If you had it to do all over again......

[James L. Martin (malthumb)]

Question for owners (past & present) of custom Alembics....
 
If you had it to do all over again, what would be different about the custom you'd order from Alembic?  What feature(s) did you not get that you would get now, or features did you get that you could do without?
 
I'll start:
My bass has continuous wood backplates, side LEDs, gold MOP inlays.  I would still plan on getting all of these.  If I were ordering the same bass today I would also order the recessed headstock logo, continuous wood truss rod cover, mono/stereo switch, omega heart cutout (I have a point body), and my name at either the 12th fret or the 24th fret.  I'd also have probably opted for wider string spacing.  This was only my 2nd 5 string and I was concerned more about neck width than I think I needed to be.
 
The one option that I don't think is available that I would love, would be a quick change battery compartment.
 
Anyone else care to share?

[Valentino Villevieille (valvil)]

An interesting thread, James, and one I can definitely relate to...since I am doing it all over again for the third time...
My third time ( happening now) I got a bookmatch to center, which I  did not get  on the first 2 and I went for series I electronics.  
But generally I keep buying custom Alembics because I love them and I'm greedy for more, like an art lover who wants more paintings,  not because I'm ever disappointed in any way with what I've done before.  
 I like them to look somewhat similar, but I also want them to be different. So other than a coco bolo top and deluxe purpleheart laminates, & Fender Jazz neck dimensions,  I tend to change the other components ( mainly the body shape, and the Electronics).  
My first custom was a  MK Deluxe( coco  bolo, of course) with  a triple omega balance point shape ( heart at the bottom) deluxe neck, continuous wood backplates & truss rod cover, the second was a coco bolo Rogue with modified essence body shape(chambered), deluxe neck, fat boy pickups, knobby peghead and ash body. Since this one had no back laminate, brass backplates rather than wood...for some reason I can't remember I did not do a wood trussrod cover..i should have...that is a real classy touch that is  relatively cheap as an option.  As for the side leds, i love 'em ...those will come one day, I'm not in a rush, since I'm not playing on any stages at the moment, although that may change.  Of course if I had more money I'd go for more outrageous stuff, like superbright laser inlays and so on...still, I gotta leave myself something to dream about... Call me crazy, but I actually don't ever want to be in the position of being able to say that I satisfied every Alembic craving I got... It's too much fun  
 
I understand your desire for a quick change battery compartment...problem  I've always seen with those, working for 3 years in a music store,  is that being plastic, the little covers/doors that hold the batteries in break fairly easily, and then often you'd need to replace the whole compartment, a major pain...many folks would end up holding their batteries in with tape....from what I've seen of the folks at Alembic over the years I don't think that would be acceptable to them...
now, if the whole frame &  little cover/door of the contraption could be made of brass...I'd ask Mica if she thinks they could do something like that, after all you just need a frame and a  small swiveling door with a latch to cover the battery cavity...I don't think I've ever seen those quick change compartment covers made of anything other than plastic
 
My humble 2 cents
 
Valentino

[Wayne McLemore (wayne)]

I had this dream.........Now that reasonably accurate tuners have gotten so small (Korg CA-30), why can't we integrate one into the Series basses?  (I start with the Series only because power is not an issue.)
 
I'd have it be ON when the pickup selector switch is in standby (and only active with the 5-pin, like LEDs).  Since the onboard tuner would really only be for tweaking the tuning, you wouldn't necessarily need the display, so you mount 3 or 5 small leds in the top of the upper horn - so only the player can see them.  If it's 3, just the standard red-green-red.  If it's 5, then red-amber-green-amber-red.
 
C-Ya...........wayne

[Michael Paskel (Mikey) (pookeymp)]

Hey Wayne,  
 
About a year ago when I first started dreaming about my next bass and started on a quest, I came across a builder who was incorporating tuners into their instruments upon request.  I can't for the life of me remember who it was, but I'm gonna do a little searching when I get a moment and see if I can track it down again.  But it certainly seems do-able.
 
