Warwick make big changes.

[timmo]

What difference will it make from having a bass made in Germany, or Korea? I assume the electronics will be the same as the Korean made, as they are German. I assume the shape of the bass and neck will be the same. I assume they will be made in the same way. The only difference will be stamped German. Will it be a lot different or better?

[Silvia Bluejay]

I imagine it will be a matter of quality control. I struggle to think that a bass with a bridge mounted the way I describe above would have been given the go ahead for shipping, had it been made in Germany.
The non-functioning fretted bass I got last year, when I bought my first Korean Pro Series, which had a faulty knob and no output at all and which I had to return to Thomann for exchange, may actually have been the result of QC issues as opposed to being mangled in transit. Even the one I got in return, and love dearly, had a defective strap button and I had to replace the screw with a larger one.

[CamdenRob]

I had a thumb NT6 for a brief period last year and when you took the strings off the bridge fell apart, just a matter of tightening everything up in the end but it was a little disconcerting... It was an exceptional instrument though...

[Annoying Twit]

Where would something like this have fitted into the Warwick line-up? (Custom Shop, Pro Series). I realise that this is from 2007, and that the past is a foreign country and they do things different there. But, I'm just curious.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Warwick-Corvette-NT-LTD-2007-AAAA-Koa-Top-4-string-Electric-bass-right-handed-/221685213883?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item339d77eabb

Would that have been a custom shop bass in its day? Or was the range different back then?

(Aside: I do know that this is being sold by a basschatter, I apologise for not feeling that I can justify spending that much on a bass.

[Grangur]

[quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1423641713' post='2687248']
Where would something like this have fitted into the Warwick line-up? (Custom Shop, Pro Series). I realise that this is from 2007, and that the past is a foreign country and they do things different there. But, I'm just curious.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Warwick-Corvette-NT-LTD-2007-AAAA-Koa-Top-4-string-Electric-bass-right-handed-/221685213883?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item339d77eabb

Would that have been a custom shop bass in its day? Or was the range different back then?

(Aside: I do know that this is being sold by a basschatter, I apologise for not feeling that I can justify spending that much on a bass.
[/quote]

That looks great value to me and I'd say that's a hight level bass. Due to the date Musicavenger would call that a cr*p bass, but I beg to differ. I've got 3 basses from that era. I've stil yet to hear anyone who says that qualify what's wrong with them.

I've heard idiots tell me they've all got fat necks, but my 3 don't.

[Annoying Twit]

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1423642796' post='2687260']
That looks great value to me and I'd say that's a hight level bass. Due to the date Musicavenger would call that a cr*p bass, but I beg to differ. I've got 3 basses from that era. I've stil yet to hear anyone who says that qualify what's wrong with them.

I've heard idiots tell me they've all got fat necks, but my 3 don't.
[/quote]

It's a limited edition, so not a custom shop. I presume that would have it fitting somewhere between the Pro Series and the Custom Shop of today. Though, visually I couldn't imagine asking the custom shop to make it look any different if I won the lottery and was buying something in the thousands. My eyes popped out on stalks the first time I saw it.

[molan]

The information in this thread about the Pro series isn't technically correct.

I'm not sure if it's 'allowed' to be released yet though.

I'll try and find out and update things if it's approved

Prices are available as well (and have been for some time) but again it may be that Warwick are not releasing them to the public yet. I'll try and find this out as well.

[bartelby]

There's new prices on the website, a WGPS Corvette 4 string is around €1100 - €1400

Edited February 11, 2015 by bartelby

[Lw.]

I think just the fact they say Germany on them over any of the Asian countries will be a big selling point - same as USA/Mexican Fenders.

Am I imagining things or is/was there talk of being able to put "Made in Germany" on a product that's made somewhere else so long as a certain % comes from inside the EU? ie Send a load of German wood & electronics to Asia to be put together & you can still call it German? I may have completely dreamed that up but I'm sure I saw it somewhere.

There's talk on the Warwick forums of the GPS basses not having bell brass frets which would be a shame as that used to be one of Warwicks selling points (though I don't know if it actually makes a difference).

On the neck front (of the older basses); you can't really blame Warwick for moving away from Wenge for a while considering the lengths they would have had to go to in order to get some, I've been very happy with the sound & feel Ovangkol neck, sure it's not quite as attractive as Wenge but it's still nicer than Maple for this kind of bass. The shape from the 00's was always more of a lopsided D than other brands & feels good once you get used to it. The only people I've known personally to struggle with it was people that play with their thumb wrapped around the side of the neck rather than in the middle of the back.

