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Wal Bass Club.

#8,141
@ampegfuzz for the most part, the standard neck profiles for Wals are soft V. occasionally they'll be some with that are more pronounced with a soft/medium V or even some with a completely different neck profile. at one point i remember having a Wal with a C type neck. my preference with Wals tend to be soft/medium V profile.
 
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#8,144
@TrevorR - In January, I learned about these eBay sellers. They live near the music stores in Japan. Most often, they simply copy the picture from the original website, add their mark-up and post on eBay. Since I learned about that, I've been fairly successful to locate the original listings.

Now, the subject at hand. This eBay seller wishes to charge $8,560USD. I found the original listing from the Digimart site, which indicates the item is at Kurosawa. (I've run it through Google Translate to get a better idea of the listing.)

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Their price is actually 799200Yen. That price includes 8% tax which is not applicable to international sales. Therefore the pre-tax price is 735264Yen. Using xe.com as a currency exchange source, 735264 Yen works out to $6,689USD. (The eBay seller's markup is about $1871.)

Now a little bad news. Per the Google-translated Digimart listing, this Wal Mk2 has a Rosewood fingerboard. I think it's on a store-by-store basis whether the stores will agree to supply CITES documentation.
 
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#8,145
ampegfuzz said:
My friends Mk1 seems soft but I wouldn't know without putting my hands on more Wal's. Is there a way to measure the neck and know if tis the soft or medium V? I know he has a random pro bass neck that I can peep and another buddy has a single pickup custom I can look at.
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My ProIIe has a C, maybe closer to a D neck. I don't think that's common though.
 
#8,146
bassplace said:
My ProIIe has a C, maybe closer to a D neck. I don't think that's common though.
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I think that’s more common on the Pros. Mine has a much rounder, C shaped neck and so have the others I have played. The soft V seems to be the standard shape for the Mk 1s onward. Personally I love both profiles and the V in particular. Seems to set my thumb exactly where it wants to be!
 
#8,148
here's a side by side pic i took awhile ago, with two different profile necks

wneckprofile.jpg
 
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#8,150
ampegfuzz said:
What year/model is on the left (because it looks more rounded then the right)? The one on the right looks like the v shape on my friends 81 MK1.
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sorry i think i messed with the pic when i tried to make it the same size side by side...the black gloss neck might also mess with the POV..... but this one actually has harder V provide (soft/med)
compared to the one on the right......its a 98 Mk3 greenburst

upload_2018-6-12_9-27-48.png
 
#8,152
I really like the V shape. In fact I appreciate everything about my Wal, even that it is heavy as lead. I tend to play and move and groove differently if a bass feels differently or hangs on a strap in a different way. My Gibson RD hung lowest and just screamed grungy R&R with a pick, and it just never felt right for sophisticated fingerfunk, neither tone wise nor how it felt playing the bass.

That Wal is heavy and a bit unwieldy, sure... but that tone, and the fact that the neck and fingerboard feel like a workbench. It seems I don't really need to put much pressure to the back of the neck with my thumb while playing. The bass hangs perfect on my body and my right arm clamps it into place without any effort. Pretty sure I could play it without having a thumb easily. I can freely move around and the bass is always where I need it.
 
#8,154
Yes Caca thanks, I've already texted him about it a few days ago. It's now of course a lot pricier ;)

My "new" one is just as good, and I don't need more than one Wal Mk1. A Mk2 4-String on the other hand... but we all know the story.

That Yew MK1 is really good though, and it has a very (!) different neck. Much much thinner, it has the skinniest neck I've ever touched on a Wal. Now... I've not touched more than ~10 Wals so far, but still. This bass has a special neck. It has a beefy bass response and can dish out a quite perfect Tool tone. That Drop D string grunts so great.

Seems like its already sold - no wonder. It is a unique wood grain for sure. It's got that, erm, special flipside grain.


ah yes, and that guy plays the holy sh1tz out of that Wal in his videos... goddam.
 
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#8,156
When it comes to buying used, you just dont know what neck shape you'll get if you buy sight unseen.
I've had thin, thick, mild V, sharp V, no V.
On the 4 string I'm not picky, I like them all. However on the 5 string, I'd prefer a very mild and no thicker than 22mm at the 2nd fret (better if even less)
If you order a new one you can get what you want.
 
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#8,157
IF I find a used one I can always just ask about the neck shape. I'm going to chug away at some other basses and see if its my hand in general or the Wal causing my hand to cramp. If its the Wal I think its purely cramping because of the shape. I did a couple "measurements" last night and its about as thick front to back as my 78 Ric 4001. So I don't think its because of the thickness. Plus I have a slew of vintage P basses with standard B necks that don't bother me.... I think :)
 
#8,158
ampegfuzz said:
IF I find a used one I can always just ask about the neck shape. I'm going to chug away at some other basses and see if its my hand in general or the Wal causing my hand to cramp. If its the Wal I think its purely cramping because of the shape. I did a couple "measurements" last night and its about as thick front to back as my 78 Ric 4001. So I don't think its because of the thickness. Plus I have a slew of vintage P basses with standard B necks that don't bother me.... I think :)
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I feel like most people can get used to any neck profile once they’ve played it awhile. Naturally we all have preferences on what we find most comfortable but as time passes with a bass it always starts to feel more natural. When I first got my MK1 in 2012 I pulled it out of the box and flipped about the neck profile. It felt awkward and I couldn’t stand it. The string V profile was like nothing I’d ever played before and I found it to be very uncomfortable. Within a week or two of playing it consistently I found it to be so comfortable and now when I play a bass that’s not a Wal it feels kind of awkward. The 5 string MK3 I have had a significantly softer V profile to it than the MK1. I think whatever you end up getting you’ll end up loving:D
 
#8,160
Musicman1901 said:
I feel like most people can get used to any neck profile once they’ve played it awhile. Naturally we all have preferences on what we find most comfortable but as time passes with a bass it always starts to feel more natural. When I first got my MK1 in 2012 I pulled it out of the box and flipped about the neck profile. It felt awkward and I couldn’t stand it. The string V profile was like nothing I’d ever played before and I found it to be very uncomfortable. Within a week or two of playing it consistently I found it to be so comfortable and now when I play a bass that’s not a Wal it feels kind of awkward. The 5 string MK3 I have had a significantly softer V profile to it than the MK1. I think whatever you end up getting you’ll end up loving:D
Click to expand...

Kind of what I'm thinking as well. He's not in a super rush to get it back (nor I give it back ;) ) so really waiting for a full band practice with it at the least. last week it was just drums, 1 guitar and I as the rest of the 5 piece was MIA. Really want to get a feel with both guitarists. but for now I am shopping for one and have part of the cash sitting in paypal ready to possibly pull the trigger.
 

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