Warwick Fortress MM 5

stacked hardware: volume/pan, bass/treble top pickup, bass/treble bottom pickup. the pickups have individual control knobs so there are really unlimited tones you can get out of this bass.
twin J pickups put nearly on top of eachother in what warwick calls the "Sweetspot" which is maybe an inch or 2 away from the bridge. that could be part of the reason it gets a nice resonant sound.
2 piece flamed maple body, ovankgal neck with a wenge string inbetween, offset for your thumb. it really is right where your thumb would naturally fall. very cool concept as it slides very easily.
brass hardware

i play metal, specifically death metal. lots of fast and intricate riffs. and this thing handles them very nicely. no mater how many notes i play in a little time, each note comes out very clear. i also do a bit of slap and pop stuff, just to make things interesting. i get a very nice pop out of it and very clear slaps. this bass is perfect for everything i throw at it, i am definatly pushing this bass but it handles it very well. ive played it through an old fender dual showman (all tube, 35 years old. or as my dad calls it, "vintage") with a 2x15 cab AND through an ashdown abm 500 with a 4x10 and 1x15 set up. through the fender it sounds really great. but playing through that ashdown was just heaven. i got the "perfect sound". definatly a great set up. everything set up the way i like it, i get a nice warm and full sound. not too bright, but if i ever feel the need, i can make it so.

i got this bass used, whatever set up the person before me had it at was rather nice.
this bass is FAST! i can fly up and down the neck and not get stuck, that was a godsend in itself! nice low action, but no rattle! that was very nice.
there were also some dings on it when i got it, and one i put in it by hitting it on a chair while walking down a tight isle. im not sure how hard i hit it, but it put a small ding, about half the size of an eraser. so take that how you will.
very nice finish. transparent orangy/red stain over very nice flamed maple. its a beauty.

when i play live i move, alot. i have never had problems with things like my strap coming off. the strap nuts are very larger, larger than most ive seen.
this bass is definatly my primary bass. i have a secondary bass, a bc rich NJ warlock, but i dont forsee me ever needing it with exception of maybe some alternate tunings.

i emailed them about getting some of the stain they use, to repair a scrape that it came with (shipper didnt tell me there was damage to it when he sold it to me) and i got a response the next day with links on where i can get it. very good and fast service

killer bass, way better than anything else ive owned or played. because of this bass, im buying nothing but warwick ever again, and maybe even another fortress MM

I had a 95 Warwick Fortress MasterMan 5 for 3 years as my main live instrument. About 2 years ago I traded it along with an older jazz bass for an old 5 string Warwick Dolphin Pro I. I can't say enough good thing about the Masterman. It's cheap, has a ton of tone options and can withstand the road well due to superior neck woods/ construction. Never had a problem with the frets, electronics, or anything. This bass went from -40 degrees to 120 degrees and handled it all fine, most of the time in a gig bag.

The sound of this bass is unique, fat, bright (if you want it), and proud. I found this bass needed virtually no eq'ing. I ran mine through an all Eden rig (wt500 + 2, 210 xlts) and it sounded amazing. (I do recommend DR stainless strings for this bass) I did do some recording with it and the sounds was ok. the feel is something you can crawl into and taste easily. The low B is a little muddy. It also sends a ridiculuously hot signal to the board. So beware of peaking and a possible little buzz.

factory set up was great. nice low action, no buzz. the just-a-nut is a god-send. fit is great, balances nice and even. The upper horn is really long but it doesn't seem weird when wearing the bass. It is unique in looks, has a two piece maple body, wenge neck (bolt on). It's clean construction is second to none for the price.

This bass withstood about 250-300 nights a year. I had to replace the strap locks once and that was it. This bass had a ton of dings, was loaded in and out of countless gigs with "helper" hands and never once did it fail me. Yes, with any instrument, a neck adjustment is necessary and intonation needs to be checked. This bass is a rock and is very forgiving to climate and nightly playing wear and tear. Just give it a new battery a little more often than your standard active bass.

Warwick support is fantastic. I've emailed them numerous times for clarification and product (accessories) support and they are fast to have a detailed response.

I've been playing live and in the studio for the better part of my life. (17 years) I've had my hands on a lot of nice basses and this, for the money, is one of the best basses I've played. It feels great, sounds great (live and studio) and is roadworthy. I'd recommend this bass to anyone in the market around $1200-$1500.