[Grangur]

[quote name='Lw.' timestamp='1423655536' post='2687438']
I think just the fact they say Germany on them over any of the Asian countries will be a big selling point - same as USA/Mexican Fenders.

Am I imagining things or is/was there talk of being able to put "Made in Germany" on a product that's made somewhere else so long as a certain % comes from inside the EU? ie Send a load of German wood & electronics to Asia to be put together & you can still call it German? I may have completely dreamed that up but I'm sure I saw it somewhere.

There's talk on the Warwick forums of the GPS basses not having bell brass frets which would be a shame as that used to be one of Warwicks selling points (though I don't know if it actually makes a difference).

On the neck front (of the older basses); you can't really blame Warwick for moving away from Wenge for a while considering the lengths they would have had to go to in order to get some, I've been very happy with the sound & feel Ovangkol neck, sure it's not quite as attractive as Wenge but it's still nicer than Maple for this kind of bass. The shape from the 00's was always more of a lopsided D than other brands & feels good once you get used to it. The only people I've known personally to struggle with it was people that play with their thumb wrapped around the side of the neck rather than in the middle of the back.
[/quote]
This will be a trade thing generally. It won't be about instruments alone. I doubt that wood that has passed through German hands ( I doubt it's German grown wood) would qualify it to be a German product if it's crafted, shaped and assembled in the East.

Someone posted about the nut falling apart when the strings were removed. I have to agree there. The plastic nuts weren't a good move. I've replaced all of mine with brass Just-a-nut IIIs. It really does make a better sound and sustain. Not cheap at about £50 a throw, but worth doing.

[Lw.]

Yes I did mean products in general not just instruments, I guess we'll find all the information out in time.

Just checked the specs; no brass frets on the GPS basses. Never mind.

[BigRedX]

I'll be looking at the new Pro Series Star Bass with interest. I think the MiK instruments were discontinued because they were too good compared with the MiG instruments, but had too high a price point compared with other basses made in Korea (IMO they only became good VFM when Thomann started discounting them by 50% or more).

As for overall quality my MiK Star Bass is a far more playable (for me) instrument than either of the MiG Star Bass that I had previously tried (and IMO it looks better).

Edited February 11, 2015 by BigRedX

[timmo]

I must have been lucky with my streamer. I haven't had any quality issues yet,although I have only had ot around 3 months

[Graham]

[quote name='Lw.' timestamp='1423655536' post='2687438']
I think just the fact they say Germany on them over any of the Asian countries will be a big selling point - same as USA/Mexican Fenders.

Am I imagining things or is/was there talk of being able to put "Made in Germany" on a product that's made somewhere else so long as a certain % comes from inside the EU? ie Send a load of German wood & electronics to Asia to be put together & you can still call it German? I may have completely dreamed that up but I'm sure I saw it somewhere.

[/quote]

From an export controls perspective, the country of origin is defined as the country where the last major change was made to the item, so I don't think that would fly for export compliance. I'm not sure if you can get away as marketing something as made in country a, but declare the country of origin as country b

I'll ask our compliance officer at work to clarify it tomorrow

[Machines]

Yeah i'm going with this too. My Korean one really feels the same as a German and there is no visual difference. I think the best value instruments in the world are coming from Korea and Indonesia at the moment.

[tbonepete]

Hmmm,
I'd really like a thumb5, and I'm not that fussy whether it's a bolt on, or neck thru, but the new pro series does nothing for me, and I can't see one in the custom series, and in any case I wouldn't be paying the £££ that are on the price list. It's a used German thumb for me as and when the time is right. To me a thumb is wenge neck, brass nut, bell brass frets, black hardware, bubinga body. These new "pro" series have none of these as far as I can see, and as one of (if not the first) the original Warwick models I hardly see this as a custom line bass (of course if you want different woods/elecs etc,then it would be a custom line). Looks just like the Korean bass so might as well keep production of the cheaper lines over there rather than invent a new name for the same thing. Fame probably does something in similar woods/elecs for way less.........

Edited February 12, 2015 by tbonepete

[Annoying Twit]

[quote name='Graham' timestamp='1423674678' post='2687834']
From an export controls perspective, the country of origin is defined as the country where the last major change was made to the item, so I don't think that would fly for export compliance. I'm not sure if you can get away as marketing something as made in country a, but declare the country of origin as country b

I'll ask our compliance officer at work to clarify it tomorrow
[/quote]

I'm surprised that more companies don't do what Edwards does (I think). Which is to do much of the work on some of their guitar ranges in China, but finish them off in Japan. Provided that the materials are good and quality control of the early stages is reasonable, I can't see how they would be worse than an instrument fully made in Japan. That must save a lot of money.

