Alembic Guitars Club
Alembic products => Showcase => Custom Basses => Topic started by: edwardofhuncote on May 24, 2017, 04:10:31 PM
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Well fellas, I've just recieved a call from Mary in the front office... my Custom Fretless is all packed up and shipped out. If all goes as scheduled, this long-awaited dream should land here in Virginia the middle of next week. Since we didn't do a build thread, I thought I would share the pictures Mica sent me at different milestones in the project...
First, there was this template. We decided where the pickups were going, and how the controls would be laid out, -as Mica put it- before the wood chips started flying. If anybody's curious, these electronics are a little different configuration... though technically ordered as a Custom Essence, I asked for an "East-Meets-West" package, which is; Volume / Pan / Filter / 3-position Q-switch / Bass boost-cut / Treble boost-cut / 1/4" mono output. (think- Europa/Rogue, but with rotary boost/cut pots for Bass and Treble, rather than the boost/flat/cut switches) Next thing I knew, the embryo was on a workbench, looking more like a bass all the time. 8)
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Then it was time to carve the Omega, a feature unique to each instrument. Ever notice no two are exactly the same? I sent a couple pictures from the shapes I liked, mostly from early to mid-1970's instruments, and they split the difference between them, adjusting for the slightly wider 5-string neck with its 3 purpleheart laminates. And then the figuring underneath the birdseye maple started to show up. :D
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Boom - we have finish! My eyeballs were scorched the first time I saw this... and that was only a couple coats. :o
As the finish built up, it began to get a warmer, more golden look. Finally when it had some finish, it was time for a special inlay I'd had in mind. It's five links of chain, rendered in pearl. Amazing how they made it even look like metal! More on that detail later... but here it was just after they had inlaid and leveled the fingerboard. Then it got taped back up and sprayed some more.
Once there was enough finish, and it had time to fully cure, they began the rubout. I had specifically asked for the body to be polished out to "something between a satin and a gloss", but the headstock a full-on mirror finish. Mica described the finish after final rubout as having a satiny-glow. Perfect!
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We had a time getting the tuning machines. To help with balance, I had spec'd Schaller M4 Lights, which as advertised weighed about half what standard M4's weigh. They were unavailable for what seemed an eternity, and when they finally came in, they looked absolutely nothing like what we thought. My initial thought was, heck with it, let's just order a set of regular M4's and be done with it, but by the next day, I'd had a change of heart. The more I looked at these, the more I thought they did fit with the 3+2 Elan headstock. A quick email to Mica - let's roll with 'em!
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Everything came together just in time for its first public appearance... and Club Member Harry (hieronymous) snapped a couple quick pictures of it all assembled and strung up at the Northern California Gathering... one of these days I'm going to make it out to California for one of those, but I was quite honored my bass made it first! It was in some mighty fine company that day. ;D
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Of course Mica's famous Maroon Carpet pictures are coming... ;)
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Woohoo!!
Looks real dreamy...it's going to be a long few days..eh?
;)
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Dummy hum canceller?
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Beautiful, Greg, very cool bass, congratulations!! :)
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Thanks guys... the reality hasn't fully sunk in on me yet. :)
Yeah, I probably won't sleep for a few nights Elwood. ;D
Toby, the brass plate between the pickups is where the battery goes... just like in the pre-1974 models. My bass only has one battery, installed laying on its flat side, so easy to remove. Only two screws to replace it too, so faster. Mica didn't remember them doing this before. The idea came to me from #73-39. I almost bought that one for restoration... when it didn't work out, I took it as a sign, and ordered this one. ;)
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Wow - beautiful. Congrats, by the way! It's going to be a long few days, until you get her!
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Very cool! Congratulations! Great to see a fellow east-coaster go custom. So when's the first gig with it?
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Very very very nice. And truly custom. And that inlay, just brilliant. Did I say congrats already?
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Looks great. Congratulations.
Did you go with any type of position markers on the side?
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The birds eye pattern is really nice in this piece, and I like the radiating "flames" in the wood grain as well. The rotary boost/cut pots for Bass and Treble is a cool feature, I don't think I've seen those in rotary before. I didn't see side LED wires, is the toggle switch for mono/stereo? Cool inlay as well. Very nice!
