Vigier Passion 5 (series III)

[Lfalex v1.1]

[i][b]Preamble:[/i][/b]
I accidentally clicked on the BassChat wiki, and found the reviews section here. I saw the Vigier link and clicked on it, looking forward to seeing what others thought of these instruments.... No-one had written one! So I guess the honour falls to me to write the first.
[i][b]Background:[/i][/b]
I've had this bass quite a while now. I bought it new from the Wapping Bass Centre in 1997 if I recall correctly. It was a while ago.
I'd been playing for around 2 years, and had only just about got an amp at this point. I decided that I'd like a better bass, and had begun to save up. I'd initially targetted an MIA Jazz, but an initial trip to the Bass Centre revealed that I liked an Ash-bodied Warwick Corvette better, so set about saving for that. One important thing I learned from that trip was to try whatever I could get my hands on- an approach carried over from my HiFi buying habit.
I ultimately saved up way too much (that's being young and living at home for you), set my sights a little higher still, and began to think about a five string.
On the fateful day, I strolled into the Bass Centre with £2500 to spend, and picked out a Warwick Thumb NT5and a Streamer LX5 to try out. I didn't like the balance of the Thumb, but was liking the Streamer a lot (I ultimately bought an LX6...)
I figured I'd try some other stuff, 'Ray 5s and a few others, then saw the Vigier sitting covered in dust in a corner, tried it out, and that was that...
[i][b]Features:[/i][/b]
Made in France in '96 in Vigier's workshop, it's a neck-through bass constructed of the 10/90 Graphite/Maple neck with no truss rod, and Alder wings (Which for the pedants makes this a "Standard" model. The "Custom" had Flamed Maple wings)
It has a phenolic fretboard which blends right into the (black) painted neck.
The two Benedetti single coils are positioned closer together than you'd expect. The positioning had been used in some S1s, S2s, S3s and remains in use in the current Series 4. The Arpege model has the neck pick-up much closer to he neck (among other differences)

It has 18v active electrics, featuring a one-band quasi-parametric EQ with four controls and a 3-position switch.
These address the following functions;
Volume
Pick-up Pan
Frequency sweep (80Hz-2500kHz)
Passive tone, which addresses the bridge pick-up only.
The switch is essentially an +12dB/flat/-12dB control that works in conjuction with the frequency sweep control.
One excellent feature of the Pre-amp is the low impedance output buffer. The output impedance of the pre-amp is a useful 600ohms. No, it's not "balanced", but will comfortably plug straight into desks and drive long cables with ease and minimal interaction. There's a bonus for lovers of (particularly modulation) effects- this seems to render the bass VERY transparent with effects engaged - you can still make out the underlying tone, and the effects themselves seem to sound really natural.

The Hardware consists of a Kahler 2400 series bridge, and is best described as being a set of individual monorail bridges which bolt to a base-plate which is screwed to the body. It's very light but stiff and solid, and is a royal pain to set the intonation on. On the plus side, saddle height can be adjusted by hand (!) without tools, and you can adjust string spacing as much as the base-plate and neck width allow. One criticism I've heard mentioned about the bridge is that the slots only line up correctly once every 180degrees, and that the pitch of the thread on the barrels is too coarse to allow exactly the right string height.
I have to say it's never troubled me.
Tuners are Schallers, and have never given me any trouble.
Schaller Straplocks came as standard. And I got the strap bits, too.


[i][b]Sound:[/i][/b]
Whilst it did win me over with its balance, feel and playability, the Vigier could be found to be a bit polite and boring sounding on first pluck. After much more acquiantance, it dawns on you that it's actually very responsive to player input and has a smooth, singing tone with an excellent [i]quality[/i] to its sustain. The EQ is remarkably flexible, and can dial in a myriad of tones, with only the extremes being a bit too... extreme. The controls interact in a similar way to the way some valve amp tone controls do. There's a bit of a knock-on effect between the pan pot and the passive tone which may negate or augment what the EQ is set to be doing, so a quick twiddle may be needed to get it spot-on. The B string fits in well and doesn't sound like an afterthought, and the string to string, note to note consistency is primarily limited by the player, not the instrument.
It's a bit revealing of poor technique. Play sloppily and it'll sound...sloppy. Phrase a passage well, and it'll reward you with a really singing performance. It doesn't slap as well as I'd have thought. My Status Streamline, Wawrwick Infinity SN4 and Fortress MM5 are better with thumpy, spiky, clangorous tones on offer that the Passion can't seem to reproduce. It's dynamic, but just too smooth. It is better with brand-new strings, but they soon mellow too much.

[i][b]Action, Fit and Finish:[/i][/b]
In a word, Exemplary.
No, no coffee table wood work on show here. Just elegant, tidy and solid manufacturing, assembly and finishing.
The Timbers are naturally dried for 3 years, cut, glued, and given 7 coats of paint and then lacquered. All the contours and curves flow into each other and nothing undermines the quality feel of the instrument. The Black finish does show fingerprints and dust (badly) but a quick squirt of polish on a rag and it's back to mirror smooth again. As the neck is painted, there's no exposed wood for silicones etc. to be able to penetrate. The action can be set super low if that's what you want, but I find that th tone opens up a bit more with a slightly-higher-than-fret-scraping action, so that's how I've got it set up.

[i][b]Reliability/Durability:[/i][/b]
It's never missed a beat. That may sound like hyperbole, but I'll give an example to support that rather bold statement.
In the 14years I've owned this bass, I've never had to tighten the strap buttons. All my other basses have needed regular visits from a screwdriver to keep them in place, but not these.
The only things I've replaced have been strings and batteries (which is to be expected)

[i][b]Customer Support:[/i][/b]
I mailed Vigier once (in English, as my French can't cope with technical nuances) about having an adjustable level control to make the EQ more subtle. Patrice (Vigier!) mailed back within a day with a positively sunny response detailing exactly what to do, where and how to achieve what I was looking for. None of this "What do you want to do that for? / how dare you carve up my lovely bass" business. He was genuinely interested in helping me achieve what I wanted to do, and respected the fact that I wanted to do it. Excellent in my book.

[i][b]Overall rating:[/i][/b]
Odd, butr eally good. The Passion has seen extensive studio use, but rarely goes out live (I've less costly basses to use in he spit and sawdust live arena!)
It'd be the one I'd save first in a fire! It is a little aesthetically and electronically idiosyncratic for some - Check out the Jazz-come-Ricky body with a PRS (guitar) headstock!
Get past that, and there's a smooth and refined bass underneath. I know some will baulk at some features, particularly the narrow neck, phenolic fretboard and painted neck, but if you get a chance to play one.. Do. You may just like it!

I'm just surprised that I picked out such a good bass when I knew so little about instruments back then! It's definitely supported my growth as a player, and I've never quite found a bass that surpasses it in every way. Status and Smiths come close, but they're just not quite the same. One's more HiFi, the other more scooped. The Vigier sort of sits in the middle somewhere.. But not in a bad way!

[lowdowner]

Great review - I have just acquired a 5 string passion custom (flame maple) and am loving more and more. The finish is absolutely spot on, and the sound is amazing - the sustain goes on and on and on and on and... well, you get the picture. The different thing is the neck though - very slim and playable.

This would be the one I'd save in a fire too!