John Mcvie Graphite bass on Reverb

[Mr. Bill]

.this is an oops. Pleas delete. Thanks!

[Mr. Bill]

Thanks for the insight on that Joe, and great to see you here. Im playing that wineburst elan (thanks very much!) And still turning heads and getting compliments about it. I dont get out as much as Id like these days, but Im getting ready to move up north anyways. Enough about me though, back to this bass...  To edwards point, is the action good? Any other issues with it?

[edwardofhuncote]

...But most interesting, was the case. It was like piecing together the history of a world tour, from all the stickers. I think we spent as much time looking at the case, as the bass.

That's the thing... you'd think if this bass made that many trips there'd be some pictures or video somewhere other than the cover of an anthology. Judging by the dates on the tour stickers, I'd guess the case predates the bass. (didn't graphite necks come about in '76 or so...?)

Good luck Mr. Bill... that is a fascinating instrument surrounded by some good ol' Alembic mystique. Hopefully if it becomes yours, you can coax the secrets out. 

[tx196059]

Mr Bill, to Edwards point, the bass was not an exact fit inside the case. And for a bass this old with a touring history, it was in amazingly good condition.


As far as string height, there did not seem to be an issue. First thing I checked, since it was a graphite trough neck. If the height does not suit you, you can take Geoff Gould's advise, and use a lighter gauge or open core strings to lower the action.


Since this bass is made of graphite and ebony, it is high density, and has very clear high end harmonics. But that comes at a price, in the weight department. But if the wineburst Elan 5'er works for you, this bass should not be a problem for you either.


If you end up getting this bass, there is one suggestion I would make. Draw a template of the controls, and make several copies. If you find a sound that suits you, mark the positions of the controls and switches on your template, like we used to do with the Mini Moog's, back in the day. Other wise, you would go insane trying to get it back. The electronics were quiet, and everything seemed to work as it should.


Hope that helps, and happy bidding!


Joe

[keith_h]

I wonder if  the extra knobs are mellow filters.

[TexasBassMan]

Hey Bill...

What a small world! I was the owner of the 5-string Wineburst Elan you're playing, and I sold it to Joe.  It's a great ax for sure.  I keep trying to be a long-scale 5-string player, but I'm a short-scale 4-string guy.  I'm also the guy who owns the 5-string Caribbean Blue Burst 5A Quilted Maple bass you commented on yesterday... the one you said "got away." :-)   I'm checking out a short-scale bass that Joe has right now, and would need some cash to make that happen, so email me at bctviking@yahoo.com if you're interested in my Caribbean Blue Burst.  This graphite bass is pretty cool, too!

[Mr. Bill]

Man, the Alembic world is small and interconnected, thats for sure!  It reminds me of living here in Delaware, where if you know 3 people one of them knows one of the other 2. 

I spoke to them at the Low end Bass shop today, and unfortunately I wasnt quite able to get to where they needed to be with it. It looks like that beautiful guitar will need to wait for someone whose pockets are a bit deeper than mine. 

Thanks for the extra info Joe, Brian remembered you and spoke very highly of you. 

[tx196059]

No problem Bill. Brian at Low End is a great guy, and very knowledgeable. He knows Alembics really well.

[edwardofhuncote]

...the "Penguin & Porpoise" bass remains at large.