not only did my newest alembic, the europa in this thread, arrive a day earlier than promised, but it's even more beautiful than described or as it appears in the pics. dave, you're absolutely dead-on once again. comparisons to my MK? the MK is neck heavy. the europa isn't.........it's perfectly balanced. the controls are simple and the quick switches absolutely work like a charm to allow a lightening fast change in the sound...and the change is dramatic to say the least. sweet emotion by aerosmith? the opening notes played high up on the G string are crystal clear when using the treble switch to really bring the highs into the mix. flip the switch off and you get the deep funk of the melody back until you need those high notes again. it's remarkable. the side and front LED's are almost blinding they're so bright. as a 52 year old dinosaur i'm rarely moved to use the term cool anymore, but when you're playing this thing in the near-dark and flip those LED's on in the middle of a song, things go from cool to kewl! the flame maple is gorgeous. again, dave, you told me in your email about the tapering of the neck and you're absolutely right. interesting that was one of the main points you emailed me about.........this is the most comfortable and fastest playing alembic neck i've ever encountered. i've owned at least 7 alembics now and i will tell you that the tapering of this neck is the most comfortable in my hands of all of the alembics (or for that matter any of my other basses except maybe my surine affinity II fretless 4 string) i've owned. i've got big hands but i don't have exceptionally long fingers; however, i can wrap my hands around this neck. makes me feel like stanley clarke! i've ordered a set of TI's, which i now use on all my basses thanks to the advice of others on this site, because it came w/roto's and they're just not a good string for this bass. i know the TI's will be a distinct improvement and will give me the fullness and smoothness of sound in the transition between strings. right now, if i'm hitting up in the high end of the G string (i actually have all my 4's tuned BEAD) and come back down hard on the E, i'm getting some clankiness which i attribute to the roto's being roundwounds. it's just in their nature to produce that sound, and while i like that playing YES on my rick 4003, i don't want it on my alembics. dave, you're also right about me having second thoughts about selling my MK. i love this europa, and it is much more suited for my metal/hard rock style, but it's not an MK! i know you hate to use the term better when comparing different models of alembics. however, the nuances of sound capable of being produced from my MK and its signature electronics are much broader than from this europa. i liken the simplicity and directness/responsiveness/immediacy of this europa's sound as being more akin to my persuaders and spoilers, although superior to their sound. in short, i love this bass!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
