Those nutty professors at Warwick have been knee-deep in development, working on the next stage of Just-A-Nut instrument nuts: Just-A-Nut III Brass.

Featuring high-quality bell brass, the Just-A-Nut III Brass has a new height that's been rethought to provide the most stability and the least amount of long-term wear. Just-A-Nut III Brass is available in a variety of options for right- and left-handed instruments, from 4-string bass all the way up to a 12-string bass with octave strings.

How does this nut compare to previous versions? The main differences between nuts involves height adjustment, construction, a pin / hole system, and the materials used.

All Just-A-Nuts are adjustable; a floating top piece with the corresponding string grooves has individual adjusting screws to set the exact height, making both the top and bottom of the nut adjustable. Whereas Just-A-Nut II used two lateral retaining clips that connected top and bottom and Just-A-Nut I did not have any two-piece adjustment, Just-A-Nut III has a pin / hole system that makes the top and bottom fit together closely like two Lego pieces. The pin / hole system still provides the required flexibility and a pin long enough to get just the right height adjustment. The end result, according to Warwick, is a nut edge that fits smoothly against the neck, which in turn requires less filing, a cleaner transition between the parts without any sharp edges, improved stability, and no risk of breakage.

The three different models also differ in terms of materials used. Just-A-Nut I used a hand-built brass nut that made for a harsher than desired tone with lots of unwanted high frequencies, and its following Just-A-Nut II used a synthetic carbon composite material that, while better at holding the original sound of the string than the first nut's material, still wasn't good enough for the folks at Warwick. Just-A-Nut III uses a material called Tedur, fiberglass-reinforced synthetic, which increases the durability of the nut without adding harshness or unwanted metallic sounds to the string's tone.

Beginning with the upcoming 2010 Summer NAMM show, Warwick will be making the Just-A-Nut III Brass a standard feature on all Warwick neck-through models. Custom Shop instruments will also have this nut option as a standard feature.

Current Warwick customers may upgrade their bass from the Just-A-Nut I or II to the new Just-A-Nut III; just purchase the new release from the Warwick Shop online and study the provided upgrade tutorial.

For more information about Just-A-Nut III, please visit warwickbass.com.