NBD Sire P5 5-String

M

MacaroniShrek

Mar 18, 2022
82
129
1,051
#1
My first NBD in about 10 years or so. My first 5 String and my first FSO.

I freaking love this thing. I immediately wound it up with DR Legend flats. Also gave it a quick setup, as there was way too much relief and the saddles were extremely high.

I bought this brand new, however there appears to be a blemish on the back of the neck. A spot that is lighter, looks like it was sanded, purely cosmetic.

It is still very aesthetically pleasing and I'm really looking forward to playing this beast.

P.S. Sorry, I am not a professional photographer nor professional forum user.
 

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#4
nonohmic said:
If I ever needed a low B, this is the bass I'd buy. Enjoy it!
Click to expand...

It's shocking how good the quality is for the price. It is so much better than any Squier I've played and I honestly prefer it to the American made Fender's I've tested out.

It plays like a dream with a quick setup out of the box. The rolled edges of the fretboard make a massive difference.

Only really have two gripes. That sanded looking issue with the neck finish. I just would have liked a brand new instrument to be blemish free.

Also, the output is a tad low. I have yet to adjust pickup height, but I had to turn my gain up significantly to get it where I wanted.
 
#5
I have tried a few flatwound brands on mine (a P5 Alder 5 strings in red) and have achieved the best tone and string balance with La Bella LTF-5s.
The B is magical, I cannot hear any tiniest difference between the E on the E-string and the E on the B-string 5th fret.
I have tested GHS Precision flats and d'Addario Chromes, but the LTFs are really the best fit. However, I had to select the 5 strings from 2 different sets.

OP, on the picture, is the color difference between the first 4 frets (darker) and the rest down the fretboard real? I have the same contrast on mine between different areas of the fretboard.

The tuning keys are especially smooth and accurate. I have swapped the OEM Sire bridge to a Hipshot A style .708, and I'm now thinking (= hesitating) swapping the pickup to a Lollar P-Style 5-String Bass as I find the Sire pickup missing some depth and output (compared to my Squier Vintage Modified P-V below)...

upload_2022-5-22_19-7-31.jpeg
 
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#6
Glazenn said:
I have tried a few flatwound brands on mine (a P5 Alder 5 strings in red) and have achieved the best tone and string balance with La Bella LTF-5s.
The B is magical, I cannot hear any tiniest difference between the E on the E-string and the E on the B-string 5th fret.
I have tested GHS Precision flats and d'Addario Chromes, but the LTFs are really the best fit. However, I had to select the 5 strings from 2 different sets.

OP, on the picture, is the color difference between the first 4 frets (darker) and the rest down the fretboard real? I have the same contrast on mine between different areas of the fretboard.

The tuning keys are especially smooth and accurate. I have swapped the OEM Sire bridge to a Hipshot A style .708, and I'm now thinking (= hesitating) swapping the pickup to a Lollar P-Style 5-String Bass as I find the Sire pickup missing some depth and output (compared to my Squier Vintage Modified P-V below)...

View attachment 4697862
Click to expand...


Beautiful basses you got there!

The fretboard effect is half real. There is a difference in shade after the 4th fret. However, the flash makes the contrast much greater. It is not nearly as contrasting in person as in that photo.

A bridge and pickup upgrade might be in the somewhat distant future for me as well.

The adjusting the action and intonation at the bridge was a tad difficult. Also, we will see how the sound cuts through the mix live.

It is a fantastic playing bass, though, minor gripes aside.
 
#9
Herrick said:
@MacaroniShrek that's cool. It's a bit of an unusual choice for a first 5-string and not being into FSOs. What made you choose the Sire P5?
Click to expand...

Nice PFP! My favorite movie series.

I'm fine with FSO's as a utilitarian choice. Not necessarily sexy to look at, on average, but there are a few that catch my eye like this one. Actually, this is only my second bass I've ever owned.

I love the looks, I wanted a P bass, I wanted to try a five string and the price was great.

So much fun to play.
 
#10
MacaroniShrek said:
Nice PFP! My favorite movie series.

