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Is there a Wal Bass Copy
- Thread starter Kip Page
- Start date
The question is why you want a copy? I know they are unaffordable for most people at the moment. But a copy will not sound like the real thing anyway. You could look at ACG basses. They have similar filter electronics. Not cheap either, but more affordable.
Lots of one-off tributes out there, but none of them really sound like the real deal. Wal’s proprietary onboard electronics & pickups are the key ingredient to their unique sound. Thankfully there are other instruments readily available that will get you 90% of the way there tonally. EBMM Stingray / Sterling, G&L L2000 etc. This has all been said before but yeah.
I have three Wals but a Sterling or Stingray doesn’t sound like a Wal at all to me. For one the pickup placement is different and the highs sound different. The slap sound is also really different.
A Stingray and a Wal are both unique sounding basses, each with an own voice. Both are hard to copy soundwise.
I tried with a G&L L2000 with filter preamp. Didnt really get me any closer. The stock G&l L2000 wasnt that close either, but i love it for its own thing. My Stingray is closer but still not exactly like my Wal. Unless you are in a Tool cover band, no one even would be able to tell. The percentage of people who even know what the Wal is when I take it gigs is zero. And the percentage of people that could tell the difference in tone between my Wal, stingray or L2000 is also zero. There are similar multi-coil pickups out there these days, and some filter preamps but all the copies ive seen online dont sound that close IMHO but its just my opinion.
Not a copy but something in the spirit of:
Turner Multicoil + Lusithand Double NFP Special - Maruszczyk Jazzus 4a 34" - YouTube
You might check Maruszczyk which is a great polish builder with a great website on which you can try different configurations: Home | Public Peace Customshop (public-peace-customshop.de)
Well here's a new and original question 
About as close as one can get, and made by a great luthier with great respect;
Zoot Boudica "Wal-a-like" | zootbass.com
About as close as one can get, and made by a great luthier with great respect;
Zoot Boudica "Wal-a-like" | zootbass.com
Well here's a new and original question
About as close as one can get, and made by a great luthier with great respect;
Zoot Boudica "Wal-a-like" | zootbass.com
was just going to post the exact thing. Sounds very good! But again different from a Wal. Not sure why.
Maruszczyk Jazzus can be configured as a Wal-a-like
Im interested in copies because I can’t justify spending around $10,000 US on a bass. Also I’m pretty sure the differences would be difficult to hear in the mix
Unfortunately that one uses Rautia pickups, which are supposed to be very close to Wal in construction and sound. However, Rautia retired a little while ago, so unless they have a stash of them, those pickups won't be available anymore. Suposedly the Turner pickups are a decent alternative.Well here's a new and original question
About as close as one can get, and made by a great luthier with great respect;
Zoot Boudica "Wal-a-like" | zootbass.com
Is Form Factor trying to do something that's a kinda-sorta alternative to Wal?
Find a Dean Rhapsody bass and put really bright light gauge strings on it .
I think the reason why is simply because the professional bass builders out there have deliberately chosen not to exactly duplicate a Wal bass.
Most builders, pickup winders, and preamp designers have enough self respect to not want to exactly copy someone else’s product - and many have publicly stared as much.
Could it be done? Certainly. Preamp circuits and pickups can always be reverse engineered and duplicated by those possessing the skills to do it. But there is still such a thing as ethics and professional courtesy in the guitar world. And Electric Wood Ltd., the company behind the Wal, is a highly respected name in the bass playing world.
