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Walter Woods Amps History and Development
- Thread starter Uncletoad
- Start date
Just got off the phone with the seller. At first he claimed the amp in the pic was the amp he was selling. Then when I informed him that the pic was my amp and my pic he backtracked big time. He says he'll send me a pic of the actual amp. I'll let you know what it is.
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Good eye! DI remembered that you told me that you had that amp. Was it a Mono Ultra with a customized top that you put on it, a true Stereo Ultra or something else altogether? Sellers really confuse the issue when the post a picture of the wrong amp. Walter's amps are difficult enough to identify, because of all the different ones he built.
Ric
It's a early 2003 Ultra 1200 watt mono that I put a red top cover(came off a stereo model) and the black cover screws on it. I haven't seen another like it. Of course that it's my pic taken on my bed made it easy to identify.
I've come to the conclusion that no two WW amps are exactly alike, after owning several models of different vintages. They are of course hand made, built to order, and it seems that Walter changed things as he saw fit. Theses are not really production amps. While I've tried, it's futile to make generalizations about these amps. BTW I have a 1997 green-light model that I've kept as my favorite. They've all been great though each in their own way.
Jaco playing through what appears to be a Woods model MI 100-8 Dual Channel. Looks like he is plugged into Input 1, running a line out from the Line Out, and it sounds like he's recorded off the board. I believe this was out in the San Francisco area, with drummer Brian Melvin's band. This would have been sometime between late August '86 to November '86, after he was released from NY's Bellevue Hospital in Melvin's custody until he returned to Lauderdale in Nov '86. I would imagine that WW amps were more prevalent on the West Coast during that time period.
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For bonus points, what are the control settings of his bass and the amp?
For double points what octave pedal is he playing through starting at 3:08?
For bonus points, what are the control settings of his bass and the amp?
hahaha
Sick in bed, with a little time on my hands While killing time on the net last night, I coincidentally had two windows open; the Jaco video and this thread. Watching that video I was like "Wow, that's not an Acoustic.. I wonder what bass amp was that small back in Jaco's time? Wait a minute, that's gotta be a Woods, but which one?" I revisited Milkowsky's Jaco biography, which made no mention of Walter Woods, but did provide a timeline, and used Google images and Ron Vice's pics on page three of this thread to get the model. The offset of the first column of knobs from the other three nailed it, I think, as a MI 100-8. Fun little forensic exercise, and a little sad to revisit Jaco's end. Loved his tone in the video.Good catch on the use of an octave pedal; he was replicating Zawinul's doubling of the bass guitar's part an octave lower than the bass.
My mind is like a dog chewing on a bone, sometimes.
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That amp is from the mid '80s, I have a WW catalog with it and all the other concurrent models.
It is possible, perhaps, that the amp and cabs (Bag End?) in the video are not his, just borrowed or supplied?
It is possible, perhaps, that the amp and cabs (Bag End?) in the video are not his, just borrowed or supplied?
No argument from me. That's one reason however why I brought he was playing on a stack knob as it may contribute to the tone he has in this video.
The BOD and fretted '60 had been stolen by this point in his life
I thought his sound was great, on par with his live recordings and videos, with a nice uptick in the hi-fi component. I do not like how his attack changed in his later years, clearly present in this vid, as he bore down on the strings with his right hand far more than earlier in his career. Trying too hard to make a sound and impress folks, I think- trying to "be Jaco" rather than just being Jaco. Try listening with headphones, if you haven't. Real nice girth to the low E. So much of his sound was NOT the Acoustic 360/361, as great as that was. His straight-to-the-board recordings (all of the Weather Report stuff, his solo album, etc.) show that it was his hands and those glorious early sixties Jazz Basses. The Acoustics were glorious in that they did get that sound of his bass and hands well reproduced in live settings.
Though it was the declining era of Jaco's career, it is yet another feather in Walter Woods' cap; that plumage representing top players using his amps.
I thought his sound was great, on par with his live recordings and videos, with a nice uptick in the hi-fi component. I do not like how his attack changed in his later years, clearly present in this vid, as he bore down on the strings with his right hand far more than earlier in his career. Trying too hard to make a sound and impress folks, I think- trying to "be Jaco" rather than just being Jaco. Try listening with headphones, if you haven't. Real nice girth to the low E. So much of his sound was NOT the Acoustic 360/361, as great as that was. His straight-to-the-board recordings (all of the Weather Report stuff, his solo album, etc.) show that it was his hands and those glorious early sixties Jazz Basses. The Acoustics were glorious in that they did get that sound of his bass and hands well reproduced in live settings.
Though it was the declining era of Jaco's career, it is yet another feather in Walter Woods' cap; that plumage representing top players using his amps.
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I did listen with headphones. As much as I respect Walter's amps(played them for 30 years) they do lack something and it is quite apparent to me in this video.
Well, I can't argue that there is something really good about an Acoustic 360/361's sound, especially when played by Jaco.
I never found the three that I had lacking. The earlier ones (early to mid '80s) did have their own thing going but in a good way (worked well for electric guitar, too) and basic tone of the Super I had was very similar to the Aguilar Tone Hammer 500 I now use.
Hi guys,
I'm new to posting on here, and was wondering if any of you could help me. I recently acquired a WW Electracoustic, and I simply need some original side panels, in order to replace the large, unsightly rack ears that the previous owner installed on it. I've tried to contact Walter to no avail, so I thought I'd turn to my TB brethren.
Thanks, and any help would be much appreciated.
- Marcus
I'm new to posting on here, and was wondering if any of you could help me. I recently acquired a WW Electracoustic, and I simply need some original side panels, in order to replace the large, unsightly rack ears that the previous owner installed on it. I've tried to contact Walter to no avail, so I thought I'd turn to my TB brethren.
Thanks, and any help would be much appreciated.
- Marcus
