Shocker! Warrior Adam Nitti Signature!

[Vic]

Ok, now that I have your attention...

Seriously tho, it was. I've played lots of Warriors at several NAMM shows and thought the were visually very impressive, pretty well made, and had really nice tone, but none of them really called me enough to purchase. These were their standard models... typically with a couple soapbars or one soap and one split coil (bart X55) by the bridge.

Well, recently on kind of a whim I traded for a Warrior Adam Nitti signature model. I'd only briefly played one of these at a NAMM show, and ironically, it was also the same day I first met Adam. The funny thing is, I remember liking the bass a lot, but still not going ga-ga over it, so I moved on at the time. Well, I plugged this one in and I was immediately blown away. It had so much punch and definition I was amazed. I'd never heard that much focused aggression from a Warrior before.

The plot thickens... here's the funny part...

I also noticed it was super hot. I had to reset my amp or wireless bodypack anytime I switched to/from this bass, and for some reason, the internal gain trim didn't seem to do anything.

BTW, these actually have two trim pots in them and a hand wired resistor network. The bass didn't come with docs, but I later found out it's a gain control and some sort of high end sizzle control or something.

Well, in trying to figure out what was going on, I noticed a wire that looked like it was still touching, wasn't. So I soldered it back on.

Two very interesting things happened... suddenly the gain on the bass lowered to a normal level, the gain and sizzle controls both worked, BUT ALSO, the tone suffered... IMHO, kinda' significantly. I then wondered if someone had deliberately disconnected that feature circuit for that reason. Dunno, but now I was torn. I could have normalized gain, or great tone, but not both. Minor bummage started to set in.

Then I thought, wait, without that circuit in place it sounded great, and that's the tone of the bass and preamp, so it's gotta' be that silly sizzle control (long story short, it was a very non-standard thing they do and hard to even figure out what it was doing with the bart docs I was able to get). So I downloaded the wiring docs from bart's site, got the right trim pot and resistor for a "normal" gain adjustment circuit on the preamp and installed it.

Boom. Perfection. Normalized gain and all the tone I had before.

I have to say the low end on this bass reminds me a lot of a Roscoe... very very powerful and focused, BUT, not as "over the top" (IMHO!). Dang folks, this thing cuts a mix with a serious authority. I love it! I rarely need to use EQ, but when I do it's voiced well. I'm convinced it's those massive bart X55 split coil pickups... never played those before. Nice high end, but not brittle, very strong through the mids, and a tight low end. Surprisingly good sustain, as well.

The playability is great, but different for me. It's my first "D" neck (flat on the back). It's also designed to take little or no relief in the setup the way the neck is set into the body, and it takes a nice low setup great. Big frets, too. Really easy to slap. It's also very light... right around 8 pounds or slightly less, and it hangs on a strap great. Totally effortless play.

As a free bonus, this bass is also a member of my "silent crew". My Geddy, my Skjold, my Cirrus, and now my Nitti are all among the few basses I've had that seem highly immune to a couple places we play that are absolutely BRUTAL for interference hum... and I mean BRUTAL.

This bass has been the big sleeper of '08 for me. I figured I'd dig it, but plan to flip it in the near to mid term after some fun with it. However, this bass has quickly become a member of my "most favored" in the rotation. I never expected this. There's a few basses I feel particularly just plain lucky on and this is now one of them.

Spex:
Swamp ash body
Water Cured Redwood Burl top
Maple/Purpleheart/Maple neck
Purpleheart fingerboard
34" scale, 24 frets, bone nut
9V bart preamp with 3 band EQ, 3-way mid switch
Bart X55 pickups
Hipshot A bridge and ultralight tuners

Pics...

[vision]

Nice bass! That top is sweet man...

I had a Warrior a few years back with that same pickup config. (Bart XJS) and I still regret selling it. Mine sounded like a thicker, more punchy version of an F-Bass...it killed in the mix on stage.

[joelb79]

oh.. ma... good-nass!

That is a very tasty combination of woods, electronics, and design. I really want to play this one.. and then run out the door with it. Better bring a pit-bull to that party.

[Papersen]

You forgot to add that it`s a BEAUTIFUL instrument.
Initially, I`d have expected the same. I`ve always seen Warriors as nice basses, but nothing special.

You know I consider your opinion very qualified, since you`ve played lots of basses, and never expected such a great review. I`d love to try one someday

BTW, great pics (as usual)

[MoD_Scotty]

I've liked Warriors since the first time I played one about 10 years ago. That one is pure sex. How about a sound clip?

[joelb79]

Originally Posted by MoD_Scotty

pure sex

Cut's through a mix like a woman having sex with a sword? Couldn't resist with the sword inlays.

[mikeyswood]

Very Nice!

[falstro]

This has to be the most beautifull BG I've ever seen!

[Baryonyx]

That bass really is a stunner!

[GrooveWarrior]

Before I bought my Warrior Signature 4 (in Dec. '05), I tried for two weeks not to like it. I had heard bad things about them. I thought the color was ugly, I thought I didn't like MM pickups (mine has the MM/J), but every time I picked it up, I was blown away!!!

I bought it over Sadowsky's, Lull's, Modulus, Pedulla, and a Roscoe that were hanging there with it. I've also owned several other high-end basses, and this is by far the nicest!!!!

