80Hz

They just don't seem to be that well known in the UK. Where would you go to put hands on one or get a sense for the range? I think you'd be on a bit of a mission. I played a 7 string Schecter guitar once which was really excellent, it gave any Ibanez or ESP/LTD a run for its money. I dig the FreeZesicle by the way. Am I the only one?

Thanks @neepheid - all sounds very positive and even more so at the price point. As you say pickup heights will no doubt be important. I would always expect to tweak these things out of the box. I think Philip McKnight is the only YouTuber I watch who is fair with this, most use it as a stick to beat affordable instruments. Good to hear about the side by side noise cancelling neck pickup too. Also appreciate the observation re: string length although I'm a happy top loader 😀 One observation I'll make is that the Z series apparently sells like hot cakes but you don't see too many coming up on the used market. Hopefully suggests that they're keepers for most people.

So how are you folks getting on with your Z7s? The tobacco sunburst one has caught my eye, and I'm on a gradual general mission to try bass styles I've never owned/played before (i.e. MM). I've never owned a Sire despite the hype. Regarding general criticisms of the model encountered on the YouTubes, I tend to always play with a strap even when sitting, so I'm not too worried about how it might sit on the leg. I enjoy a nice jazz bass neck tone, so I could see myself being okay with the neck/bridge output difference that some people have complained about - I'd probably use it as one or the other. Interestingly I see some people saying this has been solved on the 2025 update by the switch to a four pole neck pickup (I wonder if it still does a jazz neck tone though!) Mostly I like the sunburst finish - in the promo photos the alder grain looks particularly refined - so this would be the primary motivation for a Z7 over a Z3. Despite the janky detents, etc, is the preamp quiet? Did I read that the neck pickup noise cancelling? That might be totally wrong.

Great looking Precision - hope you enjoy it!

Sure, there's no way meaningful competition in terms of consumer good with the far east happens any time soon. But given we are told that globalisation is in retreat, and with instability everywhere, at least there's a modicum of strategic thinking happening. I wasn't trying to connect the Apple announcement with chip production, just pointing out that it was the Biden administration that began incentives for reshoring.

A keenly timed PR exercise by Apple, no doubt being prepared long before Trump's reelection. Incentives for reshoring chip production in the US was started a couple of years ago by the Biden administration in the aftermath of disruption to chip supply chains post pandemic. A strategically smart move I believe. But there's nothing to suggest Apple will change their manufacturing strategy. I think I read that India is seen as the next high-tech manufacturing destination.

Lovely, and now I found your build thread.. and the need for photos is satisfied! I think it's Ibanez that use Panga Panga often, so interesting to see it in the guise of a more traditional instrument.

Yes what a handsome body.. is that a mahogany neck too? It might just be the light.

Oh wow, that neck is amazing. Same reaction that I had to @cocco's P!!

Just wanted to point out that seeing Kristian Toivainen play his vanilla sunburst jazz in Rotten Sound changed my opinion on them, while simultaneously giving me SPL induced heatstroke. Not sure if that makes them nerdy, but I think it makes them versatile!

Eeewww this gives me trypophobia. Its tail looks like scorpions were a design influence 🫣

Definitely weird alt reality 😆 and I think that goes for everything. But folks, here we are, ready to rehome your sad unloved <£450 mint condition Player I Mustangs!

There's a chap on Gumtree (gonna be careful here, he might be a member? 😉) who has like 20-30 basses listed for sale at any one time, some lovely stuff and all looks to have been well taken care of. I've thought seriously about quite a few of them, but they're all priced too high imo. Reason this came to mind is, like the OP, Mustangs have caught my eye. This guy has a nice player series Mustang which was probably, what, £600 ish new? He's looking for £519, which at that price I'd rather plonk down for a new Player II in that Aquatone blue. For me, as soon as I've decided to sell, it's priced to move. I'd rather make less and see an instrument being used and enjoyed rather than sitting around. And in the current market, it's either got to be special or cheap for me to buy.

Sold an EMG BQS system to Mike, great to deal with. Thanks!

I don't really consider myself a lefty any more (sorry) but I can't see what's happening in the US in any other way than the consequence of extreme wealth inequality. Capitalism was great when it worked for most people (it never worked for all, of course - I'm talking about the historic "middle class"). A good job or advanced trade was a route to a decent standard of living, a home, etc. Now that kind of security is getting further and further out of reach for almost everyone. Very easy to take that vanishing security, and the general fear and anxiety that rise up from it, and point it in any direction you want. That goes for Democrats or Republicans. I also feel I should speak up for the many sensible, intelligent, talented, kind, good people in the US. They're not in the news much these days, but they're my friends, colleagues and family. I'm genuinely frightened for them.

Amaaazing! 😄 Apologies to the OP for the sort of derail, but I had to ask!

Wow, like, when they were a pub/club band?

Greetings, plenty of metal folks here.. no prizes for guessing your favourite band..! 🤘

I quite enjoy doing my own transcriptions. It's something I used to do a fair bit years ago, but I'm bit rusty now. I like having written parts for reference, then adapting them depending on how much I need to dumb it down for my skill level. So has this thread been resurrected? Anyone else want to share/critique transcriptions, and if so should we branch off into a new thread?

It's interesting that the metal guys have a different perspective - which I agree with. Talking recorded here, not live. Metal has been on a gradual journey down in pitch over the last 40 years or so (sub-genre dependent). So where the bass can "fit in" to the mix these days is somewhere just above the kick drum but below the low B/B flat/A/A flat whatever of the guitar, but with a bit of clank popping through somewhere in 2-3.X kHz range. I think modern metal is its own technical challenge which has more in common with EDM production.

I enjoy Mark from Gary's Guitars commentary on the used gear market. Yes he's talking about the US, but I think a lot is relevant here in the UK too, and he has the perspective of a traditional bricks 'n mortar retailer.

I guess there's not much of that bridge plate left, the plating has obviously gone and I'd be too worried about the structural integrity of what's left! But the saddles looked okay? Do you think you'll be able to save those? Maybe they're not original giving the different condition. It's cool that this instrument "speaks" to you and you're gonna give it the requisite TLC 😄

Mature technology in terms of CNC production, generally reliable and easily replaceable components, means that producing "a good tool for the job" is now a solved problem. As already mentioned upthread, over a certain price we're all mostly paying for aesthetics. Which is why these days an instrument has to look good as well as be "technically" good for me to give it a second look. An instrument is a design object, not just a means to an end.

It's all brand and marketing strategy, and less, as has now been discussed extensively, about product quality. I think of Fender's product stratification as more akin to Fords and Vauxhalls in the 80s-90's. Basically the same cars but with different seat coverings, the addition or subtraction of various bits of plastic. So you had a bit extra cash, you got the GL or the GT over the base model or whatever and went off happy that you'd got a "bit extra" that maybe looked a bit better, felt a bit more comfortable, the 1.8L got you to 30 MPH a moment before the 1.6L. Alloy wheels == premium string tree. Ibanez is another great example of this strategy. There's no "falling for it", it's just what does the brand mean to you and what are you prepared to pay? I look at Squier as good value, punching above their weight, a fun brand that isn't afraid to experiment. With Fender, a bit more traditional and "authentic", good but not boutique quality, like buying into a lineage. Full disclosure - I have two jazz basses.