I know a couple of you have experienced the whole Sire thing, but I thought I would post a couple thoughts. I've been looking for a cheap-ish 5 string bass for ages now. I love fivers and don't have the hangup that a lot of people seem to have about basses that aren't 4 strings, but I still don't necessarily have the need for a fiver very often. The Sire seemed like the perfect gamble for me. I placed the order for this in April and it was supposed to take 5-6 months, but it showed up in 3 months.
Out of the box, the bass was decently setup. It was actually set up a little more comfortably than most new Fenders, whose factory specs feel unplayable to me. I like straight necks and low action. This bass had a little relief in the neck, and the string height was a tad higher than I usually like, but still comfortable. The bridge, which really seems like a high quality Fender 70s style bridge, has a beefier plate and was actually radiused to match the fingerboard. I didn't expect that attention to setup from a cheapo import bass at all. Still, I had to make some adjustments to get it to my personal taste, which is ok.
The nut is a tiny bit high, so I am going to file it a little. No big deal there. On any RIC I've ever bought, you could drive a truck under the strings on the first fret.
Pickups & electronics seem great so far. The jury is out until I hear and play this beast in a live setting. The bass didn't ship with batteries in the preamp so I got to know the passive mode first. There's a master volume and tone with a pickup blend for passive, and a 3 band EQ in active.
The neck feels great. Sire is super proud of their rolled fingerboard edges (there's even a hangtag dedicated to that silly flex
), but I get it. The playability definitely benefits from that. The neck reminds me of Fender's Japan Fivers as far as the overall profile goes. Fit and finish are good. The paint job is deep and glossy, and flawless as far as I can see.
The only points I can deduct are for the shit tuners, which are comparable to the cheap ones on MIM Fenders and Squier basses. But, mine work fine and do the job. We shall see how they hold up. Also, I'd prefer the battery hatch was a quick-open type like on Ernie Ball basses and such. This one just has 4 screws and a cheap little hatch, but again, no big deal.
Over all, this bass blows Fender MIM and Squier out of the water quality wise. Amazing value and I've really enjoyed playing it the last few days. Here's a few pix. By the way, it fits perfectly in any rectangular Jazz Bass case.
That finish is stunning. How's the overall weight?