Warwick Thumb Bolt-On 5 vs. Peavey Cirrus 5

If you are buying new, I think the Warwick will hold a greater % of its value on resale, but that amount may still be significantly less than the loss of selling the Peavey. Warwicks are unique and you have to desire that trait, they seem to create a love/hate issue more than other brands.

 

IIRC, the Cirrus has a pretty slim neck, front to back. Warwicks...do not. Also, Cirruses balance well.

...Warwicks do not.

Also, I've never heard anyone have anything bad to say about a Cirrus, ever -- c'ept for the Peavey name on the headstock. I certainly can't say that about Warwicks. And I've heard a lot of people say GREAT things about Cirruses! But...I can say that about Warwicks too.

I've never played a Cirrus, but I've played a thumb, and I can tell you right now -- I was not impressed. BUUUUT, it was after the change to ovangkol and all the other changes that came with that...so a pre-98 one or whatever might be more to your liking. Have a crack at it, and good luck.

 

This is a really good point. I have a 5 string thumb and it does not balance that well. That being said I love the sound and the thick neck suits me really well.

I have played a few Peaveys and was very impressed with their sound and playability. But the neck felt paper thin compared to my thumb.

Just my two cents.

 

I have the thumb 4 and the Cirrus 6

lets put it this way, the Thumb has almost little playing time and is in mint condition.

Oh and I want to sell it.


you know my choice

 

Having owned both a Warwick BO Thumb 6 (for a few months) and several Cirrus 6ers (for many, many years), I'll give you my opinions.

The Thumb was a well built, good quality instrument that I found to be just too "one dimensional" for my taste. It sounded like a Thumb and that's it! Thick, woody, typically Warwick. The neck profile was extremely thick, it was heavey as a bag of anvils and felt like there was a 25lb. weight plate hanging from the end of the headstock all the time no matter what type of strap I used or position I played in.

The Cirrus basses I found to be the best built and best playing basses anywhere near their price range. 35" scale, neck through, fantastic electronics and EQ, slim comfortable neck profile, perfectly balanced, light weight and most importantly INCREDIBLE and VERSATILE TONE! I honestly believe that they sound as good as instruments three times their price.

Were it not for my personal good fortune to have the opportunity to purchase two custom Roscoes a couple months ago, I'd still be playing Cirrus basses exclusively.

 

The clip in this thread played by Secret Donkey is a good example of the Cirrus sound. Judge by yourself.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=126970

 

I purchased my first Cirrus from Gelb Music in Redwood City. There has to be a dealer somewhere that would allow you to purchase one with a return policy.
You may have already checked out peavey.com for their dealer locator.

I'll give you a quick recap of my first Cirrus experience at Gelb music. I went in there very unhappy with my Thumb BO 6. I went in to Gelb with my credit card in hand willing to spend whatever it took to get the sound I was after. I spent a couple of hours pulling every high end 6 off the wall (Modulus, Zon, Ken Smith, etc.) and was absolutely blown away by the Cirrus' tone. When I looked at the price tag I couldn't believe it. The sales rep that was working with me, simply grinned at me and said something to the affect "I know, I can't believe it either! They're THAT good!"
I bought it on the spot and a couple months later bought a fretless Cirrus 6.
Bottom line (in my opinion of course), the Cirrus is worth the risk. Just think about what wood options and colors you like. They make a pretty significant difference in the tone of the Cirrus line. My favorite fretted is a flamed maple/alder with a gloss finish. My favorite fretless is a claro walnut/walnut with a gloss finish.

 

All of the above

I find they play very quick and are light for a 6.

the only thing I find that the Thumb has over the Cirrus is the Warwick growl though nice fingerstyle playing on the cirrus sounds good.

 

Both are great basses, but I prefer the Warwick Thumb. I'm actually going to get a Neck-Thru 4 string Thumb very soon! I love the big neck, the small body and more importantly the tone of Thumbs!

 

Well, I have a Thumb which I definitely prefer over Cirrus (which IMO is a stereotype of "a modern bass sound"). But I'd keep the ray if I were you.

 

Everyone is going to have their personal tastes (Stingray, Thumb, Cirrus, etc.). I personally think that the Cirrus offers a wider variety of tones than the Ray or the Thumb. But that's just me. I found that by utilizing the pups and the eq, I could dial in anything from a beefy P-bass-ish neck pickup tone to the classic Jaco-esque bridge pickup tone and everything in between. I normally played my Cirrus with the pickup balance and eq dead flat or maybe rolled just a tad towards the bridge pickup with a little mid boost. Again, just me.
As far a prices go, the best place that I've found is the Chuck Levin's Washington Music Center just outside of DC. They have a good web site, good customer service and the lowest prices that I've found on most gear. If you're ordering from out of the area you also save on sales tax which is a mother in the Bay Area. I used to live there and I remember it well!
Give them a call and I'm sure they'll hook you up with a sweet price and some type of return policy if you don't like it. You've only got the shipping costs to risk.
Just my opinions as usual.

 

Mmmm.... tough decision.
I own both basses (a Ray 4 and a Cirrus 4).
IMO, the Cirrus is more versatile and has a wider variety of tones. The Ray has a distinctive "signature" sound, it`s also versatile but not as much as the Cirrus. I still prefer the Ray fingerstyle sound to the Cirrus.

I find the Cirrus more comfortable. The neck is slimmer and I prefer it over the P-bass like neck of the Stingray.
It`s easier to play and I can play any technique with it.
I also prefer the way the Cirrus look. Top woods, superb finish, solid hardware.
OTOH, I find it a bit more difficult to play since its 35".

As I said before, tough decision ....

 

I recently played a thumb BO 6 through an SWR rig and I gotta say I wasn't impressed. It actually sounded a lot like my Yamaha rbx765. I'm going to chalk that up to bad strings because I have a hard time getting over that.