Peavey Cirrus 5 string

[bebabass]

Hi People... I'm looking for opinions on Peavey Cirrus 5 string basses. 

I own a BXP Cirrus 5 string, I got hold of it to test and see if a 5 string was for me or not. I didn't want to spend big on something I might not get into.

Thing is, I love it, playability wise. I can't put it down. To many pluses to list, let's just say I'm a big fan.

Everything I've managed to find so far rates the USA earlier built basses as the dogs proverbials. So I need the opinions of players that have experience of, or own Cirrus USA built 5 string basses.

Are they as good as they are supposed to be. .??

How do the cheaper BXP basses compare, if at all, with the USA builds. .??

In fact any info that sheds any light on this subject would be really gratefully appreciated.

Thanks in advance fellow 'Bass Brothers'.......  Beba . . .

Edited March 15, 2018 by bebabass

[geoffbyrne]

Must agree - I had a BXP and it was the nicest neck I've ever played.  Sorry - never played a USA model, but from everything I've read, they are well worth it.

 

G.

[bebabass]

Thanks for getting back so quick Geoff.

The neck is as ya say, it plays so well.

I've even been thinking of just doing the best electrical upgrades I can to improve the bass I have.

 

[geoffbyrne]

Problem with that is that the pickups are not standard size - you won't actually get an identical fit.  Also they are active pickups - active pups with active preamp.  I tried a John East with mine but it didn't work well.  Very trebley.  If you can afford it go for the USA - different pre - most say it's better.

 

G.

[ebenezer]

I own a usa millennium tiger eye 5, and i have to say it is top draw!!......value wise, you can not go wrong with a bxp cirrus......

[Tubster]

Won Ebenezer, I own a blue one. great basses. I think some of the later USA Cirri adopted the Millenium pre amp.

[kodiakblair]

@bebabass

None of my Cirrus are 5 strings,my experience is limited to 4 strings.

Your BXP could be closer to the USA than you think.l. Some of the early BXPs hit the mark straight off (later 4 strings switched from 35" to 34") and truth be told there's very little USA about the USA Cirrus 

 Tuners were Japanese, nut from Canada,ABM bridge from Germany, VFL pickups were made in Korea. The PCB for the preamp was also made in Korea and I have my doubts the labour intensive work of soldering components was done in the USA.The BXP used Korean and Chinese parts.

Main difference between USA and BXP is the hardware and a swap to a preamp module from the pcb. You can buy an ABM bridge direct for £80,don't bother with the tuners unless they're faulty. Most BXPs however also had gloss finish to both neck and body, green scotch pad to the neck will sort that.

 

The Millennium preamp has sweepable mids and started appearing on Cirrus customs and USA bolt-on neck models. Something like 2006 sticks in my mind,by then the "New Millennium" celebrations were long gone,sales were dropping and Peavey discovered they had 1000's of these preamps left  I'll confess to never paying much attention to the Millennium preamp, both my custom and bolt on have them but something like a £30 grapic EQ pedal will give you more options.

 

Except for the glossy finish and 34" scale my BXP and 3 USA models all sound very alike.

 

[kusee pee]

I’ve a Cirrus 5 NT and it’s brilliant. Powerful, versatile and a lovely neck. I only stopped gigging it due to a Dingwall obsession but I still love how easy it is to play every time I pick it up. Superb bass for the money. 

[dmccombe7]

I have the BXP Cirrus Tiger eye model and it does have a pretty good neck. Lots of depth from the pick-ups and pre-amp even when flat. Lot of bass for the money i've always thought. Would like to try the US version as a comparison.

The only down side for me and its a personal thing is the string spacing. I'm used to 18mm at bridge end and the BXP 5 string has 16.5mm i think so it causes me some issues when i change to it at short notice. I keep missing the strings when playing fast  

If i was playing it more regularly i would get used to it.

Dave

[kodiakblair]

@dmccombe7 

is that the BXP with the mono saddles ? The ABM 3D bridge used on some USA models is a clearance item.

https://abm-guitarpartsshop.com/ABM-GUITAR-PARTS/Angebote-Ausverkauf/Bass/ABM-3565b17::80.html

Easy swap  

Edited March 19, 2018 by kodiakblair

[dmccombe7]

It is the mono bridge. Its a 5 string bass that i bought mainly for a Prog project i was asked to help with and needed the lower B string.

I generally don't use 5 strings much so not really worth changing the bridge.

Thanks for the advice tho.

Dave

[kodiakblair]

4 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

It is the mono bridge. Its a 5 string bass that i bought mainly for a Prog project i was asked to help with and needed the lower B string.

I generally don't use 5 strings much so not really worth changing the bridge.

Thanks for the advice tho.

Dave

Dave

When I converted one of my T40s to 5 string I used mono saddles. With 5 of them fighting for space inside the bridge base plate spacing was tight 

To get a bit more space I filed 1 side down on each of the die cast height adjustment blocks. You can go quite close to the grub screws without ill effect.

No way it'll get you 18mm spacing but you'll get over 17mm easy. Quick and easy fix.

[dmccombe7]

I'm actually considering selling my Peavey to be honest along with a lot of other bass gear as i want to fund a Mesa Subway rig this year.

I have a Dingwall NG2 that i prefer the tone plus the spacing is more suited to me.

Thanks for the advice tho.

Dave 

[gilmour]

I remember playing a Cirrus 5 string, neck through in the late 90's (or maybe very early 00's) in California. Couldn't for the life of me tell you the model etc. 

I do remember it being one of the nicest basses I've ever played and went back into the shop about half a dozen times to play it! Just couldn't stretch my wallet that far at the time  (think it was $1700 and I was a student).

I played another Cirrus 5 a few years later in a shop in the UK and didn't like it half as much, it was much cheaper and I was gutted. 

[tertiumquid]

I have a BXP and I agree. It’s the best bass I’ve played but it sounds stinky poo.

I’ve  tried the high end American ones and they are obscene!!!

 

[Crawford13]

I’m sure I read that the BXP has the same pick ups as the USA model, just a different Pre amp. 

I agree the BXP’s are very good value for money.

[tertiumquid]

Perhaps but the BXP’s sound stinky poo. The Americans ones sound amazing.

[tertiumquid]

I said stinky poo! Not stinky poo

[Skol303]

On 16/03/2018 at 19:06, kusee pee said:

I’ve a Cirrus 5 NT and it’s brilliant. Powerful, versatile and a lovely neck.

Ditto.

I had one of these and it was great; a very good bass for the money. Really nice to play and good quality all round. I sold mine when 'trading up' for something else, but would buy another without hesitation.

[kodiakblair]

2 hours ago, tertiumquid said:

Perhaps but the BXP’s sound stinky poo. The Americans ones sound amazing.

Both use the same pickups and the preamps in each have the same boost/cut at the same frequencies. Only real difference is the USA used a Korean built PCB and the BXP had a SMT module.

Alder bodies with a decorative cap was standard for both BXP & US as was pau fero boards. Most BXP did come through body with single saddle bridges but then Peavey thought that was good enough for the US "custom" bolt-on versions.Those bolt-ons used the surplus preamps from the,then, recently discontinued Millennium. Always smile when I hear folks brand those Millie preamps as an upgrade,it was simple economics 😄

 

Must say I'm surprised you think there's such a huge difference between the BXP version and the US. Last year a friend picked up a BXP 5'er on her travel up to visit,lovely darkwood model it is. With Gill's 3 US and my 4 it's safe to say we know the Cirrus tone well. Her latest looked,played and most importantly sounded exactly like a Cirrus.