• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

warwick necks

#21
It's all a matter of what your used to. I picked up my old bass for the first time in ages and it felt awkward. It felt fine when I used to use it and probably would feel fine if I started using it again

It's funny but the guys on the double bass side of the forum will warn you off one with a thin neck. Fatter is better over there.
 
#24
I have just switched from a Corvette to a P Bass and very much prefer the neck of the P Bass. The Corvette was a D shape and was too big for me (didn't realise that until I switched though!)
Also helps that the P Bass neck is shorter due to the bridge being nearer the end of teh longer body. No longer a stretch to the first fret...
 
#25
after practicing on my upright for a few hours, playing my streamer jm5 felt like playing a short scale, slim neck shredding machine!!

it's all relative. hand size, muscle strength, technique, and what you're used to playing.

if you like the tone, and are prepared to make a few adjustments to left hand position, there's no reason to let anyone talk you out of said purchase.

that being said, i got used to the neck, but i don't like the tone of my streamer, so away it goes (hopefully)
 
#26
MTMTEX said:
place your left hand flat on a 2x4. using your right hand strike your left hand repeatedly with a 4 pound hammer. care should be taken not to pass out part way through this procedure. next grab your current bass and attempt to run through a series of scales. congratulations. you now know what a warwick neck plays like.
Click to expand...

HAHAHAHAAHAAHAHAHAA!!!!


You owe me a drink... and a new keyboard.
 
#28
I play a variety of basses that have very different neck profiles. My main bass these days is a Patrick Eggle Milan fretless 5 string, string spacing is like a Jazz but with an extra string so it's wide-ish but quite a shallow C profile. I have a Rickenbacker 4001 which is quite narrow in width but quite a chunky D profile. I have a Palm Bay Atlantic with a very slim neck and a sort of flattened D profile. I have a Squier Precision 5 that has a neck like a cross between a baseball bat and an aircraft carrier (it was cheap and sounded better than it had a right to at the price so I bought it as a spare 5 string). I also have a cheap Crafter acoustic that I use for unamplified practise, this has a sort of chunky Jazz feel.

Maybe it's because I play such a wide variety of neck profiles that I'm used to switching, so when I played a Warwick Thumb fretless 5 neck through in a store the other weekend, I was quite impressed. The neck was chunky for sure, but in a good way, it felt rock solid and the raw Wenge neck was smooth and fast to play. The sound was cool too with a really solid bottom end but loads of mid and high end detail as well, effortless sustain and a nice controllable mwaahhh (easily available when you wanted it, gone when you didn't). I was on the very edge of buying it and my credit card was already whimpering at the thought of taking the $4000 hit (£2100).

The only reason that I didn't buy it is that once again my Sei Bass fund would've been knocked back to zero
 
#30
Like everything, it's a question of habit. I have quite long, slender fingers, and the bigger necks on Warwicks suit me very well. Most jazz necks are to narrow and rounded to me, because I'm not used to them.

I find that the thickness gives me a more firm grip on the neck, without having to use too much force, which is a good thing to me!
 
#31
motleystew said:
We still have to figure in neck width/thickness ratio because that is what IMO constitutes "feel". Among other things that are not measureable such as neck material (natural vs. satin stained for example). That's a whole new can of worms!"..
Click to expand...

Well since you bring up neck material and this thread is about Warwick necks, let me be the first to point out that WENGE IS AWESOME and ovangkol is... not.

I love old Warwicks but I atill think their best ever line was the Wenge neck/Maple body Fortress series. Tome, it is the most comfortable and also sexiest of all the Warwick designs... They sell for well under a grand in good condition when you see them, which baffles me because I've seldom encountered a more playable bass. Even Fender freaks dig my passive p/j fortress - it might not have the active electronics and natural finish exotic wood that the company is famous for these days; what is does have is superb craftsmanship and (to get back to the point) a mid-sized, fast-playing wenge neck. Try one if you havent... it's a damn shame that these aren't stock today.
 
