Most Wals are custom spec’d and built. They can sound like any number of immeasurable combinations of tones. The real difference is how they play, and how they hang. Smooth as glass.
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Most Wal like sound from Jazz, PJ or Ray?
- Thread starter Vanheusen77
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I’ll preface this with “ I don’t have a Wal” so I would listen to the dudes who actually own then.
I am, however, a guy who likes a variety of artists who have used Wals on a number of recordings. The bass will depend on the tone you’re going for and the artist your trying to replicate. I can get the Justin Chancellor tone with a variety of basses as long as you have an EQ or even better, high or low pass filters do some dirt.His dirty tones aren’t hard to “close enough” clean tones get a bit more tricky but , even then, you can get pretty close with EQ and effects. I usually don’t think body wood makes a huge difference but a mahogany body does add a bit of low mid honk that is kind of magical.
I really like my G&Ls to cop the super aggressive Tool , Rush or RHCP Wal tones. I have an old El-Toro with mahogany body and narrow aperture MFD pickups and an “oh, sh!t” switch that kills. That’s be my recommendation. Stingray would do for the more nasal aggressive tones. P/J is pretty versatile and would get you close enough in most situations. Honestly as you have a decent bass, a decent amp and some basic effects/pedals you can get pretty close and save about $8k
I am, however, a guy who likes a variety of artists who have used Wals on a number of recordings. The bass will depend on the tone you’re going for and the artist your trying to replicate. I can get the Justin Chancellor tone with a variety of basses as long as you have an EQ or even better, high or low pass filters do some dirt.His dirty tones aren’t hard to “close enough” clean tones get a bit more tricky but , even then, you can get pretty close with EQ and effects. I usually don’t think body wood makes a huge difference but a mahogany body does add a bit of low mid honk that is kind of magical.
I really like my G&Ls to cop the super aggressive Tool , Rush or RHCP Wal tones. I have an old El-Toro with mahogany body and narrow aperture MFD pickups and an “oh, sh!t” switch that kills. That’s be my recommendation. Stingray would do for the more nasal aggressive tones. P/J is pretty versatile and would get you close enough in most situations. Honestly as you have a decent bass, a decent amp and some basic effects/pedals you can get pretty close and save about $8k
You can spec the woods used for the faces to a certain degree (with mahogany cores) and choose from 3 body shapes and thats about it. Oh and the color. Everything else is the exact same on each Wal (besides the handful of odd ones out there built by Wal or Pete). Yes each one can sound different, mine is a bit deeper sounding IMO than alot of others Ive heard but the Wal sound is always there.
Anyway, lve never played one in person but have seen videos where Ive thought that the Bongo's have sounded pretty Wally. Unfortunately they look like toilet seats, but I think I could get on with one if it was all black/stealth.
I vote Stingray with some dirt. Obviously not the same but it gets it in the ballpark. A friend of mine had a Tool tribute band and his bassist ran a Stingray through a similar Mesa rig as JC's with very similar pedals. Sounded great.
Hello! You are in luck my friend, I've done this experiment over the course of many years, and recorded the results!
The clear winner over the years (and I've owned nearly everything under the sun at one point) is the Yamaha BB604 / BB605. It has ferrite single coils, but nails the recorded Wal tone (think Blood Sugar) perfectly. I'm not sure why, but the recorded samples don't lie. Listen to some examples above and let me know what you think. When they come up used, they can be had for 250-350 bucks. There's barely any risk in giving one a whirl to see if it works for you.
Regarding the other basses that you mentioned, I've at times thought that Jazz basses come the closest in the bite department, however traditional alnico single coil pickups aren't quite as complex and "3D" in the midrange as the Wal pickups are. There have been other times for me when a Stingray has sounded similar to a Wal with both pickups on full and with pick attack engaged. It's not close enough to be fooled in a mix, but there are similarities.
EDIT: For the folks that have seen my replies to threads like this before, sorry for the spam!
The clear winner over the years (and I've owned nearly everything under the sun at one point) is the Yamaha BB604 / BB605. It has ferrite single coils, but nails the recorded Wal tone (think Blood Sugar) perfectly. I'm not sure why, but the recorded samples don't lie. Listen to some examples above and let me know what you think. When they come up used, they can be had for 250-350 bucks. There's barely any risk in giving one a whirl to see if it works for you.
