alembic elan

[ssshawn]

Hi guys
I hv seen a second hand alembic 4 strings élan online, which seems to be what I m looking for.
But before going for it, I searched the Internet about it,, the information or reviews is incredibly little

Anyone of you had played an élan before?!
Tell me what do you like and hate about it!
Thx!!

 

[M.R. Ogle]

I hate the fact that I've never owned one.

Other than that bit of petty jealousy, I'd say everyone should have an Alembic at some time in their bass playing lifetime. They're all the way at the high end of hi-fi in the bass world.

 

[searchfunction]

Check here:
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and here:
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[FC Bass]

There's nothing to hate about 'em

Love:

Sound: Typically the Elan would have a Maple body and a 3 piece maple neck, Ebony fretboard and a variety of tops (see showcase link in searchfunction’s reply)
This makes it a tight bright sounding bass, perfectly fit to cut trough a wall of overdriven guitars (i.e. the perfect bass for Metal)
Here’s my five string Elan on Youtube: Click here

Headstock design: imho one of the best from Alembic, much better than the later version featured on the Europa

Body design: Almost the same as the Europa, a bit more solid ("Take an Elan and shave 1/4" off and voila, Europa emerges." [Invalid or Expired Link Removed])

Overall: It’s an Alembic; Solid brass hardware, extremely versatile electronics, top notch build quality etc.

Edit: fixed link

 

[D.A.R.K.]

i had one in '90.
was one of the finest instruments ive ever played,
and i've been insane enough to spend 7k on a bass.
the alembic was better, and i paid 1,800.00 for it new.
it was an elan plus, 6 string, had 11 laminations in the neck which was mostly maple and purple heart.
macassar ebony top.
here's a pic of it from the 1990 whfs festival in va.:

the dual truss rods were a pain to adjust.
other than that, i have nothing negative to say, except i'm an idiot for not keeping it.
edit: now i've been thinking about that bass, a couple recollections:
medium neck...not fat, not slim, very consistent from nut to heel.
heel was minimal with nice contour. basically a jazz bass size/ style body.
modern sound, huge dub and clear top tones. very piano-like, great clarity for chords, disgustingly low action.
the plus option was series/ parallel switch, requested via paul schein from chuck levin's music.
i know the 4 string versions came with p/j sets, this had two large soap bars as you can see in the pic.
i had to drop the neck pickup quite a bit for comfortable slapping (also can be seen in the pic).

 

[ssshawn]

How about the playability and weight?
I'm worried about he weight. As there's an additional tailpiece on every alembic, will that makes he bass super heavy?

 

[FC Bass]

My Elan 4 string is 4490 gram, 9.9 lbs

 

[malthumb]

Another link you may want to check into

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[zortation]

My fave body from Alembic. But you gotta pay to play....

 

[jazzyvee]

Headstock design: imho one of the best from Alembic, much better than the later version featured on the Europa

Agreed FCbass, I just love the Elan headstocks so much more than the Europa ones too. I just love that little turn at the tip. On a 6 stringer I'd much prefer a 4+2 layout although I've never seen one with that layout.