Feature:
While missing the two piece bridge and tailpiece of the German made Corvette the one piece bridge is still hefty and acceptable. The nut is plastic, for a few bucks more a nicer nut would have made an already great value better. The active electronics and pickups give offer a nice tonal balance. Being a fan of the Ibanez BTB510 the active controls were fantastic, volume, pickup pan, bass, treble, midrange and sweepable midrange. Yet with Warwick MEC 2 active pickups and active treble and bass control all the extra tweaking is less necessary as the actual tone of the bass is vastly better than similar basses in it's price range. the Rockbass Stingray defines quality at a reasonable price.
Quality:
Almost everything on the RockBass Stingray is high quality. The woods used, the tuners and active pickups and eq are of the highest quality, not something that usually goes with word budget bass. The build is solid with exceptional neck fit into the body making for smooth upper fret excursions. The one virtue over some of Warwicks high end basses are not needing to wax the body several times a week at first and then weekly from then on. Beautiful woods come at a price. A scratch or dent on Warwick's RockBass will still piss me off but on a German made Warwick the damage to the wood can be irreperable. The only things I'm not wild about are the plastic nut and one piece bridge. It's a good, simple design but knowing how much better the German Warwicks are I'd be willing to pay for a retrofit. Also, the guitar would cosmetically improve with black or gold hardware as found on the original Corvettes.
Value:
Tremendous value for the money. Compare this to similarly priced basses. The Ibanez pales in part and build quality but still makes a decent sounding bass although a bit midrange shy, Fender doesn't come close for a couple hundred dollars more, and the rest is somewhat subjective. For all around fit and finish, parts and quality issues the Warwick RockBass series is unbeatable.
Desirability:
The Stingray style is both classic and kind of out there. The top cutaway is a bit different yet functional. The look, particularly on the see through finishes is beautiful. I've seen others playing both Gereman and RockBass Stingrays and the whole look is impressive. But it's turning on the bass and playing that makes this a sexy hunk of wood. There are good sounding basses that require a footpedal to get different sounds and then there's the RockBass Corvette. Playing is sharp and well articulated. Fuzz, distortion, flange, chorus, delays, all effects sound better, unplugged the bass has a ring and sustain that tells give you a clue how well designed the Stingray is.
Sound:
As time moves along price bariers decline while quality gets to the point that any $500 bass can sound good. the Warwick RockBass Corvette is studio quality and is equally fantstic live. 20 years ago a bass of this quality priced and marketed as "entry level" would have impossible. Big slabs of tone and plenty of room for adjustments. active bass and eq make the difference on this exceptional bass.
Support:
Haven't needed much, questions answered on a timely basis.
Overall:
For it's price range Warwick's RockBass' are hands down the best basses for cost. Sure, there are a lot of good basses in the $500 range, but most are poor to ok at best. The good models still don't stack up to the Stingray in terms of quality construction, design and electronics. Unless money drops from trees the RockBass will be part of my setup for a good while. It's a keeper to be sure. Maybe if I get a German Warwick I'd put the RockBass beside but probably not. If stolen I would purchase a new one or take the leap to the higher end Warwicks. The attention to detail and high quality control are appealing so sticking with the same brand is almost a given until another manufacturer dethrones Warwick. Some day I'd like to add a fretless and will look for something different for tonal sake as well. Spector makes some great basses.... A Chapman Stick/Warr tap guitar is also in the future. Tapping on traditonal basses can create some great tones and 4 octave intervals, buying something designed to be used this way is very appealing. Because I do many styles of music and play out for promotional purposes I need road worthy equipment. I like to use the same guitars for recording as playing live, it's something left over from my guitar background. Get the sound, get the sound recorded. Because the sound is so rich yet can go in so many directions I'm hooked. The desire to upgrade to a more exotic Warwick will be in the back of my mind but if this is making do then things are pretty great.
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