Regarding the other basses that you mentioned, I've at times thought that Jazz basses come the closest in the bite department, however traditional alnico single coil pickups aren't quite as complex and "3D" in the midrange as the Wal pickups are. There have been other times for me when a Stingray has sounded similar to a Wal with both pickups on full and with pick attack engaged. It's not close enough to be fooled in a mix, but there are similarities.
EDIT: For the folks that have seen my replies to threads like this before, sorry for the spam!
Which Wal sound?
Those pickups and preamp have quite a range, and are super responsive to technique.
I’ve got a Jazz and StingRay, and they’re very very different basses to the Wal.
Those pickups and preamp have quite a range, and are super responsive to technique.
I’ve got a Jazz and StingRay, and they’re very very different basses to the Wal.
Everything Flea touches sounds like Flea to me. He makes things do his thing.
G&L L-2000, especially if you custom order one with a mahogany body and ebony fretboard (or find an old L-2000e).
I’m especially after the aggressive both pickups on sound from Blood Sugar Sex Magic. Those Yamaha’s do sound close in the link above!
Isn't the special thing about the Wal pickups being that they have individual magnets and winds for each pole piece? Maybe there is some kind of mathematical research that goes on where volume tests were done to make sure the sound and output is really close to being the same from string to string. It's sounds like taking the adjustable pole pieces that some pickups have to the extreme.
The closest I have heard was a Musicman Sterling doing a tool cover on youtube, but that video seems to be gone now. It seems like a lot of basses can get you about 85% there, maybe closer with a bass that has just the right wood and strings on it.
The closest I have heard was a Musicman Sterling doing a tool cover on youtube, but that video seems to be gone now. It seems like a lot of basses can get you about 85% there, maybe closer with a bass that has just the right wood and strings on it.
Here’s an alternative, but it still may not meet your needs….the following is my ideal Wal sound…
Yeah, I know, fretless, but I was able to come damn close with an Ibanez Musician, second version with their take on a P/J configuration, and a combination of passive and switchable active EQ. Here’s a reasonable demo of fretted…
…and then fretless…
Pricewise, they’re all over the map, but you can still snag one for sane money if you’re patient. Ironically, I sold mine as I had won a Wal in a contest(tied in with a project featuring that first bassist, Mick Karn). I tried, but I just couldn’t get on with that V-shaped neck, so I sold it a couple of years later. Did love the sound of it, though.
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- Feb 26, 2011
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- Endorsing Artist: Pyramid Strings
when I think of a Wal's tone, I tend to think of McCartney during the Flowers in the Dirt album and Free as a Bird from the Anthology album.
Very true.
When I think “the Wal sound” I’m thinking of Colin Bass when he was with Camel. Which is the complete opposite of the aggressive sound a Wal can also do quite brilliantly. Using their own multicoil pickups that are matched to their filter based preamp has a lot to do with the Wal’s flexibility in the tone department.
That must gave been awhile ago. You can easily find all the TRBXs you could ever want online. But the BB series basses are pretty rare last I looked. And they were running between $500 and $800 for a BB604/605 in good condition unless the prices dropped recently.
That said, it’s a really nice bass - if you can find one. And for a reasonable price. But I think the word has been out long enough on them that that particular bargain boat has already sailed.
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As a former/current player of Wal, P/J and StingRay, I will say this is true.
However...
The closest I have come to a workable approximation is with my StingRay, which has a Delano ceramic pickup and John East 3-band MM preamp with sweepable mids. It is possible to emulate some of the filter tones of the Wal by setting a heavy boost on the high-mids, bringing up the bass a little and rolling off the treble to behave something like a resonant Low Pass Filter, which is what the Wal has. The East preamp also has a push-pull 'bright' switch which is similar to the 'pick attack' switch on the Wal.
Just stumbled across a pickup maker from Finland who makes multi coil pickups "in the style of...", plus preamps to pair with them. His website www.rautiaguitars.net is worth a look along with this youtube clip.
