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Spalt Hybrid Basses
Hybrid basses employ an aluminum skeletal structure with wooden wings and wood necks. These instruments embody Spalt's sculptural approach to guitar/bass building; they are stripped-down to the essentials. The wood neck dials in the tonal color and is comfortable to play. The aluminum imparts a warm tone and clarity to the sound. All metal and wood work is done by hand.
In Michael Spalt's words:
"The hybrid concept arose from my desire to reduce the guitar to its essentials and to create a modular system which would allow the easy exchange of all parts. This would enable the musician to tailor-make an instrument and to easily reconfigure it. I also wanted to take advantage of aluminum as material (stability, tonal clarity and sustain). Aluminum as neck material has proven to be problematic, and I felt it was important to retain the comfort and feel of a wooden neck. This led to the design based around the central mounting plate ("body"), to which all the other parts are bolted. I started to make a few guitars, experimenting with various parameters. The low end on these instruments had a wonderful warm clear tone, and since the initial response from guitarists was rather lukewarm, I decided to apply this concept to a bass, figuring also (correctly, as it turned out) that bassists would be a little less conventionally inclined than guitarists. "
The idea that metal has to sound cold and brittle is deeply ingrained, it seems; the inherently clear and warm tone of the aluminum surprises most people at first. The neck provides a lot of the tonal coloration, as in a conventional instrument. Combining various neck and fingerboard woods, in conjunction with a choice of pickup types and bridge designs, allows the sound to be tailored. The tonal impact of the "body wings" is minimal. The sculptural aspect of these instruments, with the basic structure solidly centered around the aluminum mounting plate, provides a lot of freedom in using and shaping various woods. Pieces that are too small or irregular for conventional bodies can be used, maximizing their figure and texture. The ergonomic shape is designed to mesh with the player's body and provides support in the right spots. The upper body wing can be adjusted to optimize the fit. All hybrid necks have a two-way truss rod and reinforcing graphite bars for stability. Connections are held in place by machine screws. Despite the use of metal the instruments are usually on the light side.
Matrix
The 4-string conventional magnetic pickup model. There are two body styles; the original M401, with a straight upper horn, and the M402, with a curved horn. The 401 line comes with either EMG pickups & preamp, or with a Bartolini pickup/preamp package. They have a custom stand, since the hybrid configuration does not fit a conventional stand.
Terminator
The 5-string conventional magnetic pickup model. The T501 and T502 models come with either EMG pickups & preamp or with a Bartolini pickup/preamp package. They have a custom stand, since the hybrid configuration does not fit a conventional stand.
Magma
Magma basses employ the 'LightWave' optical pickup system. LightWave pickups exhibit an extraordinarily even frequency response throughout the whole tonal spectrum. An infrared-emitting diode on one side of the string illuminates the string as it moves. The shadow of the moving string passes over an optical sensor on the other side of the saddle. The signal generated by this sensor is converted into an audio signal and then routed through the preamp to the amp. The non-magnetic nature of the pickup results in truer harmonics, lower distortion, greater overtones and enhanced sustain. LightWave pickups can sense down to 4HZ, so an amp capable of reproducing very low frequencies is recommended to make use of these capabilities.
Spalt pricing is by individual instrument.
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