Author Topic: Boogieman replacement board on EBay (Read 1842 times)

jim777 · « **Reply #45 on:** October 04, 2012, 10:44:32 AM »

Your response to his 'jerkitude' is not objective though Bradley; which doesn't make it bad, either. Lots of folks love their Ken Smith basses, and some even keep them after dealing with him ;-) But his personality and ability to relate well with others is a well known sore point. Some people won't buy his stuff because they've heard he is difficult to get along with - that's up to the individual certainly but no reflection on the quality of his work.

Were you really considering buying Boogieman's bits and pieces for a Series II instrument though? That does surprise me. And again, I only looked at one or two eBay ads but I saw nothing that resembled I will not support this product if you buy it - once it ships you are on your own. Anything you want to infer from the actual ad but is not there is really up to you, but not based on anything concrete but rather gut feelings.

gtrguy · « **Reply #46 on:** October 04, 2012, 11:49:14 AM »

I have an old series one that had the electronice guts removed years before I bought it and changed to bartolini pickups and preamp. It took me a couple years of searching to finally find another old Alembic setup for it and buy it and get it shipped (it got lost for a while in shipping, too), and it still cost me almost a grand. If I had seen these parts for sale then I would have been tempted.

I also now see he is now cutting the price on them and selling un-populated circuit boards for series instruments too. It kinda looks like they are not selling too many of them and want out, or else Alembic gave them a good tongue-lashing!!!

gtrguy · « **Reply #47 on:** October 04, 2012, 12:01:04 PM »

Now as to people?s attitude; I have worked in hospitals for years and known a lot of surgeons. After a while I got tired of dealing with the ones with an attitude and began to gravitate towards the ones who were nice. After a few more years of getting to know folks who worked with them in the OR, I found out that many of the ones who were a PITA were the ones who had the best patient survival rates and some of the ones I really liked were losing patients that they should not have been losing. It was an eye-opener and really changed my outlook on life.

Give me a PITA any day if they know what they are doing and I am lying there on the table under the knife!

Of course, this does not translate to the Boogieman person at all, it is just one of my little life-observations.

Truth is, there is nothing like an Alembic! That is why I love them and that is why I visited the Mother Ship a few years ago and got to meet the fine people involved in making them!

Dave

keith_h · « **Reply #48 on:** October 04, 2012, 12:23:59 PM »

You know if the e-bay listings didn't say Yonkers, NY I would have suspected Hal as the manufacturer.

Keith

hammer · « **Reply #49 on:** October 04, 2012, 01:21:14 PM »

Jim:

You make some good points about how much many people will put up with if the product they are purchasing is exceptional. I know that I've done this many times if I feel the hassle is worth it. The thing is...we don't know that about the product this guy is producing. Ken Smith may have some unique ways of dealing with customers, but his product has sufficient recognition as a superior one that he can get away with it.

My thoughts on the Boogieman not supporting the product in question were not so much based on his responses to questions (which did not come across well), but rather, his no returns policy. Now while it may be a hassle to deal with ebay, paypal etc. with returns, if one has a good product, believes in that product, and wants to sell sufficient numbers to make a name for oneself, a no-return policy might not be the best strategy to take as you bring it to market. I don't know many people who would be willing to invest that amount of money in a new product (which may, in fact, be excellent and is of course a lot less expensive) that they know little about other than the claims made by its developer.

If the claims are true, I would personally consider his product if I ever find that Guild Starfire I lust after. I'd agree, however, that replacing original Series I or II electronics with his product, unless they weren't working and could not be repaired would border on craziness.

And of course all of this doesn't take in to consideration any of the legal issues that may exist.

jim777 · « **Reply #50 on:** October 04, 2012, 02:34:03 PM »

True as well. As I had said earlier, I cannot possibly see him selling 100 of these things, and mostly due to the rarity of basses with series electronics out there. Very few bassists have ever played a Series bass and have any real idea of what it entails or means. And there are so many preamps out there now to compete with, that have firms behind them not just tinkerers with copied circuit boards.

