Marcus Miller U5 NT MN Short

I have had M2, M7, Vv7, P7 and a green U5 (because of the colour). I sold the lot and only had a P10 from Sire that I really like. I regretted selling the U5 and bought one again, this time a natural (my P10 is also natural so they are sort of the little and big brother. I have put some La Bella 760F-MUS (Deep Talkin flats) on it as I prefer flats on my short scale basses (I have a Lakeland HB30 with flats as well, this one is on par with the Lakeland apart from the tuners that are better on the Lakeland).

The neck is smooth as butter, not too skinny, not to meaty. It balances well and I like the passive pickups. If you are in the market for a short scale look no further. Light as a feather, good balance and a perfect little bass. LowEndLobster gave it 5 out of 5 claws, and I could not agree more.

Picked this up for my wife who’s been learning bass for a year or so on a cheap Ibanez Mikro bass (she’s very short), so wanted something that was a step up which would see her through the next stage of her playing. Read a few reviews and the U5 seemed a good option. Bought blind from Thomann.

Sweet Lord, this is a fantastic bass. Not just for the money (which it most certainly in), but a great bass, period. I have played bass for more than 20 years and currently have a pair of Warwick basses. This thing sounds legitimately good and plays phenomenally well. The neck back is satin (great), fretwork is on point and it came set up nicely straight from the factory. It plays and sounds better than some P basses I’ve been trialling recently (Fender player, classic vibe, G&L LB100, Yamaha) and I’ve no hesitation in recommending it if you want a shortscale. I’ve nicked it to play live a couple of times already.

Minor niggles? Not a fan of the bridge pickup being as far back as it is… I know it’s 70s style, it’s just not optimal position for my preference. Sounds fine though. Other niggles? I’d like the pickup covers to have been slightly less square at the edge to rest my thumb. Lastly, belly cutaway would help seated comfort.

Any of these stop me buying again if this was nicked? Heck no. It’s a flipping great bass.

I was surprised at the build quality of this bass - couldn't fault it and it played well out of the box. The bass is light and balance good. To be honest it doesn't sit quite as well as my Fender Jazz hanging off my body but that's something you can grow into. Soundwise there is a little hum from the stock pickups suggesting earthing / shielding might need improvement - but nothing too distracting when playing. The volume from these passive pickups is fine, tonally I just needed to EQ out a little nasal middle. Given the remarkable quality of the bass I'll maybe look into changing the pick ups out in the longer term.

The neck is super comfortable and smooth. Beautiful appearance and finish work. I’ve played it a bunch at home and on a few gigs: it’s a blast to play and stays in tune all night. Super light and sits well balanced on the strap.

Really punchy lows and plenty of brightness with a responsive/ useful tone knob. Pickups are super quiet with a great signal out of each…the solo P bumps as it should, open the bridge all the way up and use the neck pickup to warm it up just like the best of J basses, or find your own favorite blend.
Set-up was great out of the box. Switched to EB slinky flats strung through at the stock gauges and liked it even more. Bumped up a size and the string tension is a bit closer to what we’re used to on a 34”. Short scale bases are a blast, and this one is the best of the bunch I played. I’m not a slapper, but my friend who’s great at it was like, whoa, smooth…

I was under the impression that short scale basses are for kids. But being a smaller guy, they are truly the solution for me. And the Sires are premium products at a can't-say-no price.

Despite sending it all the way to Mexico, it came out cheaper than any other retailer. There was a blemish on the body, and Thomann give me a small reimbursement.
The only suggestion I would make for Thomann is not to use Postal Mexico. It is a hassle since you would have to go to the bank to pay the import tax then return to the with the receipt.

Update, March 30th: the rounded fret edges are supposed to be the prime feature. The edges were left slightly rough probably during the sanding process. I am further disappointed along with the dent in the body. According to Thomann, Sire says that mine isn't a B-stock.

As a guitarist I decided I also wanted to learn bass, I did a lot of research and tried a variety of short and full scale basses, I found I could play riffs comfortably on both but more fluidly on a short scale. Hands down the Sire Marcus Miller U5 was my best option, it is extremely well finished and slick to play and has great tonal range. It arrived well packed with really good set up, after tuning it plays perfectly with no fret buzz, the neck is super smooth and just feels right - I’m used to playing guitar using a Godin ACS nylon and an Ibanez SA series - wide variety of styles from delicate finger picking to choppy bar chords. As an aside I bought a Blackstar Unity30 bass amp to use with this bass, it sounds great for practice/jamming, even small gigs as it has an clear out for connection to an active cabinet or mixer. Overall I’m really impressed with the quality, set up and playability of this instrument, at this price point very hard to find anything as good. The Alder top looks even better than
the pics, more subtle than the tobacco sunburst and a bit more definition than the pale green due to the cream edging and dark burgundy back. Highly recommended as a quality first bass or for guitarists who want the real thing as opposed to using an octave pedal.