Thumb BO balance matter

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xkomo

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Hey,

please help.
Do you have any experience of a thumb bolt on?
I found a second hand 5 string fretless thumb on the internet but I don't know if they balance well.
Do they???
 
Hey Xkomo. Thumb BO's do not balance well, they have a serious neck dive issue.

But they do sound and look awesome :)
 
I believe the body is smaller and lighter than say a Corvette thus causing some neck dive. I have a Corvette 5 string that balances perfectly at any height. However every bass is different so I recommend strapping it on if possible and trying it out.
 
xkomo said:
Hey,

please help.
Do you have any experience of a thumb bolt on?
I found a second hand 5 string fretless thumb on the internet but I don't know if they balance well.
Do they???
Click to expand...

Only you can answer that question mate.
Some people swear it balances well, while others cant cope with it.
 
Its got alot to do with the height of the bass on you. The Thumb seems like it was originally designed for slap-happy maniacs, where the bass sits fairly high on the body. Ive noticed in past with other basses that they tend to dive more if theyre sitting lower.
 
I own a Thumb BO; it's a 4 string 2009 model (with the new neck profile). So what I'm about to say, it's based entirely on my experience related to my bass.
The way I see it, the bass was designed for a specific job and thus it balances in a particular way: it tends to sit parallel to the ground. The higher you strap it, the better (when strapped at belt level it tends so sit in that "thumb position" I've just mentioned). So it doesn't have actual neckdive. But like I said, mine is a 4 string model, I presume things are different when playing a 5er (I have a 5er Vette and it does have a bit of neckdive, compared to my 4 string Corvette which is perfectly balanced).

There are ways to compensate this small issue - in my case a wide leather strap (a Dunlop BMF) solved the problem in no time ;) Just make sure the strap's surface facing your body is made of a material that allows good gripping. Mine has metal spikes and those add to its mass, making it heavy enough to hold the bass in a fix position.
 
Search bar this - you're going to get a bunch of different opinions and solutions. I will say this - my Thumb 5 BO does have actual neck dive. If I let it go it wants to sit parallel, and if I shake my shoulders a bit the headstock sinks to the ground. However I believe if I swap tuners with Hipshot Ultralites and it should really help the situation.

I wish Warwick would consider offering/designing their own ultralite tuner that comes standard on all Warwick basses. The company has a penchant for small bodied basses so I think this would help every and all Warwick bass. I mean, there's no such thing as body dive, and if a bass balances well, it'll sit in any position, angled or parallel to the ground, without any trouble.

I'd install ultralites on my Vampyre too, but it'd be a crime to touch an LTD like that!
 
hey thefitz...
I never listened to a thumb bo fretless, have you got any sound sample of it?
 
Only you can answer that question mate.
Some people swear it balances well, while others cant cope with it.
Click to expand...

I would agree. I'm one of the ones who thinks it balances just fine. But in another thread somewhere in warwick forum land, Flo described Thumbs as a "Heavy Unbalanced Bitch" of a bass. I have heard alot of people say the same. But in the end i think it all comes down to personal preference. Strap one on and give it a go. See if your back likes it or not. That's really the only way to tell.:d
 
I think the lite tuners are a great idea, especially because they will benefit most Warwicks. The W headstock is kind of big (which is a Good Idea(tm) actually, and like mentioned, the bodies are generally small. Don't know if it is economically feasible though. IMHO W should be brave and make design changes on their basses. It's a pity for certain basses with killer tone to be a non-option to some players. Perhaps it does not sound very proper tradition-wise, but it will make older Warwicks pretty special too. (for those who choose to play them)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
+ 1 for light weight tuners.
Anything that reduces weight is a plus, especially for us older model players who's muscles are rapidly turning to mush.
Yanii, you should check out the 4 string headstocks. They're so petite & cute.
 
1998 TBO (wenge neck) here. The outer horn is below the 12th fret so it's balance is horrendous. Fortunately there are 2 easy fixes: the aforementioned light weight tuners and a thick, padded strap. I use the former and have gone through gigs just fine.
 
IngerAlb said:
I own a Thumb BO; it's a 4 string 2009 model (with the new neck profile). So what I'm about to say, it's based entirely on my experience related to my bass.
The way I see it, the bass was designed for a specific job and thus it balances in a particular way: it tends to sit parallel to the ground. The higher you strap it, the better (when strapped at belt level it tends so sit in that "thumb position" I've just mentioned). So it doesn't have actual neckdive. But like I said, mine is a 4 string model, I presume things are different when playing a 5er (I have a 5er Vette and it does have a bit of neckdive, compared to my 4 string Corvette which is perfectly balanced).

There are ways to compensate this small issue - in my case a wide leather strap (a Dunlop BMF) solved the problem in no time ;) Just make sure the strap's surface facing your body is made of a material that allows good gripping. Mine has metal spikes and those add to its mass, making it heavy enough to hold the bass in a fix position.
Click to expand...

This sums it up quite nicely.

I got a 5 string version, and the higher you wear it, the lesser the balance is an issue.
 
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