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Any one have a Warwick Katana? Opinions?
- Thread starter PBFACTOR
- Start date
Very cool. I have a friend with one of the neck thru ones. It's a great bass. I actually like the look of it, but what do I know? 
The Warwick Katana NT 4 string is my main bass. I have owned Rick 4001s, a Geddy Lee Jazz Bass and various and sundry other axes, but this one felt and sounded like "me".
Check out my bass in action as my (ex) band covers Rush's "2112 Overture / Temples of Syrinx".
Final Gravity - "2112" - "Overture" and "Temples of Syrinx" live at The Brixton - YouTube
Check out my bass in action as my (ex) band covers Rush's "2112 Overture / Temples of Syrinx".
Final Gravity - "2112" - "Overture" and "Temples of Syrinx" live at The Brixton - YouTube
I got it for $1100.00, which i thought was good for a neck through warwick.
That is a good price!
My favorite bass I've ever had. It seems like all those $500 to $1500 basses I kept going through were always lacking something. Back in 2008, I played a used Kitana hanging in Guitar Center Hollywood several different times and really liked it, but I don't like natural or oiled wood finishes.
I ordered the one I have from the factory with a glossy ocean blue finish; it cost close to $3k.
MaddAnthony_59
Supporting Member
- Dec 16, 2006
- 4,599
- 708
- Disclosures
- I Channel Surf During Commercials. (Drives my Wife CRAZY!!!)
I just got an Early XMAS Present in the shape of an NT Katana.
Initially it played like a Truck! high action and Heavy Flats. I set it up a bit lower and loaded a set of Well Worn TI Jazz Flats in 105 - 045. Major Improvment!
My GoTo bass of late has been my 92 SS2, which is nice and warm playing. The Katana is a bit "Angrier"! Even with flats it's got a Mean Growl and Snaping treble in the higher registries. It might be a Bit much with Rounds on it. But the tone is Agressive & Biting. The neck is a Shade wider/thicker than my Streamer as well. But she plays nice and Comfy. More P-Bass profile than Jazz perhaps. I can pull off some decent riffs, and play her for Hours. The 3-Band MEC Preamp is pretty flexible, and the Pull Vol gives it yet another degree of "POP" if you need it.
Overall I like it alot! (And I wasn't a Very Good boy this year either!)
Initially it played like a Truck! high action and Heavy Flats. I set it up a bit lower and loaded a set of Well Worn TI Jazz Flats in 105 - 045. Major Improvment!
My GoTo bass of late has been my 92 SS2, which is nice and warm playing. The Katana is a bit "Angrier"! Even with flats it's got a Mean Growl and Snaping treble in the higher registries. It might be a Bit much with Rounds on it. But the tone is Agressive & Biting. The neck is a Shade wider/thicker than my Streamer as well. But she plays nice and Comfy. More P-Bass profile than Jazz perhaps. I can pull off some decent riffs, and play her for Hours. The 3-Band MEC Preamp is pretty flexible, and the Pull Vol gives it yet another degree of "POP" if you need it.
Overall I like it alot! (And I wasn't a Very Good boy this year either!)
They may have changed this, but on my Katana NT, the volume knob pull switches between active (down) and passive (up). Never had a battery die on me while playing, but it's good to know I don't have to worry about it with that knob at my fingertips.
MaddAnthony_59
Supporting Member
- Dec 16, 2006
- 4,599
- 708
- Disclosures
- I Channel Surf During Commercials. (Drives my Wife CRAZY!!!)
Katana Neckthrough
All Katana Neckthrough basses come with an onboard active preamp.
Push/Pull Volume/Pickup Pan Control (Part #M88552 - 500K, 2 X 25K)*
Treble Tone Control (Part #M85100 100K)
Mid Tone Control (Part #M85100 100K)
Bass Tone Control (Part #M85100 100K)
* By pulling on the volume knob, you will bypass the onboard active preamp, which effectively deactivates the tone controls.
There it is!
There was a Katana at my local GC that I was eyeing for awhile. The thing I remember about it, it was one of those bass that almost seemed to slap itself - effortless slap monster. Is that typical of these?
/rick
/rick
YThey seem to be a great deal... I saw a NT at a Guitar Center for $1100. I liked it but the body was too big for me. Played like a dream though!
Knowing that the way a guitar looks and plays is subjective, I thought that I would provide some input. I have had a 5-string neck-through Warwick Katana for about 3 years. It is my only bass. Previously, I owned a 4-string Lotus (not sure of the model--I bought it at a pawn shop) and a 4-string Ibanez Ergodyne.