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Keith, when I told Mica I was going un-lined fretless, she highly recommended fretless sidelines, and specifically referenced your "Orion Nebula". So, Thanks for that! ;)
Rob, 'East-Meets-West' electronics are Vol./Pan/Filt./3-position Q, like Essence, or Elan, but with the added ability of Bass & Treble boost/cut rotary pots, like Epic/Orion/Excel. The 3-position Q-switch was an upgrade over the standard 2-position, but since having the 3-position switch put on my Persuader 5-string during restoration, I've found it to be indispensable. ;)
*and regarding the wood... Mrs. W. has quite an eye for choosing wood... I simply removed myself from that particular decision. She nailed *exactly* what I had in mind. ;D
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Beautiful! Congrats!
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Stunning Greg, you're in for a lot of fun! Congrats!
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I've been resisting the urge to hit the tracking number link every hour or so... instead, I've been cycling through the official archived pictures Mica sent. ;D
I haven't even held this bass in my hands yet, but it already feels like a dream, realized.... I'll have an in-hand report next weekend, but enjoy these for now - I sure have! :D
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Waiting for the delivery is the hardest part.
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Beautiful bass, Greg, I'm sure it will sound magnificent!
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One of the strongest olfactory memories I have is the smell the first time I opened the case of the custom Elan I had built. Take a moment to soak in that smell when you open the case. Beats 'new car smell' by a mile!
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The grain in the maple neck wood is cool the way the thin dark lines parallel the Purple Heart laminates as well as the grain in the Birdseye top and back woods. Everything ties together nicely.
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Fer cryin' out loud, how do those people do it?! That's a magnificent looking bass, congrats Greg. Three purple heart stripes, ebony finger board, neck through construction equal plenty of fundamental, that bass will have a BIG sound. My second Alembic was a Bird's Eye Maple Epic which was beautiful! Your bass has at least a few hundred more bird's eyes than mine, truly amazing. One question, did you go with Fatboys, or AXYs, pickup-wise? I like one of each, Fatboy at the bridge, AXY at the neck. Enjoy!
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...One question, did you go with Fatboys, or AXYs, pickup-wise? I like one of each, Fatboy at the bridge, AXY at the neck.
That's exactly what we did... Fatboy at bridge, AXY at neck, each offset by 5/8th's of an inch. ;)
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Greg, what do you accomplish by putting a fatboy in the bridge position?
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Greg, what do you accomplish by putting a fatboy in the bridge position?
That was a suggestion I adopted without personal experience Rob... the advantage I suppose is simply; physics. The strings are not traveling quite as much back up against the bridge as they are up near the neck, so the signal isn't quite as hot, but I'm told the Fatboy helps with some of that disparity. I think Mica described the Fatboy as just having a little wider aperture... it 'hears' a little better I guess. ;)
This bass also features the new Pan module, allowing gain adjustment for both pickups. I recently did that mod on my Persuader too, which has the weaker J-type pickup in the bridge position... big improvement.
It should be noted, other Club members have swapped out their AXY's for Fatboys with a mix of reviews... if I recall correctly Joey had Fatboys at bridge and neck on the Big Red Spoiler, and loved it. Conversely, Jazzyvee tried one on his Stanley Clarke Sig. but found he preferred the stock AXY. So while I'm going into it with the only firsthand experience being the AXY's on my Distillate, I look forward to exploring its potential. As for the upgrade, it's totally reversible too, so really not much to lose. Mica seemed of the opinion it would be especially advantageous for this bass. That was good 'nuff for me. ;D
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Thanks, Greg. I've read that it can be a little boomy in the neck position, but can add some fullness to the sound of the bridge pickup. I'd be interested to hear what you think...won't be long now. :)
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I did a search and found a couple of quotes I liked regarding the Fatboy pickups:
“it really adds punch and girth to the treble position and allows the bass to stand out a bit in the mix.”
- 5a_quilt_top
“I do know I like FatBoys WAY better than AXY's, which to me sound like studio monitors; FatBoys sound like really hot home speakers. Maybe the difference in a Neumann and an SM57. Still mighty clean, but a bit meatier for my ears. “
- bigredbass
I agree with both of them.
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Tomorrow is the day.
UPS was running ahead of schedule, and moved my delivery up one day... unfortunately, there is no earthly way I can take tomorrow off, so it will be held at the hub in the morning instead of going Out-for-Delivery.
Guess I know where I'll be spending lunch hour tomorrow! ;D
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Jealousy will get me nowhere I know but still I am.Congrats.That bass is beautiful.
