Thanks for putting my thoughts into words. I was also looking for the next gen Walkabout. I agree 100% Between my Walkabout and TH500 I've got it covered. And if I want to get insane I can drag out the DB750.
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New mesa subway amps and cabs!
- Thread starter mexicant
- Start date
Thanks for putting my thoughts into words. I was also looking for the next gen Walkabout. I agree 100% Between my Walkabout and TH500 I've got it covered. And if I want to get insane I can drag out the DB750.
I have quite a few basses and my go to is my P Bass. Just perfect..I've also been using 1-12 cabinets for a while now (Bergantino). I just love the sound of 12's!
Wow!A 64 P-Bass! Very nice!
I've also recently returned to my first love, which was a P-bass. I played them exclusively in the 70's and haven't owned one since until a few months ago. I switched to Musicman and then G&L in the 80's and eventually got lost in the sea of boutique basses. I purchased a new Fender American Pro P-Bass and a Fender Elite P-Bass. I A/B'd them for a couple days and kept the Elite P-Bass. Probably one of the best playing and sounding basses that I've ever owned. The compound radius neck feels great, I still love my Roscoe Custom Signature 5 (easily the best one that I've owned) but I'm totally loving the sound of the P-Bass in the passive mode! No wonder it's been the go to bass on recordings and live all these years.
I sure get a great old school tone out of it through the Mesa D880+ and the Berg 112's (D'Addario Chrome flat strings).
Isn't it nice to see that Mesa seems to have something for just about everyone.
Couldn’t agree more Todd. That was my biggest take away from the video you uploaded on YouTube (and the first section that I played around with after the amp arrived yesterday; the deep sw, HPF, voicing CTRL and bass). As they say “it’s all about that bass” (and mids of course). I really prefer the way my P-Bass sounds in the Mesa verses the Forte’. The darker tone of the Mesa really thickens the mid range tone of the P-Bass. The Berg Forte’ was a bit to clear and open sounding to my ears. While it produced a really nice modern sound with my Roscoe it had a tendency to be a bit clanky sounding with my P-bass (with Chrome flats). The P-Bass through the Mesa and Bergs just oozes with creamy mids!
I can’t wait to play through it at practice next week!
You might be able to impersonate the Forte using the low mid parametric to cut a bit around 120hz. My hunch is that the Mesa is a bit thicker there (Forte a bit more open). Then if you add a bit of upper mid around 1K that could help with some articulation.
Inside the testing laboratory... having a blast comparing all these great products.. all so different ..but excellent.
I’ll always use one of the Mesa heads as my main and the TH or BB as a backup..
I’ll always use one of the Mesa heads as my main and the TH or BB as a backup..
My SKB rack arrived ready to rock my WD800.. oops have to wait,.no rack ears yet..
Boo hoo.
Jk
Boo hoo.
Jk
- Feb 12, 2006
- 61,047
- 5
- 221,002
- Disclosures
- Development Engineer-Mesa Boogie, Development Engineer-Genzler (pedals), Product Support-Genz Benz
My SKB rack arrived ready to rock my WD800.. oops have to wait,.no rack ears yet..
Boo hoo.
Jk
Yeah, I get it too
Sorry for the hijack, but...it's all your fault...The L2500 is an insanely flexible, capable, comfortable 5 string and the tributes are killer for the money. I play this more often than any Bass I own.
The D800 (+) are stellar amps !
The WD was calling my name. I loved the tone of the Hybrid amps from Mess and even more so the fruits of @agedhorse design concepts.
Hope that helps
You are welcome, in advance.
That there is nice, like the fretboard grain.
Nice contrast on the burst well matched face.
*Edit: I also prefer 3x2 tuner config.
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All good. I live for all your guys good stories. Talking guitars is no derail at all. Some people have no concept of worth, either financially or sentimentally. Usually a Kid, a rich kid maybe, would get a fine Strat, LP, P or J whatever because he was interested in playing. Started to learn, got over it cause maybe it was never set up properly and didn’t feel good for whatever reason and into the loft or basement it went for 20 years until someone decided to have a yard sale and because it looked dusty or a bit marked and having no concept of what these things mean to so many people, they slap $250 on it and some lucky shager walks past and gets the bargain of the century. Ahh to be that person.
