Kev

No experience with a bongo, but I did not find the Stingray Special 18v pre to be especially hot.  The 18v is only headroom really, and at extremes of EQ it may be louder.  The Neomydium humbucker is more likely responsible for the clout, but nothing the Scarlett shouldn't be able to handle.

Too scared to update yet.  Gig on Saturday and session job on Sunday 😂

1 hour ago, Burns-bass said:

 

 

 

Seeing prices rising steadily suggests that they're a good investment (you won't lose money with a Wal, etc) when, again, this isn't necessarily true.

 

 

Given the frankly ludicrous levels used Wal basses have reached, I feel the price will crash in the medium term future.  Find one still being sold for £4k ala 5 years ago and that'll be a tidy investment.  But I can't see how they can possibly balloon higher or even stay where they are for long, unless he closes up shop for good.

Can't see it?

Swear I've heard that name before, a bit torrent client or something similar?

Just the 3 for me

🇵🇭 RJ JazzCaster
🇬🇧 Alpher Instruments Mako Elite "Blackburl"
🇬🇧 Alpher Instruments Mako Elite Thinline "Blueburl"

11 hours ago, Chopthebass said:

Still waiting for the pickups! But found time to sand and buff. I’m loving the flame! 

Beautiful!

Can't wait to see how this turns out!

2 hours ago, crazycloud said:

I got an infraction from one of the preciouses at TB for making a toilet seat inference after someone else posted a similar meme.

I made an ugly laugh sound when I read this, what on earth was the rationale? 

That's the kind of toilet i'd treat myself to a sit down wee on, lovely stuff!

Although I'm not sure my experience of Bongos is a polite sound?  Remember them sounding pretty gnarly when digging in!

11 minutes ago, Rich said:

Please tell me that this isn't going to turn into yet another "how can Wals possibly be worth it" thread.

 

 

I was in dire financial straits a few years back and came within an ace of putting my beloved Wal up for sale purely for the money. I knew I couldn't do it when simply writing the advert made me blub. Thank got I didn't, it's doubled in value since then.

Turn into?  It's literally how the thread began

8 minutes ago, LukeFRC said:

I can - if I want a wal bass 4 years is very long time to wait.

Longer than that for the possibility that I might be able to get on an order list to wait 4 years at an increasing price…. If I had the money I’m just buying a secondhand one at whatever price…. In 5 years I might be dead, have no money or who knows… either you are musically be in need of a Wal or financially it’s not an issue and then you will get one.

 

that says I’m not in the bracket of being able to afford!

If everyone had my attitude, Wal basses would still be £3k used and you may have been able to afford  

13 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

 

The order book is currently closed due to the fact that the current backlog is in excess of 4 years. It says so on their contact page. You can ask to be informed when Wal will be taking orders again, but I suspect that if you aren't ready to put down your deposit on the day that it does re-open you are going to be out of luck. 

 

Therefore you want a Wal right now you have no alternative but to negotiate a price on one of those 9 up for sale. The fact that they are all still available to buy means that they are currently priced on the high side, but I'm sure there would be some wiggle room on price for anyone with actual cash to spend. Also bear in mind that those 9 Wal basses available for sale are a mixture of fretted, fretless, left hand, right hand, 5 string, 4 string etc. So while there are 9 to choose from if you need a particular set of features that cuts down the choice by at least half straight away.

Ah I can see you have to expand the dropdown, or at least on my browser.  So, you're added to a waiting list, and they'll contact you when you can order.  So my point remains unchanged really.  I just can't relate to that level of impatience I suppose!

16 minutes ago, admiralchew said:

A similar thing is happening with Noble Pres. As soon as one is delivered it is worth more because there’s a year long wait or a big up-charge to get one in six weeks. Like basses with long wait times, some of it is the impatience factor. I suppose basses are a bit different though as Nobles all work the same way whereas someone after a bass may want different woods or finishes that can’t be had from Reverb and the like.

True, but Wal basses today are built in almost the exact same way as they were 30 years ago, which is why it differs so much from value attributed to vintage Fenders and the like.  It isn't disputed by any Wal owner that the current build are at least equal to the builds of old, albeit you get the occasional chancer who tries to ask more for one built by Ian Waller, but doesn't really succeed IME.

And noble preamps are a whole other discussion

It's just reached this uniquely silly position that anyone taking delivery of their new Wal bass in January will instantly make a sizeable profit if they wanted to sell it on.  I just don't really know who is buying them at this price, and what their justification is. 

Has anyone on here paid £10k+ for a used Wal who can fill us in?

Again, the comparison with Fender and investment calls back to value attributed to it being a vintage instrument, which doesn't apply here.  There are hundreds more Wals in the world now compared to 10 years ago, whereas there will likely be hundreds less 70s Fenders due to their advancing age.

