SIRE Z3 Sparkle thoughts?

[Brian18242]

I picked one up this week and pleasantly surprised! Firstly, the finish! WOW! The sparkle is gorgeous! No idea why other manufacturers don't offer that many sparkle finishes? (Cost?)

 

The sound? Fabulous. Not quite as good as my sterling 34 but pretty close. 

 

The price is phenomenal based on the build quality alone! Only draw back is the weight. Surprisingly heavy! 

 

Anyway, What's your thoughts?

[Misdee]

I've got one of these, and yes they are amazingly good for £400. I wish there were basses as good as these for the equivalent money when I was starting out. They really do sound like a vintage Stingray. Mine weighs 9 pounds three ounces, which would be pretty light for a vintage Stingray. If you want to shave some weight off there are some lightweight tuners (Gotoh?) that are a direct retrofit. I thought about getting some myself but can't really be arsed. For £400 I'm not too fussy.

[Jonesy]

The silver sparkle looks cool with the mirror plate too, nice addition! Where did you get the maple neck from? I thought the silver only came with a rosewood board? 

[jd56hawk]

On 07/12/2025 at 17:36, Brian18242 said:

I picked one up this week and pleasantly surprised! Firstly, the finish! WOW! The sparkle is gorgeous! No idea why other manufacturers don't offer that many sparkle finishes? (Cost?)

 

The sound? Fabulous. Not quite as good as my sterling 34 but pretty close. 

 

The price is phenomenal based on the build quality alone! Only draw back is the weight. Surprisingly heavy! 

 

Anyway, What's your thoughts?

Too cool. I'd definitely play it...sparkle is special. 

Of course, I like these, too, so...

 

Edited 3 hours ago by jd56hawk

[Russ]

Nah. I'd love a Z3, but I'd like a plain black one, or maybe a natural (they do the Z7 in natural, but not the Z3). I find sparkle finishes to be a bit garish. But, y'know, horses for courses. They're always out of stock on their website, so I guess they're selling as many of them as they can make!

 

I'm actually looking out for a MM-style bass that's black 'n' maple, as I think I need to go back to basics a bit (my daily drivers are a pair of 6-strings, fretted and fretless, and I'm feeling the need to take a step back!) Right now, the Sadowsky MetroExpress Vintage M is the leading contender. It's more than twice the price of the Z3 though, and the Z3 sounds more like an actual MM.