TRBX305 vs BZ-5000NT vs V7/P7

[karlbbb]

Hey all! I'm currently rocking a couple of the cheaper Harley Benton's and they're great (B550 5-string and the JB75 Vintage 4 string jazz), but as always, I wouldn't mind a small little upgrade, somewhere around the £300 mark. I'm considering the three in the title, and I appreciate that the V7/P7 are in a slightly higher price bracket but I keep seeing them, reading about them, and consequently wanting one of them.

The question I'm asking is, for those with experience with these basses, how do you find the B strings? The B550 is a touch floppy but plays ok with a little care. I play a mix of music, mostly towards the heavier side of things (hence looking at the TRB and the BZ with twin humbuckers), but I'm also branching out a little at the minute, playing more American/Modern Country kind of rock, as well as trying to broaden my horizons by playing a few things like older pop, funk etc etc, which is where the leaning for a V7 or P7 comes in. I think the P7 would be slightly preferable as a PJ seems to offer itself as one of the best all-rounders. Any further thought on my dilemma?

 

I'm just bedroom playing at the moment, with half an eye to getting back into some proper playing in the near future.

 

 

Note: One really annoying thing is the 6-string version of the Harley Benton neckthrough (the BZ-6000 NT) is a 35" scale, as is their 7, but the 4 and 5 string offerings are only 34". I think if the BZ-5000 was a 35" I wouldn't even need to be asking this question! Pulling a 6 string out of the bag still has a bit of a stigma and I'm not much of a doodler to be getting much use out of the high C. I used to have a Spector Legend 5 and that was a 35" scale too - it just felt that little bit nicer.

Edited January 2, 2019 by karlbbb

[therealting]

Consider also the BB435 - just picked one up and it holds its own amongst my much more expensive basses. 

[CameronJ]

1 hour ago, therealting said:

Consider also the BB435 - just picked one up and it holds its own amongst my much more expensive basses. 

This. The build quality and sound of a Yamaha BB435 outguns basses twice the price. When I tried one I was shocked. It led to me buying the active bigger brother BB735a. 

[therealting]

24 minutes ago, CameronJ said:

This. The build quality and sound of a Yamaha BB435 outguns basses twice the price. When I tried one I was shocked. It led to me buying the active bigger brother BB735a. 

As a little perspective - my three other Precisions are a Dingwall Super P5 and two 60s pre-CBS Fenders. I paid £230 for the BB435.

[karlbbb]

Thanks for the input, gents. I do like the look of the BB series, but I'm put off by it being passive - active is definitely something I'd be looking for!

[CameronJ]

2 hours ago, karlbbb said:

Thanks for the input, gents. I do like the look of the BB series, but I'm put off by it being passive - active is definitely something I'd be looking for!

I said the same thing before I owned my first BB (a 1025x) but once I played it I was sold. Still, if you don’t want a BB I’d say the Sire P7 is possibly the next best thing for the money you’re looking at, especially considering the genres you’ve mentioned. The Sire preamps are quickly becoming legendary.

[BassApprentice]

Or if you really feel you need active, look up the older BB615. 

[Grahambythesea]

Why did you get rid of the Spector Legend? It would not spots off all the ones you’ve mentioned, IMHO.

[therealting]

8 hours ago, karlbbb said:

Thanks for the input, gents. I do like the look of the BB series, but I'm put off by it being passive - active is definitely something I'd be looking for!

If you get an outboard preamp you like, then you can use it with all your basses. 

[chris_b]

Don't worry about the scale. I have both 34 and 35 and I don't notice any difference between notes.

I'm a Fender fan so I'd try the Sire JJ or PJ first. If you are recording you might find the fatter sound of the PJ to be more useful.

I'd suspect that the B strings would be better on the Sire basses. MM seems to have had a big input to these instruments so I'm sure he'd have looked into that "issue".

[karlbbb]

2 hours ago, Grahambythesea said:

Why did you get rid of the Spector Legend? It would not spots off all the ones you’ve mentioned, IMHO.

I had the Spector around 2009-2011, and after that I stopped playing for a good few years, aside from a little on-and-off. I could always look for a second hand one, I suppose.

 

 

1 hour ago, therealting said:

If you get an outboard preamp you like, then you can use it with all your basses. 

Fair point. I'll be going into a Zoom B3 for now, with a plan to either upgrade to the B3n, or stump up the cash for some variety of Helix, and get an FRFR speaker to use with it. 

[therealting]

The Zoom B3 is very capable for the money - I have one lying around somewhere and still use the G3 as my acoustic board.