Yeah I thought about that and inquired about doing that with my luthier. I was saving that as a last resort as the fretless ones seem to last longer.
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Lovely bass. Padauk is a beautiful wood. That pale patch looks like it could be a little bit of sap wood. It can be very pale, almost maple colour.This is an important day to me: my new baby just got home and I have been stunned by its beauty. I don't want to do anything but playing until my fingers will bleed.
@kulit17: I can't tell if these are sap lines. Can you?
View attachment 982159 View attachment 982160
How are you doing getting to grips with the tone controls?
@TrevorR : I think to be still at the *it's a sheer mess!* stage and I am keeping everything flat. I need to get acquainted with those controls or I will go nuts pretty soon.
Mattia, the easiest way to learn it, is it to leave the knobs clicked in the normal down position. Since this is a filter and not a conventional boost/cut system, approach it like you would a stack knob Jazz Bass where there is a tone knob for each pickup: you're simply rolling off the highs for each pickup.
Once you figure that out and get comfortable with what to expect, then you can see if the pull-up features where you get a slight boost of that setting works for you.
Once you figure that out and get comfortable with what to expect, then you can see if the pull-up features where you get a slight boost of that setting works for you.
Here's a few of my fave settings... both tones on 8 (or neck tone 8 - bridge tone 6), neck tone pulled up, mix half way between neck and centre. that's my bread and butter tone. I'll then flip the mix to half way between centre and bridge for punchier rockier sounds or go for neck only for a mellower tone (with or without pick attack engaged). Pull up the bridge tone for some more active punch.
Another fave for reggae type sounds... N2 pulled, B8, Blend between N and Centre. Amazingly deep and dubby but still with real definition.
And here is a fun one... N6 pulled, blend 100% neck, with or without Pick attack and then play over the end of the neck and swoop around in the 7th fret area for a sort of pseudo electric upright bass/double bass sound.
Lots of fun to be had with those tones!
NBD! My 2002 Wal Mk2 4-string arrived today. The bass looks beautiful and the E string sounds great (nice "Wal" tone). However, the A, D and G strings sound a bit lower and do not have as much zing or "Wal" tone as the E. I've found the same result with the original strings and new strings. Unplugged, the strings all sound even.
In addition to new strings, I've installed a new battery and raised the master volume trim control to full volume. Same issue with the E string sounding great, and the other strings just sounding okay. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
No pics, no bass!
In addition to new strings, I've installed a new battery and raised the master volume trim control to full volume. Same issue with the E string sounding great, and the other strings just sounding okay. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
No pics, no bass!
I certainly adjusted the polepieces on my Wal pickups, but it can also help to adjust the overall pickup height, too.
There is also a mini pan pot (can't remember if it's just one, or one for each pickup) in the control cavity to cut the level of the low frequencies. It was intruduced when the 5's first came out, over fear that the low B might be overpowering to amps of the day, but I think the frequency range affects the E string as well. That might help to balance out the tone between the strings.
There is also a mini pan pot (can't remember if it's just one, or one for each pickup) in the control cavity to cut the level of the low frequencies. It was intruduced when the 5's first came out, over fear that the low B might be overpowering to amps of the day, but I think the frequency range affects the E string as well. That might help to balance out the tone between the strings.
@japhy4529 have you done a full set up on it yet? if not here's something I posted a while back ago when I asked Paul about typical setup done at factory....might as start with a good foundation to work with.
For your particular case like @mikezimmerman mentioned, you'll most likely need to adjust the pickup height and/or pole pieces to get everything even'd out.
Welcome to the club!!!!
Bass-ic Setup of a Wal
Originally Posted by Paul H@electricwood
The setting up of basses can be very different from player to player but we
do have some starting points/guidelines that may help you:
Neck relief - measured by fretting at both the 1st and 21st frets to create a straight edge with the string - you may want to use a capo to hold the 1st fret down to help you with this. Relief can now be checked by looking at the gap between the top of the 8th fret and the bottom of the string on both
the E and G strings - anywhere from 0.3mm(business card thickness) to 0.8mm(credit card thickness) approx is acceptable depending on your preference.
Nut height - this will be affected by the neck relief but should ideally be as low as possible without buzzing when playing the open string. Compare the
string height over the 1st fret when played open with the height above the 2nd fret when fretting the 1st fret. It should be just very slightly higher. If the nut is too high, it will not only feel harder to play but also not play in tune. If too low it will rattle when playing open strings.
