I finally got the call from Mary to verify my street address for delivery. After 10 months, my custom Rogue is on its way.
I set out to create my ultimate go-to bass, with features from various basses I've loved over the years - 32 scale, thin neck, twin pickup, contoured body (coopered in Alembic-speak, like a Warwick Thumb or a Spector), beautiful woods, not too heavy, LEDs, and some other goodies. I originally started my quest by trying to order a custom from my previous go-to, Warwick. After several months of trying to get the salesman to verify options and pricing on a custom Dolphin, I gave up. I then tried to get a custom Moses graphite neck for my Warwick Thumb, but the neck they delivered to me wasn't even close to my specs. It was only then they admitted they couldn't make one to my specs. Disillusioned by empty promises and inept service, I went to the builder I should have started with in the first place and called Alembic. I already had an Exploiter and an SCSD, and knew that Alembic would be able to fulfill any dream I had.
I spent several hours talking with Susan about my design and relied on her knowledge, expertise, and artistic talent to guide me to the final specs. This was one of the most enjoyable design experiences I've ever participated in. Not only did she work to realize my vision, she led me to options I had never thought of. It's obvious that she was not only designing a bass for me, she was making it the best it could be since it is, after all, an Alembic. After we both signed off on the design, the order was placed in January.
In mid May, I received some in-construction pics from Mica and asked for a couple of shots that showed the coopered back. Oops. That detail was missed when construction began. Mica called as soon as they realized the error and construction began immediately on another bass. The story of the orphan that was created has a very happy ending, with the bass being purchased by David Taylor (5a_quilt_top) who named her Scarlet O'Hara. His story with the bass is told in another thread - Almost Gone With The Wind - a tale of Karma and renaming the Rogue Rogue. The takeaway for me here was that Alembic not only makes the finest basses, they are the best at customer service. All the rest are amateurs.
So now, EL Jefe - the boss - is on a truck somewhere heading for Florida. I'll post some pics when I get'em and reviews when I finally get to plug in.
And then I'll start thinking about my next custom Alembic...
