Terry M.

There's a 5 string on Ebay right now and the bidding is sub £400. Sunburst with maple fretboard. UK seller.

To me the Sire preamp frequencies are extremely exaggerated and false sounding toward the upper end. The bass cranked introduces boom.The upper end of the treble sweep sounds harsh. It's a good sounding preamp when under control. The Sadowsky preamp doesn't suffer from this. I've had several Sires in the past. Just my long-winded way of agreeing with you 😆

They've gone from a 12" radius on the Player Plus models to 9.5" on these which will save them some money on production as it's now shared with other models. The Player Plus already had the rolled fingerboard edges so from what I can see it's just the passive tone control that's new (and the aforementioned radius). I only recently acquired a used Player Plus Jazz V with a modified Sadowsky onboard pre and it's not going anywhere in favour of this new one. Flatter fretboard radius has always been a plus to me for added playability. Oh and the Player Plus V Jazz has my preferred 19mm string spacing as standard. No thanks Fender I'm good for now.

That's me and expensive brands like Fodera,Alembic,Ken Smith etc. Have you never tried a Sadowsky out of curiosity? Actually I put them in the expensive category,the USA ones anyway 🤣

I'm pretty sure there are few basses he hasn't gotten his hands on at some point but was he ever endorsed by Sadowsky? Tal Wilkenfield,Verdine White,Will Lee (for example) were/are.

Very well put. The treble pot never gets harsh sounding like loads of other choices out there. I even add it to solo bridge pickup which I would never have done with some other brands.

As an ex-owner of a Sadowsky outboard preamp pedal and current Fendowsky owner I would say it's how the circuit makes the bass frequencies cut through live mixes with hardly any loss of nuances.

I would say that definitely matches the tone the OP is after more than the DJ5. Well played also mate.

I agree about the j-bass shape.My main basses are Warwicks with much smaller and symmetrical bodies. With regards to any bass I think the real sonic test is playing them live.That will really reveal what they can and can't do. Basses that sound great on their own or in the workshop environment you mentioned might not cut it live and vice versa. I once had a Stingray 5 with the ceramic-era pickup and it sounded a bit harsh and sterile in my living room. I then took it out live a few times and wondered if it was the same bass-amazing clear sound that cut through effortlessly with no hint of harshness.They need to be judged tonally on live playing in my opinion. My Fendowsky jazz I mentioned previously is so capable out live that I sometimes solo the bridge pickup which is something I NEVER really do,especially at home alone.

While I wouldn't describe the G&L has having a thunderous low end it would be the one for you of the two. I've had both in the past.

As has been said before it won't sound like a P. Bridge pickup positioning alone will see to that.

They don't fit you? Is that what you mean?

Roger installed a Stars Guitars preamp in Marcus' Fender and when that failed he replaced it with a Bartolini circuit. I'm not sure a Sadowsky circuit was ever used. That's to my knowledge only,I could be wrong.

Did Marcus play an actual Sadowsky or a Fender modified by Rodger?

For me personally as a five string player,other versions of what Fender invented can offer better B strings,more comfortable fingerboard radii,better colour options,build quality,more frets etc etc. I have nothing against the brand but found that they're not necessarily the "best" at what they started. It hasn't stopped me having one in the stable still however albeit with a Sadowsky onboard preamp modification. To date my favourite take on a jazz bass is an actual Sadowsky.

I don't know for sure but apart from the S-1 switch weirdly now operating the active/passive option instead of the more usual series/parallel feature I doubt it's broken any new sonic barriers. I tried one (Jazz Ultra ii V) and it seemed like business as usual but at a higher price. Nothing wrong with it but nothing in my mind to justify the price hike.Can't understand going from a toggle switch to S-1 on active/passive but hey.

I'm not sure if any of their preamps are available to buy separately? What is it about it in particular why you'd want one?

It went for £363 so not too much lower 😃

I clocked it too.It sold within hours of being listed. That's how you price something to sell in my opinion,no messing about. I miss that about the secondhand market. I've seen used basses online sitting about for months without any interest but some of the sellers won't seem to budge on price as a result. It's like a stand-off in a western movie.

Sounds like you understood the question to me ☺️

Is the green artwork on it removable? Lovely bass.