Author Topic: Jags Orion (Read 438 times)

jags · « **on:** February 12, 2007, 11:27:55 AM »

so happy to have pickups set in mahoghany

jags · « **Reply #1 on:** February 12, 2007, 11:29:56 AM »

sweet headstock,my only inline peg head(so far)

jags · « **Reply #2 on:** February 12, 2007, 11:34:24 AM »

bubinga top #97OW10498

the other inline bass i dream of is a dragon wing,palyed one when i visited. balance and sound was amazing.dream custom

jags · « **Reply #3 on:** February 12, 2007, 11:54:15 AM »

ok alembic nuts,let me just say this from experience in having these different basses.
without a shadow of a doubt the Orion i have is the warmest sounding bass i have. next is the persuader.the persuader is older, and has about 1/3 of the PJ pickups are set in mahoghany.
yes the tone is not near as bright than, my all maple essence,or my maple-p/heart neck thru, all walnut 20th anniversary. nor should it!!! those pickups are entirely set in maple(which is a seriously brigther sound). the tone is NOT different and/or superior because my Orion is a setneck. thats a load of crap. its preference, i believe you need some warm to your sound,your bass is made of wood not graphite ,;) i just slapped on a set of Dean Markley, sr2000 Will Lee strings and you wouldnt believe the highs i get out of my reflex mounted 18-inch celestion 250.
it will never be as bright as my all maple basses nor do i want that.
everyone do themselves a favour. Google search bass body woods and click on the Warmoth building site. there they have a whole list and pics of body woods,and,a tone-meter,for each one. compare the brightness of the maple to the mahoghany.
then reconsider your thoughts about tone difference between set necks and neck thru.even alembic tells us the wood make the difference not how its constructed.one example, alembics own tribute guitar. its not neckthru. thats why they put a thick piece of coco bolo on it, right!!! enjoy everyone!

jags · « **Reply #4 on:** February 12, 2007, 11:56:16 AM »

jags starter collection

not as nice as darkstar's or others,but its a start

lbpesq · « **Reply #5 on:** February 12, 2007, 01:40:27 PM »

John:

As I understand it, the difference between a set neck and a neck-though as far as the effect of the wood recipe on tone is that on a neck-though, the choice of woods used in the neck will have the most apparent effect, with the body woods having an effect to a much lesser degree. On a set neck, the body woods have a far more significant effect on the tone of the instrument. And the neck-through design helps to increase sustain. I've never heard before that the wood the pickup is set into, and how far into it, has a big effect on tone.

Nice looking collection, especially the top on the Anniversary. Enjoy.

Bill, tgo

the_8_string_king · « **Reply #6 on:** February 12, 2007, 05:33:58 PM »

Uhm...

That's pretty much exactly what I was going to say, down to the word.

The Anniversary looks especially sharp, though I really dig your Bubinga.

I can't see any reason that the wood the pickup is set into wood affect the sound in any way.

It seems reasonable that perhaps the wood(s) the tailpiece is laid on, and that the bridge and sustain block are laid into, might affect the sound in some way, but it is not immediately clear why (and/or how) the wood the pickup is set into would/could affect the sound differently.

jags · « **Reply #7 on:** February 12, 2007, 06:10:18 PM »

yeah my two maple neck-thru are a lot brighter than my orion or pursuader. though the pursuader, has some of the pj pickups set in the mahoghany part because they run longer or are wider than my 3piece maple neck.

jags · « **Reply #8 on:** February 12, 2007, 06:14:13 PM »

my maple neckthrus are definitely brighter than my orion and pursuader.my pursuader has some warmth to it,cause the pickups run longer than the width of the 3 piece maple neck. about 1/3 of the PJ pickup is set in mahoghany

adriaan · « **Reply #9 on:** February 13, 2007, 04:09:30 AM »

John, the woods have no effect whatsoever on magnetic pickups, which only respond to electromagnetic excitation (strings that vibrate in the magnetic field). Magnetic pickups that also respond to mechanical excitation are called microphonic, which is a condition that most people would consider to be a problem.

The woods do have effect on how the strings vibrate, which is what the pickups pick up and translate into an electric signal.

If you change the pickup height, you will notice a difference in the sound. IIRC, lower the pickup to get a cleaner sound, raise it to get a sound with more bottom. This again has nothing to do with the woods, but with the different frequency responses depending on the distance between the pickup and the string.

On most Alembic models (except those with the Persuader, Epic/Orion and Essence electronics) you get a separate trimpot for each pickup to compensate the output levels for varying pickup heights.

bkbass · « **Reply #10 on:** February 13, 2007, 09:00:00 AM »

Yes,as the above have stated.P/U's wood depth or type of wood they sit in does not affect tone. The bridge set in wood or brass will have a difference. I believe(don't hold me to the owner's name) it was either Phil's early bass or Jack's early bass that Alembic experimented with various materials in the sustain block and concluding that brass sounded the best. I enjoy both my neckthru's and setnecks. The tone differences are what help me serve the song. Anybody have a series bass without the sustain block? Does it have an in between sound of both camps? I've played lower models to the series (not lesser models)with neckthrus and no block. It varied widely with the type of wood and their respective densities etc. What I find comfort in is that if I want warmth I can always get it in a setneck. More clarity and sustain the neckthru. Alembic has made it simple to choose and tweek it with wood choices.

crobbins · « **Reply #11 on:** February 21, 2007, 08:15:23 PM »

What bass rig are you running?

jags · « **Reply #12 on:** February 22, 2007, 07:16:58 AM »

i want to get this in the rig section just feel a bit ashamed with all those monster cabs there!!
i have a swr triad cab, 1x15,1x10,and a horn,plus i have a homemade cabinet its a celestion 250, 1x18 and is reflex mounted.
for gear i used to run a swr grand prix preamp,until i just got my f1-x. i have a sf-2 also powered by an ampeg svp 1500
its modest for now which is ok cause hopefully i'll be on the move and cant have to many cabs to lugg around. cabs are available in any city,and there pretty much all the same as the next(company wise). so i've been concentrating on acquiring a nice alembic colletion. they're more valuable and easier to carry around!!! i didnt plan it like this it just kinda all fell in my lap,so i'm just going with it!!

southpaw · « **Reply #13 on:** February 22, 2007, 12:58:29 PM »

Beautiful Orion John, your entire collection is stunning. Bill is right about the woods, I had this conversation with Mica a few years back; the set neck models get a warmer tone because the mahogony body interacting with the maple neck. The neck through models are maple (unless otherwise ordered)from nut to tailpiece, so the side body woods have far less to do with the sound.
I too am dreaming of a Dragon Wing some day, maybe with a mahogony neck just for the warm tone. Congrats on your great collection.

jags · « **Reply #14 on:** February 22, 2007, 05:45:20 PM »

thanks yeah i want a dragon wing for sure. i am also leaning toward a balanced k custom with a heart stinger. the neck, mahoghany on the outside. the stinger part, center strip red vermillion as possible,then two ebony strips either side,then maple to complete it. i think the stinger would look great with red in the middle and black on the sides!!