• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Double Bass Cab for a 1984 Walter Woods 100Watt Stereo

#21
Of the premium 15-inch speakers from days gone by, my favorites are the Electro-Voice EVM-15B and the Altec 421A followed by the JBL 140 series. Any of these in a compact cab would match up well with the vibe of the older WW amps IMO. The EVM-15B in particular has an exceptionally high sensitivity rating, which helps get the most out the amp's power capability. A very good thing, especially if louder bass guitar gigs are involved.

Frankly I was never a fan of the Guass speakers when they were in production.
 
#22
Mike Carr said:
I got very lucky in about 1983 and found and bought what is a very rare piece. An Walter Woods Brand Speaker Cabinet. It came with a 4 ohm Gauss 15, rated 400 watts. I bought mine from a bass player in LA who played for Johnny Mathis' road band. There were not many made. Walter had an deal with guitarist Peter Woodford (Bob Bain's sub for Tonight Show) to produce these to compliment his heads. But for reasons unknown, this partnership ceased after a very short time. Monty Budwig had one. Steve Rodby had two. A fine female electric bass player, Valda Hamnick had two. There is one other fellow here on Talkbass that either had or still has one, but I won't reveal his identity because if he's still got it and ever wants to sell it I want first crack at it. Why? Because then I will then have my very own Walter Woods Stack! Even if I never used it much it would be the super rig I allways wanted when I was young. I went to Valda's house for a lesson once, saw her stack with the two matching cabs and the Woods head on top, plugged my electric bass and well...it was great! This was before I got mine. I used to play some pretty loud gigs with my single 15 rig. More than enough for DB and just enough for many electric gigs. The last time I saw Walter was in about 1997, I brought my amp to his house for service. He had one set at ear level on his workbench as his reference rig. I asked him if he might want to sell it to me, His answer, "no way!" I now live in Asia and was unable to bring my Woods Speaker with me. But it is safely tucked away, hermeticly sealed inside an extra large Funk and Wagnalls mayonaise jar, in a secret location somewhere in Southern California. If I ever get back there for a visit I'll take a photo of it to show you guys. True story, really, no kidding!
Click to expand...


Mike,
As your visit draws near, your name keeps cropping up...
Today - more as therapy than practical necessity - I bought a speaker cab - a KK Audio cube housing a 15" EV. It's in decent shape and is lighter than the other 15 I've been keeping in the garage: a Walter Woods Speaker Cab! (When I Googled it, your TB reference came up first.) This one is among those few he marketed - Serial # 00049 - but unlike yours, is 8 ohm. I bought it from a wonderful keyboard player who has long since moved to Oregon.
The Model # is "15 BB" - which must mean Bassplayer Backbreaker, as heavy as the sucker is. There is no Wattage rating stamped on the metal tag in back.

Three q's for you:
- are you still interested in owning a second one of these babies? You have the first shot at it....
- should I presume the speaker is a Gauss, like yours?
- would it be incompatible with a 4 ohm speaker?

Be well,
-ricardo
 
#23
I loved Walter's amps feeding EVB-15M speakers in Bag End cabinets. Efficient, full ranged and indestructible.

Walter's amps will not play nice with mixed 4 and 8 Ohm speakers. That boils down to something like 3.32 Ohms which is lower than the amp will tolerate, and these amps will tolerate quite a lot.
 
#24
Richard, the secret is now out. You are the only other guy on Talkbass that has a WW Speaker Box! Your offer of a first sale to me is so temping, major G.A.S. I feel like a monk who just stepped into a stripbar! More gear is the last thing I need right now, I need to get rid of stuff not get more stuff. Yeah, mine's 4 ohm. The original speaker is long gone, mine's got a 400 watt Carvin that works well enough. But it would be ever so easy to buy an 8 ohm speaker for mine, then buy yours and finally have that "super rig" that I've dreamed about..oh, G.A.S. pain!!!
 
#25
(apologies to Robert Frost)
I took off the grill frame for the photo - it beareth an unsightly stain, but could be easily replaced.

