I was told by a famous luthier once to play a bass unplugged for a while to get a sence of the natural overtones of the instrument. The Warwicks are generally made with dense wood combinations that result in great sustain, warmth, harmonic punch, and all around good timbre. This is the Warwick Sound; the constant in the equation. Everything else( strings, bridge, pick ups, amp speakers) is a variable to the end tone
Perhaps the manufacturer feels that the MEC's will optimize the tonal options but I don't think you will be missing anything. You will have something unique.