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Beautiful! Perfect combination of old school and new school.
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Who's delivering the bass, Alfred Hitchcock?
Greg, everything you have on that instrument is beautiful.
Absolute instant classic.
I really would like to hear a sample of the sonic range of your electronics choices.
Congratulations mate! Fanbloodytastic.
slawie
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Can't think of the proper set of adjectives to describe how beautiful that is . . . .
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It's here, safe and sound. :D
I'm going to need a little more time to process things... :-X
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I did snap a couple pictures after introducing C14588 to P5559... I will only say this right now - it is astonishing how close they are in every measurable way. I swear they weigh the same, and they definitely wear the same.
Gotta' go play some more. 8)
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Pace yourself!
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Yes!
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Congrats!
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Enjoy!
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Tried to call to congratulate on the safe landing aaaaaaaaaand... straight to voicemail. You must be making good on that threat to go and play some more.
Glad to know that the eagle landed safe and sound!
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That is Bonafide!
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Just "WOW!" (And of course, congratulations! Very pretty, especially in your own home, right??)
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Thanks for sharing the experience. You must be over the moon. Enjoy the new addition to the family. Cheers!
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Two very beautiful basses, looks like the new addition is settling right in..congratulations (and turn it up)! :)
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Really beautiful! I love the look of the back!
Well done.
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Tried to call to congratulate on the safe landing aaaaaaaaaand... straight to voicemail. You must be making good on that threat to go and play some more...
Exactly that - never even heard the phone ring! ;D Will catch up with you this afternoon or evening. ;)
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Thanks All. :)
I have already logged about 5 hours of plugged-in time on the new bass. Had to make myself put it down long enough to eat something and then go to bed last night. ;D
In addition to how close this bass is physically to my Persuader, it responds sonically in a very similar way too, which I guess isn't all that surprising considering how many attributes of the Persuader were carried straight over to the design of the Custom. I mean... that was really the main thing here, so from that standpoint it was a seamless transition.
One of the differences I did notice between the two; while the fundamental notes seem to ring with equal strength, the harmonics all up and down the scale of this Custom are just off-the-charts. Whether from newer (T-I) strings, or more likely the sustain block, or some combination of both, I don't know, but wow... that first couple minutes just tuning up was really something!
Forgive the rambling... I'm still at that stage where I hear and see a little more detail each time I pick this thing up. (Mica will appreciate this) I just noticed for the first time this morning, even the Cocobolo faces on the headstock have a little birds-eye figuring!
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Birdseye Cocobolo... seriously! 8)
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I was giddy just opening the pictures - can't imagine how nice it feels 'live in person'.
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One last thing to post here... I never really discussed at any length about the little inlay at the end of the fingerboard. I made a copy of this to keep with the bass... in case some future caretaker ever wonders about it. ;)
I really appreciate all you guys here at the Club. It's been nice hanging out here in the 'waiting room' with you all. :D
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Hope you don't mind I saved that to the instrument file here!
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Future COTM?
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Very nice, Greg!
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Hope you don't mind I saved that to the instrument file here!
Perfect - Thanks Mica. ;)
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Finally got a pretty day to get some pictures of "Chain Links" outdoors. The natural sunlight really makes the figuring beneath the birdseye 'pop', especially when viewed from different angles. :o
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Couple more detail pictures... ;)
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It never gets old, does it? :D
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I love the simple, no accent lam look.
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It never gets old, does it? :D
Nope... there's actually been something new every time I pick it up to play, but I reckon you already knew that! ;D
Toby, read your post #36 here, from May 21st, 2015: http://club.alembic.com/index.php?topic=6431.30
Thanks Again for the advice. ;)
First run of gigs are coming up this weekend... 8)
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Hahaha. I knew I had commented previously, but was too lazy to go look. :)
Enjoy the gig. I have a feeling that you'll find all kinds of new little morsels of goodness this weekend.
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Congratulations on a magnificent instrument! So cool to have a 'C' designation; your heartfelt backstory just adds to the mystique of yet another masterpiece from the Mothership.
May you two make beautiful music together for many years to come.......salute!
