Note: Register your product at www.w-distribution.de/warranty and extend the warranty to 4 years.
Warwick has been one of Germany's top specialists in electric basses for decades, and this expertise is written all over the Warwick RB Corvette Basic 5-String Fretless. In fact, the name alone almost says it all: RB stands for RockBass, and everything about the Corvette is geared toward Rock music in all its diverse forms – starting with the choice of woods and extending to the pickups and electronics. When a bass like this is designed from the ground up for expressive fretless bass playing, the inevitable result is a combination of authentic looks, effortless playability, and maximum punch. That punch is primarily delivered by the Corvette's bolt-on maple neck and duo of single coil pickups, which together with the active two-band electronics offer plenty of flexibility in terms of sound. Given its range of features and reliable build quality, the Warwick RB Corvette is quite simply a bass that offers players an outstanding price-performance ratio.
The alder wood body of the fretless Warwick RockBass Corvette Basic 5 is paired with a bolt-on maple neck – a robust construction that gives the sound plenty of attack, while the tigerstripe ebony fingerboard harmonises with the body's quality tonewood to produce a midrange response that will cut through the mix with ease. The fretless fingerboard is incredibly playable: It's invitingly flat, and bassists of all skill levels will find it easy to navigate up and down its full two-octave length thanks to the dots on the edge of the fingerboard. The high-quality chrome hardware is made in-house and includes Warwick's signature two-piece bridge and tailpiece construction, an adjustable nut, and security locks. The two MEC active single coils on the Corvette B5 FL are perfect for any genre where clarity and definition are a bassist's key criteria. For further fine-tuning the sound, the Corvette is equipped with active two-band electronics: What's more, it also ships with a gig bag and a hex key – for easy truss rod adjustments and safe transport, respectively.
The target audience for Warwick's RockBass Corvette FL is clear – Warwick has created a new bass for fretless fans to fall in love with right here. It starts with the visuals: The Corvette's body, with its pronounced upper horn, makes no secret of its intentions, and the Nirvana Black finish of this model is thrillingly dark. But it's not just a pretty face: All of the tones musicians expect from a modern fretless bass are on show here too, from lyrical, singing lines to high-pressure, hot-output power. This is mostly thanks to the Corvette FL's electronics – the two active single coil pickups and flexible preamp, which can boost the sound's highs and lows, as well as lowering them. Of course, the low B string also plays its part in delivering a really solid bottom end. With its extremely attractive price tag, the Warwick RockBass Corvette Basic 5 Fretless is ideal as a specialist bass for soloists, or as an interesting electric alternative to a double bass – or simply to expand an ambitious bassist's existing stable as a second or third piece.
Based in Markneukirchen, Saxony, Warwick, initially a manufacturer of premium basses, is known today for providing a wide range of music equipment in all sectors of the industry. The product range extends from bass guitars, bass amplifiers and cabinets (in all price brackets), bass strings and accessories, to effects units. In addition to this core business, the Warwick Distribution sales company offers almost everything that bass players, whether of four, six or even more string instruments, could require. Among them are the instruments of the Framus brand, which are remarkable for their consistently high quality. In addition to its headquarters in Markneukirchen, Warwick also has locations in Nashville and Shanghai.
Many of the modern sub-genres that fretless basses are used in – anything requiring expressive basslines, from Jazz and Soul to Fusion and Prog, not to mention heavier styles like Metal – place very different demands on an instrument than was the case in the '80s and '90s. Virtuoso playing, switching between techniques, and ultra-low drop tunings are the norm now, not the exception – and to rise to these challenges, bassists need an instrument that's up to the task. The Warwick RockBass Corvette B5 Fretless delivers exactly what players expect from a five-string bass designed for contemporary heavy basslines, with its flat fingerboard, slim nut width, and accessible string spacing providing the foundation for precision and speed. And its tonal capabilities tell the same story: The two MEC single coils deliver a powerful low end and, at the same time, a definition that is almost piano-like in its clarity. The Corvette's hot output and punchy mids are, finally, perfectly suited to wringing the very last drop out of a bassist's favourite overdrive or distortion pedals.