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Warwick custom shop


SidVicious1978
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Yes, it should be noted that the Warwick custom shop is extremely pricey. What I find crazy is that they will build you say, a Thumb. Ask them for a Bolt on Thumb, built with the same materials in the same way as the standard, off the rack Thumb and you'll get the same bass but at a monster mark up!

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[quote name='Chris2112' timestamp='1335682323' post='1634462']
Yes, it should be noted that the Warwick custom shop is extremely pricey. What I find crazy is that they will build you say, a Thumb. Ask them for a Bolt on Thumb, built with the same materials[b] in the same way as the standard[/b], off the rack Thumb and you'll get the same bass but at a monster mark up!
[/quote]

And this is where you are wrong. It will be hand-built by one of the company's master craftsmen and will reflect years of knowledge and experience as both a builder and musician, rather than parts mostly built by a clinical machine.

Its like saying all singers should use backing tracks because it does 'the same job' but doesnt cost as much.

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[quote name='skej21' timestamp='1335683306' post='1634466']


And this is where you are wrong. It will be hand-built by one of the company's master craftsmen and will reflect years of knowledge and experience as both a builder and musician, rather than parts mostly built by a clinical machine.

Its like saying all singers should use backing tracks because it does 'the same job' but doesnt cost as much.
[/quote]

Read what he said again - you missed the point. You could ask for a bolt on thumb to be made of the same woods as the NT thumb and it would come at a massive mark-up on the BO price. Other than picking up the same bits of one type of wood and using them for another bass there really isn't a large financial overhead...

Warwick invested heavily a while ago in machinery to enable them to ramp up numbers as every bass was indeed made by hand from start to finish and so they had quite a limited production capacity. Nothing wrong in this at all, but they are most definitely not a small quantity luthier like Fodera. They also do not have the "name" (whatever that is).

All of which is immaterial as they're now so expensive pretty much the only way you can try a NT model in the UK is by scouring here for used ones. I love Warwick basses but I'm not paying £4K for one in the middle of a recession ;)

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I've never understood the Warwick Custom Shop, but that might be because the general aesthetic qualities of Warwick basses on the whole remain a mystery to me. AFAICS from the price list it's not true custom but a very narrow set of standard options that can be applied to selected basses. It's not helped by the fact that the base price of Warwicks is already in what many would consider to the be "boutique" range before you even start specifying additional features.

I've also never understood the need to go through a dealer when ordering a custom instrument (although Warwick aren't alone in that). I've had 4 custom basses and guitars built for me and each time the instrument specifications were done directly with the person actually building it including in every instance at least one session face to face. The idea of adding any more layers of communication can't be a good thing for anything other that the most trivial of deviations from the standard specification.

It seems to me that the real Warwick Custom Shop instruments are reserved for their high-profile endorsees like Bootsy and Adam Clayton. I can't imagine anyone here being able to persuade Warwick to build them something as afar removed from their standard models as the Reverso.

Finally I have tried twice using the on-line form to get a quote for Warwick to build me a 5-string Star Bass II in my choice of finish, but have never received any kind of reply. Looking again at the price list I can't help but think that it would be easier and cheaper to buy a standard model and get someone like Sims Custom to make the changes I wanted and while they are at it do something about the ugly paddle headstock!

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I've tried one of earlies Warwick's CS. A Corvette which was a 35" scale with bubinga body and Wengè neck...when they say to me how much it cost....my mind screamed "WTF?!?!?!" :o and my mouth said "Oh.....WTF?!?!?" :shok:

Don't misunderstand me: really nice bass and really clean sound, growling, definite..etc..etc...(35" scale merit) but for an ugly piece of Bubinga (And i [color=#ff0000][u][b]LOVE[/b][/u][/color] Bubinga) not even pommelé and a little bit longer neck...

Thanks but NO thanks, I prefer to buy a total custom bass by some good lutist!!! B)

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[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1335697972' post='1634634']...

It seems to me that the real Warwick Custom Shop instruments are reserved for their high-profile endorsees like Bootsy and Adam Clayton. I can't imagine anyone here being able to persuade Warwick to build them something as afar removed from their standard models as the Reverso.