1998 Masterman-5 made in Deutchland. 24 brass frets with gorgeous bookmatched flamed maple top under a deep red satin stain. Stacked controls allow for control of volume and sweep, bridge bass & treble boost/cut and kneck bass & treble boost/cut. The Single MEC masterman pickup is mounted in the perfect position for playability and includes two j-style pickups mounted closely together to resemble a humbucker or soapbar pickup. The 9v preamp allows such a wide range of tone-shaping that we could talk all day; as phat as you need it or bright and funky as you might want it to be. The hardware is all 1st class. The bridge and tail piece are seperate which allows for great sustain - she'll ring forever on an open E or A. The nut is Warwick's "just-nut" which allows for string height adjustment at the nut - nice. The tuners are tight, in fact, I don't think this bass has ever been out of tune in the four years I've owned it. The angled mounting not only looks cool, but helps with adjustment. The neck is shear beauty. Three piece Wenge neck with a Wenge fingerboard. Until you've felt this wood under your fingers it can't be described. The open grain might take you a week or two to get used to, but as long as you keep it clean and conditioned (I use stingfellow's Lem-Oil) there is nothing like it. It doesn't feel sticky like a glossy neck or raspy like a satin finished neck. I have a Warwick hardshell case which is OK but nothing special. I negotiated it as part of the deal, but would never pay $159 for it outright. If you take the gig bag, then find yourself a nice used SKB and save some $$, cuz this bass will set you back a few bills.
I'm not sure what else you could want on a bass feature-wise. Maybe a 35.25" scale which I beleieve they offer now (about $300?). One other feature I love is the snap out truss and electronics covers. No screws to remove or strip out. It's the little things like this that makes Warwick so appealing to me.

Sweet glory to the gods!!! Noise? What noise? It's as quiet as a church mouse, even cranked up! If you crank the treble on the bridge pickup and sweep out the neck pickup, it runs really hot and bright. You could breath into the pickup and probably hear yourself, still no hum though! The 9v preamp (as earlier) allows such a wide range of tone-shaping that we could talk all day; as phat as you need it or as bright and funky as all you slapmasters can handle. I love the growl and presence of this bass. There's no loss of fundamentals or distortion (unless you need a new battery of course) at high volume levels. Comfortable to play on stage. The high strap horn might seem eccentric at first, but once you strap it up, it feels really comfortable - cool looking too. The B string is thick, albeit a little dark at times. I've played through a variety of amps. Right now I'm using a 15" Carvin combo with a Carvin 2x10 extension cabinet, but this bass sounds equally nice coming through my crummy 8" microbass practice amp at home- no joke.

Factory set up was good, although I've tweaked it a bit. I set the action a little lower using both the string saddles and the nut adjustments. The nice thing is, even though I play aggressively, there isn't any string buzz. The electronics are heavenly. In fact, I play about 45-60 minutes per night on average, and I've only replaced the battery three times. My one and only gripe - it's minor - isn't so much quality as it is design. Quick movement down to the #1 fret area is sometimes greeted with a little bite as your fingers scrape over the square edges of the nut. I've gotten used to it though and have altered my tendencies in that region of the neck to avoid any irritation. Beautiful wood grains and hardware. Keep the gold plated metals clean though. After four years, I can see some evidence of wear on tuners/ knobs.

Strap locks are standard, and are the only way to go. It will never leave you no matter how goofy you are on stage. I've never adjusted the truss rod, and I live in cold-as-balls then hot-as-hell Columbus, Ohio. If your band plays all songs in the same key, I wouldn't bother taking a back-up to gigs. That's just one more trip to and from the curb every night, 'cuz you're not going to use the backup.

Can't really say much because I've never had any reason to contact them. The retailer I used was very friendly, fair and knowledgable. The bass came in quickly and I've been happy ever since. The Warwick "passport" supposedly ensures a long time, if not lifetime, of warranty coverage. Solid.

If the bass cost less I'd give it a 10. Nothing good is cheap though, and I'm pretty sure this bass will last me forever. I'll never get rid of it - ever. I've been playing for close to 6 years and have played averything I could get my paws on. I still like this bass better than anything else in it's price range. I also have looked at Pedulla, Zon, Modulus (NICE), Spector, Fender Ernie Ball, Carvin and lower end stuff like Ibanez, Washburn and the like. For the money, I think the tone is hard to match and the playability is outstanding. Very versatile and reliable. The design makes me feel a little unique amongst other musicians. A good bass player will recognize the Fortress, but most people are pretty curious. Speaking of Carvin, a lot of bass for the money. I bought a new B4 4-string last year, thinking it would be a nice change of pace. I just bought a Streamer pro-m, so the Carvin?... It's for sale now.

Built 1996; made in Germany (S/N C 020909-96)
24 Frets made of Warwick bell brass, 5 strings, solid top (all thru, for that matter).
Controls: 3 stacked knobs, from strings outward: Volume/Pan, Neck Pickup Hi/Lo, Bridge Pickup Hi/Lo. Pickups are the now-old Warwick MasterMan dual-J-in-a-box setup, made by MEC. Active-only electronics; that is, the bass does give a bit of warning by starting to snarl on you so you can change batteries. once it dies, however, you're out of luck.
Body: two pieces of nearly bookmatched flamed Maple dyed purple- gold hardware belongs with this color; Neck: three longitudinal pieces of Ovangkol/Wenge- there is no fretboard, and it doesn't need one. The neck is bolted-on. Oiled finish, the kind that requires waxing.
Body style? Well, they say it's a double cutaway, but it's got quite an upper horn, long and straight- kinda draws attention to itself. The bridge is superior as an OEM part to may aftermarket bridges:Long throws, infinitely adjustable for overall string height, indiviual string height, and string spacing, deeply recessed into the body, and generous with the metal- it even looks like it sounds good, as it does.
The tuners are Warwick-branded, but look like Gotohs in form, raked toward the player's position, real easy on ya? Are these Warwick frets jumbo? They're the same size across as my P-Basses', so I guess they are.
Unlike many other reviewers' anecdotes, the $1800? price included a Warwick HSC, plus the obligatory bridge and truss rod wrenches,&c.

