Do G&L owners dig Warwick BasseS?

[Youngspanion]

I'VE always admired the Warwick Corvette bass while shopping in GC over the years. Anyone here have a Warwick and care to tell about it?

[plankspanker13]

This'll make your day/night.

I own 3 basses; a Warwick FNA Jazzman 2002 limited edition, a 2005 Fender J-24, and a 2007 G&L JB-2 Tribute. Guess which one I play the most.

That's right; the least expensive one. Don't get me wrong. For years, I played nothing but Warwicks. They are truly awesome instruments, but they have a look and vibe all their own, whereas anything that is Fender-derivative (like Music Man & G&L, which were companies that Leo himslef worked for or founded) tends to have more staying-power as trends, styles and tastes change and evolve. Notice the rising popularity of old-school 4-strings in recent years. There's a reason behind it.

All of my basses sport Dunlop II strap locks, and feel like buttah in my hands. I still play the Warwick, but view it more as a collector piece or investment than I do as something that I would grab for most gigs. The Fender is very nice, but is the first model year of the J-24; no passive bypass, so that's a factor in playing frequency. The Tribby just looks and feels right, delivers solidly and with versatility, and I never have to worry about a battery dying. About the only drawback is 21 frets, instead of 24, and the fact that I cannot find a matching Hipshot Xtender key for it. I want a USA-made honeyburst JB-2 with factory installed Hipshot tuners, including the Xtender and a rosewood board. If not for a tight economy, I would have already made it happen. As it is, all I need to do is liquidate the descendants of Leo and pump in the cash differential to finalize things, but a part of me can't bear to part with the Tribby, which is possibly the best $500 that I ever spent.

[excane]

An interesting question...

I love G&L, my L2000 was my main bass for around 7 years. That being said, I've hated all the warwicks I've ever played. The sound, playability, feel, just not my thing.

[lb76p]

I like the Warwicks I own a 96 Thumb 5 that sounds great and is solid. I have taken it on the road exposed it to all kinds of weather conditions and it has even come through a bar fight almost unscathed except for a scratch behind the third fret. Man is it heavy though, I have been looking for lighter basses that don't kill my back. The G&L is filling that bill. I have an L-2500 fretless and I am thinking seriously about a JB-2.

[KsPiNeSh]

My primary is a Warwick Corvette and I also have a Thumb, but my other two basses are a G&L L1000 and L2000. I love their sounds and playability - a good contrast to the thicker neck of my Corvette.

[Temcat]

G&L L-2500 for fretted, Warwick Corvette Standard for fretless. The Warwick is very playable and well-built. Its only minus for me is a lack of deep low-frequency content, I think due to the neck J pickup being located closer to the bridge. So I do plan on buying a Fender-like PJ fretless, maybe even an SB-2.

[jimmy rocket]

Can't stand 'em. I've tried to like Warwicks, but I can't help feeling like I'm holding a tree trunk every time I pick one up.

[RCCollins]

I like the 90s Warwicks with the shallower, all-wenge necks. The Fortress was a particularly ergonomic design, I have an ash-bodied flashback that plays like a dream and is light enough to dance around like an idiot with. I don't like the corvette body design at all, though.

I'm a recent G&L convert (picked up an SB-2 and I LOVE it) and I feel like they represent a lot of significant refinements over a F-, a F-...

[erigod23]

I have an ASAT semi-hollow, and I'm dreaming of someday owning a Corvette Taranis. Don't think that will ever happen though
I've played it and I love it.

[quickervicar]

Best bass I've ever played was a mid-'90s Thumb neck-thru. I will own one someday. They are so much different than a Fender-based bass (bassed?) that I don't really see them as competitors, even though they surely are.

[El Tookay]

The original Fortresses were great basses, the first wenge neck Streamers were nice, 'tho i'm not a fan of the curved body, and I do like the Thumb/Jack Bruce neck-throughs in bubinga and the zebrano Infinity SN's, mostly because those woods sound damn good.

