I was in Norfolk, VA at the Guitar Center off Military Hwy. They were really proud of their Alembic. They did not know the Model (Essence) or any info. The headstock has a large heel at the base. The bodyslab is FAR below the quality of any Alembic I have ever seen. The serial number plate had been removed and replaced by a copper plate. It did however have Alembic electronics on it, so there is some value there. This thing looks iffy. I told the sales guy, but I bet they were taken on the trade-in and feel the need to trade on the Alembic name to get their money.