Warwick Basses now available at Sweetwater !

[Hector]

Great News! If anyone is looking to buy a Warwick in the US, you can now get them through Sweetwater!

Warwick | Sweetwater

Buy your Warwick gear from Sweetwater and enjoy ✅ 55-Point Inspections, ✅ 0% Financing, and ✅ FREE Shipping.

www.sweetwater.com

 

[Nachobassman]

That’s cool, let’s see if this kinda solves the apparently endless distribution “issues” in the USA.

 

[Hector]

Here's the video from Sweetwater announcing the availability of Warwick (ok, it's a ad, nbut still cool!)

 

[kimgee]

Note - When I went to post this I saw Hector's post! I am posting this here anyway since I have some observations and questions in my post that are not addressed in his and am too lazy to rewrite it

Sweetwater, one of the BIG online music stores here in the US has started selling Warwicks. And speaking of big, that has to be a win for Warwick in a big way. I have to say though, I am suffering from sticker shock after reviewing the wide selection of Warwicks now available there. It would be awesome if they also start carrying a good assortment of Warwick parts and accessories. I have a couple of questions that maybe the members here that are closer to the source may be able to answer. I only see pro series and masterbuilt. Does that indicate that all finished at the factory in Germany units are masterbuilt? Also, all the natural finish looking units say they have a natural satin finish - not oil. Has Warwick moved away from the natural oil finish? Inquiring minds want to know!

 

[Hector]

Well, everything has gotten more expensive, inflation has hit almost world-wide, plus with what's happening in eastern Europe and the knock-on effects on prices of petrol, gas etc (it requires road and sea transport to get something from Germany to the US), it's not surprising that the cost of instruments has gone up (that and the Euro has also taken a dump recently). I just went to get a burger and the costs had gone up 25% since July of this year.. ouch... Also, I know for a fact that to ship a container from China, the price has gone up 4 times, a container that once cost USD 6'000 (pre-covid) was recently at USD 24'000... So a price increase would not be surprising.

Pro Series (TeamBuilt) and the Custom Shop / MasterBuilt are all made in Germany. Rockbass are made in China.

The website says, for the Ash Corvette, that the finishes available are: Satin / Oil / Oil Colour. So I would think it includes the "wax it every once in a while" finishes. Give me a day or two to confirm.

At the same time, maybe Sweetwater only wanted the satin / gloss finishes? Who knows...

I have to admit, I like the natural oil finishes, waxing it adds to the enjoyment of owning the bass imo, like waxing your car you get to know it better... They also tend to be less expensive

 

[Hector]

I only see pro series and masterbuilt. Does that indicate that all finished at the factory in Germany units are masterbuilt? Also, all the natural finish looking units say they have a natural satin finish - not oil. Has Warwick moved away from the natural oil finish? Inquiring minds want to know!

Clarification:

Natural Oil Finish is now only available on MasterBuilt and Custom Shop basses and not the TeamBuilt (Pro Series).

You can get the natural transparent satin though, which is also very nice

 

[kimgee]

Clarification:

Natural Oil Finish is now only available on MasterBuilt and Custom Shop basses and not the TeamBuilt (Pro Series).

You can get the natural transparent satin though, which is also very nice

Thanks for that, somewhat surprising, info Hector.

 

[Hoggles]

I'm sure many of you already know, but just a fair warning about Sweetwater. If you make the mistake of giving them your information, you might as well have gone to a car dealership, as they will continue to contact you for years to come just checking in to see if you need something. I've actually had to tell them twice over the years to stop contacting me unsolicited. It's a little bit annoying. Commission based sales people, and they are aggressive.

 

[Hector]

I'm sure many of you already know, but just a fair warning about Sweetwater. If you make the mistake of giving them your information, you might as well have gone to a car dealership, as they will continue to contact you for years to come just checking in to see if you need something. I've actually had to tell them twice over the years to stop contacting me unsolicited. It's a little bit annoying. Commission based sales people, and they are aggressive.

This is why I have a pre-paid SIM in a a cheap Nokia handset in addition to my regular mobile, I use it for stuff like this...