The Fortress 4 has a smooth, satin-finish neck, a clean-looking two-octave rosewood fingerboard with position markers on the side, and a deep lower cutaway that made navigating a breeze. The extended upper horn likely contributes to the bass’s perfect strapped-on balance. The slant-back headstock, angled Warwick tuners, and Warwick-emblazoned truss rod cover—all in black—nicely complemented the dark rosewood fingerboard. More black appointments on the body—the MEC pickups, Warwick bridge, tone knobs, and strap pegs—were striking against the high-polish honey finish. Around back, the four-screw neck joint was tight and firm, as was the battery compartment. The recessed jack had a nice snug fit, but its position on the bottom of the body, below the tone knobs, could be an issue when standing the bass up to rest on a stand or against a cab. The 4-string’s blend knob grinded a bit toward the middle position, but otherwise everything was copacetic.
The 5-string looked pretty much identical, except for the J/J pickup configuration and the three-on-top/two-on-the-bottom angled tuning keys. The neck feel was quite different, though, with tighter string spacing and a fatter neck profile from front to back. For a Fender-spaced 5-string player like me, the spacing was actually too tight; I would have traded a thinner neck for some fingerboard width.
Sonically Speaking
Hats off to the 4-string, which really had its own voice—not quite woody Warwick warble, given the swamp ash body, and not quite Fender Jazz growl. With the back J pickup favored, penetrating Jaco punch and growl was at hand. The P pickup soloed summoned Motown and classic rock, while boosting the impressive bass circuit dialed in dub possibilities. Both pickups on and a bit of bass and treble boost produced a nice thump that had my bandmates taking notice. Overall, the sound was tight, clear, and focused, and the E string especially sounded and felt great. There were enough highs for a sharp, but not smacky slap sound that retained a bit of the throatiness you often don’t get when slapping on a maple board. The 5-string had similar aspirations, and delivered on the punch with both pickups selected, especially when I muted the strings a bit. But the sound was less focused and dynamic, especially on the B string, which was loose and a bit floppy.
All in all, both basses feature remarkable workmanship for the value, with the Fortress 4 delivering a tone to match.
TECH SPECS
Weight 4-string, 9.3 lbs; 5-string 9.5 lbs
Scale length 34"
Body Swamp Ash
Neck Maple
Fingerboard Rosewood
Nut Composite (carbon/Teflon), adjustable “Just-A-Nut II”
Neck width at nut 4-string, 1y"; 5-string, 1j"
Neck width at 24th fret 4-string, 2y"; 5-string, 2j"
Pickups 4-string: active MEC Gold P- and J-style; 5-string: active MEC Gold J-style
Preamp MEC 2-band
Controls Volume, blend, bass (±10dB @ 100Hz), treble (±10dB @ 2kHz)
Color 4-string, honey; 5-string, burgundy burst
Made in China
Hardshell case Not included
Warranty One year
FORTRESS 4-STRING
List $799
Street $559
Pros Solid construction and good feel, with sonic presence and versatility
Cons None
Bottom Line A killer, inexpensive 4-string with its own personality.
FORTRESS 5-STRING
List $849
Street $599
Pros Solid construction and components
Cons Spacing too tight for some, B string a little floppy
Bottom Line A well-built, inexpensive 5-string.
CONTACT
Dana B. Goods 805-644-6621
www.warwickrockbass.com
SECOND OPINION
With its ballsy lows, girthy mids, and detailed highs, the RockBass Fortress 4 sounded great and felt comfortable at my rock band’s rehearsal. I stuck to the neck pickup, which is a little farther back than a typical Precision-type pickup placement, and dug the turgid throb and punch when I played with a pick. However, I was a bit put off by my bandmates’ comments about the “engorged” upper horn.
—Greg Olwell