Alembic Guitars Club

Alembic products => Owning an Alembic => Fun Stories => Topic started by: dnburgess on July 08, 2003, 03:53:43 PM

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: dnburgess on July 08, 2003, 03:53:43 PM

I am now in possession of a tracking number which Mica assures me relates to a Spyder 8 string heading my way.  
 
I know other club members appreciate the expectent parent syndrome regarding the pending arrival of a new instrument - let alone one as exceptional (even by Alembic standards) as this. Check out http://www.alembic.com/info/featured_custom.html (http://www.alembic.com/info/featured_custom.html)
 
Stand back guitarists!

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: senmen on July 08, 2003, 11:23:19 PM

HI,
 
I am also waiting on my Spyder 4string coming over from the States.
That was a good statement from you:
Stand back guitarists!
We are coming!!
 
Many greetings from Germany
Oliver Baumann

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: jet_powers on July 09, 2003, 06:07:10 AM

A very nice instrument. Can't wait to hear the reports on how it plays and sounds, although I think we already know.... still nothing quite like stimulating the senses of touch and hearing is there?
 
John Paul

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: palembic on July 10, 2003, 12:15:22 AM

Germany ...Australia
 
Hey brother Oliver welcome to the club by the way: our official welcomer Paul the good one will be here soon and say a lot of beautiful things.
 
Asutralia - Gemany
 
Brother Oliver and Brother Dean. Her is Belgium I will have thundering eartquakes day (a Spiderbass in Germany) and night (a Spiderbass in Australia).
I'll have to warn the Seismographic Institute.
LOL
 
Paul the bad one  
 
LOL or no LOL the Belgian Seismographic Institute INDEED registred anomalies a couple of years ago. It seemed to be resulting from the Biggest DANCE Party in the Sportpaleis in Anwerp (Sportpaleis = big venue hall).
No joke!!!

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: senmen on July 10, 2003, 01:06:36 AM

Hi Paul, now here I found your post.  :-)
By the way:
wij kunnen ook in vlaams spreken als dit is
beter voor jouw!
 
Tot dan
Oliver

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: senmen on July 10, 2003, 02:13:11 AM

Guys,
my Spyder arrived just a few minutes ago.
What can I tell: GGGGRRRREEEEAAAATTTT!
Very heavy and the case is soooooo big.
Will keep you updated later with my first impressions and scan.
 
Many greetings from a proud SPYDER owner
Oliver Baumann

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: dnburgess on July 10, 2003, 05:11:12 PM

Beaten by the krauts, grrrr!
 
According to UPS tracking, mine is sitting at an airport in California.
 
David B.

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: harald_rost on July 10, 2003, 11:42:55 PM

Hi Oliver,
 
good to see that there's one of the Spyder here in Germany landed. Where are you located? I'm sitting with my Series 1 in Bamberg, North Bavaria.
 
David, don't worry. Your defeat would be much more dramatic if it would be a competition in football  
;-))
 
Harald

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: senmen on July 11, 2003, 02:06:25 AM

Hi David, hi Harald,
 
David don?t mind. We Alembic players are all a big family aren?t we?
Harald, I am located in Dueren, near Cologne.
Maybe we can meet some day for an earthquaking Alembic meeting!?  :-)
 
Oliver

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: harald_rost on July 11, 2003, 05:04:45 AM

Hi Oliver,
 
far away from Bamberg, but yes, may be one day ...
 
Harald

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: mattheus on July 11, 2003, 11:01:44 AM

What about a european alembic meeting..... Perhaps it's time for the Wickersham's to come over to the Music Messe in Frankfurt next year, so we can all meet there....
 
Just an idea,
 
Mattheus

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: senmen on July 11, 2003, 11:29:28 AM

Hey Mattheus,
 
great idea!!!!!
I am there as always each year....
 
Oliver

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: dnburgess on July 12, 2003, 12:22:27 AM

Harald
 
Ha ha...and to think, people say Germans have no sense of humour!
 
As Oceania was robbed of a World Cup quota, your assertion probably won't be put to the test for a while.
 
Regards
David B.

