Anybody have a Walden?

[kimona]

I saw a D560 solid top for sale, and it seems like a really fine guitar based on reviews. They sell for about $250 online. The one I'm considering is just 2 months old and comes with hard case and tuner for $160. Is this a guitar you would recommend?

[T.B.]

Yea, I've owned the Walden G570TB for almost a year. Here's a link (further down the thread) of my review. Good bang for buck guitars. Have you checked out eBay as well Kimona?

 

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1643787&highlight=Walden+G570TB

[MePeel]

I have a Walden G570, and I love the tone. I would buy the Dread before someone else does!

Mel

[kimona]

Okay, I see a couple of you do have Walden guitars. Any reason why Waldens aren't very popular?

 

I was going to get this Walden D560 for a friend, just because it appeared to be a great deal for a very nice guitar.

 

Here's where I'm at right now with the seller: 2 month old, never been played Walden D560, with hard case and digital tuner for $130. Should I go for it or not? Maybe I should just look for a Yamaha instead.

[MattSkibaIsGOD]

3 months ago, I would have said Walden, but I have sold all of mine except my N560 since I picked up a Yamaha classical. Make no mistake though, the Waldens are great guitars, but they feel flimsier than my Yamaha. YMMV.

[drnihili]

I started with a Walden D640T, now I've got a G2070. Great guitars.

[DeepEnd]

 

Okay, I see a couple of you do have Walden guitars. Any reason why Waldens aren't very popular? . . . . . . Here's where I'm at right now with the seller: 2 month old, never been played Walden D560, with hard case and digital tuner for $130. . . .

 

The D560 typically goes new for $250-270 with just a gig bag. $130 with a hard case is pretty good. I'd jump on it. As for why they aren't more popular, probably because nobody sells them outside of eBay. Seriously, a quick Google search for the D560 turned up one dealer in Vermont and another in Massachusetts. AFAIK, there isn't a Walden dealer in the entire state of Missouri since David's Guitar Loft in Webster Groves (a suburb of St. Louis) quit selling them.

[Siwash]

Oh buy it! I just got a D-351 and it's fabulous.

 

I keep thinking it's the perfect thing to buy for my nephews! I can't imagine a better starter guitar. . . TONS nicer than the stuff out there when I first began playing. Very nice guitar; worthy of an intermediate player, let alone a beginner.

[darkwaters]

I've played several. Good bang per buck.

[kimona]

Okay, here's my review of the Walden D560:

 

I had the opportunity to spend most of the day with the Walden D560. Under careful scrutiny, I found the construction fair, with poor fit and finish, peeling pick-guard, lousy action, but decent tone. Needless to say, I was thoroughly disappointed; I expected so much more based on reviews.

 

Even with it's solid top, I would say the Walden D560 is equivalent to a Walmart guitar! The least expensive Yamaha F325 dreadnought ($99) with laminate top is a far superior guitar in absolutely every way.

 

In the end, I could have bought the guitar, hardcase, and digital tuner for $100, but I passed on the "deal" with no regrets.

 

EDIT: If one word comes to mind to describe my overall impression of the Walden D560, it would be CRUMMY.

[drnihili]

Sounds very atypical. My guess is that you got one that's been mistreated pretty severely.

[Cripes]

 

The D560 typically goes new for $250-270 with just a gig bag. $130 with a hard case is pretty good. I'd jump on it. As for why they aren't more popular, probably because nobody sells them outside of eBay. Seriously, a quick Google search for the D560 turned up one dealer in Vermont and another in Massachusetts. AFAIK, there isn't a Walden dealer in the entire state of Missouri since David's Guitar Loft in Webster Groves (a suburb of St. Louis) quit selling them.

 

 

Dan Becker's Guitar Repair and Sales, Louisville, KY. He's a Walden dealer, or was a couple years back. Been out of touch with him. Great guy and repair tech, ex-violin maker. He also carries good used gear. Don't think he has a website. This comes up.

 

http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0geu8AxTR5IIRIA9RhXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEzNTRoM2xnBHNlYwNzcgRwb3MDMQRjb2xvA2FjMgR2dGlkA0gxMTJfMTE0/SIG=123jab1vv/EXP=1210031793/**http%3a//www.waldenguitars.com/dealers/us/ky.html

[kimona]

 

Sounds very atypical. My guess is that you got one that's been mistreated pretty severely.

 

 

Guitar was brand spanking new, never played, and a piece of trash!

[T.B.]

 

Guitar was brand spanking new, never played, and a piece of trash!

 

 

You know what you saw and played, if the git was a piece of sh**, it was. Someone on this board has been critical of Walden's uneven quality, this hasn't been my experience with having owned the G730 and now G570TB.

[guit30]

Get an Alvarez

http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-ALV-RD20S-LIST

[Billystrat]

Wow a Walden with that bad reviews? I play Waldens as my main acoustics and sure they don't have the mojo as some vintage cannons put out, but comparing it to a Walmart guitar? Ouch! All this cuz the guard was peeling and the poor action?

 

BTW I don't want to crucify you for not buying something you weren't 100% happy with, just wondering how it was THAT bad?

