I’m getting pulled-in by the beauty of some of these Sires. Mainly the P10 but a blue P7 is also catching my eye. I’m typically a USA Fender dork with appreciation for higher end basses. My guitar gear is mostly boutique and vintage. Good stuff. I have a mental thing about the Sire being a cheapo Bass but damnit they are looking good. Thoughts?
I'm admittedly biased (just ordered my 6th Sire), but they are worth a closer look, best bang for the buck on the planet, imho.
Not a fan but cheap is a word I'd never used...not even when they first came out five years ago or so and they were rather basic and inexpensive. {}
Same reason I'm not a fan of Warwick, Lakland, ESP, Jackson and quite a few other basses...they simply don't interest me.
I have a Covid Sire V7 vintage. I bought it out of boredom really. Good things are woods and paint which are more than reasonable. Pickups and pre amp are ok, but the pre amp needs fine tuning. Not a big deal as this applies to many pre amps. Tuners and bridge are poor but in keeping with a bass at this price point. Paying $100 more for this wouldn't improve the bass though, so I get it. Be reasonable with your expectations and you'll be surprised. I haven't worked on mine enough to get it gig ready. Does it sit with my others, no. Will I sell it, most likely, but I'll lose money on it. I think they are decent value for money, but really I $700 for a new bass is too cheap for a reason.
i just got my first Sire, a simple v3 and am absolutely satisfied with quality and tone. I’ve owned a ton of basses from high end boutique to Sx. Cheap is not how I would describe the bass. You will be very happy.
Please elaborate on tuners being poor. I’ve read about this multiple times but never get an explanation, just regurgitating previous post. My tuners on my V3 are spot on and silky smooth.
Not had one myself, but the reviews by people I respect are excellent. Also look at the new reviews of the guitars which have just come out and they are pretty uniformly excellent. The long YT interview with the owner is worth watching too.
Just picked up a V7 and it feels/plays/looks like a bass that should cost twice as much. My only complaint is the b string slot on the nut wasn't cut deep enough, so ill need to get that corrected. The tuners could be better but at by no means bad… they just seem to drift out of tune after a few days, but that could also be just the bass itself adjusting to the climate of where i live. The neck dive is pretty bad… but it is a J bass afterall. Nothing a nice wide strap wont fix. My only regret is not springing for the swamp ash version with the maple neck, but for me that is 100% for the aesthetics. I just think the maple neck would have looked nice with the Lake Placid Blue finish i went with.
The metal is poor... same as the bridge. This is common in many basses too...but you can swap out with after markets parts. For the Sire, you'll need to drill, but for that money, you will not improve its value. I think they are very good value for money but I think you should set your expectations accordingly. I'll sell mine and will lose money on it having not played it too much. I'm 'ok' with that because I'll never gig it.
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