Must be nice. Still waiting on HMRC (UK Customs) and/or Andertons to pull their finger out.
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This is interesting... Sire MM Bass???
- Thread starter LAST_C
- Start date
Must be nice. Still waiting on HMRC (UK Customs) and/or Andertons to pull their finger out.
I've been playing the same Westfield Bass since 1996 - and my birthday is on Saturday.......but will it be the Z3 or the Z7 and which colour ????
Your understanding is correct. However, the way I use mine (on my V7 and M7) is to put the passive tone knob where I want it for playing passive, and THEN, when in active mode, do any knob twiddling I want. Reason being, when I play my passive 2 pup basses, I find a setting that I want on the tone knob and do all my tone shaping with pup balance and hand technique. However, on my active basses, I more actively
interact with the active tone controls.Different strokes for different folks. But I am SOOOO glad to finally have a pre the gives me both active and passive tone control!
My Z7 showed up on Saturday but I’m traveling for work so I didn’t get much time with it. 159 oz, which is 9lb 15oz, so under 10 lbs but just barely. I’m going to guess the average Z7-4 will be slightly lighter than that because I always end up getting the heavy one. Neck is EXCELLENT, very comfortable to play.
Yes, there absolutely is an active/passive push-pull.
I’m going to get it professionally set up since the E string on mine has annoying fret buzz and the action is already a smidge higher than I’d like. Other than that, though, it’s a really nice instrument. Hard to believe roasted maple and stainless steel frets and pickups like these for only $700. This is bad news for SBMM, and I love my Ray34. (If I love my Ray34 why’d I get this? Wanted the bridge J pickup.)
Sound samples we’ve heard before are pretty on—when all on the H pickup it sounds a lot like a real MM, though not exactly the same, which again I think is the preamp. Adding in the single-coil bridge pickup does change the sound. Full on the J pickup it sounds somewhere in between a P and a J with the bridge solo’d. The blend sounds really good. The H pickup is definitely louder than the J pickup, so with the blend knob in the middle, it’s definitely more H than J, but that actually works.
Yes, there absolutely is an active/passive push-pull.
I’m going to get it professionally set up since the E string on mine has annoying fret buzz and the action is already a smidge higher than I’d like. Other than that, though, it’s a really nice instrument. Hard to believe roasted maple and stainless steel frets and pickups like these for only $700. This is bad news for SBMM, and I love my Ray34. (If I love my Ray34 why’d I get this? Wanted the bridge J pickup.)
Sound samples we’ve heard before are pretty on—when all on the H pickup it sounds a lot like a real MM, though not exactly the same, which again I think is the preamp. Adding in the single-coil bridge pickup does change the sound. Full on the J pickup it sounds somewhere in between a P and a J with the bridge solo’d. The blend sounds really good. The H pickup is definitely louder than the J pickup, so with the blend knob in the middle, it’s definitely more H than J, but that actually works.
Curious that the Sweetwater rep told me the burgandy mist four is backordered but their website shows it available, with the fiver on backorder.
Yes, that's why I don't like basses with humbucker and single coil combinations so much. A humbucker is almost always louder than a single coil. Resulting in imbalanced volumes between the pickups, making it impractical to switch fast between sounds without changing volumes.
Calebmundy
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- Apr 5, 2007
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- Endorsing Artist: DNA Amplifiers, Lākland Basses
I can't remember being so publicly wrong here on Talkbass lol.
I noticed the Sire Z3 sounded a bit different from modern Stingrays. A little less spikey in the upper mids. Then I saw on the Sire website that the preamp is listed as a "Marcus Heritage-3 (No Mid-Freq)." No mid frequency??? wat mean?
Initially I thought this meant there was no mid control, but how can that be when a mid control is clearly advertised, visible and it's demoed in places like the Anderton's video?
What Sire's done here is given us the best of both worlds. The preamp is VOICED like the Stingray classics (retro reissues & the original 2 band EQ models) but with the added benefit of having a variable tone control, which didn't exist in the classic line of Stingrays, PLUS 18v instead of 9v for a bit of extra headroom. I listened to this video of the Sire Z3 A/B'd it with the classic Stingray and it's the same sound:
I've gotta hand it to Sire for listening to their customer base on this one and making something that, at least on paper, looks and sounds so good for the price they do. Again, it basically sounds almost identical to the Stingray CLASSIC (not the newer models). I just pre-orded my Z3 4 string in sparkle black and I'm looking forward to putting her through her paces after 2 very bad experiences with SBMM Ray34 HHs (each costing more than double of this Sire).