[Kev]

[quote name='molan' timestamp='1423646011' post='2687301']
The information in this thread about the Pro series isn't technically correct.

I'm not sure if it's 'allowed' to be released yet though.

I'll try and find out and update things if it's approved

Prices are available as well (and have been for some time) but again it may be that Warwick are not releasing them to the public yet. I'll try and find this out as well.
[/quote]
I remember reading somewhere that the new German Pro Series are actually being assembled in different factories throughout Germany, rather than in Markneukirchin, is this what you mean?

[molan]

[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1423682505' post='2687950']

I remember reading somewhere that the new German Pro Series are actually being assembled in different factories throughout Germany, rather than in Markneukirchin, is this what you mean?
[/quote]

All I think we can say at the moment is that there isn't any far-eastern manufacture involved.

My understanding is that there's enough of the manufacture undertaken in Germany to have a 'made in Germany' tag as approved under EU regulations for both marketing and export.

[Silvia Bluejay]

That sounds good, Barrie, and thanks for providing some actual facts. We no longer have a Warwick rep on board to answer even simple questions, so your info matters even more now.

[Bronner]

Bought a German made corvette fretless about 15(?) years ago (too long ago to remember the exact year) for USD $400 + tax new. So, I'm shocked by the new prices. Didn't even know the Warwick company when I bought it, just picked up the bass, tried it, and realized it was a brilliant bass for a brilliant price.

Corvette is a lovely bass, even though it's not 100% what I really want today, but I have this feeling the new Asian ones sound better. The pickups on the older ones are a little bit lifeless for arrangements that are heavier (rock / blues-rock), but the wood and construction is first-rate. Anybody else feel the same?

If anyone wants a double-bass sound for Jazz, the older corvettes do that brilliantly; they *almost* sound like a great substitute for an acoustic bass (really gorgeous and organic tone), but when used in heavier music (rock / blues) they get a bit lost in the mix easily. So to sum up, if you play Jazz, the older corvettes feel like you're sliding around naked on silk sheets, but if you're going for a more modern lead fretless sound, you may find yourself wishing your corvette could somehow morph into a Wal.

[quote name='bluejay' timestamp='1423605212' post='2687044']
One more reason to install flats on a fretless!
[/quote]

Hi Bluejay, I had rounds on the corvette to add a little zip to the sound for heavier music. It still didn't work out for me on that particular bass. As much as I tried to make the corvette a blues-rock bass, it wants to be a jazz bass and flats probably would work better.

Edited February 12, 2015 by Bronner

[Lw.]

[quote name='Bronner' timestamp='1423724690' post='2688231']
Corvette is a lovely bass, even though it's not 100% what I really want today, but I have this feeling the new Asian ones sound better. The pickups on the older ones are a little bit lifeless for arrangements that are heavier (rock / blues-rock), but the wood and construction is first-rate. Anybody else feel the same?
[/quote]

Interesting you think that as I thought the complete opposite about my fretted corvette. I found it cut through the mix very strongly when I was playing heavy music (and indeed it still does) but when I joined a more pop-rock band it was at times a bit too growly so I bought a Jazz for a more scaled back sound.

Maybe it's a fretted/fretless thing. Do they use a different fingerboard wood on the fretless as opposed to Wenge?

[Silvia Bluejay]

[quote name='Bronner' timestamp='1423724690' post='2688231']
Hi Bluejay, I had rounds on the corvette to add a little zip to the sound for heavier music. It still didn't work out for me on that particular bass. As much as I tried to make the corvette a blues-rock bass, it wants to be a jazz bass and flats probably would work better.
[/quote]

I don't use rounds anymore these days, so I tend to use the EQ on the bass and/or on the amp to get a suitable sound for the song I'm playing. Personally, I'm happy with the Corvette for rock, but I do see your point about jazz as well.

[quote name='Lw.' timestamp='1423739771' post='2688407']
Maybe it's a fretted/fretless thing. Do they use a different fingerboard wood on the fretless as opposed to Wenge?
[/quote]

Tiger ebony on mine.

[ColinB]

There's certainly something happening at Warwick........

[Silvia Bluejay]

I love that! Pity they only make it in righty models.

Slightly off-topic, but I'd like to mention the thread I've created about the problem with my Corvette's bridge. Pics 'n all - here: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/255630-fixing-a-dodgy-brige-on-a-2010-korean-warwick-corvette-pro/"]http://basschat.co.uk/topic/255630-fixing-a-dodgy-brige-on-a-2010-korean-warwick-corvette-pro/[/url]
And big thanks to Liam (Bartelby)

Edited February 12, 2015 by bluejay