Alembic Guitars Club
Alembic products => Alembic Basses & Guitars => Topic started by: webb on October 04, 2004, 03:18:53 PM
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One of my Alembics appears to be a deluxe signature in that it has back and front 5A quilted maple and a 5 piece laminated body though the through neck features pin stripes rather than full laminates and the serial number 'SJ' would suggest it is a standard signature. Can this be explained?
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3A Quilted maple is so beautiful looking at times, that you think it has to be 5A. 3A is usually larger quilts and not as uniform in its quilting as 5A - eh? Others who know far more about this than I do, eh?! Then again, someone might have ordered a standard with 5A maple front and back laminates. The pinstripes instead of the purpleheart neck lams -> standard. The model decides the base price, and any options can be added to it.
Example - It is probably common to order a Mark King to get the cocobolo included in the base price and add Series Two options, as it is over $1,000 cheaper than getting a Series II in cocobolo.
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With the exception of CVQ knobs on a non-series bass, every other option combination is theoretically possible. Ordering a back laminate on a Signature Standard is not unreasonable.
The three main upgrades between a standard and deluxe are:
1. Body back laminate
2. Purpleheart neck laminates instead of walnut pinstripes
3. Cocobolo top/back woods on the deluxe vs. maple top on the standard
Adding just the back laminate would be a bit cheaper than the whole deluxe package, especially with the right monthly special running. This would be even more true if you prefer the sound of the walnut pinstripe neck over the purpleheart laminates.
There's a lot of variety out there!
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Trust the serial #. SC = Deluxe, SJ = Standard.
Peace,
James