As always, perfect service from Thomann.
Regarding the bass, here are the positives:
1. Ebony neck, pleasant to the touch and appearance
2. Comfortable and premium frets
3. Perfect dynamics and articulate attack
4. Comfortable and easy to fix bridge.
5. Superb sounding, quiet (obviously noiseless) neck pickup. Sounds better than an expensive Fender P-bass. This is the biggest plus of this bass, as incredible as it may sound.
6.1. Perfectly balanced in terms of sound compared to the MM pickup.
6.2. A year ago, many complained about the imbalance between the two pickups. This has now been overcome. I think that after waiting 9-10 months after it sold out, Sire has obviously solved this problem once and for all.
6.3. The neck pickup (loaded in passive mode) has an impedance of 7.46 kΩ (Unloaded is 7.90 kΩ).
6.4. It is IN-LINE-HUMBUCKER (one coil for E+A and another coil for D +G).
7.1. The MM pickup has an extremely crisp and clear sound, indistinguishable from the original Sting Ray. It has nothing in common with the compromise Sterling models, even at a higher price. Sire wins the competition.
7.2. The MM pickup (loaded in passive mode) has an impedance of 1.76 kΩ (Unloaded 1.71 kΩ).
7.3 IMPORTANT DETAIL:
The MM pickup is initially set to parallel mode.
However, its cable has 4 terminals and can be switched between parallel, single, and series modes using a 3-position switch.
8. The two pickups together sound very rich in fingerstyle. It is difficult for me to judge whether they are suitable for slap technique. Personally, I would not use them together. Separately, they sound distinct in timbre, emphasized, and with individually distinguishable character.
9. The tuning mechanism is convenient and flawless.
Neutral:
1. Weight 4.230 kg. (for the "4-string, white body and ebony fret board" model)
2.1. The lower horn of the body is shorter than necessary. If you play sitting down with the bass resting on your right thigh, forget it, it slips. You have to use a strap.
2.2. If you hold it like an acoustic guitar, between your knees (I use it this way), then there is no problem.
3. The last frets are difficult to reach.
4. In passive mode, the tone control is welcome, albeit with narrow attenuation. In active mode, the treble "cut" works much better.
5. Slight neck dive if played without a strap. Super light tuners can help to a certain extent.
Negatives:
1. The active electronics are below par.
2. The pods, which are duplicated (amplification and passive tone control, as well as mids with parametric), rotate together, making them unusable.
3. Spectrally unsuitable for work – the bass is boomy, the mids are not particularly well defined, the trebles are so-so.
4. Plastic (or whatever) knobs – complete junk.
After reading the reviews, I bought the bass anyway, solely as a platform for modification.
The replacements are as follows:
1. Neck pickup: Bassculture (made in Germany): "Dual blades" in J-enclosure, in series, 9.57 kOhm
2.1. MM pickup: Bassculture: "Quadruplebucker" with 4 blades.
2.2. Switches:
A. 1st, (neck side blade, single coil): 4.58 kOhm
B. 4th, (bridge side blade, single coil): 4.62 kOhm
C. Inner blades (2nd + 3rd) in series: 9.2 kOhm
D. Outer blades (1st + 4th blade) in parallel: 2.30 kOhm
E. All 4 blades: 1.84 kOhm
(The pickups were purchased directly from the manufacturer, and the measurement data is in “unloaded mode”).
3. Glockenklang 3 band electronics (from Thomann)
4. Warwick – 5 chrome knobs (from Thomann)