Hey, I’m eves dropping on your guys little to and fro and I noticed that neither of you are happy with the WD 800. I am/was about to buy one but also noticed the not “Hell Yeah” vibe about it in Mesa’s demo of it. It didn’t seem very versatile. All 3 or 4 guitars played with fingers and picks sounded too alike for my ear. I’m really grateful to have stumbled across your chat. Do you care to elaborate and what if you know might be worth looking at for a greater range of tones needing to be covered ie funk blues rock and all things more ore less in between? Also in a tube amp. Any help would be greatly appreciated, Thank you.
The WD-800 does not have the rubbery, warm bounce and bloom that the Walkabout has. When I plug in the Walkabout and the Monique, I get that 'Hell Yeah' vibe. Same with the D-800, but maybe to a bit lesser extent. I like warm amps. The WD is very bright forward and seems like it would be a great slap/pop funk machine with a little tube warmth to keep it from sounding sterile. But I don't really do that much anymore. I play finger style (sometimes thumb) with a Fender Jazz, and the WD does not compliment it as well for the type of music that I play currently. The Monique is maybe the best all around bass amp I've ever played through, but the Walkabout is really special for bass lines that maybe don't require as much speed and articulation. The WA essentially sounds like an all-tube amp to me, but without weighing 50+ lbs.
I never played a Walkabout but there is so EQ versatility on the WD you can easily make it as bright or not as you want. I play finger style, some basses with flats and others with nickelwounds. I took my older Carvin LB75 with nickels on it to practice last night and it's the first time I struggled a bit to get the tone I wanted for about 6 songs but then found the sweet spot. I'm the furthest away from a slap/funk player and I think the WD compliments thicker rounded tone quite nicely with some nice tube warmth feel.
The WD really shines with my P bass and my Kiesel with flats on it. Just my 2 cents that I feel the WD is way more versatile than some recent descriptions here in the thread. The EQ, passive mid and damping is so intuitive you have to experiment a little even though I love it with everything set flat with a little treble rolled off. I can get the D800+ tone out of it, even get close to my Fender 100t which has me considering to sell the Fender.
The WD really shines with my P bass and my Kiesel with flats on it. Just my 2 cents that I feel the WD is way more versatile than some recent descriptions here in the thread. The EQ, passive mid and damping is so intuitive you have to experiment a little even though I love it with everything set flat with a little treble rolled off. I can get the D800+ tone out of it, even get close to my Fender 100t which has me considering to sell the Fender.
[QUOTE="Just my 2 cents that I feel the WD is way more versatile than some recent descriptions here in the thread. The EQ, passive mid and damping is so intuitive you have to experiment a little even though I love it with everything set flat with a little treble rolled off. I can get the D800+ tone out of it, even get close to my Fender 100t which has me considering to sell the Fender.[/QUOTE]
Sorry, I wasn't implying that it's not versatile. It is infinitely adjustable. But having that bright-forward nature makes me think it would excel at slap/pop and be better at it than just about any amp I have played before. I can get a great finger-style tone out of it. It's just that I have 3 amps that do it better/easier to my ears. The WD-800 is a great amp. It's just not the amp that I had hoped it would be, which is a high-watt Walkabout. I can find the D-800 sound on it, but the D-800 already has that sound...and I like it. And I have one. And it's tiny.
Sorry, I wasn't implying that it's not versatile. It is infinitely adjustable. But having that bright-forward nature makes me think it would excel at slap/pop and be better at it than just about any amp I have played before. I can get a great finger-style tone out of it. It's just that I have 3 amps that do it better/easier to my ears. The WD-800 is a great amp. It's just not the amp that I had hoped it would be, which is a high-watt Walkabout. I can find the D-800 sound on it, but the D-800 already has that sound...and I like it. And I have one. And it's tiny.
I am a finger-style player and go for a full warm sound. I have been in a Motown dance band these last 10 years among other projects and go for a vintage, full sound that cuts through and can be heard as well as felt. I also play Classic Rock and Grunge/Alternative and like a little dirt in there too. I love my Walkabout but there have been times when I wished I could push it a little more and have the headroom without it compressing so much. I was looking for a more powerful alternative. What follows is only my opinion and I offer it because I was asked to. I have the greatest respect for what Mesa is doing related to the bass amplification world and I am a long time fan, having owned in the past a 400+, a Titan and a D-800+. I still own and enjoy my Walkabout scout and D-180. I hope what I say does not sound like I am bashing the amp, it is only my opinion. There have been many in-depth reviews of this amp in this forum and this is not to be confused with them. These are only my thoughts.