Some people do not like the way it looks (the concave part at the bottom is weird, I'll admit), but I love it. The flamed top (especially with the neck-through) is just nice.
The bass is easy to play and offers lots of tonal flexibility. I typically play with a more bassy, active sound, and I pluck all the time (no pick). I keep the treble and mid controls at halfway and turn up the bass to about 3/4. I keep the pickups panned to the center.
A feature that I really appreciate is the ability to switch between active and passive modes. This allows me to quickly switch between a more treble, passive sound (more like classic rock) and what I normally use (the aforementioned active sound). I know that there are other basses that have this option, but this is the first one that I have owned that has had it. If/when I buy another bass, I will look for this feature again.
I have two complaints. First, the internal gain was turned up too loud. When I first started playing the bass, I noticed there was a little distortion on the lower strings. I opened up the back cover and looked at the output gain (a small silver and brown pot). It was at the factory setting (marked with a red marker on the case of the pot). I turned it down and all is fine now. It may be that I play a little harder than some other people, but I guess I think this should be taken into consideration. I thought that this might be a fluke, but my church bought another Katana (the same model as mine), and I had to do the same thing to it. The second issue I have had has to do with the output jack. The jack seems looser than it should be, and it is easy to bump the cable and have a loss of signal. I have replaced the jack once, and I may need to do it again.
Overall, I am very pleased.
Josh
Some people do not like the way it looks (the concave part at the bottom is weird, I'll admit), but I love it. The flamed top (especially with the neck-through) is just nice.
The bass is easy to play and offers lots of tonal flexibility. I typically play with a more bassy, active sound, and I pluck all the time (no pick). I keep the treble and mid controls at halfway and turn up the bass to about 3/4. I keep the pickups panned to the center.
A feature that I really appreciate is the ability to switch between active and passive modes. This allows me to quickly switch between a more treble, passive sound (more like classic rock) and what I normally use (the aforementioned active sound). I know that there are other basses that have this option, but this is the first one that I have owned that has had it. If/when I buy another bass, I will look for this feature again.
I have two complaints. First, the internal gain was turned up too loud. When I first started playing the bass, I noticed there was a little distortion on the lower strings. I opened up the back cover and looked at the output gain (a small silver and brown pot). It was at the factory setting (marked with a red marker on the case of the pot). I turned it down and all is fine now. It may be that I play a little harder than some other people, but I guess I think this should be taken into consideration. I thought that this might be a fluke, but my church bought another Katana (the same model as mine), and I had to do the same thing to it. The second issue I have had has to do with the output jack. The jack seems looser than it should be, and it is easy to bump the cable and have a loss of signal. I have replaced the jack once, and I may need to do it again.
Overall, I am very pleased.
Josh
Just bought one and after owning almost a 100 basses I must say: this is the most comfortable of them all. Period. A GREAT bass. Weights barely 4Kgs, perfect support for the right forearm, balances well standing and superb sitting an the sound is...Jeeeesus! A ****ing bomb, it both cuts AND supports AND growls!... amazing.
Don't let the bashing by the usual vintage suspects fool you, if you see one BUY IT. I'm selling my Bongo and perhaps my Am Std precision now.
Don't let the bashing by the usual vintage suspects fool you, if you see one BUY IT. I'm selling my Bongo and perhaps my Am Std precision now.
I liked mine well enough at first (NT4) but ended up playing mostly 5's.
Great slap tone, very "modern" sounding; 2 things I didn't care for was the weight (a little over 10.5 lbs) and the reach to the first couple of frets. I'm sure I could've made a strap adjustment/ position change to fix that, but I wasn't playing it a lot... probably headed for the GFS forum along with a couple others... maybe.
I have such a tough time selling gear - like it's part of the family...
Great slap tone, very "modern" sounding; 2 things I didn't care for was the weight (a little over 10.5 lbs) and the reach to the first couple of frets. I'm sure I could've made a strap adjustment/ position change to fix that, but I wasn't playing it a lot... probably headed for the GFS forum along with a couple others... maybe.
I have such a tough time selling gear - like it's part of the family...
Yeah I feel you....but you know theres nothing to do about it being hard to reach the first frets its about design, but once you get used to it its not hard at all! And playing in high positions becomes a childs play. Strange thats yours wighted that much it must be the NT model. The strings were high on mine so I had to shim it. Now it plays better than anything. And the sound is brutal I tell you.
