Alembic Guitars Club
Alembic products => Showcase => Custom Basses => Topic started by: 5a_quilt_top on July 10, 2013, 12:29:34 PM
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As promised, here are some additional photos showing the incredible Alembic craftsmanship and attention to detail.
Enjoy!
FRONT:
BACK:
Note the purple heart veneer on the back of the headstock.
3/4 w/ LEDS:
POINT & BODY CONTOURS:
This is a great photo and really captures the essence of this detail. Note the vintage-style top hat control knobs.
VERMILION, FLAME MAPLE & PURPLE HEART CORE HIPPIE SANDWICH DETAIL:
HEADSTOCK CONTOUR:
NECK / BODY CONTOURS:
I tried to show the complex curves of the body carving - especially the area where the neck meets the body. This is difficult to show in photos and is truly breathtaking in person.
TURQUOISE & STERLING SILVER OVALS:
In reality, these glow as if lit from within.
TURQUOISE, MOP & STERLING SILVER ALEMBIC LOGO:
Contrasts nicely with the rich warm orange/red of the vermilion veneer.
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I saw this bass when I toured Alembic in April. Truly stunning.
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Another beauty, great looking recipe all around!
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Let's try this again - for some reason, the photos have vanished, so I'm re-posting them. As promised, here are some additional photos showing the incredible Alembic craftsmanship and attention to detail. Enjoy! FRONT:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/168393.jpg)
BACK:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/168394.jpg)
Note the purple heart veneer on the back of the headstock. 3/4 w/ LEDS:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/168395.jpg)
POINT & BODY CONTOURS:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/168396.jpg)
This is a great photo and it really captures the essence of this detail. Note the vintage-style "top hat" control knobs. VERMILION, FLAME MAPLE & PURPLE HEART CORE HIPPIE SANDWICH DETAIL:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/168397.jpg)
HEADSTOCK CONTOUR:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/168398.jpg)
NECK / BODY CONTOURS:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/168399.jpg)
I tried to show the complex curves of the body carving - especially the area where the neck meets the body. This is difficult to show in photos and is truly breathtaking in person. TURQUOISE & STERLING SILVER OVALS:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/168400.jpg)
In reality, these glow as if lit from within. TURQUOISE, MOP & STERLING SILVER ALEMBIC LOGO:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/168401.jpg)
Contrasts nicely with the rich warm orange/red of the vermilion veneer.
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Gorgeous bass, congrats! Did you choose to have the p/ups this close for a particular reason?
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Thanks!
Yes - COC pickup placement was a conscious decision.
72-01 originally had movable pickups that slid on brass rails. This provided a great deal of tonal flexibility and allowed Mr. Casady to fine-tune the sweet spot between pick-up placement, fingers and strings.
Since I did not have the budget (or patience) to explore recreating that feature, I opted for the next best thing - permanently placing the pickups where I thought they'd work best for me.
The unorthodox locations were a bit of a gamble, but I trusted the fine folks at Alembic to determine the exact best placement after I provided them with a rough idea of where I thought they'd work best.
As it turned out - it was perfect for me (and for the 32 scale of this bass).
The larger gap between bass pickup and fingerboard accommodates my rudimentary slap/pop technique and the bass pickup is placed just slightly behind where I naturally play most of the time. As a bonus, I can rest my thumb on the upper edge of the bass pickup when necessary.
Since this bass is heavy / dense (vermilion and purple heart are dense woods) and has ebony in the neck - there is no lack of low end or sustain and the Fatboy treble pickup allows me to dial in even more girth when needed.
I think of both pickups placed closer together as a kind of super humbucker and the blend / filter controls of the Signature electronics as tone controls that allow me to approximate how I think the sliding pickup system might have sounded.