Sound:
The Warwick growl is a trademark sound. The question is: Do you want to be heard that way? My answer is: "Yes, often I do." I love its upper-mid emphasis (the source of the growl); that's why I bought this fiver. The sound fits perfectly when I play melodic runs or plain-old-throbbing basslines. It cuts through the mix no matter how the guitarist might fight it. And I enjoy the simplicity of the passive electronics. The whole package complements my equally useful hyperactive Stingray5, a zingy instrument I love for ultra-funky applications.
Feature:
Warwick is the only company that equips its "Standard" basses with strap-locks. It deserves major props for this! Fender only throws those in if you buy the pricey American Deluxe. IDK why; anyone who plays gigs uses (or should use) strap-locks so it's a no-brainer that they should be a standard component of any bass-package. Why force players to "mod" their instruments? I adore the brass frets' look and sound; and I find the lack of fret-markers quite beautiful. Woods?! For the price I paid, I never imagined I'd get an Ovangkol neck, Wenge board, Swamp Ash bod.... I challenge you to find another company that will sell you a bass at this price point with such tone-woods. Good luck! The unique 2-piece bridge and adjustable nut assure that my B string is taut, in spite of this bass being "only" 34"-scale.
Ease of Use:
The shape of this bass fits my hands and body as if it were a custom instrument. The contours are as curvacious as...yeah! I often forget that the thing's pressed against me for hours. People whine about the "baseball bat" neck. Excuse me? My hands are of average size, as are my fingers. I've played for about two decades, so I've definitely got more flexibility than a beginner, but even a newbie should have no problem with handling this neck with no more than average transient growing pains. Any narrower and it would be too narrow for my playing style and taste; any wider and it would mess up my playing. Clear? This neck suits me perfectly, and I play all over the neck. The angled tuners make emergency tuning-while-playing easy (as easy as one could expect). I enjoy the simplicity of the passive electronics: It frees me to mess around with the myriad of controls on my big rig, and sends an unadulterated sound to aforesaid rig or DI.
Quality:
Every piece of wood has its unique look, unless you hide it under a thick coat of finish. Warwicks are made of real wood from "exotic" locales. Warwick likes to show off these woods, so forget about the plastic-looking finishes you see on other instruments. With Warwick, no two basses appear alike; your bass is unlike any other. The grain shows, and some mistake the idiosyncrasies of aforesaid as "blems." No: That's how the slab of wood was before Warwick got its hands on it, and Warwick chose to keep it that way. Subjectively speaking by necessity, the neck is a veritable work of art: The Ovangkol is a stunning, rarely seen wood and you will enjoy seeing it. The Wenge board is smoother than your typical Rosewood one, because the grain's tighter. I like that. This bass will stay in tune through three sets (unless your strings are a day old), which is a welcome and unusual thing. I found no loose parts, no issues whatsoever. I played it "out of the box" and will not mess with it until I change strings, which tends to be every 2-3 months.
Value:
It beats the competition with a 2 x 4. My comments above reflect this conviction of mine, and support it with more objective statements.
Manufacturer Support:
But, you know, N/A: Never had any trouble; don't expect any. But a Co. that provides you with a luxurious, embroidered cloth-bound snap-locking manual with various goodies including a registration card is "telling you" that you can "come hither" any time. I've asked around, and it's true: Warwick will respond to your inquiries, even if you're a bit on the ill-mannered side, and the response will be swift, helpful, and cordial. However, try to be polite. It pays off.
The Wow Factor:
The bass is attractive in its simple external design, as well as thanks to its uniquely carved horns, understated "W" adorned headstock, and dot-free board. The two-piece bridge's an eye-catcher as well. Does this bass look like Bootsy's bass? No. Would you like it to? Then by all means, go for it; it's sold stock. Does it look like the devil's bass? No. If that's what you want, dial BCR and make sure yours is made of woods at least nearly as good as the Warwick's.
Overall:
The Warwick will always be my finger-style bass, which for me interprets into "the bass I use for plucked basslines, primarily." It can funk out very well, but I use my 'Ray5 for that purpose. I have yet to meet a bass that can serve all stylistic and tonal aspects of the artistic spectrum. This is one of (for now) four bass-tools in my "toolbox." I'm planning on buying one more, and then another, and so on, because my "last two" basses are mediocre. I roll my eyes and laugh when I remember how, as a kid, I played everything with one bass, even though I could've afforded another, given that I was playing a sublimely cheap knockoff.
6 of 6 people
(100%) found this review helpful. Did you?
