Wal vs Squier Precision

[BottomE]

[quote name='MoJoKe' post='1305756' date='Jul 16 2011, 01:39 PM']Actually, thinking about it, the reality here is this debate is more about build quality and feel, and less about tone. Tone can be altered by amps/cabs/ the player/active electronics/pedals/the list is endless.....

I do know that if I get GAS and go shopping I generally exclude a bass by its feel, weight and balance way before I think of plugging it in or looking at the price ticket. I've been through quite a few basses (not as many as a few here though!), and have been drawn to things by their "feel" which I would never have picked up by just looking at or hearing someone else play. on the flipside I picked up and tried out a lakland at the Mansons guitar show a few years back, and its setup felt horrible and unbalanced. I recently got a bad case of GAS, reluctantly tried a 55-02 again, and I now own two of them...[/quote]
Yes, i think that there lies the difference. I think the point of the post was that heres all us blabbering on about tone and a specific sound when in a band situation using the same backline and PA a lot of basses will sound very similar. I think the other point was that most people watching us play are non musos so this distinction is probably lost on them. It just got me wondering about the pointlessness of GAS and the search for a sound. Agreed, that if you do mainly studio work or playing solo bass pieces then i can see why the tone is very important. But if you are mainly playing in a band and can get a decent Squier or similar then why not?

[franzbassist]

[quote name='daz' post='1304785' date='Jul 15 2011, 02:59 PM']I think you are being snobish calling a Squier P bass"el crappo" We cant all afford to throw several thousand on boutique basses.[/quote]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, my new £399 Squier Matt Freeman P bass is one of the best playing, best sounding instruments I've ever owned... and that includes the 13 Wals that have been through my hands. Go figure.

[AttitudeCastle]

[quote name='blind pilot' post='1302979' date='Jul 13 2011, 10:41 PM']But could it not also be a fact that the Wal can do precision tone?[/quote]


I think this may have been overlooked?

[Clarky]

[quote name='AttitudeCastle' post='1306292' date='Jul 16 2011, 11:28 PM']I think this may have been overlooked?[/quote]
Yep - my Wal can sound just like a Precision if I weight it towards the neck pickup. It can also sound like lots of other basses and like a Wal.

[matski]

I was at a gig on Friday night and also found it very hard to distinguish between the instruments that the bass players from the three different bands were using. I certainly wouldn't have known which was which in a 'blind' test.

Bear in mind that this was at one of the best venues in the city, with a very good sound system.

Bass 1: Alembic Orion 6 string
Bass 2: some old 60s Hofner thing (not the typical McCartney violin bass)
Bass 3: Warwick Stuart Zender signature (played by Mr Zender himself)

[BottomE]

[quote name='matski' post='1308068' date='Jul 18 2011, 04:38 PM']I was at a gig on Friday night and also found it very hard to distinguish between the instruments that the bass players from the three different bands were using. I certainly wouldn't have known which was which in a 'blind' test.

Bear in mind that this was at one of the best venues in the city, with a very good sound system.

Bass 1: Alembic Orion 6 string
Bass 2: some old 60s Hofner thing (not the typical McCartney violin bass)
Bass 3: Warwick Stuart Zender signature (played by Mr Zender himself)[/quote]
Strange innit? You can't say any of those basses are similar in design. Makes you think.

Edited July 18, 2011 by BottomE

[Len_derby]

[quote name='matski' post='1308068' date='Jul 18 2011, 04:38 PM']I was at a gig on Friday night and also found it very hard to distinguish between the instruments that the bass players from the three different bands were using. I certainly wouldn't have known which was which in a 'blind' test.

Bear in mind that this was at one of the best venues in the city, with a very good sound system.

Bass 1: Alembic Orion 6 string
Bass 2: some old 60s Hofner thing (not the typical McCartney violin bass)
Bass 3: Warwick Stuart Zender signature (played by Mr Zender himself)[/quote]

From the way I read your post I presume this was at the same venue. In which case the common fatctors were probably the soundman and the PA. I wonder if he just dialled-up the bass sound that he liked or thought sounded 'right', irrespective of the bass played. As said above, 'it makes you think'!

[TheGreek]

Lowest common denominator??

The Wal can do the Precision sound but the Precision can't do the Wal sound...

[MoJoKe]

[quote name='Len_derby' post='1308309' date='Jul 18 2011, 07:40 PM']From the way I read your post I presume this was at the same venue. In which case the common fatctors were probably the soundman and the PA. I wonder if he just dialled-up the bass sound that he liked or thought sounded 'right', irrespective of the bass played. As said above, 'it makes you think'![/quote]

+1 that, think its been said earler in the thread but not as succinctly.... We all have our favourite "sound" why should the engineer be any different? not sure it should qualify him to ride roughshod over our carefully hewn tones though!!