Anyway, the bass I was dreaming of a year ago turned out to be my first Alembic (a 5-string Triple Omega Mark King Signature Deluxe) that I received just a few months ago.  I got the Abalone neck inlays, and had my neck cut asymetrical (the lower part of the neck flattens out...so the G string side is thinner than  the B string side)...I loved this feel from my old Tobias.  As James stated, if I could do it over again, I certainly would have had my name/initials inlaid somewhere on the fretboard.  I love the Triple Omega cutout (it's absolutely a work of art), and if doing this bass over I would do it again, but for me the design is not the most practical, and I'm not sure if I would ever get it on future Alembics.  The bottom cutout digs into my thigh while sitting, which means always wearing a strap to keep the bass suspended somewhat off the leg (even while practicing), and the top omega cut either digs into my side, or right under my chest while standing, depending on how I'm holding the bass.  I really don't notice it while performing, but am usually a bit sore the next day. But, the beauty of this instrument is worth the minor discomfort I have grown accustomed to.  
 
There are many other things I could/should have done, but no regrets...just saving all the ideas for my next Alembic (don't tell my wife).
 
Mikey/
 

[Michael DeVincenzo (jlpicard)]

Hi Valentino, Just thought I'd mention...I've had two Ibanez Musician series basses,both from 1979 which have a battery box made of metal which uses only one screw to hold the lid down on one end.On the other end of the lid there was a tab which extented into a slot in the frame of the the box. Not exactly a quick change but a quicker change than two screws and more durable than the plastic variety. Maybey Alembic could design something like that with the addition of a captive screw in the lid so there would be no chance of losing the screw on a dark stage during a break. Also the head of the screw should be large enough to open with a butterknife! ;)lol  Mike D

[Michael Delacerda (dela217)]

Alembic made a custom for me in the year 2000.  It can be seen as the Retro Appeal featured custom from September of that year.  It is a GREAT bass!  I just wish I specified the overall thickness of the body.  At the time I did not realize that the newer instruments are a bit thinner than the older ones.  I am so used to the thicker body on my older basses, that the thinner one sort of throws me off.  When I use the instrument, I have to get used to it all over again.  
 
Also I think on that bass with all the maple, it would have been cool to have the gold mother of pearl inlays!  
 

[Rami Sourour (rami)]

The Dark Prince was my second chance to revise my original design.  I decided I wanted MORE Ebony.  That's when I went for the continuous wood pickups and Ebony knobs.  Mica tells me that it's becoming a popular option.  I also wanted the stiffest neck possible, so I went for the Purpleheart neck with Ebony laminates.  On that bass, I wouldn't change a thing.  It plays like a dream. It has the ultimate sound and sustain.

[Rami Sourour (rami)]

I can appreciate the convenience of quick change battery compartments - but they're just so flimsy and cheap. And they break easily.  I don't think that two machine screws and a plate (wood or brass) is so bad.  It looks great and lasts the life of the bass.  

[James L. Martin (malthumb)]

Rami,  The issue with my battery compartment is that with the continuous wood back plates the tolerances are really tight (that's a good thing) and there are 4 tiny screws that require an optical scredriver.  No big deal, since I always have one with my gear.  
 
But, add to that the fact that my custom has an 18 volt system with two batteries wedged in tightly and that they last about two weeks if I'm playing frequently.  Especially if I'm not on the external power supplies.  Series basses eat batteries like cookies.  By comparison my 6 string Hanewinckel hasn't had a battery change since about October.  I probably play it about a third of the time that I play my Mark King/Series II 5er.  It's not so much of an inconvenience that I'd consider parting with the bass.  It would just be one added convenience.  Even better if it were done in continuous wood.
 
Peace,
 
James
 

[Jorge Schwarz (jorge_s)]

I think a really cool and useful feature for my next bass is the addition of independent bass and treble controls for the series II electronics.  It makes for a lot of knobs but with the multitude of sounds available already, this lets you tweak it a little more without having to go to your amp.  I would also like an XLR output from the power supply module.