52 minutes ago, pineweasel said:

They are relatively rare. And crucially, you can't just "buy one right now". The order book is closed, there's a four year wait for those with orders, and the new price started at around £6000 the last time I looked. Scarcity is driving up used values.

Is the book closed?  I wasn't actually aware of that, didn't see anything on the order form on their website?  But if so, its still a patience thing (you missed off the bit about waiting for years on my quote).  The point is, if you want a Wal, you can get one, its just a matter of how much time you want to wait.  But the end result is getting one, its a certainty.  You don't have that with vintage or actually "rare" instruments.  I'd totally understand the value of Wals going crazy if they closed the workshop, but they haven't.  But if they have closed their book, that may be contributing, but when the real boom happened they were certainly still taking orders.

1 hour ago, Burns-bass said:

 

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.

The primary driving factor behind the value of 70s Fenders is in the name; they are the value they are because of the era they were built in and their age.  Take a Wal bass that was built in 2019 and another built in 1989, second hand value now will be very similar, but if anything the 2019 will go for more.  The Wal value is nothing to do with its vintage, but with Fender its everything to do with that.  I just don't see how they compare at all.

7 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

 

Of course it is the same to vintage fenders. A few years ago you couldn't give a 70s fender away, and now they go for crazy prices. There are certainly many orders of magnitudes more 70s and 80s fender basses than wals in their entire run. They can't be considered even slightly rare and you can buy a fender without waiting built the same way and save a fair bit.

 

Obviously there are changes in the last 6 years or so that have added to 50% of the price to stuff, the fact our money is worth a lot less, but there is still a false idea of rare driving those prices up.

Its honestly nothing like vintage Fenders.  Their value is wholly attributed to their age and era, neither of which has any significant impact on the price of a Wal. 

It also makes me sick as a pig that I sold my Wal for £3.6k 7 years ago (which I thought was mad at the time, easiest £1k profit I've ever made) and, if i'd have sat on it, I'd be in a rather nice position right now.

13 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

I am not sure why it is an issue - if you have £12k for a wal, buy it, you aren't hurting anyone, you aren't forcing other people to pay more for something. It is a crazy price to pay for something like that, but so are vintage fenders etc, all the time people buy them they will go up. 

It's not an "issue", its just a bizarre curiosity.  Its nothing like comparing them to vintage Fenders.  They're not rare, they're not disontinued, you can buy a Wal, built in exactly the same way, right now, and you'd save thousands.  You would just need to wait a few years.  I can't imagine being so impatient and so wasteful with money, especially in these times, but obviously some people are happy to do it.  Just so odd.

Probably the biggest reason I don't own a C4 is because I can't easily trigger it with my Quad Cortex.  This is still a faff, but if its really keenly priced, I mean realllllly keenly, it may be tempting.

Wasn't there talk of the C4 being upgrade to a full sized pedal with proper midi ports?

So they're all gone, anyone grab one?

27 minutes ago, jonno1981 said:

I thought the pnut was neck through? Maybe memory failed me. Interesting to scroll through and see the price of a thumb nt4 these days. £6k!!!! 

It is, this is the lower end bolt on version of it made in the Far East.  The German version must be around the £7k/£8k mark these days.

The Sklar is actually a Rockbass, so forget that one.  But they have a couple of those P Nuts and they look fantastic for the money, must have been around the £1600 mark when they were sold new about a decade ago.

I know they'v done this a couple of times before, but a few NOS Artist Line Warwicks have shown  up on Thomann again, at bonkers prices really for 2023!

P Nut £888: https://www.thomann.de/gb/warwick_al_p_nut_4_nb_showroom.htm

Lee Sklar £979: https://www.thomann.de/gb/warwick_artist_line_sklarbass_i_vsth.htm

EDIT* So the Sklar is a well disguised Rockbass so isn't actually a bargain, but the P Nut is from the old Artist series circa 2012 ish, well worth the money.

1 hour ago, fretmeister said:

 

No it isn't.

 

Every bit of evasion leads to higher taxes for the rest of us. Tax rates are set in part by reference to those who will try to evade. So the rest of us are your victims.

 

Yes. It is morally and legally wrong.

True, but have you every received goods from overseas that have not attracted tax/duty fees but should have, and did you immedaitely call customs and excise to pay what you think you should owe?  I think we've all been guilty of this type of evasion at one time or another.

11 hours ago, ern500evo said:

About £50 including postage to the UK 

Crazy really, it wasn't that long ago that new non-knock off drive pedals would cost that much.

Perhaps if it was £25 and sounded half decent, or it was a clone of a £400+ pedal, but there's just not enough incentive for me to consider over the used, reliable, value retaining real thing.