I am a dedicated Warwick bass fan of the Streamer models - preferably the 5 and 6 stringers. I have both a fretless and now this fretted bass Streamer NBT 5. This Streamer model has all the good qualities that you want from a decent bass in the moderate to low price range - and Warwick really delivers basses of flawless high standards - also at this price range.
Construction: on delivery and the days after - no damages were detected after thorough inspection.
Playing the bass I am quite ashtonished by the craftmanship in these RB series. The aesthetics are well-known and the black nirvana matte finish is just great and not too flashy. The the fretwork is well executed and all frets were smooth to the hand and fingers all over the neck/fretboard. Also the mechanics (tuners, knobs and the adjustment of neck and bridge and nut) - all is easy to handle. The Just-A-Nut is such a great feature for the ultimate string adjustment and also the compartment for the electronics in the bass body and the truss rod adjustment placed on the headstock are brilliantly made for no use of tools - except for the hex adjustment tool for the truss rod. This is a very clever solution for the working bassist. The bass was delivered with Warwick bass strings (Red Label .045 - .130) and the sound from these strings were quite pleasant to hear with good clarity and fundamental bass tone too. The MEC humbuckers are great well-known pickups too and I see that they are ornamented with a new silvery and a bigger logo on front. They MECs really shape the woody sound that Warwick is so famous of. You really get great tone from this bass and the wood used in the manufacturing process for the Streamers.
The bass is also a light-weighted instrument, probably due to the use of Carolena wood for the body and it is great having a lighter bass than the average 5 string basses out there with heavier weight.. This Streamer model does not hurt your back.
The minor but noteable things I can criticize are: 1) that Warwick has made a poor battery switch solution for battery switching when opening the electronics compartment. Here you need to be extremely careful when swapping batteries. The 9V battery almost has to be squeezed in the cavity/compartment and here you risk breaking the soldering of i.e. the input jack connection or one of the connections for pickup control . However - being cautious - the switching takes a little more time than usual if you want to avoid any damage inside the electronics compartment. Another annoying detail is that the electronics use the power from the 9V pretty quick over 3 months I had to switch batteries 4 times - and the instrument cable was pulled out between the sessions of playing. Weird...
2) The bass is also sligthly neck heavy and drops to a horizontal level when strapped on in your favourite position. However if you correct the position desired for playing it stays in position when strapped on.
After having said that the bass itself stands out as a reliable, great sounding quality instrument that will last for years ahead.
Sound: Well - the Warwick RB Streamer bass sound great after plugged into a little and tiny Warwick BC10. You can hear great fundamental bass tone right away and it is easy to sculp to your needs - and the on-board EQ is well calibrated for bass adjustment. Even with balance, bass and treble in mid position, the bass really speaks, and adding some more bass and treble than that - the bass stands out with at big, meaty sound. Even for at bolt-on bass you can feel the resonance when playing.
Features: all the well-known and basic key features from a Warwick Streamer is at your disposal: the Just-A-Nut, the bridge/nut/the EQ and active circuit is quite solid and operational.
Last remark on the bass features - be sure to register for the extended Warwick Production Guarantee for 4 years. This feature is in itself a great statement for this and other fantastic Warwick basses. When you do this, you get a guarantee receipt from the founding father Mr. Hans Peter Wilfer himself!
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