carlsim Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 (edited) Hi all, I have posted this elsewhere but have been rethinking... I have a SIre V7 which I really like - playability is amazing for the money! However, I really dislike the compact nature of the controls... 5 pots and a switch is just too much in my opinion. I have been looking at other preamps, and like the idea of the 4 pot sadowsky preamp with the VTC, but i am now thinking, should I / can I just put in a passive loom and run it as the traditional VVT jazz setup? Do you think I would miss the active controls? I do like having, and have always had, active setups, but I do find myself tone shaping on my amp and leaving things flat or making minor adjustments on the bass. Any other Sire owners feeling the same as me with the control plate? too overcrowded? I want to change it, just not sure what for! Any Sadowsky VTC fans out there? I did watch the LowEndLobster video which has sparked my interest in this... Edited March 31, 2022 by carlsim Quote
Woodinblack Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 Do the John Easy preamps fit there? Or does the stacked controls still give you problems? Quote
LeftyJ Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 Yes, you can drop in any other Jazz-style control plate. Keep in mind a traditional Jazz Bass setup has 3 knobs and a plate-mounted jack, so when going passive VVT you'd have one hole too many because of the sidejack on the Sires. I've tried an Audere JZ3D in my Jazz Bass (not a Sire) once. They offer various configurations, but mine had volume, 3-way impedance switch, stacked pickup pan / mids, stacked bass / treble and a passive tone knob. I liked the versatility, but couldn't stop fidgeting with it and eventually switched mine back to passive, but with a rotary bass boost switch in the 4th position. Quote
carlsim Posted March 31, 2022 Author Posted March 31, 2022 I think it's basically that there are 5 pots there... I will have a look at the east stuff, although the J-retro has a plate mounted jack... i suppose I can contact John for a amendment... Quote
carlsim Posted March 31, 2022 Author Posted March 31, 2022 13 minutes ago, Woodinblack said: J-Retro deluxe doesn't You are correct sir! My mistake... it still seems a bit much with 3 stacked pots though... I have sausage fingers which are the root of my issues with the Sire... Quote
carlsim Posted March 31, 2022 Author Posted March 31, 2022 17 minutes ago, LeftyJ said: Yes, you can drop in any other Jazz-style control plate. Keep in mind a traditional Jazz Bass setup has 3 knobs and a plate-mounted jack, so when going passive VVT you'd have one hole too many because of the sidejack on the Sires. I've tried an Audere JZ3D in my Jazz Bass (not a Sire) once. They offer various configurations, but mine had volume, 3-way impedance switch, stacked pickup pan / mids, stacked bass / treble and a passive tone knob. I liked the versatility, but couldn't stop fidgeting with it and eventually switched mine back to passive, but with a rotary bass boost switch in the 4th position. I will investigate the Audere... I hadn't considered those to be honest! 1 Quote
Rayman Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 (edited) All I can add, is that having had 3 MIJ Fender Marcus Miller jazzes….. I always preferred the passive option. It was nice to have active options, but they always sounded so much better switched to passive, to me. Edited March 31, 2022 by Rayman Quote
BigRedX Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 As you've said, there are already tone controls on your amp. Why would you want a second (potentially conflicting) set? Quote
chris_b Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 So are you saying you like the sound of this bass? IMO upgrading the preamp would not be a good use of your cash, and it's because you don't like the layout of the controls? A Sadowsky preamp would sound fantastic, but if this was my bass I would need to hear a problem in the sound before I considered sinking a couple of hundred pounds into a mod. I like active Jazz basses, they are "full range" basses, but I'm sure a passive Jazz could sound great. A passive bass will only sound as good as the pickups, so you might need an upgrade there if you remove the preamp. 1 Quote
Woodinblack Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 TBH - can't you just not use the controls at all? Almost all of my basses are active, but I never really need to fiddle with the controls, apart from the volume and balance Quote
carlsim Posted March 31, 2022 Author Posted March 31, 2022 51 minutes ago, chris_b said: So are you saying you like the sound of this bass? Perfectly happy with it... it's just too cluttered. I do like to add/change sounds/make minor tweaks during gigs but I really don't need the level of control which is on the Sire. I think that is what I liked about the Sadowsky setup, Treble and Bass stack, VTC, pup blend and volume. Plus it has the passive bypass. I just wondered if anyone else had similar thoughts and what are considered to be the good 'drop in' jazz preamps... Quote
Huge Hands Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 I have a V7 and only use it in passive mode as I'm too lazy to keep swapping the batteries. That's only the first two knobs (stacked Vol/tone and blend). As per my user name, I have huge hands and I don't get too mixed up. I find the tiny volume know quite easy to turn under the edge of my hand. In all seriousness though,, I do put batteries in it and it is nice to occasionally switch in the active so I can add some mega bass boost from time to time! 1 Quote
