like this) or just buy a good quality PA cab which also caters for this. I went through a few different solutions and ended up with a QSC wedge which is great as well as being tiny enough to fit anywhere on the stage. You could skip this entirely and get in ears, you won't have any volume issues then and it's even less to carry!

Do it, you don't need to spend a fortune either. Definitely consider a piezo bridge, even a cheap one will add an amazing tonal quality to the bass and I wouldn't have a fretless without one now, I think this one was £25 new when I originally bought it and I have a 5 string Fishman version tucked away for when I find the right bass to put it on! Here's mine, a bitsa with some simple modding. It's an old Hohner body (Korean Cort) with a Mighty Mite P neck (ebanol board), Wilkinson tuners, Duncan Designed Jazz pickups and a cheap piezo bridge with a Bartolini buffer circuit. One of the best basses I've ever played and probably the nicest sounding. I had a nice cheap fretless jazz and a fancy Warmoth Pau Ferro jobbie, neither are even close to this. Total spend was under £300 after some patient online shopping, excuse the terrible pics - it's late!