Bass Culture Posted June 4, 2022 Posted June 4, 2022 (edited) The build thread for this bass, which covers all the specs and relevant build info, can be found here: For those who are interested, here's a short sound demo for the bass though. I start with a short burst of one of my favourite sounds so far, then sweep the filters with each pickup solo'ed to give an idea of the huge variety of tones available. It's got that typical, full, throaty Wal-type sound, and basically sounds pretty awesome all over. I can't say I've mastered the preamp yet but I'm starting to get there. Enjoy - and forgive the playing, very much 'make it up as I go along'. EDIT: Forgot to add that the bass is just plugged straight into a Focusrite Scarlett Solo AI, and recorded (along with the vid) via the Camera app on my PC. So, no DAW software, pedals or processing of any kind. Edited June 6, 2022 by Bass Culture Update about recording 11 1 Quote
Bass Culture Posted June 4, 2022 Author Posted June 4, 2022 I should add that I haven't engaged the 'pick attack' feature in this demo, which gives a further boost at the frequency the filter is set at...I think. Quote
Shaggy Posted June 4, 2022 Posted June 4, 2022 Very nice indeed; lovely palette of tones there. A Wal-alike, but not a Wal clone - a very attractive bass in its own right. Enjoy! 👍 3 Quote
joe_geezer Posted June 6, 2022 Posted June 6, 2022 Wow, that reminds me of the tone that John Giblin use to get from his Wal! Looks stunning! 2 Quote
Misdee Posted June 7, 2022 Posted June 7, 2022 What a lovely bass! I quite fancy one like that myself. I hope you get a lot of pleasure from playing and owning it. Sounds like it would be very versatile, while still having a character of its own. 1 1 Quote
joe_geezer Posted June 15, 2022 Posted June 15, 2022 Does it have the same filter control as a standard Wal? Does Zoot make the pickups & Also, hows the weight? Thank you! Quote
Russ Posted June 15, 2022 Posted June 15, 2022 20 minutes ago, joe_geezer said: Does it have the same filter control as a standard Wal? Does Zoot make the pickups & Also, hows the weight? Thank you! It uses Rautiaguitars multi-coil pickups (copies of the Wal ones) and a Lusithand Devices filter preamp. The Lusithand circuit has similar controls to a Wal - volume, pan, and two filters, each with a resonant peak that can be changed by pulling up the knob. It doesn’t have the “pick attack” setting like a Wal, where you pull the volume knob up, but the frequency ranges of the filters are wider to compensate. I’m currently having a Lusithand preamp installed in my Sei. There’s a few companies now who make the Wal-style multi-coil pickups - Rautia, Herrick and Bassculture come to mind. Nordstrand also make the Big Blademan range, which are not multi-coil pickups, but they are voiced to sound very much like Wal pickups They were designed for Justin Chancellor to go in some Warwick basses that were being made for him, but he didn’t end up using them. I think the prototype ended up getting sold on Reverb! 3 1 Quote
Bass Culture Posted June 15, 2022 Author Posted June 15, 2022 15 hours ago, Russ said: It uses Rautiaguitars multi-coil pickups (copies of the Wal ones) and a Lusithand Devices filter preamp. The Lusithand circuit has similar controls to a Wal - volume, pan, and two filters, each with a resonant peak that can be changed by pulling up the knob. It doesn’t have the “pick attack” setting like a Wal, where you pull the volume knob up, but the frequency ranges of the filters are wider to compensate. I’m currently having a Lusithand preamp installed in my Sei. There’s a few companies now who make the Wal-style multi-coil pickups - Rautia, Herrick and Bassculture come to mind. Nordstrand also make the Big Blademan range, which are not multi-coil pickups, but they are voiced to sound very much like Wal pickups They were designed for Justin Chancellor to go in some Warwick basses that were being made for him, but he didn’t end up using them. I think the prototype ended up getting sold on Reverb! Thanks Russ - an accurate and thorough response that's saved me some typing! 1 Quote
Bass Culture Posted June 16, 2022 Author Posted June 16, 2022 (edited) One thing I should mention is that neither Veijo (Rautia) or Nuno (Lusithand) claim their respective products to be copies of the original, Wal items. I don't believe they have tried to backwards-engineer (taken apart!) the original, Wal parts, and set out to copy them. What they have done is understood the design concepts (eg, 8 coil, humbucker per string, pickup design), and sound they were trying to emulate and apply those to their own products. On this bass, they both work together brilliantly. Edited June 17, 2022 by Bass Culture 3 Quote
Lfalex v1.1 Posted June 17, 2022 Posted June 17, 2022 Saw this was "Bass of the Week" on No Treble. Nice example of Mr Walsh's handiwork.. 2 Quote
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