Author Topic: Complete Alembic AXY Activator Guitar Pickup Assembly (Read 188 times)

apalazzolo · « **on:** March 14, 2011, 01:22:39 PM »

Here we have a complete Alembic AXY Activator guitar pickup assembly (two pick ups, some controls, 9v battery pack, ?? jack and screws, etc.) rescued from the depths of the wayback-vault where they have been for about 20 years. I bought this pickup assembly to put in a guitar back in the day and never got around to it.

The controls are volume, volume, tone and a Q-switch to change between active and passive modes of operation.

A very similar assembly is still available, the controls are slightly different (volume, treble, bass, and pan with no Q-switch) and the new assembly now goes for $1100.00 on the Alembic website.

http://alembic.stores.yahoo.net/axybtacpic.html

These pickups are in excellent ?next to new? condition with some very minor surface scratching from being in a box with other stuff for years. Both pups read a healthy 9.5K ohms guaranteed no DOA. The pictures show the lead wires with no connectors. However, I have since sent this assembly to Alembic and they added some connectors and gave this set-up a clean bill of health.
Thanks for looking. -Tony

tmoney61092 · « **Reply #1 on:** March 14, 2011, 03:03:43 PM »

just to clarify, the Q-switch does not switch between active and passive, it simply boost the frequency range of the filter. good luck with the sale!

~Taylor

apalazzolo · « **Reply #2 on:** March 15, 2011, 06:10:14 AM »

OK ... Thanks for the clarification Taylor. I also forgot to mention that I'd like to get $550 for the full assembly and that's about half price of a new one.

Please feel free to call 860 599 8507 if anyone has any questions. Thanks.

apalazzolo · « **Reply #3 on:** March 23, 2011, 06:05:18 PM »

now on ebay update ... Item number: 180643853636

thanks for looking ...

apalazzolo · « **Reply #4 on:** April 05, 2011, 12:41:27 AM »

.. Final price drop to $400 shipped for the full assembly and that's less than half the price of a new one.

This is on ebay now, item number:180647048547

Please feel free to call 860 599 8507 if anyone has any questions. Thanks for looking.

jazzyvee · « **Reply #5 on:** April 05, 2011, 11:31:11 PM »

I may be interested in this myself but have a question. If I was to buy it I would want to put it in my vigier fretless guitar in place of the bridge and neck pickups. The middle pickup is a regular single coil pickup. So my question is, Would the electronics work properly with this mix of low impedance and high impedance pickups?

jazzyvee

FC Bass · « **Reply #6 on:** April 06, 2011, 08:06:38 AM »

If you keep the single coil out of the active circuit, you can probably get them working @ the same volume with the gain trimpot.
If the single coil is too loud, you could add a passive trimpot circuit (very cheap and easy to make) to lower the pickup volume.

This is your main rhythm guitar? :-)

Looks great!

jazzyvee · « **Reply #7 on:** April 06, 2011, 05:27:48 PM »

FC, this isn't my main guitar although I have used it for reggae a few times as it has a good percussive chop sound and for melodic single note playing it's very expressive. It's very challenging to play chords though because as you know with fretless instruments it's pretty crucial where you put your fingers. So with this guitar, chords where you have more than one finger at a given fret position for Example F shape chords it takes some effort for the chord to play in tune.

Jazzyvee