This bass's sound is quite strong, clean (when I set my SansAmp accordingly) and versatile. Ive played Blues, 70's Rock, Contemporary Christian, Praise & Worship, and Country on this unit, and it does just about what-ever is asked of it. The bass is typically run thru Monster cords, a SansAmp BassDriver DI, and either A) an SWR Rev. A Redhead + Behringer Ultrafex, or B) my church's State-of-the-Art House System. The latter has massive subs under the stage- it feels really cool when they're up.
Only thing that troubles me, and I hesitate to rock the boat with this, is some persistent string buzz form the lower three or so frets- something I have taken to ignoring, as amp/System overtones and band mix usually cover this up. Electronics-wise,however, this Guitter is dead-quiet.
I think I have to agree with the advertising phrase, "Nothing cuts like a Warwick"- it seems true to my ears.

As purchased, I could hardly fault a thing with the workmanship on my Fortress. Now, six years of use have brought out;

- the aforementioned buzz from frets one to four
- the gold plating on the Volume knob is all but gone- makes it easy to tell which it is!
-a replacement electronics cover that is a little too easy to remove, and requires fiddling with to keep on- the only true-blue mechanical fault I've had in six years of playing it.

Thjat's right! This bass has Dunlop Strap-Loks! They've been fine by the way.
You know, since I only seem to play at most 40 minutes a night, I can't say my Warwick has been thoroughly tested, so you can be sure it's never let me down. The only backup required with thia axe is a 9-Volt battery.

I can't speak to warranty issues as such, seeing as I haven't had any. To get that electronics cover mentioned above in took only about ten days, so that was OK.
This instrument has the Warwick passport too, so it may very well still be under warranty - I'll just make sure not to let Pete play it!

Over the 33 years I have held bass guitars in my hands, few have I kept longer than this Warwick, And I ended up with this to fulfil a requirement I had for an active, 5-string bass to do slappy modern sounding stuff that I only play- never listen to. The first try at it, an Ernie Ball Music Man Sting Ray 5 w/Maple fretboard, simply lacked bottom end. It had great treble, and fit in hand OK. The next one, the Modulus Graphite alluded to earlier, was one sweetheart of a bass, and actually had cleaner sounding Below-Low-E notes than this instrument, but at only 5' 7", the reach to the low frets and the spreading required of my fingers cramped my playing style. The Warwick Fortress One MasterMan 5-String,while it will never quite supplant the Fender P-Basses and such, is one versatile, reliable, p[owerful-, and sweet-souning, and -looking bass guitar. Just don't let its weight get you down!

Made in about '95. There are 24 bell brass frets (very cool look, great sound). It has a bolt-on wenge neck, which is about as bright as maple, but with an ebony/rosewood feel. The body is flamed maple and really beautiful. It is stained and sealed, so low maintenance. It has a dual-jazz pickup, kind of like a pair of jazz under a single cover in a "music man" position. Controls are pan and a set of bass and trebble for each half. The electronics are active and very bright. The body is a really cool shape, but kind of phallic. The bridge is a piece of art. It is brass and is very sturdy and adjustable in all angles. It would be nice if this thing had a 35" scale, but 34" is good enough. It would be nice for Warwick to include a case, but they really shade you with a bag. Jeez, even the $3500 model has a bag.

This sounds sooooooo good, it's amazing. I play so many styles and if you can dream it up, this bass can make the sound. I try Wooten-style and it sounds close to his Fodera. Really crispy and clear. I also played in a jazz band and tried to make it really bassy and almost upright sounding. It works good. Name any style- Flea Slapping, Classic rock growl, modern jazz. BRING IT ON! Also, the solid bridge and brass adjustable nut make it sustain forever.

Though I'm not an expert on set up, what I can tell is that even if you have to adjust it, it is no problem. Mine was a display model at a music store and came with no problems at all. The bass fits me very nicely. (A note: it has sunken strap locks, making the flow of the body sublime.) There was no problem with the body, but the wenge neck looked bad. Why? It is an open grain and does not affect play or sound.

This bass hasn't let me down. I've seen them used and they rarely have serios wear and tear. The hardware is brass and very shiny, even after lots of playing and strange weather changes. The straplocks are sunken, as I said, and aren't going anywhere. I depend on it, but would always have a backup in case of a string break. ONE PROBLEM: The wiring inside came loose from the jack and caused a slight problem, but this is a BUDGET Warwick (At a list of $1895.00)

Never dealt with the company, but I doubt I have to. I don't know if there is a warranty.

This bass ROCKS! I don't regret buying it. If I ever decided to sell it, it would be because I lost a hand or to upgrade to another Warwick (I love em). I was thinking about getting a Tobias, but I played this and gave up on that idea (they aren't worth so much). Like I said, a longer scale would be ideal because the low B is a little muddy, but hey, it is still really nice.