Warwick VS. Musicman

[Dincrest]

I'm a Warwick fanboy. I love my 1997 Warwick Corvette (with wenge neck and brass nut.) However, I chose the Stingray. The gentleman I bought my Corvette from is an exclusive MM user now (though he loved his 'wick and almost didn't want to sell it) and I can see why. The Warwick Corvette is like pure Id. It's a wild, untamed beast that can be a tad unpredictable. Awesome, awesome bass, but not the most forgiving. On the other hand, when I played a friend's Sterling, I felt it to be a more "forgiving" bass (and lighter in weight too.) Where the Warwick is like a wild wolf, the Sterling was more like a Doberman Pinscher- it has a scary streak, but is more trainable.

Both are awesome basses. But I think the upcoming dual humbucker 'rays and the dual pickup (either J-MM or MM-MM) Bongos are worth checking out.

 

[sLiPkNoT_mAgGoT]

*What* EBMM?

you cant be serious

 

[HeavyDuty]

you cant be serious

I probably should have typed "*Which* EBMM?"

His poll choice said "Ernieball Music Man Standard 3-EQ 4 String Bass" - which model would that be? A StingRay? A Sterling? A Bongo? A Sabre?

 

[ScottyBoy]

I have owned 2 musicmans in the past and currently own 2 warwick corvettes. I didnt vote becuase neither of them are 'better' than the other - just different.
Completely different beasts. THe initial poll was "Which one in general is a better bass. For instance, which is more versatile, fatter, and nicer quality"
Versatile - I would have to say the warwick you get more tones totally becuase of the pickup config - of course you can't get the stingray tone as good as a stingray
Fatter - I think the musicman
Nicer Quality - I have had no quality issues with either.

I miss the stingray tone but I really like the bridge pickup tone I can get with the warwicks.
One day I would like to get another (not replace ) a stingray (or bongo!) back into the fold.

So in summary boys & girls - neither is 'better' than the other.

 

[WOOFMAN]

Warwick has the definite advantage in their fleet of basses. They include:
Corvette Standard
Corvette $$ (Double Buck)
Corvette "Hot Rod
Corvette FNA Jazzman
Corvette FNA Jazzman LTD
Corvette ProLine
Thumb Bolt-on
Thumb Bleached Blonde LTD 2003
Katana Bolt-on
Streamer CT
Streamer Jazzman
Buzzard Bolt-on
Dolphin SN
Jack Bruce
Vampyre SN
Infinity SN
Katana
Triumph
Streamer Stage I
Thumb
Streamer Stage II
The Cruiser -
Dolphin Pro I
Infinity LTD
Buzzard LTD
Vampyre LTD
Alien Stage Acoustic
Fortress-One
Fortress-One Masterman


Most of these can be custom ordered. On the other hand, the Ernie Ball bass selection includes:

Stingray
Sub
Sterling
Bongo
Plus a few others and Customs basses.

I really don't think you can even come close to comparing these two bass builders products without insulting anyone. So, I would have to pick the Wick's over the Mm, just because of so many different combinations and added fluff that you can order with your bass. A better comparison would be Peavey vs. Musicman.

Just my thoughts on this. Also, I realize that these are incomplete list of bass that are inproduction or past production.

 

[bovinehost]

Ray all the way...you kidding me???

This guy knows what he's talking about.

 

[niftydog]

where is this myth that corvettes are heavier than stingrays coming from!?!?

The heaviest corvette is listed on the Warwick site as 4.2kg or 9 pounds 4.2 ounces, or thereabouts. And that's a 6 string!!!

The stingray 4 string is 9 pounds 5 ounces!

This twigged with me because I own a corvette and a stingray (both 4 string) and my shoulder will tell you which one is heavier!

oh, and here's a friendly neighbourhood reminder for the next time someone thinks of posing one of these "what's the best x?" threads:

sub·jec·tive (sb-jktv)
adj.

Particular to a given person; personal: subjective experience.

No right, no wrong, no best, no worst, just opinion.

 

[karandy29]

The ray, has smaller neck, and more modern sound, but the low is not the one i wanted, the Warwick has much more better low! one of the best slap tones, big growl, but ray has one of the best slap tones too.

The warwick has a very thick neck and flat, quite uncomfortable for me, the ray has smaller neck, The action on the warwick is not too comfortable, and the it can't be any lower because of the Bridge that won't let it to be any lower, the Ray has better bridge in my opinion, fully adjustable.

The ray looks cool in my opinion, wide range of tone, and with Extra piezo the tapping sound can be excellent! and i prefer the 5 stringer because it has pickup selector.

So, even though the Ray seems to have better neck and bridge, i still prefer the Corvette! it is excellent bass, and if you are a slappers, this is the choice for you! Warwick also best in rock, pop, metal. I love Warwicks!

p.s. warwick is damn heavy! lol

 

[Dude]

The heaviest corvette is listed on the Warwick site as 4.2kg or 9 pounds 4.2 ounces, or thereabouts. And that's a 6 string!!!

Own a digital scale??

How in the hell can any manufacturer post individual bass weights per model on a website is what I want to know??

 

[HotTubesGrooves]

I think by heaviest corvette he means the generic weight of the bubinga model, as opposed to the swamp ash corvettes that are significantly lighter.

Obviously Warwick dont weigh each bass and post its weight, and the density of the woods used on each piece will affect the weight slightly, but its a good rough indication.

 

[ras1983]

in response to karandy29;

my ears (and hands) prefer the slap tone and feel of the ray. I thinks its bassically the slapping standard, isn't it?

 

[cgworkman]

StingRay. Period.

 

[bassjigga]

Personally, I find Warwicks to be a bit dark and merky sounding. Definitely go for the Stingray.

 

[bassplayer7770]

I've tried similarly priced Warwick and Music Man models, and I own a Sterling...if that tells you anything...

 

[Lebowski]

I own both a Stingray and a Thumb bass. Being that it was between a Stingray and the Corvette, I take the Stingray hands down. But between the Stingray and the Thumb... well I bought both.

 

[cgworkman]

I guess I'm kinda surprised with the overwhelming devotion to MM. Don't get me wrong I agree 100%, I'm just surprised because we are always hearing someone bark about their Warwick.

 

[Dub56]

I have both, and like both.
They're very different beasts, and they both get about equal use.

 

[Joe Nerve]

My first love was Warwick. Played a lot of them and settled on a Corvette. After a few months of owning it I started to realize something was terribly wrong. The bass was incredible heavy, and while it was the deepest sounding bass I ever owned, it seemed nearly impossible to tame it's tone. It was either as muddy as hell, or it clicked and clacked like mutha. I dig in pretty hard, and my style just wasn't working with it.

Bought a Sterling (not a Stingray, but a MM nontheless - and close enough). Within 6 months it's all I used.

Bought a Bongo a couple of years after that.

Sold my Sterling and my Warwick.

Bongo destroys all as far as I'm concerned.

 

[HotTubesGrooves]

I've actually never played a musicman of any description, although I've had the oppurtunity to. I do dig the tone, but they seem to lack a certain mojo (in my opinion! before I get flamed ).

Like I said I think they sound great, but I'm happy with my choice of Warwick... or I will be when it ACTUALLY ARRIVES... :scowl:

 

[niftydog]

How in the hell can any manufacturer post individual bass weights per model on a website is what I want to know??

Why not? It's perfectly reasonable. They're not giving you the exact weight right down to nanograms, it's just an indication of the approximate weight of each model.