[/quote]

Well.. The Reverso is only (literally) an upside-down Stryker as far as I can see. And that's only an Explorer rip-off.
Isn't the Bootsy just an Infinity of some sort? Much preferred the full-on Peavey Starbass sig model (in spite of the price)

So neither of those are exactly "Custom" models either!

And I don't actively dislike Warwicks as much as some. I own 3, which I like. Which is just as well, as the resale value is not great.
I'd rather buy a new car and sell it just after I drove it off the forecourt. I'd lose less than if I sold on a recently purchased new Warwick bass.

Don't get me wrong, it's not all about resale value and value-for-money and similar. If you can find a bass that does it for you at a price you can afford, then go for it.

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My old Dolphin Pro 1 custom was built and delivered pretty quickly...about 8 months if memory serves me right. That was about 11yrs ago. Since then, they have extended the custom shop and have more hands working in there, but the waiting times do take a bit longer now. Since Warwick raised their profile outside of Europe in recent years their custom shop is very busy as a result.

My Dolphin was a stunning instrument and very well built, but goodness it was expensive. 2yrs after it was delivered I sold it to finance an MTD 535. The MTD was incredibly £800 cheaper than the Dolphin, but even though I considered both basses to be very well crafted and I enjoyed playing them I thought the MTD was better value. I don’t think I will ever buy another custom bass from Warwick again. There are lots of alternatives out there with the same build quality at a better price.

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I din't realise that the Reverso was simply one of their standard shapes upside down. Maybe the name should have given me a clue!

I've seen the Bootsy sig Warwicks which are just one of their standard models with some custom graphics, but I'm pretty sure that I've also seen a star-shaped Bootsy bass with a Warwick logo on it in the last couple of months...

As I've siad before when the prices of custom basses comes up at any level over the cheap Fender copy market one bass is not a substitute for another. If you want a Warwick then nothing other than a Warwick will do. However AFAICS there is little on the Warwick Custom Shop that couldn't potentially be available as a standard model if you're prepared to wait. However as someone who little appreciation of Warwick basses from either an aesthetic or playing PoV I'm hardly their target market.

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[quote name='Prime_BASS' timestamp='1335696244' post='1634610']
No idea how much a custom bass costs at all, even after looking over the price list.

Do I start with a standard price and add up my custom options??

What if I want a discontinued model, say the original FNA?
[/quote]
Yep, I think the idea is you take the standard price and then add the prices for each individual custom option. If you want to start from a discontinued model, then a) I guess you should just take the closest similar model to give you the base price and b ) there is an extra charge for using a discontinued base (that's somewhere in the CS price list).

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1335697972' post='1634634']
I've never understood the Warwick Custom Shop, but that might be because the general aesthetic qualities of Warwick basses on the whole remain a mystery to me. AFAICS from the price list it's not true custom but a very narrow set of standard options that can be applied to selected basses. ...
[/quote]
I think the confusion comes from the fact that the price list is actually just a guide list. It's not an exhaustive list of all the possibilities, it's just a list of common options, and prices for them, so that you can get an idea of the likely RRP of your dream bass. And I suppose it must also give a dealer the means to quote a price without having to directly ask Warwick about your specific specs.

And yes, it's a guide to the RRP, so most dealers will discount those prices in the same way they would for an off-the-shelf bass. But that'll still probably leave it in the "if you have to ask ..." category for most of us.

Finally, I'd guess that a 2nd hand CS Warwick is probably worth even less than a regular 2nd hand Wick, since it is, by definition, more select in its appeal. (In other words, if the set of options on a particular CS bass was popular, then Warwick would probably make it standard).

Edited by mart
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Is there a problem with the price list. Looks good to me :thank_you: :lol: ;)

Is it not the same with most major manufacturers whereby their illustrated price list won't be what you actually pay in the shop. You nearly always get it discounted in some way.
Still a helluva lot of money for a bass and don't think i would spend that again on an off the shelf bass.

Mines was advertised at retail £1150 back in 89 and i managed to get a good deal at £850 if memory still serves me right. I think i actually have the original receipt somewhere. That was a saving of £300 circa 25%. Assuming market place is still same then that would bring them more into line with some other equivelant manufacturers.

The originals were IMHO very well built and are a dream to play.

Cheers
Dave

Edited by dmccombe7
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