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Warwick "Sound"

L

Llewellen

Guest
Dec 23, 2016
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342
#1
What is the "Warwick Sound" that I hear about? I know that trying to describe musical tone can be a mug's game, like asking someone "How long is a piece of string", but I would seriously appreciate it if someone would please try, say by comparison to some reasonably well know quantities like J-Bass, P-Bass, etc. Or maybe by comparison to other PUs like Bartolini, etc.

I am seriously considering a Rockbass Corvette Basic 5 medium scale because it is one of a very few medium scale 5 strings around at a reasonable price (I can't afford a boutique bass). The bass is advertised as having two MEC jazz style PUs with 2 band active EQ (vol, bal, treb, bass).

I have listened to a ton of soundclips on youtube but, as usual on youtube, the recording quality is all over the map and very suspect. Where I live, there is no dealer who stocks any Warwicks, so there is no possibility to play one and try it out.

TIA for your thoughts and comments.
 
#2
Here's a good video for this:



Here you'll see a spry old Thumb whip the asses of some other very nice instruments and outclass them entirely.

I would consider that to be the Warwick sound. Not all Warwicks are going to have that sound mind you. That's mainly the Thumb 6 tone. But I consider that to be the best and most distinctive sound to come from the Warwick name, and the only one that cannot readily be had elsewhere.
 
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#3
The sound is the brass frets, pickup placement, and to an extent, the wood selection. It is growly, woody, and surprisingly organic for an active instrument. The thumb bass is the biggest proponent of warwick's so called "Sound of Wood." Look up clips of Obscura and Mudvayne for good examples of that sound. Otherwise check out warwick's official youtube, which has many sound demos.
 
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#6
Well, I think that probably what anyone who uses that phrase, "the Warwick sound", is referring to is the sound of a Thumb bass, which is mostly in the pickups and pickup placement, but as Epitaph04 said, above, is also affected by the wood choices (for a Thumb, that means bubinga, wenge, and ovangkol) and the bell bronze frets (if you don't think fret material has a significant impact on tone, I'm here to tell you it does).

There have been several types of pickups and placements used in thumb basses over the years, but they all share on common feature: the bridge pickup is very close to the bridge, and angled, with the treble side is further from the bridge. Some variations have the second pickup very close to the bridge pickup, some have it further away, either angled or straight.

The Thumb sound tends to be very bright, as a result of its design. It's almost acoustic guitar-y.

I think this is exemplary of the Thumb sound:



But Warwick makes many, many different types of basses. The Streamer CV, for instance is Warwick take on the Fender Jazz Bass, and is very high on my GAS attack list. Check out the unaffected tone here, as played by Tokie at 0:40.



But then, there's this Custom Shop EB-0 esqe Streamer CV with a single Starbass pickup:



My own Warwick is a 2003 Custom Shop short scale fretless Corvette Proline with active-active MEC J-J pickups and preamp. It has a solid flamed maple body, and ovangkol neck and an ebony fingerboard, and it really doesn't sound very different from the Streamer CV, above, as you might imagine, though I don't have any sound clips of it recorded.
 
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#7
I have a German Corvette Standard with the J style pickups and 2 band EQ. It has a bubinga body/ovangkol neck/Wenge fretboard. It has a deep growl to it that I have not heard in any other bass that I have played. I will also agree that the brass frets have an impact on the sound, maybe slightly less harsh than standard frets. It does the mid-scoop sound really well. I would say the tone is very "forward" and and "present". Even with the treble rolled of it never really gets a vintage type sound. It's definitely a unique sound, but a good one.
 
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#8
If the bell bronze frets have a significant effect on tone, how about now? Didn't Warwick stop using that fret material? How do newer Warwicks with nickel silver frets compare?

I keep looking at Warwicks, and I know one of their marketing/selling points was fret material. Curious about how big a deal the change is.
 
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#9
The bass you are asking about, Rockbass Corvette active, has a wide range of sounds. It is the first bass I played in a band. It goes the gamut from high twangy bass sound to deep thudding bass sounds. It does not have something that makes the big brothers sound a bit more high fidelity. If I had to compare it to a Fender Jazz, in general it is more mid frequency focused, but can still be tailored to suit most needs.
 
