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Alembic Basses
- Thread starter brocco
- Start date
I used to have a flamed walnut Alembic Spoiler. It was a 32" scale 4 string and was a dream to play. I paid only around $200 for it with it's hard shell case back in the early 90s and it was mint. Sold it when I built my 6 string and got about $1000 for it. It was a nice bass and a good investment. Not sure what they go for now.
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Back in the 80s, when I was a kid, my dad owned an album that pretty much opened up my eyes to awesome bass tone and tasteful playing. In the credits it said: Jimmy Flim Johnson - Alembie (sic) 5-string base (sic). Lol, I figured out what an “Alembie” was eventually..!
EdwardofHuncote
I Still Dream of Jeannie
- Aug 21, 2013
- 6,651
- 2
- 16,418
- Disclosures
- I privately own and operate a local musical instument repair shop.
What took you so long to get here?
Maybe I was playing one of them.
(truth: I spent the last couple evenings replacing the alternator on the gig-mobile...)
But I will be playing one of them at a gig later tonight and again tomorrow, and now I can drive the comfortable car to get there.
Not “bad”, just a learning curve. Nor usually bad, but sometimes not good, which can be bad.
Rocho is a monster player in fact going to Vegas Saturday to see EW& F and then Santa Fe on Monday night at the Bootlegger Bistro where they play every Monday night. I will shake that man's hand!
Doner Designs
Steve Doner
- Jun 2, 2012
- 5,784
- 6,819
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- Doner Designs is an alias for Steve Doner
This style is beautiful but it LOOKS like it would have severe neck dive. Does it?
After I sell my liver, a kidney, my left foot and gall bladder I should have enough for my dream Alembic: A 6-string Dragon Wing, or Spyder. Entwistle fan.
Minimal neck dive in playing position because it is short scale. But, it is right on the edge, and not nearly as balanced as a Jazz Bass, for example.
Alembic’s original designs suffer from two player unfriendly characteristics. First, the woods tend to be heavy. Second, the entire scale length is shifted away from the player’s body; to the left for a right handed player. The SSB gets by due to the short scale; the small body minimizing weight, which is why I settled on that one. The MSB works just fine on the point body; and if you can find a lighter MSB with the omega cutout, that’s the holy grail. I just never found one that lined up with life. Longer scales in either original body styles sound surrealistically fantastic, but are treacherously difficult for ergonomics, including neck dive.
Alembic has long since developed different body styles to address these issues. The problem is that you have to custom order to get what you really want. My last quote was north of $18k, which is a good bit too much for my needs. YMMV
I always thought they looked very cool - and i choose that word carefully. A little pricey for what you see - lots of cocobolo tops which is seriously heavy but a nice look.
I don't predict i'll ever own one, but they're certainly a part of the bass market that catches some people.
I don't predict i'll ever own one, but they're certainly a part of the bass market that catches some people.
I owned these two five strings: The red one a five-string Spoiler in a Series body shape I bought used, and the green one, a five-string Elan I custom ordered in a P/J layout. Several years ago, my wife had what turned out to be unsuccessful back surgery, and they had to go in order to pay some bills as our income was cut in half suddenly. I paid the mortgage for many months thanks to these two ! I essentially owned and played them for free as it worked out.
I always say that they are not for everyone. They can be a handful ergonomically, and the electronics can be brutally revealing of your technique. But if they do hit you, there is nothing, and I mean nothing like an Alembic.
The wood- and finish work are second to none. The electronics are exceptional, and the installation looks like this under the hood:
with bespoke mini-PC boards, all plug-in connectors, and no foil for Alembics, silver insulating paint. In most situations, they're silent. The little blue boxes are trim pots to fine-tune each pickup output to set the balance in the fader. And you see the threaded inserts they use, even on the back cavity cover. The level of thought and execution put into these things is just way past most off-the-rack bases.
They're not cheap, as there's nothing cheap in them. And you can't get guys from a temp agency to build these things, it takes artisans.
And the Wickershams (after all, it's a small, family company) are the best people I EVER dealt with, by a mile. Whether you bought a used one cheap, or are spending a King's Ransom on a new custom, they treat you like family, and they care deeply about you and every axe they've built.
I utterly enjoyed mine, they taught me a lot, and maybe one day I'll have another. If not, they were the best basses I ever owned by a mile.
My guitarist friend always asks me, "When are you going to get an Alembic?". Then the other day he pulls out one. It is old 4 string, Series I, with XLR output as well as 1/4. Sounds really good but I spent 5 minutes only. The mids cut while it still keeps it's rounded tone. He knows what they are worth, so no bargain for me if he decides to sell it 
. He also has an old Gibson LP and ES-335 (70's and 60's) one of the best one's I played
. He also has an old Gibson LP and ES-335 (70's and 60's) one of the best one's I played
All true. The Wickershams are fantastic people who care for their instruments more than you can imagine, but also care for any owner (new or used instrument) and their experience with their bass. The prices are substantial (though less than you might think for great used basses) but the build quality and customer focus by the company are unlike literally anything I’ve ever bought. Any Alembic owners disagree with my last statement?