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: mattheus on July 12, 2003, 08:55:27 AM

I will try to be at the Frankfurter Messe next year, an a little voice inside my head tells me that maybe some folks from Alembic will be there too....
So this could turn into a secret european Alembic meeting....
Don't tell anyone, otherwise there won't be enough beer. Especially when Paul (The Belgium One) comes..... ha ha ha

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: dnburgess on July 13, 2003, 05:28:36 PM

The Spyder has landed!
 
...at Sydney airport, awaiting customs clearance.

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: senmen on July 13, 2003, 11:36:09 PM

Dnburgess,
keep us updated when you received it.
I will post some scans of mine tomorrow.
 
Many greetings
Oliver

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: palembic on July 14, 2003, 12:14:15 AM

Beer ...beer ??? Beer ...Beer...?
Somebody said beer here?
 
Paul the bad one
 
PS1: I'm not THAT beerdrinker. I mean, I don't drink huge quantities. I LIKE beer, Duvel is my favourite!
PS2: good idea that Frankfurter Messe thing. However: that kind of exhibitions always give me a headache!

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: dnburgess on July 15, 2003, 10:50:38 PM

The bass was delivered to my office in a HUGE box. Initial visual impression - this is one of the best looking instruments - correction, THE best looking instrument that I have ever seen! The flame maple has a three dimensional quality which isn't conveyed in the photographs.
 
Once home, much tuning (next acquisition - a rack mount tuner) later, first note is a glorious open E - sounds something like a grand piano. I quickly discover limitations of my playing technique - being used to a very fast short scale S1 I have developed some sloppy habits. The longer scale is a stretch - plus I need to improve my fingering to ensure both strings in the pair fret properly - something I hadn't thought about.
 
The sound is huge and beautiful - but will take a lot of getting used to before I can take full advantage. I think the sound will improve further when the strings settle down and lose a bit of brightness.
 
Interestingly, lots of fun was had with fingerstyle playing above the 7th fret where there lives an almost electric piano like sound.
 
I'll get back to you in about a year...

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: senmen on July 15, 2003, 11:38:40 PM

David,
 
many congrats on your new baby.
This is great, isn?t it?
I will post scans of mine soon.
 
Many greetings
Oliver

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: dnburgess on July 16, 2003, 05:15:43 PM

OK, I'm starting to come to grips with this instrument - never having played an 8-string before.
 
I have christened it my WMD. Not only must guitarists stand back, but keyboardists too - yet another surprise, this is an amazing funk machine - imagine a Superstition style Clavinet with SLAM. This morning I rewrote and funkified one of my band's songs.
 
As expected, this is the bass of death on heavier lines.
 
Am thinking how cool it would be to have a matching 4-string...but then that would be too indulgent. Wouldn't it?

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: valvil on July 16, 2003, 06:55:17 PM

No, it wouldn't..makes perfect sense to me...I bet Rami would agree...
 
 
Valentino

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: senmen on July 21, 2003, 05:11:24 AM

HI Dnburgess,
 
so how is your new baby doing?
How is your 8string strung?
Octave string behind the bass strings (E,Eoctave,A,Aoctave,D,Doctave and G,Goctave) or the octave strings before the bass strings like the original Entwistle 8string was?
I am planning to buy a Spyder 8string also to match my 4string and am thinking how to what string setting to use...
Can you send me some scans of your 8string?
 
Oliver

Title: Spyder bound for Australia
Post by: dnburgess on July 21, 2003, 04:43:46 PM

Oliver
 
Yes - octave strings behind the bass strings.
 
I am having a lot of fun exploring this instrument - there is a huge range of tones available via the tone controls and pickups. Insterestingly it responds very well to subtle fingerstyle playing - as my original motivation was obtain a WMD against my guitarist. [You should have seen his look of stunned disbelief when I opened the case - he readily admitted it was the most amzing instrument he had ever seen. The piece de resistance was when I turned on the fingerboard side LEDs - he nearly fell over. (I may have sold an Alembic 6 string guitar.) ]
 
The comments in the Entwhistle thread about his light touch was a useful insight.
 
Regards
David