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#10
wvbass said:
If the bell bronze frets have a significant effect on tone, how about now? Didn't Warwick stop using that fret material? How do newer Warwicks with nickel silver frets compare?

I keep looking at Warwicks, and I know one of their marketing/selling points was fret material. Curious about how big a deal the change is.
Click to expand...
They still use the fret material as of 2019.
 
#12
The local music store I work at has a Rockbass Corvette 4 with two MEC J style pickups, and I can tell you it sounds as nice as my Teambuilt Streamer Stage 1 (pretty sure they use the same pickups and EQ, minus the active/passive switch). The MEC pickups and EQ definitely have their own tone, especially in the higher frequencies. Very clear and articulate, but not for everybody. Definitely doesn't sound like a run of the mill Fender Jazz. But they're damn fine instruments, you won't regret buying it. And you can always swap the pickups and EQ for something else if you get sick of the sound.
 
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#13
Thank you to all for the input which has been very, very useful. I neglected to mention in my OP that this is the bass that I'm interested in, a fretless:

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My hands are just average in size and as I get older they're not as agile so my basses now need to be medium scale and this is the only one I have seen that is medium, 5 string and fretless. I'm going to take the plunge and as RhynoRock points out, if I just can't dial in the tone I want (I think I will be able to, based on what I have heard) I can swap PUs or preamp later. For example, Bartolini makes this 3 band preamp with stacked pots that will fit the 4 hole configuration of the bass:

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I appreciate all the comments. Thanx.
 
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#14
wvbass said:
Sort of.

The Master Built basses still do. But, according to their website (and the specs of the basses I keep looking at in online stores) the Team Built series now uses nickel silver frets.
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Yes, that is correct. The teambuilt ones also use maple and ovangkol necks and lack brass nut and brass bridge. These are the things that differentiate the two lines.
 
#17
If I had to try and sum up the term "the Warwick sound" I think it is extra mid range presence in the overall tone. As mentioned above the thumb model probably is the best example of it. I've had a few different Warwick models and a MM/J 5 string corvette has been my main bass for the last decade. I can attest to the variety of tones that come from the different woods and electronics. My vette I run passive and it has very defined low mids and growl, especially the MM pickup. Ive got a streamer with 2 active J PUs and it's a whole different world. It still has defined mids but is way more balanced with crisper highs and deep, warm low end. If you are seriously considering a Warwick it is worth trying for a German model IMHO. Hunting the used market you can often find MIG stuff for the same sort of money As the RB new.
 
#18
The tone is very versatile in the sense that it can work for really any genre. It is not versatile in the sense that you cannot use EQ to get rid of "the Warwick sound", it's there in every setting you dial in on the instrument. This is some combination of the MEC pickups/pre configuration, the typically exotic wood selections, and the bronze frets. I would characterize it as dark and growling. Not in a bad way. But it's baked in, kind of like the single coil sparkly twang of a strat. Can't be EQ'd out.
 
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#19
Reedt2000 said:
If I had to try and sum up the term "the Warwick sound" I think it is extra mid range presence in the overall tone. As mentioned above the thumb model probably is the best example of it. I've had a few different Warwick models and a MM/J 5 string corvette has been my main bass for the last decade. I can attest to the variety of tones that come from the different woods and electronics. My vette I run passive and it has very defined low mids and growl, especially the MM pickup. Ive got a streamer with 2 active J PUs and it's a whole different world. It still has defined mids but is way more balanced with crisper highs and deep, warm low end. If you are seriously considering a Warwick it is worth trying for a German model IMHO. Hunting the used market you can often find MIG stuff for the same sort of money As the RB new.
Click to expand...

OK but from what I have been able to find out, only the Rockbass Corvette is available in medium scale, 5 string fretless.
 
#20
3bc said:
The tone is very versatile in the sense that it can work for really any genre. It is not versatile in the sense that you cannot use EQ to get rid of "the Warwick sound", it's there in every setting you dial in on the instrument. This is some combination of the MEC pickups/pre configuration, the typically exotic wood selections, and the bronze frets. I would characterize it as dark and growling. Not in a bad way. But it's baked in, kind of like the single coil sparkly twang of a strat. Can't be EQ'd out.
Click to expand...
Agreed on all points. Its a sort of murky, burpy, darkness but with plenty of zing to cut the mix. Tons of character in those mids.
 
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