I made a choice to try out Sire because they seem to be getting a good reputation, but what I received was very sub par. There is discoloration in the neck wood, 2 nicks on the neck and a gouge in the pick guard. Sound is blah, especially from an active pickup bass. The initial setup is horrible as well. You can't just pick it up and play it out of the box. So be ready to spend some time intonating and setting string height, etc. Or consider how much it costs to get it setup as part of the purchase price. Some of the comparisons to Fenders make it sound like you get a whole lot with this brand, but I think finding a used Fender makes a lot more sense. Probably pay twice as much, but would be totally worth it. I'll probably spend time by changing out some parts on this, including the pickups, and see what I can do with it. Sending it back from the US to Germany doesn't feel worth the effort. Especially since I would have to repackage it as the original packaging was very sub par and didn't protect it very well. I will definitely not be buying another or recommending a Sire to anyone.