[kimona]

Lots of quality lapses. Just to point some out: Body binding had several imperfections, plus it was notched about 1/8" short of the neck on one side. The bridge was discoloured, had a natural flaw in the grain that should have eliminated it from production, and it had traces of glue residue all around it. The satin finish on the front headstock was spotty. The inner construction had excessive glue, saw cuts that could have been much cleaner, and dozens of pencil marks. The strings and frets were rusty. The saddle could have been shaved a minumum of 1/4" (it was ridiculous!) and the neck angle properly adjusted.

[DeepEnd]

 

Lots of quality lapses. . . . The bridge was discoloured, had a natural flaw in the grain that should have eliminated it from production, and it had traces of glue residue all around it. . . . The strings and frets were rusty. The saddle could have been shaved a minumum of 1/4" (it was ridiculous!) and the neck angle properly adjusted.

 

A cosmetic flaw in the grain of the bridge wouldn't disqualify the piece of wood from production provided the piece was sound. Some of the other flaws were merely cosmetic as well. Rusty frets and strings, OTOH, are signs of long-term storage issues. Sounds like the a lot of the problems stemmed from humidity issues and the need for a basic setup. In other words, you played a lemon, regardless of whether it was fresh out of the box or not.

[drnihili]

 

Guitar was brand spanking new, never played, and a piece of trash!

 

 

In your first post you stated it was two months old. That combined with the fact that it is selling far below new price leads me to believe it's not "brand spanking new", let alone "never played". Even so, a guitar can be brand new, never played, and still have been mistreated. All it takes it to leave it sitting in the back window of your car on a hot day, for just one example.

 

Given that Waldens are generally well reviewed, it's likely the guitar you saw was pretty atypical. Perhaps that's a quality control issue (though I've never heard anyone report the kinds of issues you saw, even on factory seconds, or perhaps its an issue with how that guitar was treated after it left the factory (given the rust, that sounds more likely.)

[kimona]

Two months old, first guitar received as gift, and never played.

 

After some of the good reviews I had read, I was shocked how bad the quality of this partular Walden was.

 

Rusty strings and frets aren't uncommon, even on new guitars. I looked at an Epiphone the other day at Sam Ash, and right out of the box, it had rusty strings and frets.

 

Anyway, the rusty strings and frets were an easy fix, but they just added to the other obvious quality problems this guitar had, all of which had absolutely nothing to do with being mistreated.

 

Perhaps this Walden D560 was just an extremely bad example of an otherwise decent guitar. Nevertheless, the question of good quality control remains a mystery.

 

EDIT: Sorry if I'm pissing people off because I discovered a Walden, the first one I've ever actually seen in person, that was a POS.

[daklander]

Don't be sorry about your review as long as it was honest. It pertains to that particular guitar.

It is certainly a possibility that was a second someone picked up and hopes to profit from.

I've never personally see a Walden that I recall but do know I've never read or heard of anything really horrible, other than the aforementioned possible QC issues.

It does seem to me that the guitar was over heated somewhere along the line. That will sometimes cause shrinkage of various parts as could humidity issues. That could also explain some of the glue issues, possibly having come loose and been reglued.

 

In any case, I appreciate the report.

 

It's a pretty nice thing, buying a guitar for a friend.

[drnihili]

 

EDIT: Sorry if I'm pissing people off because I discovered a Walden, the first one I've ever actually seen in person, that was a POS.

 

 

I don't think you're pissing anyone off, certainly not because you found a Walden you thought was crummy. I think the overall tone of your review detracts from its credibility, but it would do so regardless of what guitar you were reviewing.

 

Clearly you saw a guitar that you didn't like at all, and you have some very specific reasons why you didn't. Good for you for looking at it so carefully, and thanks for sharing what you found. I'm sorry it wasn't what you were looking for and I hope you find something more to your taste.

[kimona]

 

Clearly you saw a guitar that you didn't like at all, and you have some very specific reasons why you didn't. Good for you for looking at it so carefully, and thanks for sharing what you found. I'm sorry it wasn't what you were looking for and I hope you find something more to your taste.

 

 

Actually, I went to Sam Ash this afternoon and bought a new Yamaha F325. It's just a simple laminate, but it's very decent, and I have nothing negative to report about the quality... quite the contrary. They price matched $99! I think it will make a nice gift for an old friend.

[T.B.]

 

I have a Walden G570, and I love the tone. I would buy the Dread before someone else does! Mel

 

 

Mel and drnihili if you could, would you measure the radius of your Walden's frets for me please? I was telling guit30 just by eye, I thought Walden's compound radius was flatter than any guitar I've ever owned. Not an issue for me but for some it maybe. Would measure it me-self but I'm not home. Thank you.

[drnihili]

 

Mel and drnihili if you could, would you measure the radius of your Walden's frets for me please? I was telling guit30 just by eye, I thought Walden's compound radius was flatter than any guitar I've ever owned. Not an issue for me but for some it maybe. Would measure it me-self but I'm not home . Thank you.

 

 

Ummmmm, I'd be happy to if you'd give me a clue how to do so.