# Warwick Pro Series



## guy in latvia (Jun 19, 2014)

Hi guys, wanted to ask about your opinions and experiences with the Warwick Korean made basses. I'm personally looking into getting a 5 string Corvette. I hear the electronics are average at best, but the woods and build quality is great. What say you?


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## bassincognito (Jun 19, 2014)

I haven't owned one, but from playing them in music stores I'd say they're comparable to their german counter parts for a much more reasonable price. They certainly have the warwick sound. I believe they use the same pickups as the german models but I don't know about the preamp. I'd be replacing the preamp if I bought one.
FWIW I think most warwicks could use a new preamp as I hate 2 band pres.


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## bvdrummer (Jun 20, 2014)

IIRC, I think Andy Irvine has a Youtube review for the Korean Thumb Bolt-On 5 Pro, and he said all the hardware and electronics are the same; it's just the wood and finish that are different.


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## bvdrummer (Jun 20, 2014)

This is the video I'm thinking of. I'm at work so I don't have time to watch it and see if that's true, but hopefully this is the one.


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## coffeeflush (Jun 20, 2014)

My band mate used to use one, I don't know how it compares to other bass's in its league but it sounds amazing with stock electronics and pickups. The wood is really nice and the build quality seems really nice as well.


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## Fathand (Jun 21, 2014)

I have been looking into them too, as I want a unlined fretless bass. They seem pretty solid on the price/spec/quality front and are my number one option at this point. 

But on thing that I noticed is that even though they advertise that the hardware is the same that the German basses have... not quite so. The German pro series has the same bridge & nut, but nowadays all other (more expensive) German made basses have the solid brass bridge & nut. Don't know about the tuners, they might be the same in all price ranges. 

And it might be that the non brass bridge / nut setup is still the same that they used before on most of the german made basses - I've had a couple of those and it's good stuff. Reliable and well made. 

The MEC pickups/electronics are a love/hate thing. I think they are decent enough and contribute to the "warwick sound". They can however, when passive, be a bit too dark sounding in some situations. The 2-band EQ helps with that.


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## karjim (Jun 21, 2014)

Great basses indeed.
Be careful guys, they stopped the production of the Pro Series....It's done untill a new line come out.
Little Story:
We had a Warwick Pro Corvette $$ and it was stolen....When we decided to buy another one on Thomann DE, they have disappeared... 
I asked to a guitar shop who contacted Warwick Europe. They said "We don't produce this Pro Series anymore, the ones you could see in stores are the last"
"Damn it ! Gimme one quickly"
"Ok Sir, I still have one, Corvette Standard 1250 Euros, available in two weeks"
"Shut up and take my money"
Then 2 weeks later, I saw Pro Series back on Thomann website !!!?? 
Before the price was around 1200 1500 euros (1500 1800$) and now I can see them at 725 Euros (1000$).....What the frog ????? They are cheaper than the RockBass (Chinese budget line production ) !!!
Back to my shop, show them the website, they were very very bad for me. We contacted Warwick France, a douche told us it's 1250 Euros or nothing, I don't care about Thomann, and I don't know (understand Idon't want to tell you) how Thomann sell these basses for half of the price.
We canceled the order, and ordered one on Thomann. The bass has arrived last week, great instrument, I can't see any thing justifying the price....What a deal !!!
Now there is why Thomann sell them so cheap, they bought all of the Pro Series left in Europe...Warwick sold them for nothing and there is a fvckin graet deal for the one who wants one !!!
So check out Thomann, they are cheaper than RockBass shits !!!! I think they won't be there too much time, I'm sure I'm not the only one who know this story


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## Fathand (Jun 21, 2014)

Damn, if that's so it does explain some of the ridiculously low prices.. I wonder if the German Pro series is replacing the Korean one in the mid price segment? If they can get the German Pro's down to around 900-1500, it would make sense. I don't really even know what they go for right now, I haven't seen them anywhere (the German Pro's).


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## karjim (Jun 21, 2014)

It doesn't exist...You have the German Factory with high end basses: from 2300 Euros to 10 000 and more. You had the Pro Series built in Korean and checked in Germany and then you have the RockBass Warwick which is Chinese.
As I told to my friend I can't imagine some brand decided to eliminate the middle range instruments....I think they want to purpose a new line as soon as the Pro Series is done.
Or....Or they decided to stop because the Korean factory wasn't cheap enough and the merges were to slim.Grab a Chinese shit or sell a kidney for our custom shop...This is a world wild business !


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## Fathand (Jun 21, 2014)

karjim said:


> It doesn't exist...You have the German Factory with high end basses: from 2300 Euros to 10 000 and more. You had the Pro Series built in Korean and checked in Germany and then you have the RockBass Warwick which is Chinese.
> As I told to my friend I can't imagine some brand decided to eliminate the middle range instruments....I think they want to purpose a new line as soon as the Pro Series is done.
> Or....Or they decided to stop because the Korean factory wasn't cheap enough and the merges were to slim.Grab a Chinese shit or sell a kidney for our custom shop...This is a world wild business !



But they do, they do: (at least on the internets )

en/Warwick---Products--by-series--German-Pro-Serie--German-Pro-Serie.html

Basically the same as the more expensive "Made in Germany" ones, but with downgraded harware etc. But like I said, I haven't seen these for sale anywhere..


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## karjim (Jun 25, 2014)

Well I see I didn't know that German Serie.Thx ...Maybe it will be out during this year...That could explain why Korean Pro Series have disappeared...They want to develop a new German line


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## guy in latvia (Jun 25, 2014)

Thanks for all the info guys, looks like I'm going to be picking one up as soon as I get my paycheck!

Btw, I mainly need this as a recording bass since I'm tired of my cheap bass always sounding...well...cheap. Do you think it makes sense to upgrade the preamp anyway?


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## bvdrummer (Jun 25, 2014)

guy in latvia said:


> Thanks for all the info guys, looks like I'm going to be picking one up as soon as I get my paycheck!
> 
> Btw, I mainly need this as a recording bass since I'm tired of my cheap bass always sounding...well...cheap. Do you think it makes sense to upgrade the preamp anyway?



This will not be a cheap bass, so if you change the preamp it wouldn't be for that reason. I had a Corvette & I loved the tone. I thought the preamp sounds very neutral - the bass almost sounds the same unplugged as plugged in. 

_But_ it did only have a 2 band eq, whereas I prefer 3 or 4 band for more tone shaping on the fly. But if you like the tone an external eq can work just as well.


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## guy in latvia (Jun 25, 2014)

Thanks for that info, since I always try to record my bass as neutral and balanced sounding as possible, then it really shouldn't be a problem.


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