Wal Mk1 fretted/fretless (2necks) at Bass Direct

[4000]

47 minutes ago, mikeswals said:

Being in the US, I remember in the 90's when we couldn't give away used Kubicki, Steinberger, and any 70's Fenders. Spectors were cheap as were preEB Musicmans. For well over the decade all have majorly jumped in value. So that really doesn't mean anything...

These are the best basses I've ever played though. They're very touch sensitive, so they let me play with less effort than any other bass. The filter electronics are genius; you can shift the tone around and also pan between pickups without dropping or boosting volume setting compared to conventional active preamps. The Mk2 and Mk3 are shaped to fit your body and stick to your rib cage and no awkward reaches or hand angles (Alembic I'm looking at you!). In my casino band I'm required to do silly dance moves and lots of hand claps, and going back to the touch sensitive the bass stays silent when I take my hands off of it during doing these things, whereas my other conventional basses would vibrate and 'wooom wooom wooom'  sounds coming thru the amp during hand claps. The pickups are clearer than anything else, You can strum chords on all 4 string and you will hear each string clearly...never get away doing that on my Jazz or Ric!

I love my Jazz, StingRay and Ric, but they cant cop the Wal. Quite frankly nether can the half dozen G&L's I've owned or any other 'in the ballpark' bass I've bought and tried.

I started playing in 1980 and played many, many Wals in the 80s and 90s. London was full of them when I was at college. I found they varied a great deal, from very nice, to meh, to absolute dogs. They all sounded like Wals, but they were by no means equal. I think I’ve only ever played one Custom (maple facings, quite light) that I really, really liked. In almost all cases I’ve preferred the Pros.

In terms of build quality, for a boutique these days they are no more than average. My Custom had an uneven fretboard, and it was built like that. The person who bought it off me sent it to Wal to be fixed. And my Pro, which I preferred, was pretty workmanlike in terms of build and finish compared to the other boutiques I’ve had. None that I’ve played has been a match build-wise for my Seis or Alembics. They do however have a pretty unique tone, and if that’s what you’re after, then only a Wal will (probably) do, although I suspect an ACG with the full package will get close, and for a great deal less money. I do actually really like the sound in certain contexts; Flea sounds fantastic on BSSM and Leigh Gorman sounds fantastic on everything (although his Wal is a passive Pro). 

Don’t get me wrong, if I found another nice one for the right money then I’d maybe get it, but none of the probably 30 or more Wals I’ve played has justified anything remotely like £5k+ to me; maybe half that.

[NickA]

On 16/10/2019 at 15:17, Burns-bass said:

Nobody wanted them in the 90s. I’m not entirely sure why they’re so popular now to be honest after having owned a few. 

I did!  Paid £850 for my fretless in 1997 and have never regretted it or played a bass I liked as much. The fretless is very special indeed, nothing sounds quite like it.  Fretted Wals less special IMO.

This here Honduras mahogany one is expensive because of bass direct's 20% commission! ( And an extra neck that would cost £1600+ from Wal ).

[mikeswals]

You're right about the variance in build of the old Wal era. I too have had to do some fixes on old ones I've bought. Most I've liked, only a couple I was happy to sell on.

However, I've now had six of the new era Wals, and Paul builds them like never before. He builds perfect Wals.   Every one of his I've had has laser straight consistency. When I visited the workshop he showed me how he had to redo jigs and other keep things in tight tolerence. You can also be specific about weight and neck shape with him too.  

I do have respect for say AGC, but in the end it still doesn't look like a Wal, and it won't retain the same value down the road.

Edited October 25, 2019 by mikeswals

[mikeswals]

3 hours ago, edstraker123 said:

The bassists in your examples above are genius level and would sound great on a Harley Benton and it is difficult to attribute how much of the sound comes from their talent and how much is from the bass, other than the bass is providing an appropriate tone for the music they are playing. Would Nathan East sound better on a Wal or his Yamaha or would he be amazing on both ?

 

Here is a another average joe among us. He seems to have that sound in the bass. 

 

[Burns-bass]

10 hours ago, mikeswals said:

You're right about the variance in build of the old Wal era. I too have had to do some fixes on old ones I've bought. Most I've liked, only a couple I was happy to sell on.

However, I've now had six of the new era Wals, and Paul builds them like never before. He builds perfect Wals.   Every one of his I've had has laser straight consistency. When I visited the workshop he showed me how he had to redo jigs and other keep things in tight tolerence. You can also be specific about weight and neck shape with him too.  

I do have respect for say AGC, but in the end it still doesn't look like a Wal, and it won't retain the same value down the road.

I’m not sure that’s entirely true about Wals retaining their value. They’re popular now but future value is all conjecture and history has shown how the market has dipped before. Anyone buying now is at the top of the market.

If a couple of industry guys start using ACGs on high-profile gigs then the value of those could soar too...

[mikeswals]

What do you consider "now"? They've always been popular here. Their values soared in the mid 2000's and never dipped here in the US, it just kept going up. Thats nearly 15 years now. And as the Wal workshop keeps increasing their list prices every 9-12 months, the used prices keep follow suit.

Edited October 26, 2019 by mikeswals

[Burns-bass]

54 minutes ago, mikeswals said:

What do you consider "now"? They've always been popular here. Their values soared in the mid 2000's and never dipped here in the US, it just kept going up. Thats nearly 15 years now. And as the Wal workshop keeps increasing their list prices every 9-12 months, the used prices keep follow suit.

I’m talking about the U.K. where the forum is based. I used to sell Wals, Hiwatts, Sound City’s and other U.K. gear to the states so I know how some of this stuff is prized over there.

I guess having been able to buy a Wal for £500 you think of them as £500 basses.
 

They’re nice, often heavy, very 80s and complex. 
 

If you love Wals, it’s all good.

[drTStingray]

1 hour ago, Burns-bass said:

I guess having been able to buy a Wal for £500 you think of them as £500 basses.

I think it highly unlikely that situation will occur again - if I used that analogy id be expecting to pay £250 for a US Precision or £350 for a pre EB Stingray - clearly highly unlikely. If you think a Wal is worth £500 then that says a lot about your taste in bass sound and willingness to pay for craftsmanship, particularly when we are surrounded by US built 'production line instruments' that are 3 or 4 times that cost  - as I said previously it's rarely worth getting involved in such discussion as its about personal taste. 

As with all antiques and collectibles prices can go up and down very significantly based on fashion (this affects the vintage market more significantly so this type of argument is more appropriate in a vintage bass thread) but surely we're talking complete collapse of a market or capitalism for any item to reduce to the price it was in the 80s/90s? 

Used prices of instruments do track new prices largely. 

Edited October 26, 2019 by drTStingray