Chris
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I've had quite a few questions about the brass plate between the pickups... in the early days, this is where the backup batteries went in Series instruments, and the hum-cancelling coil was inside the body cavity. The change came in 1974, when the battery box moved to the back. My bass was only going to use one battery, but I wanted it located back in the top... Mica did some checking and measuring, and sure enough, they made it work. I did it partly as a hat-tip to the vintage, but also for convenience of changing a battery out. You might have thought it would be hard getting to it under the strings, but here's how it works:
Loosen the top string a few turns, and slip these two foam blocks between the string and pickups, then remove the two screws. The battery slides right out, just as easily as the new one slides in. :D
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Cool !
I just figured that was where your stash was 8)
Nice hat tip.
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Though it didn't arrive at its new home in Virginia until May 31st last year, according to the paperwork, my dragon hatchling is 1 year old today... there's a brand-new set of T-I Jazz Flats waiting at home. :)
Thanks Again, to Mica and the Staff for making the dream into reality, and Thanks to the Club here for the support, encouragement, and advice. You guys rock.
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All done with annual maintenance... oiled the fingerboard, then after putting on a new set of strings, it was time to play some music.
Love how that little inlay turned out. :)
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Look who just hit their
terrible terrific twos...
Though it didn't land safely in Virginia until May 31st, according to Aunt Mary's official paperwork, my Dragon is two years old today. She's got a couple tiny little nicks and fine scratches, and the semi-satin finish is starting to wear shiny in places where I've held her close while we dance, but this Custom Alembic bass was made to be played, and play it I have. The T-I Jazz Flats just put on last year are good for quite a while yet, actually just getting broken-in good now. On general principle, I just wiped a little bit of lemon oil into the ebony fingerboard this morning, and put a new 9v battery under that cool throwback brass plate between her pickups.
Time to play! As always, Many Thanks to everyone at Alembic HQ who made this possible... I hope to come out there and meet you all sometime. Maybe this 50th Anniversary will be the year! .
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:)
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Nice!
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Another year has gone by, and lately I've been making up for some lost playing time. After a little bit of annual maintenance and a new battery for C14588, I took a couple new pictures. I'm planning to spend some more quality time playing her later today, but man... I sure wish we had a gig somewhere to go play tonight.
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That’s one beautiful custom bass! The Birdseye pattern is fantastic. I like the looks of the string spacing. Very nice!
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C 14588 with a Pink Floyd-ish sounding guitar/drum backing track.
Her 'Birthday' is 5/16/17, but she landed here in Virginia on the 31st, three years ago today.
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Nice video! And you found a source for backing tracks without bass.
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Beautiful bass, sounds great, and I love the bubbles! :)
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What a great tone, thanks for sharing.
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Another year, albeit a very strange one, has gone by. Last night at the first gig in a very long time, it was good to know my bass was ready to go. I'm always amazed and humbled by this instrument... something magical happens when I put it over my shoulder. Every. Single. Time.
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With hopes for better times to come, it helps knowing my Custom fretless will be ready when I am. Another year has come and gone, and I've hardly played at all this sixth year. Maybe Lucky Seven.
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Nothing wrong with that setup.
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That’s a beautiful bass :)
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I can hardly believe it's been seven years now. I won't have enough juice to play more than a few minutes tonight, but I'll have to mark the occasion with a little fretless workout. I've been working out a bass part on a tricky tune lately. Might have to post it here once presentable.
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Just couldn't do it last night... too beat to think straight after work, but I finally got some plug-in time with the Custom Fretless this evening. I'm on duty this weekend too, but hopefully not all day. I'm leaving these two out in the on-deck stands for a few days.
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Love that Birdseye and head shape! :)
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Time flies, seven years! :o
Also gotto pull out the fretless, been years since I played that one... :-[
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May 16th sneaked up on me this year... it just so turns out, the Fireweed fellas wanted to have a jam-night this evening, so as soon as this thunderstorm rolls through, I'm loading up the Custom fretless for an 8th birthday evening of some loud clangin' and bangin'. I've never taken the fretless Alembic down there, usually the old Series I. Lately it's been an early Tobias Basic 4. They couldn't care less what bass I play.
We'll go slick-board on the guys this evening. Maybe some pictures at breaktime. This picture is from the first gig I ever played with it... 8 years and about 90 lbs ago. I may have even been an inch or so taller. :P
I always like to take a minute and thank the various Club Members who contributed to my dream bass here. The ones that are still around know who you are. Especially to the Alembic family and staff that turned it from an idea and some boards to art. I'm inspired every single time this bass goes over my shoulder.
*posted a couple pics from the practice studio last night... I split the evening between my two favorite 5-strings.