Burns-bass

Set your price and stick to it, that’s the theory.

It’ll also do expensive! Let’s see what happens.

My tax bill has come in and a great degree under predictions, which means I’ve bid on this. Quite possibly I’ll get nowhere near it, but you have to try. I’ve had a nice chat with the seller and he seems like a great guy so if I don’t win it and you do, I’m sure you can be confident it’ll be everything it says it is. But please let me win it.

Yeah I bid up to £250, but that’s because I’m up that way so no pick-up hassles.

Yeah, that would be amazing! I’ve seen Keith play. Be great to see you when you’re down here gigging, so please share details.

UPS did the same with a Martin guitar I own. Despite the instructions to only leave it with me, they gave it a to a neighbour and didn’t tell me.

Cheers Jack! This is an acoustic gig with a blues singer. He’s really good and gets a lot of paid gigs in fairly small places, so the bass has to have that percussive feel to fill out the sound.

All good. This has really helped! Now for some practice and see if I can get the gig.

This is *exactly* what I was talking about!

Hi Chris, I meant our friend 3Below suggesting I change strings and set up. I’ve had a chat with the guy, and it seems I’ve sort of missed the point. He wanted me to play in a more rough and ready fashion, rather than the “refined” jazz approach. It seems I’ve misconstrued his request, and what he really want led me to do was to be a bit rough and percussively. So what you’ve said nails it. Because I still like to try and play my jazz stuff, and I’m trying my hardest not to spend cash, I’ll stick with what I’ve got and play with a little less of the mind and more of the heart! Really appreciate all the replies. I’ve very much enjoyed the DB journey.

It’s the value of both has been artificially inflated by guitar dealers and speculators. They are no rarer than they were 10 years ago, it’s just that people now view them as investments. I’ve stated this many times. People are paying ludicrous prices not because of their intrinsic value (or even quality) but because they’ve been duped into believing them to be safer than cash in the bank.

If they're knocking out 10 a week over 20 years, you're looking at 10,000 instruments. I'm sure it's lower than that by a large magnitude, but even so, they're not by any definition rare.

Relative to what? They're a mass produced item. A quick search finds 9 currently for sale... https://reverb.com/marketplace?query=Wal&make=wal&product_type=bass-guitars It's interesting how they're all advertised for pretty much the same price... Again, you can buy what you want with your money. But at these prices, you're being played by the system.

The madness of the market encapsulated in one thread: https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/240769/20k-to-splurge-what-s-the-closest-i-can-get-to-a-59-burst#latest No idea what to buy. No idea of value. Asking random people on the internet to help him spend £20k on something that will keep its value.

They're directly comparable. 70s Fender were worth almost nothing (I used to import late 70s Fenders from the States for £350 a time). They increased in value recently, as the interest in vintage guitars has grown and people have considered them a safe investment vehicle. Their value isn't about playability, sound, weight, or refinement (because they all score pretty low on all those factors, objectively speaking), but perceived value and investment potential. Check out how many vintage guitar dealers have completed changed their view on these instruments. They're now pushing them out to people who assume that vintage = value. Why? Because most of the good condition pre-CBS stuff is in the hands of collectors and they need to keep earning. The same dark forces are pumping up the value of these instruments. (New basses are subject to market forces, including increases in raw material costs, transport, production, etc.) None of these affect Wal. Dealers work between themselves to pump an asset and inflate prices. That's what's happening here, and will happen again.

A 6 string Wal bass would cost you £3000 in 2012 (check on BC!). Today - when there are more of them in the world than that - it’s 4 times as much. Ask why it’s increased so much in value? By any metric, Wal basses are not rare. If you want one, they’re almost always for sale. It’s because the vintage industry has peaked in terms of pumping Fenders, and is now doing the same to Wals. We’ll probably see the same with PRS guitars at some point, and a load of 80s stuff that’s somehow now ultra-desirable. My point is that the prices are being pumped by guitar shops and dealers, and its customers who take a hit because they think these are rarer than they are and will continue to increase in value (no guarantees this is the case). Maybe it is pension cash coming through, people too rich to wait (nobody likes the thrill of the chase), or people assuming these are good investment vehicles. Tulips, innit.

Ahh, I’ve found this book. Has anyone used this? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Johnny-Hatton-Rockabilly-Bass/dp/1480354740/ref=asc_df_1480354740_nodl?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=310081590442&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17914596399938464515&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9045622&hvtargid=pla-521651458700&psc=1&th=1&psc=1&dplnkId=ed1c61b5-609f-44cc-af66-b81e86f96c37

Cheers Chris! I don’t need to spend more money on gear. I’ve done all that and am super happy with what I have (Bryant double bass, Spiros, Realist). My goal is to play jazz but I can turn down a gig. The guitarist just asked me to play more percussively and (if I’m honest) want some hints and tips. Id love a book, but as soon as you type slap bass into Google, well, you can guess…

People can spend their money on what they choose. But they should be aware that collusion in the vintage guitar industry exists and that’s why these guitars have seen prices rise so rapidly. This Wal isn’t technically vintage. Nuts.

When I started playing DB I loved the rich timbre that you just can’t get anywhere else. I’ve spent my time trying to coax a deep, rich and unique tone form my bass (and mostly failing). Turns out, I’ve been doing it all wrong. I’ve (hopefully) got a gig playing blues classics, providing the old school percussive, slap bass that works. But I don’t really know what I’m doing. Can anyone recommend any good books (I prefer books to online tutorials, but will do so at a push) that can help with technique? If anyone in Bristol can highlight any love gigs where such playing will happen I shall ensure I’m there!

You’ve won the award for stating that obvious! The issue here is that setting a price such as this establishes a benchmark. Others in the trade (or speculators) then use this as a guide price. The spiral continues until it becomes so far removed from any sense of value, it’s mad. The vintage guitar market is a ponzi scheme propped. This Wal is part of that.

I had a Wal and I didn’t like it so I’m prob alt not the best person to ask. I reckon you could get another luthier to knock up a similar bass and order a Wal and you’d still have change from £12,500. Seriously, I have no idea why Wals have somehow become the rarest and most desirable basses out there. I found the couple I owned to be heavy, over engineered, and not particularly refined.

I’d pay £40 for a bass lesson and £20 for a book. If you like what she does, I reckon it’s ok.

It’s a preposterous amount of cash for someone who can’t be bothered to wait a few years. Madness. Good luck to the Gallery!