New Owner

[welovecats]

Hi there,

Here you can get the 1/4" stereo to mono cable you need. You will get both pickups on the mono end:

http://bayoucables.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=4

[mica]

By 1982 truss rod covers were generally recessed. Would have to see close up and under the plate to know if this is the original plate or not. You can of course remove the truss rod cover entirely as Jimmy suggests.

Later, the neck pickup migrated towards the bridge to favor playing techniques as you describe. However there is a tradeoff in tone - the close the neck (bass) pickup is to the end of the fingerboard the bassier the tone.

In the FAQ you can also find a post that describes how to rewire the 1/4" for mono. Now we supply with mono 1/4" wiring as the default.

[Mlazarus]

One idea for the truss rod plate: If the sitting area were shaved down to make the plate flush with the body, then use flat head screws. That would make clearance for the index finger to pop, but the plate holes for the screws should be beveled as well. that way the screws can be flush with the plate. Has anyone ever done this?

[Mlazarus]

Also, I've noticed the 70's series 1s have no plate over the truss rods. It's open. Like the 77 and 78' pics i've seen online. Was that the standard in the 70's?

[lbpesq]

My '76 Series MSG has no truss rod cover, while my '77 Series LSG 12 String has a cover.

Bill, tgo

[StephenR]

My '78 Series bass has the "old style" truss rod cover.

[Mlazarus]

I feel a little better that the older Alembics did not have the truss rod covers. So, i have no problem taking it off. I'M STILL THINKING OF MOVING MY SELECTOR SWITCH THOUGH! LOL.

I just have to get recommendations who could do it to the Alembic Specs. And will it Drop the value of the bass?

[pauldo]

The value of an Alembic is subjective… it is worth what a buyer wants to pay for it.    Someone here relocated their PU selector switch and filled the void with an old coin.  It is unique.  Some may poo-poo such a modification, some would applaud it and find it unique and consider it an upgrade (relocated switch for slappers and extra bling for the lookers).   

If a buyer wants an Alembic because they nearly play themselves and their tonal palette is vast then everything else is moot.

Some buyers want a shiny and mar free appearance with original location of switches and no belt-buckle rash.  For others, a ding here, a checked finish, a hole from a relocated strap button, etc. does nothing to deter them from wanting a particular bass.  As long as there is no structural damage and the electronics are functioning proper, who is to say a cosmetic feature decreases the “value”?

Let us know what major city you are near, someone may know a trusted luthier who could do the work if you are not comfortable doing it yourself.

[jazzyvee]

I'm with you Pauldo on that, i think that when you buy an alembic, it needs to work for you and the way you play and provide the performance you expect. So if things need to be modified to make that a better fit for the player, then do it, no point putting up with things and saving it for the next person.  It's a bit like buying a car and worrying about putting too many miles on it for fear of losing a future sale. I think one caviat I would exclude from would be don't make non reversible changes to the electronics with non-alembic parts as most knowledgeable buyers will want that bit original. Unless of course you never want to sell it.

[Mlazarus]

Pauldo, Thank you for your advice. I live in Springfield, MA. Boston is 90 miles east of me and NYC is about 135 mile south.

[Mlazarus]

Has anyone ever connected the Tech 21 Sans Amp from the DS5 box? I guess DS-5 bass/mono to Sans amp , then sans amp to MarkBass Amp (For neck pickup). I will also use
DS-5 Treble out to my Peavy MAX 100 10 inch amp (For Bridge pickup).

[jazzyvee]

I see no reason why that shouldn't work. I presume you are driving the power amp only on the markbass an not through it's preamp as well?.
I have tried (at home), DS-5 Mono out to my rack preamp through to power amp and DS-5 bridge out to my Roland JC120 sounds great. There are certainly options to experiment with using the two outputs. Some players use one DS-5 out clean and the other with effects.  I'm hoping to get a gig where I can experiment with two different signal paths.
Good times.

[keith_h]

The DS-5 does not do any signal processing. All it contains is the power supply for the bass and summing resistors for when the bass is used in mono mode. Anything you would hook a bass up to directly can be hooked up to the DS-5.

[Mlazarus]

I'm trying to keep it as simple and practical as possible:

      1. DS-5 Mono out to Tech21 to Markbass 15-inch(I want Compressor pedal to this Amp)

      2. DS-5 Treble to Peavy Max 10-inch combo amp( I want ALL effects pedals to this Amp)

       

[JimmyJ]

Hey Michael,

There are no rules. Running these basses in stereo can lead to all kinds of amazing sound combinations so just keep experimenting. 

I'm guessing your DS-5 does NOT have a mono switch, is that correct?  If so, plugging a cable into the Treble output will put you in stereo and send signal from the two pickups to the two separate outputs.  The Bass output jack only works in mono if there is nothing plugged into the Treble output jack.

So if you set things up as in your last post, you would only be compressing only the neck or bass pickup with the Tech21 and your other effects loop will only effect the sound from the bridge or treble pickup.

If you want to have the tech21 compressor plus your other pedals working on the entire signal you may want to run mono out (only), through your effects, into the tech21 and maybe out the "parallel out" into the Peavy.

But there are a million variations so just keep experimenting and see what inspires you.

Jimmy J