Bass Gear Review

Reviewer	Mike Zimmerman
Manufacturer	Wal
Model	24-fret 4-string
Price	$2700 new

Neck Type	Bolt-on, 6-piece maple/mahogany/hornbeam
Fingerboard	24-fret ebony (rosewood standard)
Body Type	5-piece mahogany core, walnut front/back, maple pinstripe
Finish	satin lacquer
Pickup(s)	2 active 4-coil Wal humbuckers
Controls	balance, master volume w/treble switch, 2 low-pass filter
	tone knobs (one for each pickup) w/parametric boost
	switches, plus 1/4" and balanced XLR outputs

Basically, I think of the Wal as a cross between a Fender and an Alembic, with the best of both worlds. I bought mine used--new Wals start at about $2000 in the US, if you can find them. This is a beautiful bass, with a very warm, punchy sound and distinctive midrange "growl". The rather exotic EQ gives a ridiculous amount of tonal flexibility, from throbbing "dub bass" to bright twang. The treble switch (which Wal calls the "pick attack" switch") is great for slapping--no matter what the EQ setting is, this will add/boost the high frequencies that correspond to the string clacking against the fret. All in all, it sounds better than just about anything else I've ever owned. There are a couple of negative points to the Wal, though. First, the neck has a minor Fender-ish 7th-fret D-on-the-G-string dead spot. I went so far as to have graphite strips inlayed in the neck to try and fix this (and replaced the rosewood fretboard with ebony), but it didn't help much. Second, the bass is rather heavy, around 10 lb.--buy a wide strap. Third, the bolt-on neck joint is rather large and blocky. Fortunately, the cutaway is also very deep, so upper register access isn't impeded too much. So, it's not a perfect bass, but every time I plug it in and hear that luscious tone, the imperfections don't seem too important.

Construction	90%
Playability	95%
Appearance	100%
Sound	100%
Value	95%
Cust. Service	0%
Overall	95%