I found the WD800 to be very articulate, but lacking in any character or signature sound. That is what I meant by saying it was transparent earlier, to some that is a good thing, but to me it sounded too plain. To my ears it is very "clean", not adding much other than amplification and tone adjustments. Once again, some may be looking for that. I did not touch the Para mids at all and limited my twiddling to the HPF, bass, mid, treble and damping controls, along with the gain and master. You know how some Mesa amps can be very throaty? Not this one. I could get the D800+ to bite in the upper mids and sound pleasing in that sense, but the WD was a more controlled tone, even when boosting the mids I did not get a sound I liked although there is a lot of variation to the range. I could not get the Mesa "throaty" sound that I was looking for.
Cranking the input with my passive P bass did not give me the pleasing tube breakup I was expecting, although with a higher output bass YMMV. Seldom do hybrid amps excel at this and I think some of the amps that emulate it, such as the D800+ actually sound better in this respect. If you like the low end the WD has no limitations there and will not disappoint. It will go as low as you like and it is a fast amp. Lots of power. With the HPF I found I was able to tame it but I could see it becoming and issue for some if they do not harness it in. Big Bottom! I found the top end to be lacking in adjustment and kind of understated and not much going on there. I am not a very articulate reviewer, as far as others and do not have the experience and credentials as many past reviewers of this amp so I will just say that there was a lot of boom but not a lot of sizzle. Is it a good amp? Absolutely, it is all the Mesa quality we have come to expect and is an incredible testament to their engineering skills and production. It is just not calling to me.
I am of the mind that I'll set an amp flat and then see how I like it. Call it the voice of the amp. If I have to do a lot of tweaking to get my sound I usually move on. I am aware that is the reason all the knobs are there and some enjoy taking full advantage of them. I did try different settings, such as the HPF is and the damping knob. Yes they both are very effective and useful and can help in a lot of situations. My opinion is this is a very clean amp without being brittle.
In the end it came down to as I said before, the amp was not a Hell Yeah! to me. Especially at $1K, I realized I did not need an amp that did not excite me.
so....
not much of a old school tone from the wd?
I know that seems broad and subjective but I think you guys know where I'm coming from
not much of a old school tone from the wd?
I know that seems broad and subjective but I think you guys know where I'm coming from
^ALL of this. My feeling exactly. Thank you, Frankie.
fwiw, players have different basses, different techniques, and different ideas of what tone they are chasing. Not everyone will love a particular amp - just too much variation in the players trying it.
For instance treyandres is comparing to the original Walkabout and Monique. I didn't own a Walkabout, but gigged a Monique a fair amount. The WD-800 doesn't really do that thick tube vibe (unless you pair it with a good compressor - not exactly the same but you can get some aspects of the tube feel). I think some were hoping/expecting for an exact clone of the Walkabout tone but the WD-800 isn't that.
Frankie Fender wants some "hot input gain tube breakup". Like him, I've found the WD-800 doesn't really do that well (not like Monique or for instance, a TH500). I do like how it sounds right before that breakup, so I tend to set it up for that. I depend on pedals to get my dirt, from very subtle (via HyperLuminal compressor) to a bit less subtle (OmniCabSim mini), to not at all subtle (Cog 66). Lots of different paths to get to certain tones.
Both use the terms "forward" and "articulate." That is what drew me to the amp, as that is a big sonic goal for me. Also, FF mentions not having that top end sizzle and I'd agree with that. But for me, it is a feature, not a bug, and I don't typically like tweeters in my cabs, preferring 3" paper cone instead. No wrong or right answer.
I'm in the same boat with FF in that I usually play an amp flat and if it is close, I keep going. If it isn't, it may not work as I prefer the "base tone" to be close to what I'm looking for. I will say the WD-800 is the most flexible amp I've owned, and there is a ton of tweak ability. But I like the "out of the box" feel of the amp, so that just becomes icing on the cake. For some, the cake is a lie
Here is an alternative video:
