Author Topic: Newbie 83 spoiler question (Read 601 times)

duckmauler · « **on:** July 31, 2003, 01:20:17 PM »

hi all spent the last few hours reading thru this wealth of info here. I own an 83 spoiler that plays fantastically well, i would like to update the pickups, to me they sound very compressed, i also play a fender jazz and would like to emulate that sound if possible. I welcome any thoughts or ideas from the group

kayo · « **Reply #1 on:** July 31, 2003, 03:11:04 PM »

Bro - why would you buy an Alembic and then want it to sound like a Fender? That's kinda like buying a Porsche and wanting it to handle like a Ford.....

scrub · « **Reply #2 on:** July 31, 2003, 03:32:44 PM »

Have you tried adjusting the trimpots on the board inside the electronics cavity?

(Message edited by scrub on July 31, 2003)

duckmauler · « **Reply #3 on:** July 31, 2003, 03:36:23 PM »

kayo you make a good point i guess i want more presence out of it rather than a fender sound and scrub i have not tried that adjustment perhaps turning up the bridge and lowering the neck output will help. all ideas welcomed

duckmauler · « **Reply #4 on:** July 31, 2003, 03:41:38 PM »

also if any of you guys were going to replace the pickups what would you go with i tend to lean towards passive but again wide open for ideas

mica · « **Reply #5 on:** July 31, 2003, 03:52:39 PM »

duckmauler, have you tried the different positions on tone control? Make sure you don't only try the full-open position on the filter, a small rotation impacts the sound alot.

The internal trimpots will only change the gain of each pickup and won't have any affect on the tone. You might want to experiment with the height of the pickups to change the character of the sound, then balance out the gains with the internal trimmers.

Anther suggestion is to try different strings, and don't forget to try flatwounds too.

How long have you had this bass?

Your observation of a compressed sound is about opposite what I feel the Spoilers (and Alembics in general) sound like. I suppose there's a possibilty that after 20 years the parts may need some TLC.

I can't offer advice about other pickups, but certainly the other Club members will be able to help you out there.

scrub · « **Reply #6 on:** July 31, 2003, 06:15:42 PM »

Hrmm. My dear I hate to do it, but I must disagree with you; gain does affect tone, and the relative gain of the pickups does have an important effect. I find that I like to keep the pan centered but bring up the gain on the neck pickup just a bit (which is not the same effect as bringing down the gain on the bridge pickup).

[I wish the gain controls were still front mounted and if I ever order a custom, I will specify that.]

I don't know to explain this - I've never tried to actually put it into words before - but when I run one or the other pickup, I can hear that the signal seems more...um...wide open or free or perhaps unrestrained; but when using both pickups together, I get a more...um...sort of restricted feel in the signal, which I might describe as a feeling of tension, but which I suppose could be described as feeling tighter or compressed.

I can feel the two pickups merging their signals and in the process, the signal acquires something, and also loses something. The signal, rather than being simply the sum of the parts, seems to be in some way different, more tense. When that happens, I raise the gain on the neck pickup a small amount, to sort of overcome the tension a bit.

I know that's horribly vague and hopefully your electronics gurus won't laugh too hard at my way of describing the feeling instead of speaking in terms of fundamentals, overtones and harmonics. I do consciously avoid over-analyzing the details of tone, as I tend to get focused on the details and lose my more general sense - my engineer side overbalances my artistic side.

Anyway, that is how all of my Alembics have always seemed to me, and it is one of the reasons why I love them so, and why I always run both pickups; that tension in the signal has become something which I just can't do without.

elzie · « **Reply #7 on:** July 31, 2003, 07:14:13 PM »

I don't know about your bass scrub, but when I change the gain on each of my pickups, I get the same tone, just a whole lot more of it

Blending the two pickups together will drastically change the tone, depending on how far you want to blend.

Duckmauler,there are a few important questions though;

How long have you owned this bass?

Have you noticed a change in tone/sound if you have owned it for a while?

And last but not least, welcome to the club

Paul II, The sequel

Duckmauler, your bass may be at the point where it would benefit from just replacing the electronics with a new stock setup.

(Message edited by elzie on July 31, 2003)

David Houck · « **Reply #8 on:** July 31, 2003, 08:35:13 PM »

Duckmauler; my guess is that 99%, or more, of the club members would never replace Alembic pickups with another brand. Again I'm guessing but the consensus is probably that Alembic pickups are the best. Another point to consider is that the electronics are designed with the pickups in mind.
Changing strings can make a big difference. Also, changing amps or speakers can make a big difference. For instance there is a huge difference between my Acme and by Eden cabs; switching cabs is like playing two different basses. If you really want to upgrade your electronics, you may want to consider sending the bass to Alembic and having them install Europa or Signature electronics. I've been considering doing that with my Essence, but I can't stand being away from it for more than a few hours .

scrub · « **Reply #9 on:** July 31, 2003, 09:30:16 PM »

I too am thinking of sending my Essence in to have some work done. For one thing, there is a mix and match of the look. It has chrome tuners, but brass everywhere else (except the backplates, which are plastic). I'm thinking of having the rest of the hardware chromed (or all of it nickeled) and replacing the backplates as well.

For another, this one only has one trim pot (if I recall correctly...it's been a while since I opened it up) and for the reasons above I'd rather have two.

I think it'll need frets eventually as well, so I'd have that done at the same time.

elzie · « **Reply #10 on:** August 01, 2003, 04:18:50 AM »

Dave, you are right about the cabs. I remember last year when I replace my Laney 410 with a Hartke. What a difference! Coupled with the signature electronics in my Excel, it was just what I wanted. It had more presence than I could handle.

For anyone interested in the signature electronics, I can plug my bass into the computer and sample some sounds for you. Granted, it is an Excel and won't sound exactly like your bass', but you can get an idea.

Paul II

David Houck · « **Reply #11 on:** August 01, 2003, 09:06:43 AM »

Paul II; the sampling idea could be very helpful. Currently I have two basses with Essence controls and one with Europa controls. For me, the Europa controls significantly expand the tonal possibilities of Essence controls. And it seems to me that having a filter for each pickup would also be a significant expansion of tonal possibilities. So I think your idea of sampling the tones available from Signature electronics could be very helpful.

hifibassman · « **Reply #12 on:** August 01, 2003, 11:55:43 AM »

The reason the spoiler pickups (or any alembic pickups) may sound compressed is primarily because the pickups are not adjusted close enough to the strings (play with the gain settings also). Check to see if there is a big gap between the pickups and the strings. The further away the pickups are, the less dynamic they will sound. No change in original tone, just a much less punchy sound.

If this doen't work, then there's something wrong with the guitar cable you're using (wire not conducting the signal very well) or the rig needs to be adjusted. I doubt seriously that anything's wrong with the pickups internally unless it's partially shorted out or something (i don't see how that can happen with an encapsulated coil.

elzie · « **Reply #13 on:** August 01, 2003, 01:32:26 PM »

Dave, I can put together a short mp3 of different settings with various string positions to give you an overall sound. I can have it ready to mail to you on Monday if you would like.

Paul, The Sequel.....

David Houck · « **Reply #14 on:** August 01, 2003, 08:42:18 PM »

If it's no trouble that would be great. But if it starts looking like it's going to take a lot of time, dont' worry about it. I was just looking at the picture of your bass; is the body mahogany?