Sound:
Wow, the Corvette is perhaps the most unique sounding bass I've ever owned, and when I say "unique" I mean it in a good way. I've had Fender, Peavey, Rickenbacker, Yamaha, even custom basses from a kit (mostly Warmoth) and this bass is simply the nicest sound I've found in several decades. I actually had a sound engineer ask me "um, is your bass supposed to sound like that?" LOL!
Feature:
The woods used are top notch, as is the electronics. I'm able to dial in the exact sound I'm looking for, and despite the Corvette having such personality I can still change to different needs and situations.
My only complaint here is that the knob for pickup selection seems to be shorted out, and it is hit-or-miss to get the exact blend I'm looking for.
Ease of Use:
This is easily the best feeling bass out of the box/bag. Ever. However the bass does have a very distinctive tone, and if you're not enamored with it then you will be spending a lot of your time (too much) trying to make the bass sound like, well, like it's not a Corvette.
Quality:
This bass has logged many miles, many countries, and many kinds of music. Simply awesome.
Value:
My next bass will be the exact same thing, maybe the double buck neck-thru model, or maybe a fretless six.
Manufacturer Support:
I have the bad knob, but I've also had the bass for around seven years. I have no idea what I need to do to get that knob repaired, and am too active to live without the thing for too long. This is a problem for me, and the main reason it hasn't been repaired yet.
The Wow Factor:
Again: My next bass will be the exact same thing, maybe the double buck neck-thru model, or maybe a fretless six.
Overall:
One more time: My next bass will be the exact same thing, maybe the double buck neck-thru model, or maybe a fretless six.
5 of 5 people
(100%) found this review helpful. Did you?
zZounds has verified that this customer bought this product from us.
Sound:
I own a fretless version of this instrument and use the Rotosound black tru-bass strings. (Some call them the Abby Road strings, because apparently they're the ones Paul McCartney used to record that album.) The set-up creates a warm, earthy zing that's simply devine. I do not get much tone shaping with the pick-up pan knob, but the bass and treble knobs to add plenty of character to a rich round tone. I had a model with frets, while I waited for this one to arrive and that too is a fine instrument, but if you have the courage (and patience) to fretless, this one's an excellent choice. (Let's face it, you'll always amaze the crowds when you whip out one of these and play it with pinache.)
Feature:
The one shortcoming with this instrument is that it does not have a mid cut-boost knob. I own a Schecter Studio that goes for about $600 and it has one. It adds tremendous color and growl. That feature on this guitar would be heavenly. I would be unfair if I did not mention all the ways you can set the strings on the Warwick. You control both height and spacing, which is mighty cool. It also comes with strap locks that are a snap to use.
Quality:
The instrument has a silky, almost sentious feel. It is extremely well made. The wood requires care -- simply an application about once a month from a tin of polish that comes with it. (Oh yeah, get a humidifier. The Warwick and all your other instruments will thank you.) The one minor problem I had was with the pan knob. It was set too close to the body and rubbed slightly when I turned it. It was an easy fix.
Value:
O.K., O.K., it's worth the money, but in my mind there's no such thing as value, when it comes to a $1,300 dollar instrument. One element that I think adds value is that Warwick will make 'em lefty, fretless and a variety of lengths -- whatever you want. You don't get that everywhere.
Manufacturer Support:
So far, so good. I found the people responsive. I had a question about the RF interference I get from the instrument. (I live in a high rise and those jazz pick-ups catch all sorts of radio signals.) The bass is so well made that you may never need to contact the company. (Oh, about the interference -- I'm still working on it. Sometimes I have to turn down the treble most of the way when I'm in my apartment. It's on the 37th floor, but it's not a problem when I play the thing while I'm closer to mother earth.)
The Wow Factor:
Maybe it's just me, but I dig the natural finish. I got especially lucky with the wood grain. Mine is most excellent. Good karma, I guess.
Overall:
This bass is just plain terrific. The sound, the feel -- marvelous. I feel as if I'm a superhero, with special superhero powers. No, really -- I'm not kidding. You'll dig the bass.
4 of 5 people
(80%) found this review helpful. Did you?
Sound:
It sounds great however I've recently moved to Seattle and I unfortunately live next to 3 giant radio towers. I'm experiencing really bad RF (radio frequency) interference whenever I use this bass. I've tried all the usual recommended remedies (ground lifts, ferrite chokers, copper shielded cables) and no luck.
Does anyone have any suggestions that might help with this issue? (Besides moving)
My next step is to get my guitars shielded with copper foil but I hate to go through the expense of doing that if there might be something else that would work..
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