I'm fine with FSO's as a utilitarian choice. Not necessarily sexy to look at, on average, but there are a few that catch my eye like this one. Actually, this is only my second bass I've ever owned.

I love the looks, I wanted a P bass, I wanted to try a five string and the price was great.

So much fun to play.
Click to expand...

Sexcellent. I'd love to try out one of these but I doubt the music stores around here will ever get one in unless it's used.
 
#11
Glazenn said:
I have tried a few flatwound brands on mine (a P5 Alder 5 strings in red) and have achieved the best tone and string balance with La Bella LTF-5s.
The B is magical, I cannot hear any tiniest difference between the E on the E-string and the E on the B-string 5th fret.
I have tested GHS Precision flats and d'Addario Chromes, but the LTFs are really the best fit. However, I had to select the 5 strings from 2 different sets.

OP, on the picture, is the color difference between the first 4 frets (darker) and the rest down the fretboard real? I have the same contrast on mine between different areas of the fretboard.

The tuning keys are especially smooth and accurate. I have swapped the OEM Sire bridge to a Hipshot A style .708, and I'm now thinking (= hesitating) swapping the pickup to a Lollar P-Style 5-String Bass as I find the Sire pickup missing some depth and output (compared to my Squier Vintage Modified P-V below)...

View attachment 4697862
Click to expand...
The output difference is because the Squier has a Ceramic pickup with steel slug pole pieces and the Sire is a true Alnico pickup. Ceramics are always appear "louder". I just got a Sire P5-5 identical to yours from Sweetwater, that has been on order since last October. The pickup sounds excellent in mine, although the pots and output jack need serious upgrading in my opinion.
 
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#12
laklandplayer said:
The output difference is because the Squier has a Ceramic pickup with steel slug pole pieces and the Sire is a true Alnico pickup. Ceramics are always appear "louder". I just got a Sire P5-5 identical to yours from Sweetwater, that has been on order since last October. The pickup sounds excellent in mine, although the pots and output jack need serious upgrading in my opinion.
Click to expand...
Thank you, I was not aware of an output difference between the pickup types, and I will do the harness swap. I would not do it on an active Sire as I believe the pots are integrated on the PCB. But on passive basses like the V5 or P5, harness replacement is within my skills...
I'm targeting this one below (that has got a quite positive feedback here on TB):
image.jpg

WIRING HARNESS Precision Bass

I may have to get new knobs if the Sire ones do not fit because of the shaft diameter.
Option: 250K or 500K audio pots?
I used to own a Fender AVRI '62 P that had 1MEG pots possibly from origin (bass manufacturing date was DEC 2000, the pots were stamped 0024, soldering looks genuine/original), instead of the regular 250K pots. People say the goal is to 'darken' the tone, but lacking an adequate reference, I am not able to comment on this.
 
#13
I just got my new P5-5 in red from Sweetwater and immediately had to have my tech lower the nut which improved the feel tremendously but man, that's a bigger neck than I'm accustomed to.
The bass has an almost dead spot on the 5th fret / G string, more on this later. The bass overall weighs in at around 8lb14oz, the tuners weight 3.06 oz each with the w/ screws X 5 = 15.3 oz, almost a pound. I decided then that I would order a set of Hipshot USA Mini Clover 1/2" Utralites.
They weight 1.59 oz each so I'll lose almost 8oz off of the head stock when I replace them.
I experimented with the earlier mentioned dead spot by removing 2 of the tuners from the Sire, losing 6.12 oz and the dead spot went totally away. I'll follow up when I get the new tuners installed and I'm working on a customer pickup option that I can't mention just yet. I'm going to sell my Mint Yamaha BB435 if you know someone.
 
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#14
I got the hipshots installed, huge improvement! I lost 1/2 lb on the headstock and it eliminated the dead spot just like I hoped it would. The stock tuners weigh 15.56 oz with screws an ferrules. The bass now weighs just over 8 and sounds fantastic! Lots of resonance and sustain, a very live instrument.
 

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