The KK Audio/EV 15 cube I just bought weighs in at a svelte 35 lbs, still porky by today's neodynium (sp?) standards, but the side handles give it the illusion of being easier to heft than the Woods cab with her rectangular shape and additional 7 lbs.

Sonically? The jury is still out. So much of the dialog seems scientific, but to me the successful marriage of head and cab is highly subjective and subject to the variables of instrument, pick-up, strings, venue, volume, and the ubiquitous, lurking presence of the "other woman" - the extra cab in the garage.
 
#26
Mike Carr said:
Back in the day, the early 80's I remember being very impressed with 15 inch cabs made by Gary Raymond. Also a very hip 15 inch box was made by a company called Energy. !
Click to expand...

The Energy is a very hip box indeed. Loaded with McCauley speakers. These are rarely seen, but I just happen to have 4 of them.
 
#29
Mike Carr said:
Back in the day, the early 80's I remember being very impressed with 15 inch cabs made by Gary Raymond. Also a very hip 15 inch box was made by a company called Energy. Bag End's were also used a lot. I used my M-100-8 at first with a big 18 inch bulletproof cabinet made by Road, this was a Electro-Voice 18 built into a box that doubled as a flight case, one heavy mother fo' ya'! I hoped to find something smaller and lighter, the Road was very hard to get in and out of the back of my VW and people who didn't know better made fun of my little amp brain sitting on top of the huge speaker. All of my gigs were electric bass in those days, my DB playing came later in life. I got very lucky in about 1983 and found and bought what is a very rare piece. An Walter Woods Brand Speaker Cabinet. It came with a 4 ohm Gauss 15, rated 400 watts. I bought mine from a bass player in LA who played for Johnny Mathis' road band. There were not many made. Walter had an deal with guitarist Peter Woodford (Bob Bain's sub for Tonight Show) to produce these to compliment his heads. But for reasons unknown, this partnership ceased after a very short time. Monty Budwig had one. Steve Rodby had two. A fine female electric bass player, Valda Hamnick had two. There is one other fellow here on Talkbass that either had or still has one, but I won't reveal his identity because if he's still got it and ever wants to sell it I want first crack at it. Why? Because then I will then have my very own Walter Woods Stack! Even if I never used it much it would be the super rig I allways wanted when I was young. I went to Valda's house for a lesson once, saw her stack with the two matching cabs and the Woods head on top, plugged my electric bass and well...it was great! This was before I got mine. I used to play some pretty loud gigs with my single 15 rig. More than enough for DB and just enough for many electric gigs. The last time I saw Walter was in about 1997, I brought my amp to his house for service. He had one set at ear level on his workbench as his reference rig. I asked him if he might want to sell it to me, His answer, "no way!" I now live in Asia and was unable to bring my Woods Speaker with me. But it is safely tucked away, hermeticly sealed inside an extra large Funk and Wagnalls mayonaise jar, in a secret location somewhere in Southern California. If I ever get back there for a visit I'll take a photo of it to show you guys. True story, really, no kidding!
Click to expand...
 
#30
There's 1974 Walter woods m 100 4 and the original Walter woods 1x15 cabinet here ..also have a very rare 4x5 inch cabinet with a passive 15 inch on the backside ... Have the original 15 inch 4 ohm guass but pulled it from the woods cabinet years ago and put in a 4 ohm Altec ... All in great condition and willing to part with but won't separate
 
  • Like
Reactions: CryingBass
#32
I've never seen a other one of those one 15 walter woods cabinets. I spoke to Walter years ago when my amp needed some attention and said " you must not have made many I've never seen another" he told me that the production of them was very short lived becuase being a one man operation it was just to much to keep up with
 
#38
Richard Simon said:
Dylan - thanks for the tip!
I didn't know Fred, though I admired his recordings with the quirky Mose Allison.
My Woods, an Electroacoustic two-channel, says it's rated at 300W RMS. Is that too much for the Gauss to handle comfortably?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Ric Vice said:
Somewhere buried in the Talkbass DB threads, there’s a picture of the Walter Woods bass cabinet. I saw it once and could never find it again so perhaps I was dreaming.
Click to expand...
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back