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Sire V7 - are they really THAT good?
- Thread starter SimonSays
- Start date
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- fender sire v7 sire v7 vintage
I was at my local Fender dealer getting some prices and that song came on. I just had to go home and play it!
My experience is that I love the sound and playability, but the quality control on build/finish has been poor, two times. I bought a new 2nd Gen V7 here in the UK, online. The bridge pickup had a fault, the pole pieces at the B-string end had dropped low inside the plastic outer case. Back it went, dealership (Andertons) were great, they delivered a replacement next day and picked up the first. The replacement... great sound, easy to set up, but the binding on the neck was really lumpy/prickly, totally unlike the first bass. I wiped it with a damp cloth, and the lumps wiped away, like it was some kind of residue/glue? However, on the 'G' side of the neck, the maple right next to the binding also feels rough, a definite burr, you can feel a step from the binding to the wood, and then the wood feels rough/unfinished beyond that. The satin finish on the neck is lovely, but feels like it stops 2-3mm short of the binding over quite a length of the neck. At first I thought it might be fine to live with, was I being too picky for a mid-range/budget bass? But the other side of the neck is smooth as silk (same as most basses are...) and now I've played it for a few days I realise I can't live with it, I can feel that roughness on my fingers as I play...it's exactly where your finger curl under and around the neck to reach up to the frets. So tomorrow I'm driving 75 miles to the dealership, they've pulled another out of the warehouse for me to try, if it's OK, I'll swap.
I really love the sound and feel of these basses, they're well above the price range, but for me Sire's QC has been poor. I hope I find a good one, it seems plenty of folks have, but I've struck out two times so far...hoping for third time lucky!
I really love the sound and feel of these basses, they're well above the price range, but for me Sire's QC has been poor. I hope I find a good one, it seems plenty of folks have, but I've struck out two times so far...hoping for third time lucky!
I got a Gen 2 P7 5 string from Andertons last week. Perfect finish and i loved playing it. I had to send it back because i wasn't too keen on the P tone, and i felt the bridge pup wasn't working as it should. Had the bridge pup been ok i would have stuck with it, but wheats the point of a PJ that can only be played as a P.
I will buy another at some point though, as it was the most comfortable 5 string ive ever played, and that’s including a Dingwall super J tha ti had at home at the time.
My Gen 1 V7 is still going strong after almost 4 years. Not had a lot of use recently but never had an issue with it.
I will buy another at some point though, as it was the most comfortable 5 string ive ever played, and that’s including a Dingwall super J tha ti had at home at the time.
My Gen 1 V7 is still going strong after almost 4 years. Not had a lot of use recently but never had an issue with it.
Just adding my experience so far, for anyone still looking at this. Bought a V7 2nd Gen online. Looks stunning, absolutely love the rolled fretboard edges, pre-amp seems great from a short test... but my (first) one had an issue with the nut (back to what others have said about QC) meaning I have sent it back. Probably way less than a millimeter different and I would be posting here about how amazing they are... and instead I'm not sure if I will get a replacement or refund, since I'm not in a location where I can try before I buy. Hard to see anything else of that quality at that price point though.
It was only with the E string. It seems to have been cut in a way that created a buzz (not fret buzz) when playing the open string - the string was vibrating within the nut. My best guess is that it was cut either a little too wide, or a little too low, or both. Of course there are "hacks" to get round that or the whole nut can be replaced but neither are things I wanted to do with a brand new bass. Such a shame, as it was so beautiful otherwise!
That sounds similar to the Fender A string dilemma. They could use a little more angle at the head stock.
That's actually my biggest turnoff with Fender's and all the copies.
Some copies may deal with this issue in a good way but even Sadowsky has to put the "retainer" to the tuner side of the Nut.
To me it's worth the extra expense for a "Better" tilt back head stock.
By better, I mean no Scarf joint(Breakaway Headstock)
Doubtful, much more likely it was how the E string was installed, not enough downward force on the nut.
I’d have at least restrung the E. I had a bass recently that had some odd issues out of the box. I took off the strings and put the same ones back on and issue gone.
Who did you order it through? Some distributors do mess around with things prior to shipping. Chicago music exchange provided mine and they do a light setup. I was quite pleased with their work. It’s my main player and it’s never been touched since I took it out of the box.
it’s possible that the provider monkeyed with something.
From Thomann in Germany. The set up was quite reasonable, but required some adjustments to get rid of fret buzz which was present on all 4 strings. No problems with the service from Thomann I would say, although if the guitar had been set up to remove the fret buzz, then the buzz from the nut would have been much more noticeable. Not something that makes me worry about Sire quality overall (lots of happy owners out there), or Thomann's service (I'm still a happy customer). I just got unlucky with that particular bass - gave me a chance to decide if I really need another one...
Gen 2 P7 Alder 5 string for $535 during a Black Friday sale. And yes, in my opinion price is relevant for most of us, why in the world wouldn't it be. Great neck, love the feel of the rolled edges, fret work is impeccable, truss rod was right where I'd want it, fit and finish is very nice, no obvious flaws. I lowered the saddles a bit and adjusted intonation for the G string, that was it, ready to go. Plays and sounds very nice, lots of tonal flexibility with the active/passive choices, great growl when you dig in. High points, I like the pickups, love the neck, I'm getting used to the preamp. Low points, it's on the heavy side, the bridge and tuners look a little cheesy, not a fan of bright chrome hardware, they seem to work fine however. Also not a fan of pearloid (or whatever it is) block fingerboard inlays or the white plastic neck binding. Obviously these issues are personal preference but I would have loved some choices. Finally, the knobs look and feel cheap, the two stacked knob sets are very finicky to get into and keep in adjustment. I see the new V10 has some nice looking black aluminum knobs, you just can't buy them, which brings us to my biggest gripe. There appears to be NO availability of parts or even the most basic customization available. I hear you can go through whoever you bought it from to request a replacement but only for non functioning parts. Unless corrected, that's the one issue that will probably send me somewhere else next time.
Valid criticism. The knobs are busy. I’ve even said offer a V7 without the preamp. I don’t even have batteries in mine and play it in passive all the time. Since I don’t use the preamp I don’t worry about the knobs, but they are very fickle and not easy to dial in.
My only other complaint is the headstock. It just doesn’t look right.
I get your point, however those days of me buying basses that are $2000 and well North off are over especially for a Jazz Bass..So the Sire will have to do as it pretains to me.
I’m with you there. I paid $499 shipped for my V7 with an awesome quality gig bag. Is it as good as the $2000? Maybe not, but the question becomes, where is the other $1,500 worth of value?
I would argue that the Sire’s neck is just as good or better in terms of playability than any $2,000 Fender I’ve ever played. It has some of the best fret work of anything I’ve ever played. And to me, the neck is 95% of where the work happens. I can replace pick ups and hardware, but the neck has to be right.
And to present an alternative experience, I'd say the neck is the *weakest* part of the sire v7. I agree, fret work is top notch... I think they do a great job there, but the rest of the neck, in my opinion, is mediocre at best. The neck (to me) feels weak, lacking, thin, etc. I have several USA j-basses and all of them are a better experience (again, for me). The nut on the v7 was poorly cut, the tuners are cheap-feeling. The body and the electronics (and the sound!) are fantastic, but I was really disappointed in the neck.
I consider tuners hardware.
Yes, I couldn’t have a more different experience. But I like a thinner neck.
The nut on mine was perfection.