However, the ovangol necked Thumb BO's feel like clubs, the positioning on the $$'s pickups is all wrong, the Streamer is way overpriced for what it is, and , while some guys can get a decent sound out of a Corvette, I just don't dig them.

And, for the record, I did own a FNA Jazzman 5 for approximately 16 hours. Hands down, the most dead, lifeless, soul-less log I have ever owned. Lesson learned? - don't go bass shopping while on a 3-day Jagerbomb bender.......

[rkingly]

Playing my G&L's for most of the 2000's, but I own & love my Warwick's.
98 Thumb 5 neck thru,( HEAVY ) Custom Streamer 4 ( dolphin pick-ups ) & 2 Dolphins, Pro I & set-neck.
ASAT is my main bass w/flats & have been playing my Fretless Fender P a bit as well.

[HassBacker]

I've got a nice, passive Corvette V, but between my L2500 and my Jazz V, it rarely sees the light of day now. Yeah, the neck is a little fat, it does dive some and it is a tiny bit heavy, but it has superb action and sounds great. It's a keeper.

[jdthecrazy]

My two main basses are my G&L L-2000 (fretted) and Warwick Corvette Std. (fretless). Both 4 strings. They are very different, but nice. I can't justify spending the money on the more expensive Warwicks though. I've not played any that I thought were worth it. I do wonder, however, how the fretless G&L's play. Maybe I'd be all G&L

[plankspanker13]

Don't forget the fact that 24 frets are standard on 'wicks; 21 on G&Ls. If your playing style involves a bit of soloing, that's important to have, as it gives you more sonic range and voicing options. That said, 99% of all bass playing is holding it down on the bottom, and 21 frets fits that bill just fine.

I would tell any serious young bassist out there to get a passive Tribby, understand what makes it great, and go from there. If your next step is a fretless, get a passive Corvette STD. Both instruments are great platforms to build upon, although if I'm that young bassist, I am probably getting a USA G&L eventually. My choice would be a USA JB-2, but it'd be up to the proverbial young bassist's evolutionary state to see whether he might take an L2K, or even a Wunkay, if one were available.

[nbw]

Own a fretless corvette 6'er w/ basslines. Love warwicks. ATM I'm gassing for L2000! Something visually simple but still extraordinary.

[idoru]

For the longest time, I loved my Thumb 4 Bolt-on. Cut like nobody's business, great for heavy music. I'm over it now though, I find it boring to look at (much prefer colour + PG these days) and a little one dimensional compared to my L2K.

It's on the chopping block to fund a big purchase.

c-

[darjama]

I had a thumb 5 bolt-on fretless for a couple years. Like idoru said, it's a great sound, but not very versatile. I didn't mind the way it looked, but I found some bands I played with didn't like the way it looked.

[Scatterblak]

Warwick neck-thru thumb 4, and a G&L 2500. I'd love to really be able to answer, but the G&L neck is so bad that it's basically unplayable at this point. I've only owned it for a month or so, and it's been in the shop all of those days except 2. The nut fell apart as soon as I loosened the strings (I had a brass one made at The Low End). The action was fairly bad in the store, but the sound was so good, I figured I'd buy it anyway and adjust it at home (Who expects to pull something off the shelf and find it perfectly intonated, action perfect, etc??). No love - the truss rod won't go anymore, the neck angle in the heel is pitiable, and there's still a significant bow. All in all, a very disappointing (so far) instrument. It does, to be fair, sound amazing when plugged in, and I'm hoping it'll really sing (after I spend a few hundered more dollars getting it playable). In the mean time, the thumb rules - it's fast, it's got ferocious growl that you can dial in and out with your attack, and it effortlessly swings from rock to funk to prog. The only thing I can't really do with it is country, and I doubt I'll lose a lot of sleep.

Please spare me the G&L 10 year warranty crap; those guys were so unresponsive that I didn't even bother regailing you all with that adventure.