Alembic in Neighbors Garage

[Maddog55]

Elderly neighbor told me she had a guitar in her garage I could have. She said her husband, who passed away 4 years ago, had bought it because he wanted to learn to play. When I went to pick it up to my surprise it was an 1985 Alembic Series 1. I did not know what it was until I did some research. She had no idea what was in the case, thinks he must have bought it at a pawn shop. Needless to say I can't keep this beautiful instrument. She has just lost her husbands pension and could really use the money from selling this bass. I would like to help her get the most she can for it. Any advice?

[FC Bass]

Welcome here and wow!...

Many likes for doing the right thing, if me was very rich I would have bought it for you to have.

If everything is ok and its overall in the good shape the picture suggest, I guess that will easily fetch around $4500.
Plz check if there are batteries in it, you don't want them leaking in the electronics cavity.
Also there should be a blue box and a 5-pin XLR cable (though it can be used without it, but these drain batteries very fast)

Many will most likely chime in here, maybe even a potential buyer. Good luck!

[tx196059]

Hi Maddog. Welcome aboard. I would suggest finding the serial number first. It can be found at the end of the fingerboard stamped into the ebony, or brass plate truss rod cover. It can also be found when you open the control cavity in the back, or the upper edge of the headstock. Once you get it, post it here, or send it off a formal request for info here:

http://club.alembic.com/index.php?board=169.0

There are a lot of experts here that can help you, and I am sure there will be some members making an offer. It looks to be in good shape. Take a bunch more pictures, post them here, and we can help you out. Good on you!!

Joe

[jazzyvee]

Wow these are finds we dream about. But you are a good bloke for doing the right thing. It does look in superb condition and hope you find the right price for it. Have you plugged it in to try it out yet?

[keith_h]

Nice looking bass. Flip's price seems reasonable to me.

If you cannot locate the blue box and Alembic chord you might not be fully able to try out the electronics without a 1/4" stereo TRS to TS Y cable. It will depend upon how the bass is wired. If it is wired for stereo a standard 1/4" TS-TS guitar cable will only indicate one pickup and its circuitry is functional and is an easy way to confirm stereo or monaural wiring. You could also post a picture of the 1/4" wiring and someone should be able to tell which it is.

Lack of a blue box could decrease the price as whoever purchases the bass will also need to buy a new or used DS-5 or DS-5R. They will also need to buy a cable which can vary in a lot price depending upon if you go with Alembic, a customer cable builder or do it yourself. The currently posted price list shows the power supply at $595 and the cable at $250. I don't know how current that list is so I would check with Alembic to confirm that they are still valid.

[Maddog55]

Thanks for the replies. Some answers to some of your questions:
I do have the Serial #853833.
I do not have the power cord or blue box.
There were batteries in the bass but they had not leaked very badly. Contacts easily cleaned up.
I did plug the bass in and try it with just a 1/4 guitar cord. Seemed like only one pick up was active. The four position pick up switch only worked in two positions. I realize one position is stand by.

Guitar needs a good clean up. Is a standard guitar polish without wax okay to use or should I only use the Alembic polish?
There are a few dings and dents on the bass nothing major. One of the control knobs is a little roughed up.
I will post more info as I discover and think of it. More photos attached.

[mica]

You can clean with any guitar polish or plastic polish (the finish is polyester). The 1/4" jack is stereo, so you should only hear one pickup with a mono cord. You can use stereo headphones to confirm both pickups are working.

[Maddog55]

Thank you

[tx196059]

Where are you Maddog? Maybe you are close to one of us, and we can loan you a power supply and 5 pin cord.

[Maddog55]

Thank you for the offer but I was able to plug in headphones and verify all pickups are working.

[edwin]

This bass looks familiar.

Blessings to you for helping her out!

[StephenR]

What a great story which I am sure, with help from everyone here, will have a happy ending!

[edwardofhuncote]

This bass looks familiar.

Blessings to you for helping her out!

It reminds me of the fretless Series I moderator Dave Houck had for a while... extended upper horn, bold maple accent, and rosewood top and back lams. It was for sale on Reverb again earlier this year.

And I add my Thanks to Maddog for helping the lady out... good on you.   

[Maddog55]

Wanting to list this for sale for my neighbor. I have sold on ebay before, guitars, pedals etc. Never anything this expensive. I am worried about sending something so valuable cross country if need be. Also feel like anyone spending that much would want to see the instrument and play it first.
Questions:

Would I be better off posting for sale here?
Should I specify "pick up" only?
I have posted a request for Serial # look up here, should I wait for that to come back?
Has anyone used other selling sites besides ebay?
Any other advice?

 

[StephenR]

Since your goal is to sell the bass it doesn't really matter where you offer it for sale and there is no reason you can't list it in multiple places. If you do not wish to ship the instrument it is going to limit your potential buyer pool and probably rule out eBay or Reverb. For a local sale that limits you to something like Craigslist.

I would definitely list the sale here but also recommend heading to a UPS or FedEx store and finding out how much it will cost to have them pack, insure and ship the instrument. Obviously new instruments leaving the factory have to be shipped, too, so I would not let the value of the instrument rule out shipping. The serial number lookup requests can take time and the build sheet info may not be as important to a member here familiar with Alembic instruments in general but may be a good thing to have if you list on eBay or Reverb. If you price the bass realistically it shouldn't be that hard to sell. The instruments that don't sell tend to be way overpriced. Keep in mind that the power supplies are back ordered and not having the power supply or cord (both expensive items) should be reflected in the listing price.