#33
i have an 06 corvette with the ovangkol neck. i still don't see what all the buzz about the wenge neck is. I've played them before. the profile is slightly different, but not "better."

the back of the ovangkol neck is flatter and i think it serves as a more comfortable platform for my thumb.

necks are different. i've played an ibanez and i liked the neck, but it didn't feel sturdy. i didn't find it any more comfortable than the 'wick neck and the warwick is a strong beast. and it sounds better. ibanezes are too shallow sounding for me. there's no meat!
 
#34
My '99 Corvette 5 fretless has the thinnest neck of any bass I've owned including MM's. I had owned a FN Jazzman 5 that also had a thin neck, close to one above. Both were ovankol also. Not the revered wenge.The Warwick neck is very unique in that I've never played anything similiar. It's fast, yet solid feeling as if it's part of the body. I haven't run across a baseball bat neck yet.
 
#35
I played Thumb bo 5 yesterday. The seller isn't near me so I went to the store to try it.
The action was horrible and it wasn't in tune at all (like in all stores) so it was hard to judge the bass.
The neck is big but it ain't that bad, I believe that I would get used to it after a week. I didn't like the bass that much to buy it right away.. also I have an amp to buy... If the bass doesn't sell after my financial situation gets better I might buy it
 
#36
There is an incredible difference between each model of Thumb. 4 strings have a different pickup position to 5's and 6's. 6's have soapbars, 5's have singles. NT's are completely different in almost everyway (woods, constructiuon, electronics) to BO.

What I'm saying is just because you played a bad thumb, dont discount the whole Warwick line, as a lot fo people tend to do. Equating a poor setup to a terrible instrument defies logic IMO.
 
#37
Evan_S._Brown said:
its probably because you aren't used to the neck. You should be fine adjusting to the neck. Warwicks are great basses
Click to expand...

I remember going to the local Warwick dealer to check up what's the deal with these basses.
And the neck felt so thick and uncomfortable, and I asked the seller - how can people play these?
And someone there said - it's the most comfortable neck there is...

Anyway, a few years later, and I totally agree!
The warwick have the best and most comfortable necks.
The width at nut is jazz bass like (1.50" for 4 strings), but unlike jazz bass, the strings do not go apart too much - the width at last fret - 20th on jazz bass is wider than the one on 24th fret on streamer!
So this make the fretboard so easy to play on, anywhere, in any fret. The back of the neck feels like smooth wood, not like those lacquer coated necks or even the sanded musicman necks.

The neck is D shaped - the fingerboard radius is very large and therefore looks almost like a strait line : |
The back of the neck is not C shaped but rather D shaped. this feels a little 'fat' at first, but give yourself 1 or 2 days with it - and it will 'become' the most comfortable neck you've ever played.
:bassist:
 
#38
theNoseBleedKid said:
There is an incredible difference between each model of Thumb. 4 strings have a different pickup position to 5's and 6's. 6's have soapbars, 5's have singles. NT's are completely different in almost everyway (woods, constructiuon, electronics) to BO.

What I'm saying is just because you played a bad thumb, dont discount the whole Warwick line, as a lot fo people tend to do. Equating a poor setup to a terrible instrument defies logic IMO.
Click to expand...

I know that warwick models are very different. It also depends on what year it's made.. Before they had thinner necks, today they have bigger necks and use ovangkol instead of wenge.

I've said that it's been hard to me do decide if I like the bass cause the setup was bad. Of course the setup can be taken care of, that's not the problem.

I'm definitely gonna buy a warwick one day because I like the tone and woods they use.. I can't buy it right now cause I have to buy an amp now and I think it's more reasonable option right now.
I'll wait a bit for the warwick, who knows, maybe some one will be selling an older one with wenge neck
 
#40
I play my friend's Corvette Jazzman FNA 5 whenever I go to his place. The neck is very different to my Bongo 5, but it's not uncomfortable...just different. It takes about 5 minutes to get used to.

The only necks I can't get used to are the very shallow (front to back) type.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back