CameronJ

Just to add that when the factory strings die on my Xotic XJ 5er, I’ll be buying another set of Elixir nickels for it. I’m not one who delights in changing strings all the time (unless it’s rounds to flats/tapes or vice-versa for a completely different tone) so these are a no brainer.

Thanks man, yeah it’s COVID dependent - hopefully by November it’ll be doable! Re: the strings, I’d really recommend them, they feel nice under the fingers and sound the way good strings should. I got the Nickels so can’t comment on the steels from personal experience, but I’m sure they’re just as good if steels are your flavour of choice.

They’re great. Can’t say I’ve noticed a change in tone to be honest. I recently changed to TI Flatwounds on the bass they were on (purely for the tonal variety of having a bass with flats) but it’s nice to know they’ll still sound good when I put them back on. I potentially have a long gig at the end of the year - a Panto in Wales with 8 performances a week for 2 months - that’ll be a serious test for the Elixirs as my hands sweat quite a bit when playing live!

That looks pretty damn good @ezbass

It would seem that the two systems are similar, yes. Still haven’t taken the plunge with buying an HRI system for my Xotic but when I do I’m sure I’ll post a thread here with the results.

Truth. Dingwall soap bar pickups are also reverse P’s on the inside!

You may be correct. Sandberg very deliberately reverse their P when in a bass with a J or MM pickup at the bridge, but they leave it in “traditional” configuration when on a single P pup bass. They’ve gone on record as saying the bridge pickup blends better with a reversed P than a traditionally oriented one.

FWIW I bought an Xotic XJ1T 5er a couple of months ago and it has true single coils, but Xotic offer their HRI (Hum Reduction Inductor) which fits in a little prerouted slot under the pickguard - I’m very tempted to buy one and have it fitted. Word on the street is it doesn’t affect the single coil tone as much as Humbucking J pups do.

Sire are doing it consistently for sub-£500!

I think different manufacturers/brands approach this differently, which is why I dispute when people make blanket statements like “a reverse P is better!” There is an obvious tonal difference between doing one and the other but it doesn’t seem to be standardised.

They tested the switch knobs to death. Apparently they’re very, very durable. I think Neural talked about this in one of their early videos

What’s your set up? Are you listening through headphones? An amp? Monitors?

This. Also, with a few of the newer pedals that have been added in recent firmware updates, you may not even miss the lack of true amp/cab sims. I suspect you’ll enjoy your purchase @SumOne Just remember to update it once you get it and read the instructions before you do!

This is a classic and variations on this theme unfortunately occur with painful frequency. Saying that, my experiences with BassDirect have been positive. Their website is in dire need of an overhaul though. The Bass Gallery revamped their site a while back and it’s made such a difference as their old site was arguably even worse than BD’s!

Famous last words...