dub_junkie Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 I’m a big fan of the Sadowsky preamp with VTC on my Valenti Jazz. I like it so much I bought the SPB-2 preamp pedal for my passive G&L JB-2. The only thing I couldn’t get on with is was the pan control being pre-wired back to front. I understand why they do it just can’t get my head round it when playing so that was swapped back. As a side note I just ordered a second Sire V3 second gen. Was going to post up and ask about the relative merits of the V3 versus V7 but after buying my first V3 unseen, when I played it with the rounded over fingerboard edges, I thought that’s good enough for me! Fit and finish is excellent too and I like the preamp as well. Don’t really adjust it much though - only the pan control mainly Keir Quote
chris_b Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 If you really have to mod this bass. . . . one of the best sounding jazz basses I've heard was an Overwater with Bartolini pickups and a John East pre amp. Actually it was the best!! Quote
TrevorR Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 (edited) 8 hours ago, LeftyJ said: I've tried an Audere JZ3D in my Jazz Bass (not a Sire) once. They offer various configurations, but mine had volume, 3-way impedance switch, stacked pickup pan / mids, stacked bass / treble and a passive tone knob. I liked the versatility, but couldn't stop fidgeting with it and eventually switched mine back to passive, but with a rotary bass boost switch in the 4th position. Another vote for an Audere preamp. Drop in, lots of good configurations available (including simpler ones than the one I chose), powerful but also very musical (no silly unusable over boosted extremes), very transparent with the EQ controls centred… great little preamp. Love it in my Frankenjazz! Edited March 31, 2022 by TrevorR Quote
ead Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 Personal preference for me is the East J Deluxe, has a passive option and the tone works in both active and passive modes. I've had an Audere or two and, whilst it was a little while back, I don't recall them having those features. Happy to stand corrected on this of course Quote
Woodinblack Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 Where do you even get Auderes from around here? Quote
Owen Posted March 31, 2022 Posted March 31, 2022 I had an Audere once. It had some kind of impedance switching option. It was utterly bonkers, in a good way. I think I might have to get one again now. 1 Quote
uk_lefty Posted April 1, 2022 Posted April 1, 2022 For me the Sire pre amp is the big selling point, it's what stopped me getting a V5 recently because although the passive sound of Sire basses is fantastic the pre amp takes it to another level. The control layout is annoying, I thought I'd turned the tone down at a wedding gig last week... Nope, master volume, no bass for the first second or two of a song. But surely it's just a case of getting used to it and embracing the quirks of each bass you play? Otherwise you could mod and mod and mod and end up with however many identical bitsas. Sorry, this is BC.... Buy an Alembic preamp and vintage 70s Ibanez pickups 😉 Quote
Marvin Posted April 1, 2022 Posted April 1, 2022 I'm fairly certain that a different actual control plate won't drop in and fit properly on a V7. Sires are a bit of a pain when it comes to 3rd party parts. I've got a 3 hole plate (the ones that got used on Jazz basses with stack controls). On paper all the measurements say it should fit, but it doesn't. There's a huge gap between the plate and pickguard, if you screw it into place. Also the screw hole at the bottom end doesn't line up because the plate gets slightly rotated, when screwed into place at the pickguard end. It's very close, which is frustrating because it'd be impossible to make a new hole. I'd want to be certain that a new plate would fit properly. I don't know if maybe John East could send out a cardboard template of the J-Retro Deluxe to see if it fits, could be worth an ask.It may also be worth asking about the John East Rear Mount pre-amp...and fit that onto the existing plate. Quote
carlsim Posted April 1, 2022 Author Posted April 1, 2022 2 minutes ago, Marvin said: I'd want to be certain that a new plate would fit properly. I don't know if maybe John East could send out a cardboard template of the J-Retro Deluxe to see if it fits, could be worth an ask.It may also be worth asking about the John East Rear Mount pre-amp...and fit that onto the existing plate. I hadn't thought about that to be honest, I watched that video of LE Lobster installing the sadowsky one in his Sire and he didn't mention anything about fitting issues... I think I will contact John @ East to discuss... I quite like the idea of the J-tone - I will see if he can do it with a separate vol and pup blend to then have a side mounted jack... it has the 2 band eq with passive tone which is what I am after... 1 Quote
Doddy Posted April 1, 2022 Posted April 1, 2022 Honestly, I think the Sire preamp sounds really good and I wouldn't be in any rush to change it just because of the amount of knobs. If you were thinking of going passive, I'd keep the preamp and just flip it in to passive mode. Quote
carlsim Posted April 1, 2022 Author Posted April 1, 2022 There isn't any denying the quality / sound - it's purely a practical application that I can't seem to get on with. I have been reluctant to take it on gigs for that very reason and I took it to a rehearsal the other night and realised I need to sort it so I can use it and feel confident when doing so... Quote
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