Warwick all wenge neck: whats the difference?

Porcelain · #1 11-30-2012, 06:10 PM

I've heard that in the early 90's warwick made their necks with all wenge wood. A lot of people say these were superior to the newer model neck wood choices. I might buy a new warwick corvette standard 5 with bubinga body, but is it worth it to wait for an early 90's wick with an all wenge neck to pop up on ebay?

Shakin-Slim · #2 11-30-2012, 06:17 PM

I had a '91 Corvette with an all wenge neck, and I had also played my mates later model with the ovangkol neck/wenge fretboard. I greatly prefer the all wenge neck. It's a nice solid wood and feels great under the hands. Those necks didn't have the twisting problem that other Corvettes have had. Also, the all wenge neck was more like a jazz neck, whereas the ovangkol ones are more like a p neck.

staccatogrowl · #3 12-01-2012, 04:34 AM

I've played many Warwicks with ovankol and wenge necks. They are both excellent playing and sounding necks. They have different shape profiles that are easily adapted within fifteen minutes of playing.

I have never experienced a twisting problem with any of my Warwick ovankol or wenge necks, nor have I seen a twisted Warwick neck. Sure, it could happen, but it can also happen with any neck. Regardless, the beauty of any bolt-on neck is that it can be repaired or replaced if problematic.

My usual advice is to play the object of your interest before you buy. If you really like it, buy it. If not, wait or buy something else.

In my case, I sold my wenge-neck Warwicks. I currently have ovankol-neck Warwicks. The sales didn't have anything to with wood composition of neck, just personal preferences for overall playability and sound of the bass. This may go against current Warwick fable and lore, yet is my experience.

Best in your quest!

Duckwater · #4 12-01-2012, 04:36 AM

Superior how? If a bass plays and sounds how you like then it's superior for you.

Turxile · #5 12-01-2012, 05:24 AM

The rumour is that the 2013 German Warwicks will be going back to wenge necks. So you might still be able to buy a brand new one.

j.kernodle · #6 12-01-2012, 06:19 AM

the neck shapes on the older wenge slnecks tended to be a little sleeker. nothing wrong with ovankol. just got a bad rap because the necks also got pretty chunky at the same time as the switchover.

S6I6X · #7 12-01-2012, 07:39 AM

No Warwick necks are prone to twisting. Also, the Wenge necks aren't thinner. Warwick switched to their "fat neck" style from '02-'08 (not 100% sure about the later date but I think that's it) so any newer one will have that slimed neck that was mentioned earlier. People just think that since they switched to Ovangkol necks around the same time. The rumor is definitely true that they are switching to Wenge necks in 2013 and iirc, any bass that comes with Ovangkol now will switch to Wenge.

As far as sound goes they are both super amazing sounding in my opinion. A huge difference from maple or most other standard neck woods but not too far from each other if that makes any sense. The biggest thing I think most people notice is how super open the grain is for Wenge. It feels really nice under your hands.

staccatogrowl · #8 12-01-2012, 08:30 AM

I find the rumor of Warwick going back to wenge necks to be quite interesting. One of the reasons they stopped using wenge was due to the scarcity of the wood. RainforestRelief.org lists wenge as an endangered tropical rainforest wood.

http://www.rainforestrelief.org/docu...Guidelines.pdf

It is quite alarming and heartbreaking to see the extent of endangered woods from around the world. Many were the common standard for musical instruments.

One of the ramifications of using endangered wood is illegality. You might be able to afford the monetary price, but seizure and loss (ask Gibson Guitars) are now real ramifications for newer instruments, and even older ones.

bongostealth · #9 12-01-2012, 08:36 AM

I used to have a '98 Thumb BO 6 with an all-wenge neck. It looked really nice, felt nice, and had a bit warmer sound to my ears than the now ovangkol neck/wenge fingerboard configuration.

WarwickOfficial · #10 12-01-2012, 08:59 AM

We are indeed going back to using Wenge necks on most models. Wenge was scarce for quite some time due to a civil war in its country of origin - when we switched to using mainly ovangkol. Beginning in 2013, we will be using FSC-certified Wenge - and for those who don't know - we switched back to the slim neck as standard profile a few years ago. Please let me know if you have any questions! Thanks!