Fretless it is: Maruszczyk vs Sire V7

Hey gang,

I'm on the hunt for a third bass; for context, I play mostly R&B/Neosoul, and have a MusicMan Stingray Special 5 as my main bass (18v, active, 3 band, roasted maple, ebony & swamp ash) on roundwounds, alongside a Sandberg VM5 (9v, active/passive, 2 band, P+MM, maple/rosewood + alder) on flatwounds.

I want something slightly different this time, more ala jazz bass, and I've narrowed it down to 2 options in my budget: a Sire Marcus Miller V7 (18v, active/passive, JJ, swamp ash, maple/maple neck), or a Maruszczyk Elwood L4P (passive, alder w/maple top, roasted maple w/ebony) I've seen at a very good price - I'd initially prefer it to be 5 strings but there's a huge difference in price to add one string-.

Yes, I know this is a 5 stringer vs a 4 string bass and am borderline sounding like a troll,but having already 2 basses on 5 strings, it wouldn't hurt the "versatility" (also spacing) of a passive 4 strings? The plan is, you guessed it right, to use tapewounds on the new acquisition to complete the 3 main types.

I'm looking for a jazzier tone, a bit more nasal, not necessarily so deep, and whilst I'd want to use it in as many pieces as possible, I am clear that it'll be a 3rd bass and the main songs/tones are covered with the Musicman first, the Sandberg in other cases, and the fretless for what's left.

Thoughts?

vs ... and the last one just because I love them with all my heart

A million thanks.

 

Hey, thank you for your answer!

In this case, although the Maruszczyk IS pricier, we're talking about 200£ more to dough out which would be worth it I want to think!