How Do You Choose One Model Over Another?

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mcbrinitzer

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I'm new to Warwick and have been reading this fabulous forum and learning a ton. Thank you all for making this a great resource. One thing I haven't figured out -- probably I just haven't search it correctly -- is why people would pick one model over another. I'm looking at a Corvette 4 string standard (German made) because it seems to be an inexpensive introduction, and I get that there is a lot of variety between 4,5,& 6 string models, pickup configurations, passive vs active, fretted vs. fretless, production periods, county of manufacture, woods, NT vs. bolt-on, and so on.

But I'm curious about why someone prefers a Thumb or a Streamer over a Corvette. People seem to love the Warwick tone even in the model I'm looking at. Is there a simple answer to this question (ha ha)?
 
Three kwestions:
1) what do you want it to sound like? warm, bright, tight, bottom-y, mid-rich, good lowB, sharp attack, long sustain? that will give you timbers, pickups and pickup placements to think about
2) how do you want it to sit on your body? up high with a long reach (thumb) medium (streamer), Neck up (dolphin/fortress) of course you can wear them all differently but they do have inherent balance tendencies
3) how do you want it to look? more traditional (streamer CV/star bass) warwick classic (thumb/or Ned steirberger's streamer shape) out there (dolphin) or rock and roll hallucination (buzzard)

These factors are driven by your tastes and the type of music you are playing.

Simple! ;)
 
Welcome to the Warwick family,

Lots to answer here but you will notice the body shape to start,

Corvettes, thumbs, steamers etc – choose which ever catches your eye, some people love the standard streamer shape and some people love the crazy buzzard shape for example.

I don’t believe the shape of the body has anything to do with sound, it’s just cosmetics. (or whatever the band members ALLOW you to have like you wouldn’t show up to a jazz band with a vampire model body haha)

Woods can vary between the types of bodies,

- you can find bubinga and ovankal thumbs,
- bubinga, ash, maple, (alder rockbass?) corvettes,
- streamer stage 1 – Cherry(old)/maple.
- LX can be maple/cherry (pro sers?),
- maple and ash fortress,
- maple and zebrano infinities.

(I’m not going to list them all)..

There is lots of combinations, but you will find that you could find your preferred wood for your preferred body shape the majority of the time. And you will notice a lot of the same combinations across all models.

Choosing a wood can come down to the weight - for example bubinga is quite heavy compared to maple. That’s preference. I wouldn’t say one is better than the other.

Wood affects sound as well as a bubinga bass would sound very different to a maple bass.

Then there is pickup configs p/j, J/J, MM etc, - a lot of models have the same pickup configs like the LX/SS1/SS2 (5) and the Corvettes which are j/j. Stage 1/LX 4/fortess 4 strings are pj. you can usually find your preferred body, wood and pick up config bass generally if it’s a standard setup across all models as well.

Choosing BO over NT really comes down to price as NTs are generally more expensive. There is lots of debate regarding the sound difference between BO and NT. It all sounds like bass to me…

Passive/active – well I have all active basses that can bypass the pre anyway but I prefer the active electrics. I personally think active sounds great. But that’s preference anyway, I don’t think you will find any passive Warwick basses other than the corvette and fortress models anyway,

Country of origin – 3 levels, German (Warwick), Korea (Pro series) and china (Rockbass). They use the same electronics and hardware, same woods (most modles) as the German made. Some may argue the “build quality” between a German made and the foreign made models. Some people would say they are just as good. Really depends on your $$ as generally Germans are more expensive than say a Chinese made model. But saying that, you could find a used German corvette for less than a brand new Chinese Rockbass corvette.

Fretted and fretless, well that’s a different kettle of fish haha

The Warwick “tone” your referring to would be the wood used to make the model you are looking at. Assumingly you’re looking at a Bubinga corvette so the bubinga body, ovk neck and wenge FB has a very distinct sound mixed with MEC pickups. I can tell the difference between a Warwick and Fender for example.

How to choose? Good question, preference, $$ really ;) and the availability. Some person may really want a maple corvette but have to wait months for one to pop up for sale.

I would suggest to check out as many youtube vids as you can there are many really high quality Warwick demos which I drool over.

That’s my 2 cents anyway, I tried to cover everything haha

If you got any specific questions about a specific bass then ask here, I’m no professional but there are many here.

I think the Corvettes are great basses and you won’t be disappointed.

Kind regards,
 
Ummm... We don't... We save up and buy one of each... You have a lot to learn grasshopper.
 
I didn't choose one.
I chose all Warwick basses but they are just in a queue.
 
So far nothing conclusive, though great posts are in place.
I just bought a bunch of 2nd hand german wicks to find out I dig Dolphins most.
Had a Thumb NT, SS1 5str, Streamer Pro-M, three Dolphin pro1's and played several corvettes & thumbs in shops.

The only way to find out is really to play them... There's no shortcuts here.
 
It's a bit of trial and error, a bit of aesthetic preference, and a lot of experience and growth. I started with a Corvette Standard 4, and was amazed when I got it because I finally owned a real Warwick! But of course, it also made me lust for other models, and I ended up going through about a dozen of them. Only one of them was traded/sold off because I didn't care for it, whereas all the others were only moved off because, while all great basses, they either didn't have the right feel or sound for me. Other times, they were perfectly fine, I just decided I wanted to try something new.

However, I always knew that the Streamer was my favorite model based on looks, and after getting my first (Streamer LX 4), I knew that the body style absolutely worked for me. Then it was just down to the tone, and that's where after you try a whole bunch of basses and research and watch videos, you start to piece together the woods and pups that do and don't work for you. Then, after a while, you can narrow it down to the "right" bass for you. Or basses.

Or you could just be like me, and get bored and buy/sell/trade so you can experience it all. My P-Nut II is the only one that will stay with me forever. I thought the same about my Stage II originally, and held on to it for quite a long time, but actually just sold it (shipping it out today...:( ) so I could try something different. Nothing wrong with the bass, and still one of my all time favorites out there, but the urge to go a different route won over.
 
Ha, ha, I was afraid of that :lol:! Thank you all for your responses, keep them coming.

And I totally understand; the only real way to find the one(s) that works for you is to play them all. I did that with electric guitars and ended up owning a dozen, none of which I have been able to bring myself to sell yet. But, I did find a couple that are "keepers" and have been looking for the motivation to unload the rest. Maybe I have found it. I was just hoping to keep it simple and avoid "BAS" I don't know if you all use that acronym; in guitar world it's called GAS, "guitar acquisition syndrome".
 
Just try them all out. Eventually you will find the one(s) that feel natural.
 
They're extremely comfortable and sit at the perfect playing angle on my shoulder. Even though I do not have a big stomach, the curved/contoured body is very comfortable. You can get a Streamer in many different styles of woods and electronics to suit your needs, and they are all comfortable.
 
I think everyone would agree that this is a matter of taste.

I like Streamers, fore example. Kurt Cobain liked Jaguars and Mustangs, and Jagstangs.
 
I tend to agree if you’re looking to start off go for a streamer or corvette.

LX streamers are great and priced very well lately. They will pretty much suite any style and fit in with any band. Check out the for sale section there are some nice ones. And you can’t go wrong with corvettes either (IMO)

If you start to find yourself really liking them, then you will start to notice yourself moving in the direction of the other styles like thumbs and infinities and you will have a natural love for them (in my case) ;) ive now got myself a German fortress on the way but im yet to touch a dolphin/buzzard/stryker and a few other modles.

So take baby steps id say,
 
Then dream for a thumb for the rest of your life...
 
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