Also, as someone else pointed out a lot of his ads now say half price. Again, I don't know anything about this guy or his stuff so it may well be that they ALWAYS said 'half price'. Like a furniture store near me that has been 'going out of business' for at least the last 4 years! But my initial thought was that he went hard into this thinking he'd see a market and simply hasn't and wants to basically sell off his stock and be done with it. I would assume he'd support it for a little while, at least until it all sold at any rate. I don't know though. Since he says these only fit in Alembic Series basses though, he really took a very, very wrong turn in the 'reach the widest audience' department. I can understand why Alembic would be upset, but I personally would be far more worried (if I were Alembic) if he was selling something that sounded just like an Alembic pre but could drop into a jazz bass, for instance. there are quite a bit more of them around than Series basses.

nnek · « **Reply #51 on:** October 04, 2012, 04:47:01 PM »

Actually his price has gone up by $20 and no longer offers or best offer...
I have a series 1 that has just plain out stopped working. I don't know what it is and might have been tempted to try a new pre as a fix at $165 (which it appears they had sold for), but at $199 plus shipping I'm not so sure... however for the starving musician comparing the old electronic updating price from the Mother ship at $1450 plus coast to coast shipping of the bass.....what's the owner of vintage equipment and limited means to do?

dela217 · « **Reply #52 on:** October 04, 2012, 05:07:32 PM »

If putting a $165 replacement card in a bass fixes it's problems, then so be it. I am not saying it is better than Alembic's card, it just is what it is. I would rather have a working series bass with a fake card that one that will not make music at all. After all these instruments are tools and what good are they if they are silent. It is just another solution to spending for an upgrade and having to wait until Alembic can get to it.

It certainly beats gutting the bass and stuffing in Barts or EMG's.

It probably would be a great alternative for your ailing Fernandes too!

Just my opinion.

jazzyvee · « **Reply #53 on:** October 04, 2012, 11:25:55 PM »

I'm curious about the calibration aspect of these. We know Ron calibrates the alembic series electronics and pickups on the bass so that there is a good match between the bass, individual pickups and electronics. Also the noise cancelling systems are optimised in Ron's coil systems whilst on the bass. Can a buyer be sure that these pickups are going to be a good match for the pickups and importantly quiet?

The replacement system I've got in my Europa, the noise levels from them are quiet but audible unlike the original Alembic electronics which are silent in respect to noise.

Maybe in the interests of fairness a set would need to be bought tried out and reported back. However the downside is that if they indeed turned out to be very good, boogieman could maybe use the feedback as Endorsement by the Alembic Forum.

Jazzyvee

lidon2001 · « **Reply #54 on:** October 05, 2012, 07:56:24 AM »

I agree with Michael. Send the guy a message and see if he will let one go for the old price.

(Message edited by lidon2001 on October 05, 2012)

gtrguy · « **Reply #55 on:** October 05, 2012, 10:58:39 AM »

Better yet, Have everyone on this thread send me say, $15 each, and I will buy a setup and try it out and report back!!!

(just kidding)

mica · « **Reply #56 on:** October 05, 2012, 12:38:29 PM »

If you have an Alembic PF card, you can send it here for a FREE test if there is some problem you can describe. We have had a long-standing (actually, the entire length of time we've made these electronics) flat $75 fee for repairing or replacing the card with either a new one or a rebuilt one at our choice. We do charge $350 retail for a brand-spankin' new card.

I can't see anything of the high frequency noise cancelling network on the cards for sale on ebay. These would still likely need the upgrade.

nnek · « **Reply #57 on:** October 05, 2012, 04:33:50 PM »

That's GREAT news Mica. I had no idea that there was any such service. I will pack up my card today. What is the preferred procedure as far as scheduling and work order etc?

mica · « **Reply #58 on:** October 05, 2012, 05:48:02 PM »

Make sure you pack it in a static safe bag and then in a sturdy box (I will be so mad if it shows up in a padded envelope). Insure it for the $350 replacement cost in case things go awry on the way here.

Include a note that has:
1. your name and return shipping address
2. phone number(s) and email for contact
3. description of the problem you are experiencing
4. serial number of the instrument the card is from

We'll let you know when it arrives and when the work is done (usually only a few days for just a card). Then we'll settle the account and ship it back. The $75 doesn't include shipping, but we bill that at the exact price without any markup.

flpete1uw · « **Reply #59 on:** October 05, 2012, 07:52:51 PM »

When I sent my Distillate Pickups / Electronics back. I was confident by reputation and sonic brilliance that this was the right thing to do. There is something about the Peace of Mind that all has been checked out, Tested and meets original Specs. I couldn't be Happier with my Bass now.