String height(action) - if both the above are set, the final action can now be set. This is measured from the top of the 12th fret to the bottom of the E and G strings. An low to medium action would measure 2mm-2.6mm on the E
string and 1.6mm-2.1mm on the G string approx. The action should taper from E to G so as the strings get lighter to action becomes slightly lower.
Pickup heights - individual pole pieces for the E and G strings should be set just proud of the pickup cover. The A and D string pole pieces slightly higher to follow the camber of the strings you have set. The overall pickup
heights are measured whilst holding down(fretting) the E and G strings at the 21fret. The distance between the top of the pickup pole piece and the
bottom of the string should be 6mm on the E string and 5.5mm on the G string approx.
Raising the pole piece height will not only increase the volume of that particular string but also give a more compressed darker sound - lowering gives a brighter more open sound with less volume.
All the adjustments above affect each other plus fret condition and of course playing style need to be taken into account so some experimentation may be needed. Hope the info helps and let me know how you get on.
1/16" allen fits all the saddles, intonation, and pickup poles.
For your particular case like @mikezimmerman mentioned, you'll most likely need to adjust the pickup height and/or pole pieces to get everything even'd out.
Welcome to the club!!!!
Bass-ic Setup of a Wal
Originally Posted by Paul H@electricwood
The setting up of basses can be very different from player to player but we
do have some starting points/guidelines that may help you:
Neck relief - measured by fretting at both the 1st and 21st frets to create a straight edge with the string - you may want to use a capo to hold the 1st fret down to help you with this. Relief can now be checked by looking at the gap between the top of the 8th fret and the bottom of the string on both
the E and G strings - anywhere from 0.3mm(business card thickness) to 0.8mm(credit card thickness) approx is acceptable depending on your preference.
Nut height - this will be affected by the neck relief but should ideally be as low as possible without buzzing when playing the open string. Compare the
string height over the 1st fret when played open with the height above the 2nd fret when fretting the 1st fret. It should be just very slightly higher. If the nut is too high, it will not only feel harder to play but also not play in tune. If too low it will rattle when playing open strings.
String height(action) - if both the above are set, the final action can now be set. This is measured from the top of the 12th fret to the bottom of the E and G strings. An low to medium action would measure 2mm-2.6mm on the E
string and 1.6mm-2.1mm on the G string approx. The action should taper from E to G so as the strings get lighter to action becomes slightly lower.
Pickup heights - individual pole pieces for the E and G strings should be set just proud of the pickup cover. The A and D string pole pieces slightly higher to follow the camber of the strings you have set. The overall pickup
heights are measured whilst holding down(fretting) the E and G strings at the 21fret. The distance between the top of the pickup pole piece and the
bottom of the string should be 6mm on the E string and 5.5mm on the G string approx.
Raising the pole piece height will not only increase the volume of that particular string but also give a more compressed darker sound - lowering gives a brighter more open sound with less volume.
All the adjustments above affect each other plus fret condition and of course playing style need to be taken into account so some experimentation may be needed. Hope the info helps and let me know how you get on.
1/16" allen fits all the saddles, intonation, and pickup poles.
Last edited:
Thanks, this is great information! I don't have a feeler gauge or similar measurement tool, so I usually do my setups by eye (I use a capo and business card to set the neck relief). The neck relief is fine. String height (action) is a tad high for my taste but I thought I would wait another day or two for the instrument to become acclimated to its new climate (it traveled from MN to PA) before making any adjustments there. I'll take a look at the pickup and individual pole piece height today.
Cheers,
Tom
Hi All, This is the guy who sold Tom the Wal. I have to admit it was either probably like this when I bought it or it gradually happened during during the 10+ years I've owned. Needless to say I want to figure this out and have Tom be happy with the purchase. Any chance the pickup plugs to the circuit board could be dirty? Is there a spec for the pole piece adjustments? Thanks for any help.
-John
It is possible for the pickup plugs on the circuit board to be dirty or have bad connections, but that usually presents much more major symptoms, I think. From the description, it just sounds to me like it needs pickup height/polepiece adjustment. Due to the narrow polepieces and coil structure, pickup height/distance from the strings has more effect on the tone with Wals than with many other basses.
Sighhhhh...Simply beautiful! I hope you work out the volume issue.
Brent
BP magazine have just posted a nice studio shot of Justin Chancellor with a few of his Wals hanging up behind him
A minute slow on the draw Matt
- Dec 21, 2007
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