fretless Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Please see the thread under " WAL - INFORMATION" as this has more pictures and details. In brief I was passed this WAL by the owner with the possibility of purchase. Serial No PB 1287 After lots of consideration I don't think I can make enough use of it to justify cost and I am not a collector. I mainly play double bass at present and have a good arsenal of fretted and fretless electrics if they are required. The owner acquired the bass second hand in Sept 1999 from Mansons - he has the invoice. He had rarely played it and it has spent most the the time as a wall hanging ..... this accounts for it's exceptionally good condition given age. Appears to date back to autumn 1979 and is active. Only cosmetic fault that I can find is a small depression in the laquer on the back - most probably a belt buckle pressure point. Visually almost impossible to see - check out photo please. I have not taken the front plate off and the electrics all seem to work through my amp. There is "crackle" present when turning the master volume pots but not present when playing. I suspect the electrics would benefit from a check over and service at WAL given instruments age. I have cleaned the fretboard, neck and wood finishes with Mansons lemon oil. There are some minimal string marks on fretboard. - Appears to be strung with quality fine flatwounds. Intonation is good all the way up the neck. Original case, a strap and dunlop strap locks. No trades or silly offers. Will consider sensible offers. Buyer to collect or arrange shipping. Most welcome to check over and try the bass - e mail me to arrange. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sblueplanet Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Cool. This should have the collectors selling a kidney 😛 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itu Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Excuses... you should be making music with this lady. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverfoxnik Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 What a gorgeous example of a late 70s Pro II.. Looks like it might be the Pro IIe as well. And it comes with the original brown Wal case - even better! 😊 In this current economic climate, who knows how fast even rarities like this might take to sell, but you can expect @TrevorR and @cetera along at some point to add their comments I would expect.. GLWTS 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 7 hours ago, silverfoxnik said: What a gorgeous example of a late 70s Pro II.. Looks like it might be the Pro IIe as well. And it comes with the original brown Wal case - even better! 😊 In this current economic climate, who knows how fast even rarities like this might take to sell, but you can expect @TrevorR and @cetera along at some point to add their comments I would expect.. GLWTS Yes, she’s a beaut and in amazing condition. The serial is 4 lower than my Pro IIE and mine is a Sept 1979 build date (verified by Pete at Wal) so Aug/September 79 is a likely date. Love my Pro - they have their quirks but are still the second most amazing sounding and playing instruments (first most amazing being the Custom Series Wals, of course🤣) . Someones going to be an exceedingly happy bunny when they snap this one up. PS @fretless , you do realise that 6 or 12 months down the line you’re going to wake up one morning, sit bolt upright in bed and scream, “Aaaarrrggghhh!!!! The one that got away!!!!!” 😉 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pierreganseman Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 (edited) 2 hours ago, TrevorR said: Yes, she’s a beaut and in amazing condition. The serial is 4 lower than my Pro IIE and mine is a Sept 1979 build date (verified by Pete at Wal) so Aug/September 79 is a likely date. Love my Pro - they have their quirks but are still the second most amazing sounding and playing instruments (first most amazing being the Custom Series Wals, of course🤣) . Someones going to be an exceedingly happy bunny when they snap this one up. PS @fretless , you do realise that 6 or 12 months down the line you’re going to wake up one morning, sit bolt upright in bed and scream, “Aaaarrrggghhh!!!! The one that got away!!!!!” 😉 Hi Trevor , people seem to acknowledge you as the "Wal Geek" here, or did i get it wrong? i've personally not seen an active wal pro. What. are the controls?? are they same as "real wals" ? cheers have seen the other thread. Ignore Edited April 25, 2019 by pierreganseman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 (edited) 2 hours ago, pierreganseman said: Hi Trevor , people seem to acknowledge you as the "Wal Geek" here, or did i get it wrong? i've personally not seen an active wal pro. What. are the controls?? are they same as "real wals" ? cheers have seen the other thread. Ignore No worries, I can reassure you that they're very real indeed and they sound great! I characterise them as being a bit more of an old-school, 70s rock vibe compared to the Custom Series. The filters are really interesting. The boost/cut that they give is one of those strange things where, when you play them solo'd you have a tendency to think "Oh dear, that's a bit much." However, in the context of a band mix what you actually think is , "Ooooooh, that's soooooo cool!!!!! Growl, cut-though, clarity! Niiiiiiiice!" Never played a fretless one (don't go there- my fretless playing is SOOOOOOO bad) but with my fretted Pro IIE I tended to use them to set some different core tones... so in the context of the covers/wedding band I used to play in... neck pickup solo, no filter for classic pop (rounded but defined - say covering Maggie May, The Animals or rock and roll); bridge pickup solo, no filter (bite and bark - covering You Really Got Me or 20th Century Boy); both, no filter (big round sound with body but never woolly - Motown, A Town Called Malice, acid jazz, big ballads); both but with one of other of the filters (big round defined sound but with a really nice growl and bite - rocky versions of songs like Johnny Be Goode, She's Electric, Get It On, Lady Marmalade, Play That Funky Music, China Grove and Long Train Runnin'). However, I can really see how the above would translate into a wealth of fretless styles - whether the big neck or both pickups tone for Pino-style stuff, bridge pickup for Jaco and Percy definition and burp. And then using the filters to add more bark, burp and bite. http://walbasshistory.blogspot.com/p/blog-page_9226.html Hi res version of the original promo booklet here http://walbasshistory.blogspot.com/2013/02/1970s-brochure-for-pro-series-basses.html Edited April 25, 2019 by TrevorR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmySims Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Can anyone confirm if this is a factory fretless or has it been defretted? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Can't confirm but rosewood with maple fret marker inserts was the standard fretless option for Pro Series Basses according to the old Pro brochure... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmySims Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Hmm, yeah, the dots threw me off. I’d love to see a photo of the side of he neck to see where the side dots are placed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david1711 Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 I have the same bass in natural and asked Paul the same question as the dots had been moved. Mine is factory. These are special basses with real character. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alberto Rigoni Posted April 28, 2019 Share Posted April 28, 2019 Amazing, does it have a lot of "muaaaaa"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pierreganseman Posted April 28, 2019 Share Posted April 28, 2019 are you able to pack for international shipping? I'm in Belgium btw, not Uganda lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretless Posted April 29, 2019 Author Share Posted April 29, 2019 Pierre The bass is under serious offer from a UK buyer - I will update tomorrow. fretless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barend Posted April 29, 2019 Share Posted April 29, 2019 Very nice one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaggy Posted April 30, 2019 Share Posted April 30, 2019 Looks to be in amazing condition, and a decent price too for these times - vintage Wal bump Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
80sPulser Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 Hi Fretless i have just joined bass chat after coming across your advert I have been looking for ages for a 4 string fretless to join my Wal custom 3 fretted would you be able to send me an your e mail address if the bass is still for sale please i am a UK resident and would like to arrange to make a serious offer kind regards Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pierreganseman Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 On 29/04/2019 at 13:40, fretless said: Pierre The bass is under serious offer from a UK buyer - I will update tomorrow. fretless i guess it's sold? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretless Posted May 5, 2019 Author Share Posted May 5, 2019 Pierre Still under negotiation elsewhere ...... I will keep you informed fretless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted May 5, 2019 Share Posted May 5, 2019 IIRC I used to own s/n 1284 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretless Posted May 5, 2019 Author Share Posted May 5, 2019 Bass under offer and deposit en route. Will re-open if there's a hiccup but no more offers please at present.. Thanks for all the interest and information everyone ! fretless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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