The tone DOES absolutely cut through the mix. The two links in my signature are examples of my bass recorded directly into the DAW, no preamp at all. It is set nearly flat at the bass and dead center on the pickups.

Warrior's are great. Here are some pics of mine. (Hope this isn't hijacking your thread Vic!!!)

[capnsandwich]

I never heard of Warrior basses until I listened to Adam Nitti for the first time. After that I've been goo-goo ga-ga for them . I love Adam's tone on his solo cd's and I know it has a lot to do with the Warrior sound. I love these basses, looks, tone, what they stand for, but I've yet to be able to afford one.

By the way, the one you own is gorgeous!

[P_bass]

Beautiful Warrior! A St. Louis bassist named David Karns plays a Signature Standard bolt on, the sound is amazing also. I have had the opportunity to play it, and since then have seriously wanted to get one.

Congratz on the purchase!

[Chef]

I don't see "XJS" pickups on their site...are they these?
X55CBJS pair - X5 narrow Soapbar shape available in low noise neck (B) and bridge (T) single coils
X55CBJD pair - X5 narrow Soapbar shape available in neck (B) and bridge (T) in-line hum cancelling dual coils

and the preamp would be

NTMB 4.7 A/P:

2 Pickup - 4 knob, 1 Switch configuration

Controls:
- Volume (with Acitve/Passive push-pull)
- Blend
- Mid
- Treble/Bass Stack.
- Mid Frequency Selector Switch

inquiring minds and all...

[Vic]

Originally Posted by GrooveWarrior

Before I bought my Warrior Signature 4 (in Dec. '05), I tried for two weeks not to like it. I had heard bad things about them. I thought the color was ugly, I thought I didn't like MM pickups (mine has the MM/J), but every time I picked it up, I was blown away!!!
...
...hope this isn't hijacking...

First, no, I totally don't mind your sharing pics!

Anyway, I wasn't as negatively biased as you were going in, but I definitely can relate. I really just expected to be luke warm on it. I'm convinced, at least for my tastes and playing style, the bart X-whatever pickups are KEY. This thing is much more aggressive than the dual soap models I've played.

[Vic]

Originally Posted by Chef

I don't see "XJS" pickups on their site...are they these?
X55CBJS pair - X5 narrow Soapbar shape available in low noise neck (B) and bridge (T) single coils
X55CBJD pair - X5 narrow Soapbar shape available in neck (B) and bridge (T) in-line hum cancelling dual coils

and the preamp would be

NTMB 4.7 A/P:

2 Pickup - 4 knob, 1 Switch configuration

Controls:
- Volume (with Acitve/Passive push-pull)
- Blend
- Mid
- Treble/Bass Stack.
- Mid Frequency Selector Switch

inquiring minds and all...

Interesting. I need to dig into this. I knew they were X-whatever pickups. Thought they were XJ's, but there's no way they can be. They have to be the split coils (which, oddly, Bill apparently calls in-line dual coils, which is a confusing way to put it). So I'll double check, but again, I'm pretty sure due to the silence of this bass in crappy venues they must be the X55CBJD pickups.

Yep, NTMB preamp. Dunno if it's a custom voiced model or not.

[Vic]

Originally Posted by P_bass

Beautiful Warrior! A St. Louis bassist named David Karns plays a Signature Standard bolt on, the sound is amazing also. I have had the opportunity to play it, and since then have seriously wanted to get one.

Congratz on the purchase!

Yep, met him at the Phil Jones booth at a NAMM show. Really cool guy and a great player. Last I knew, he was playing dual soap models, and while they sound great when he plays them, they were a bit too "modern" for my tastes. Real pretty in a forgiving mix, but I'd be concerned about cut in a nastier live mix. This is something I'm extremely sensitive to.

[Vic]

Originally Posted by MoD_Scotty

I've liked Warriors since the first time I played one about 10 years ago. That one is pure sex. How about a sound clip?

I'd love to, but I'm still looking for a simple way to do clips with drum tracks without spending 100's of dollars and hours upon hours learning a software package (since I'm not really interested in setting up a home studio and doing a lot more of that kind of thing).

Any suggestions?

[Baryonyx]

Originally Posted by capnsandwich

I never heard of Warrior basses until I listened to Adam Nitti for the first time. After that I've been goo-goo ga-ga for them . I love Adam's tone on his solo cd's and I know it has a lot to do with the Warrior sound. I love these basses, looks, tone, what they stand for, but I've yet to be able to afford one.

By the way, the one you own is gorgeous!

I heard that Adam's tone on his records was from his Curbow/Fender/Yamaha basses rather than his Warrior basses. Wouldn't be impossible to believe....

[Chef]

This makes me even more interested as the 5501 I have with Bart soaps does indeed have that "too much glass on the top end" thing going on.
If these are more nuanced than that, and better for a more fingerstyle guy like me, that's very much up my alley...

Originally Posted by Vic

he was playing dual soap models, and while they sound great when he plays them, they were a bit too "modern" for my tastes. Real pretty in a forgiving mix, but I'd be concerned about cut in a nastier live mix. This is something I'm extremely sensitive to.

[Dr. Cheese]

Vic, you are seriously moving into Tom Bowlus territory when it comes to owning tons of cool basses. You know the deal, take that Warrior to the STL GTG this summer!