Bass Welson 1970

Overview of this Welson Bass

This is a very rare Welson bass from 1970 which passed through the Esprit Guitare violin workshop!

The Welson brand made musical instruments in Italy between the mid-1960s and the 1980s. These are instruments of very good quality, rather rare today.

This one was given to me in spare parts for a complete restoration. Fortunately all the parts were there, but there remained a lot of doubt about the proper functioning of the electronics.

Work completed

So we start with electronics. A first blank assembly, using a standard wiring diagram and already a first problem: one of the microphones does not work… Ok, so disassembly of the microphone, analysis of the winding and repair. It works!

Second problem, still at the level of the microphones: the output level is very low… Ok, we remagnetize everything a little and we gain a few dB… Cool.

We can move on to editing. On hollow body boxes, it’s always a complicated exercise to place the elements in the right place. But it’s finally here!

We move on to the cleaning and polishing stage, hydration and maintenance of the fingerboard, fret leveling and polishing of the frets, check of the screws and mechanics. We reassemble the easel (which was also in separate parts) after a good stripping and polishing. Finally, we can put on new strings and move on to tuning.

A little disappointing setting for me who likes to have a low action. On these antique instruments, playing comfort was not the priority. So the action remains high. It comes from the design!

Conclusion

A very endearing instrument, especially after the hours spent on it. The sound is warm, and the flat wound strings accentuate this feeling.

However, after several tests, it turns out that the original microphones have really lost too much gain.

It was therefore decided to replace them with more modern ones (P90), as well as all the electronics. And there, it sounds really good!!

Photos

The Esprit Guitare workshop

The Esprit Guitare lutherie workshop welcomes you by appointment for maintenance, repair, setup or customization of guitars, bass, ukulele and more 😉
Feel free to contact us or book an appointment.

Esprit Guitare – a passion for instruments in Martinique.

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