Initially I thought this meant there was no mid control, but how can that be when a mid control is clearly advertised, visible and it's demoed in places like the Anderton's video?
What Sire's done here is given us the best of both worlds. The preamp is VOICED like the Stingray classics (retro reissues & the original 2 band EQ models) but with the added benefit of having a variable tone control, which didn't exist in the classic line of Stingrays, PLUS 18v instead of 9v for a bit of extra headroom. I listened to this video of the Sire Z3 A/B'd it with the classic Stingray and it's the same sound:
I've gotta hand it to Sire for listening to their customer base on this one and making something that, at least on paper, looks and sounds so good for the price they do. Again, it basically sounds almost identical to the Stingray CLASSIC (not the newer models). I just pre-orded my Z3 4 string in sparkle black and I'm looking forward to putting her through her paces after 2 very bad experiences with SBMM Ray34 HHs (each costing more than double of this Sire).
I got word back from a Sweetwater associate that the few fretless Z7's I'm seeing were part of a limited tun, and there's no indication that this will be a consistent thing in the future.
Looks great! I'm settled on the burgundy finish, but now I'm using the backorder period to continue my 4 vs 5 debate... seems to me like a 4 would be a great complement to my Spector RST 5 but I'll admit that there's FOMO thinking about not having the range of a B at all times.
I think it's saying it doesn't have the double stacked Sire mid EQ/mid-frequency selector function, just the single knob Mid, as part of the 3 band EQ. I don't have one (hoping to eventually) but thats my understanding.
It happens. LOL.
When I got my V5, my first Sire, I said on here that the pickguard was scratched up.
Turns out their plastic covering is so tight on the pickguard that you don't even realize it's there.
Just got off the phone with Sweetwater, my bass is in and ready to ship. I forget the exact weight but it was around 8.7lbs for the four string.
Stoked!
Stoked!
That's what it is! I'm sorry. However, I think that upper treble spike you find in a 3band Stingray EQ (not upper mid) is absent in the Sire Z3, which functions more like the Classic Stingray EQ. I stand corrected .
Maybe I’m misunderstanding, but my Z7 has the stacked mid controller.
Here’s the layout, going from neck to bridge:
Stacked controller: volume stacked on tone
Single control: pickup balancer
Single control: treble EQ
Stacked controller: mid EQ over mid frequency
Push-pull controller: bass EQ and active/passive
I was describing the Z3. I think the Z7 is like any other Sire “heritage” 3 band preamp with the stacked mid/freq knob. Again…. I don’t have one, but I think that’s the difference between the two.
Got it. I knew the Z3 wouldn’t have a pickup balancer (obv), but I didn’t realize the other knobs were not the same.
This showed up today. My 1st NEW bass since 1988. I'll mess with it this weekend. Work is trying to kill me at the moment. I'm tired.
[edit] What got me to order it? Ebony board. SS frets. Active/Passive option. Curiosity (TB keeps praising these "CHEAP" Basses. May as well FINALLY try one). Price. Will review soon. As of now, after 5 minutes with it, I can feel the frets at the edge of the neck, but barely. No biggie. Balances nice. Strings blow. Tuners look cheap. Finish is AWESOME. Satin smooth yumminess on the back of the neck. Only plugged into the SWR, workingman's pro 15 that lives in my den... not bad. So far... sure. Action is a bit high, but... I'll give it a "personal setup" this weekend. Sure, buy one. Pretty darn neat for 600 bucks. I'm not remorseful, nor would I be embarrassed to bring her to a jam with friends.
[edit] What got me to order it? Ebony board. SS frets. Active/Passive option. Curiosity (TB keeps praising these "CHEAP" Basses. May as well FINALLY try one). Price. Will review soon. As of now, after 5 minutes with it, I can feel the frets at the edge of the neck, but barely. No biggie. Balances nice. Strings blow. Tuners look cheap. Finish is AWESOME. Satin smooth yumminess on the back of the neck. Only plugged into the SWR, workingman's pro 15 that lives in my den... not bad. So far... sure. Action is a bit high, but... I'll give it a "personal setup" this weekend. Sure, buy one. Pretty darn neat for 600 bucks. I'm not remorseful, nor would I be embarrassed to bring her to a jam with friends.
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