The Official Warwick Club (Part 6)

[gravesbass]

That pre in the pic looks like someone added an EMG BQC in there hence the 4 knob layout. They could have used a stacked Vol/Vol-Blend and kept it 3 holes instead of adding 4th hole but not a big deal.

 

[Reedt2000]

PREAMP QUESTION -- I'm a big fan of Marko's tone in Nightwish, so obviously I had to buy a Warwick. A decent deal on a 2002 active Corvette 5 popped up. After ordering it, I noticed that I didn't see any others with the same knob configuration: two regular and two concentric knobs. The knobs are volume, balance, bass/treble boost/cut, and mid boost/cut with sweepable frequency. I opened up the back and saw that it uses two batteries.

1) Did Warwick ever offer an 18-volt, 3-band pre with sweepable mids?
2) If not, does this pre look familiar to anyone?

I'm not complaining. The bass sounds excellent. If you boost the mids all the way and play with the frequency sweep, it acts as a wah-wah. Perfect for "Tales of Brave Ulysses"!

One last question: does this look like one of the Warwick bodies that has to be oiled periodically?
View attachment 5161673 View attachment 5161674

Looks like an EMG preamp. The MEC volume and blend were left in and the EMG tone controls added. Is that a (or maybe two...) battery connector just laying in there not connected?

 

[warbassick]

might be a john east uk pre is the wiring soldered or stripped n tucked

 

[Jigmay]

Can you guys recommend if it’s preferable to install an original Just A Nut, or the JAN III? I posted above (#10833) about my ‘new’ ‘86 Streamer II, which has a Warwick non-brass nut in it which is not original.
Is the JAN III a big improvement? Or do I take it back to its original spec’d nut?

I’ll be picking one up tomorrow from the Warwick headquarters here in Nashville.

Thanks!

 

[Erithon]

I'd go with the JAN III. It's more functional. There's a time and place for keeping things original, but when it comes to Warwick nut designs I think the III is an upgrade over the original.

 

[burgerdj]

Can you guys recommend if it’s preferable to install an original Just A Nut, or the JAN III? I posted above (#10833) about my ‘new’ ‘86 Streamer II, which has a Warwick non-brass nut in it which is not original.
Is the JAN III a big improvement? Or do I take it back to its original spec’d nut?

I’ll be picking one up tomorrow from the Warwick headquarters here in Nashville.

Thanks!

JANI is the most easily adjusted. I think the design is brilliant.

 

[Nine-and-three-Quarters]

Hey Guys,
I just purchased a SC thumb bass made in 22'. I've read in a few places where others have had problems with low gain in their preamp and I'm wonder has anyone come up with a solution or do you just switch the pre/pups out?

Never have I ever come across a bass with such low gain. I literally have to turn my amp almost full blast to get to playing volume and if I switch to parallel or single coil. My volume drops dramatically and I literally have to turn my gain and master full blast.

The gain is so low that I can never get the gain input to clip no matter how much I turn it up. Any suggestions would greatly be appreciated. As of now I'm thinking of using an onboard signal booster but would need a diagram of the mec electronics. Anyone know where to find one?

Thanks Deon

 

[GBassNorth]

Hey Guys,
I just purchased a SC thumb bass made in 22'. I've read in a few places where others have had problems with low gain in their preamp and I'm wonder has anyone come up with a solution or do you just switch the pre/pups out?

Never have I ever come across a bass with such low gain. I literally have to turn my amp almost full blast to get to playing volume and if I switch to parallel or single coil. My volume drops dramatically and I literally have to turn my gain and master full blast.

The gain is so low that I can never get the gain input to clip no matter how much I turn it up. Any suggestions would greatly be appreciated. As of now I'm thinking of using an onboard signal booster but would need a diagram of the mec electronics. Anyone know where to find one?

Thanks Deon

Just out of curiosity, what is the air gap between the top of your pickup and the bottom of the strings?

 

[Nine-and-three-Quarters]

Just out of curiosity, what is the air gap between the top of your pickup and the bottom of the strings?

I've completely set the bass up like I normally do and they are at 3/32 which it where I put all of my pickups. I typically play with super low action.

 

[Z-Bass]

Is there an internal trim pot in the cavity to adjust the gain?

 

[Nine-and-three-Quarters]

Is there an internal trim pot in the cavity to adjust the gain?

That was the first thing I looked for but I couldn't find anything.

 

[GBassNorth]

That was the first thing I looked for but I couldn't find anything.

Is that the model with the rechargeable lithium battery? If so, is it fully charged?

 

[Nine-and-three-Quarters]

Is that the model with the rechargeable lithium battery? If so, is it fully charged?

Yes it is the model with the fully rechargeable battery. Just to make sure it wasn't that I switch to a brand new 9v battery and it was the same results.

 

[Nine-and-three-Quarters]

Wow so no one has dealt with this issue on the newer builds? Maybe the pre is bad?

 

[Reedt2000]

Wow so no one has dealt with this issue on the newer builds? Maybe the pre is bad?

Could be, low output is one thing, having to dime your amp to hear the bass another. I've never played a warwick that new, or a thumb sc for that matter, but what you're describing doesn't sound like normal operation. Though I'd change the jack just for good measure, failing barrel jacks can do weird stuff.

 

[rabidwolverine]

The SC preamp and pickup combo is different than what you’d expect. Especially compared to other Warwick basses with both active pickups and preamps. I generally run mine with no pad setting engaged on my amp. It’s temperamental depending on how the switches are oriented. I tend to get the least volume with the switches in the middle.

 

[Erithon]

Wow so no one has dealt with this issue on the newer builds? Maybe the pre is bad?

I played a Thumb SC for years (a 2010 build) and never experienced anything like what you are saying. Its output was not especially hot, but neither was it anything unusually low. There was a volume difference between different pickup configurations, but in a consistent and predictable way.

 

[Nine-and-three-Quarters]

I played a Thumb SC for years (a 2010 build) and never experienced anything like what you are saying. Its output was not especially hot, but neither was it anything unusually low. There was a volume difference between different pickup configurations, but in a consistent and predictable way.

I actually found out through an email from Warwick from the previous owner that the new mec preamps were built with less gain and this could equate up to 30% less gain at the amp.

The suggestion was to just turn up the gain and master on the amp as this was a normal thing for the newer electronics. Thanks to everyone for their help and suggestions. Think I'll just put a signal booster in the chain before it hits the amp.

 

[labeledbass]

Maybe try a closer pickup clearance

 

[Barticus]

I actually found out through an email from Warwick from the previous owner that the new mec preamps were built with less gain and this could equate up to 30% less gain at the amp.

The suggestion was to just turn up the gain and master on the amp as this was a normal thing for the newer electronics. Thanks to everyone for their help and suggestions. Think I'll just put a signal booster in the chain before it hits the amp.

Wow that’s a big difference, I’m glad you’ve gotten a definitive answer on this.