Is all about the player :)

[badboy1984]

Was checking some Warwick Rockbass stuff recently and found this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWHG5whMZzc

They all play the cheaper version of the warwick and it all sounded cool.

[louisthebass]

Tone is in the hands - those guys were always going to sound good regardless of how much the instrument costs and where it's manufactured. The Warwick Rockbasses are good for the money. I remember trying out a Corvette 5 string a few years back and being very impressed with it .

[CamdenRob]

I don't really buy the "its all in the fingers" thing... When I play my wal it sounds completely different to when I played my fender or my Warwick.

Obviously I always sounded like me but my fingers would be unable to produce the core timbre of a wal if I was playing a p bass.

[M@23]

[quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1428338543' post='2740388']
I don't really buy the "its all in the fingers" thing... When I play my wal it sounds completely different to when I played my fender or my Warwick.

Obviously I always sounded like me but my fingers would be unable to produce the core timbre of a wal if I was playing a p bass.
[/quote]

I always think it's more to do with note choice, phrasing, timing, groove, etc. The tone will change but not the technique or style so much. Great players sound great regardless usually!

[ezbass]

What that rather nice advert for Warwick did for me was cement what a class act Lee Sklar is; great tone, wonderfully supportive with the odd lovely fill or passing note that makes you go, "Ooh, nice," I'd rather like one of those Star Basses.

[jazzyvee]

[quote name='M@23' timestamp='1428343913' post='2740441']
I always think it's more to do with note choice, phrasing, timing, groove, etc. The tone will change but not the technique or style so much. Great players sound great regardless usually!
[/quote]

+1

[Skybone]

I thought it was "All About That Bass".....

I'll get my coat.

[Lw.]

Every bass has it's tone but there's no getting away from the fact it's the fingers that do the work - I've no doubt if one of those players played on my Warwick & Fender that it would still be easy to tell which was which, they'd both just sound miles better than when I play on them!

Saying that Rockbasses are hardly bargain bucket basses are they? If you're paying £5-600 you'd expect it to sound good.

[Annoying Twit]

I own one of the older passive Rockbass Streamer Standard five strings. I don't claim to be a bass connoisseur, but my impression is that the things that are wrong with it is that the pickups have low output. The tone control doesn't do a great deal. However, both of these problems can be fixed by a decent amp or outboard stuff. I think the basic sound of the pickups is great, they are just too quiet. I'm guessing that the active versions would have plenty of output and much better EQ.

Listening to the video, the sounds they are getting don't sound too different from what I get through my graphic EQ pedal (for tone shaping but also a level boost) and some amp sim. In particular when Andy Irvine is soloing on the newer Streamer Standard at about the 4:30-5:00, that sounds quite generic to me and I feel that the bass can have better sounds coaxed out of it.

I'm also no setup wizard, but I'd say that the only things wrong with mine is that I can't get a super-low action without fret buzz. Investigations with short straight edges suggests that the frets aren't too far off. IMHO, the bass looks and feels good, particularly I like the feel of the neck. I played some real Warwicks at a bass bash last year, and while the German made instruments did have that 'more expensive' feel, it wasn't a huge difference.

BTW: I bought my Rockbass from the classifieds here as about the first thing I did when I arrived in this forum. It cost me £115.