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Which Alembic?

Which Alembic?

  • Alembic Japan AJ-II-HB

    Votes: 4 66.7%

  • AXY pickups in Aria bass

    Votes: 2 33.3%

  • AXY pickups in another bass (please specify)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    6
Iristone

Iristone

Jul 8, 2017
2,947
3,677
Beijing
#1
As a big fan of John Entwistle, the next logical step after a Thunderbird and an 8-string is an Alembic! I'm also building a Sunn-sounding preamp pedal.
I've seen a pair of good deals on Zenmarket, and you could check it out if you're interested, too. You could also find them on eBay and Reverb, but they cost a bit more there. I'm in China and they're in Japan, so shipping should be fast and reasonably affordable.
  • An Alembic Japan AJ-II-HB headless bolt-on bass for $2250. Mahogany body with maple top, maple neck with ebony fretboard. A pair of PAF-sized Activator pickups with the filter preamp. Comes with the shiny Alembic emblem.
  • A pair of AXY pickups with filter preamp for $400. Theoretically the AXY pickups should sense the strings at a wider aperture, giving a higher output and more classic Alembic tone. I could drop it into a locally-available neck-through Aria bass, or slightly route the body of another bass, such as an Epiphone Explorer.
In a more distant future (at least a few years later), I'd like to build a bespoke BQW Explorer-shaped bass with Alembic pickups and circuitry. If I buy the AXY right now, I could save them for my custom build. But I may be able to get another pair during the waiting time.
Any insights?
 
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#2
Iristone said:

Which Alembic?​

Click to expand...
One of these, perhaps?

Alembic Basses Group.jpg
 
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#9
I too am a massive John Entwistle fan. I associate him with the Exploiter/Explorer shaped basses the most, but that's likely because of the era that I discovered the Who. I love the look, but the ergonomics of 34" scale basses with the top strap button at the junction of the neck and body ends up with the neck too far out to the left for me.

In terms of chasing his tone, I find that splitting the bass signal into tow parts as he did can help getting that grindy top end distortion and keeping the bottom end intact.

That and new round wounds, low action, and an aggressive right hand approach. I can't do the hammer styple of plucking that he does though. It's almost like slapping with the tips of his fingers.
 
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#11
shirojiro said:
I too am a massive John Entwistle fan. I associate him with the Exploiter/Explorer shaped basses the most, but that's likely because of the era that I discovered the Who. I love the look, but the ergonomics of 34" scale basses with the top strap button at the junction of the neck and body ends up with the neck too far out to the left for me.

In terms of chasing his tone, I find that splitting the bass signal into tow parts as he did can help getting that grindy top end distortion and keeping the bottom end intact.

That and new round wounds, low action, and an aggressive right hand approach. I can't do the hammer styple of plucking that he does though. It's almost like slapping with the tips of his fingers.
Click to expand...
I'm also a big fan of the Explorer bass shape. Unfortunately almost all Explorer basses are discontinued and sold out. I can find used Aria ZZB (I believe I can drop in the AXY pickups directly) and Fernandes BX, but they look a bit "off" to me. An Exploiter also tends to be expensive, so ideally I could wait for a deal on a Distillate Exploiter or Spoiler Exploiter.
I'm almost exactly as tall as The Ox, so I don't think I'll run into ergononic problem with an Explorer bass. In fact my Thunderbird is among the most comfortable basses I've ever played! I can also play the typewriter technique regularly, and the "dig in at the neck heel" thing in a pinch. I still need to work on ring-finger plucking, though.
Twocan said:
Used Alembics can be had $2,500-$3,500 if you're patient. I'd recommend the real deal.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately these models tend to have the 2-band EQ. I'd like one with a filter. There used to be an Essence for $2000 locally, but I stupidly passed on it TWICE before it's gone. :facepalm:
 
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#16
Iristone said:
As a big fan of John Entwistle, the next logical step after a Thunderbird and an 8-string is an Alembic! I'm also building a Sunn-sounding preamp pedal.
I've seen a pair of good deals on Zenmarket, and you could check it out if you're interested, too. You could also find them on eBay and Reverb, but they cost a bit more there. I'm in China and they're in Japan, so shipping should be fast and reasonably affordable.
  • An Alembic Japan AJ-II-HB headless bolt-on bass for $2250. Mahogany body with maple top, maple neck with ebony fretboard. A pair of PAF-sized Activator pickups with the filter preamp. Comes with the shiny Alembic emblem.
  • A pair of AXY pickups with filter preamp for $400. Theoretically the AXY pickups should sense the strings at a wider aperture, giving a higher output and more classic Alembic tone. I could drop it into a locally-available neck-through Aria bass, or slightly route the body of another bass, such as an Epiphone Explorer.
In a more distant future (at least a few years later), I'd like to build a bespoke BQW Explorer-shaped bass with Alembic pickups and circuitry. If I buy the AXY right now, I could save them for my custom build. But I may be able to get another pair during the waiting time.
Any insights?
Click to expand...
Honestly I'd wait it out for a good condition Spoiler or Persuader with AXY's. Or if you gotta' have long-scale, possibly an Elan or Essence, although the Essence is going to more than likely have MXY's. The difference between them is minimal. The difference in build quality is huge, and cannot be understated. The MIJ Alembic is a cool (and kinda' rare) curiosity, just because there aren't but about 50 of them. But these were not made by Alembic. They were built under liscense, and supplied with electronics and logos, a very rare, almost unique instance. You'll be much happier with an Alembic. Just deal locally and privately. Don't feed flippersharks.

Post a WTB thread at the Alembic Club forum.
 
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#17
EdwardofHuncote said:
Honestly I'd wait it out for a good condition Spoiler or Persuader with AXY's. Or if you gotta' have long-scale, possibly an Elan or Essence, although the Essence is going to more than likely have MXY's. The difference between them is minimal. The difference in build quality is huge, and cannot be understated. The MIJ Alembic is a cool (and kinda' rare) curiosity, just because there aren't but about 50 of them. But these were not made by Alembic. They were built under liscense, and supplied with electronics and logos, a very rare, almost unique instance. You'll be much happier with an Alembic. Just deal locally and privately. Don't feed flippersharks.

Post a WTB thread at the Alembic Club forum.
Click to expand...
To my understanding, MXY and AXY sound the same. The humbuckers are slightly narrower and the J narrower still. I've heard a video of Alembic Japan with a pair of J pickups, and they sound good but could be more Alembic.
Unfortunately Alembic Club doesn't allow me to register in China. It blocks my IPv4 address, and I'll try IPv6 instead. Locally available, affordable Alembics tend to have the 2-band EQ, and I wonder if they're more "correct" than the AJ with filter? It boils (haha) down to "correct body" vs "correct electronics".
 
#18
Iristone said:
To my understanding, MXY and AXY sound the same. The humbuckers are slightly narrower and the J narrower still. I've heard a video of Alembic Japan with a pair of J pickups, and they sound good but could be more Alembic.
Unfortunately Alembic Club doesn't allow me to register in China. It blocks my IPv4 address, and I'll try IPv6 instead. Locally available, affordable Alembics tend to have the 2-band EQ, and I wonder if they're more "correct" than the AJ with filter? It boils (haha) down to "correct body" vs "correct electronics".
Click to expand...
I own several Alembic Elan basses. I have two with AXY and one with MXY pickups. The ONLY difference between the two pickup models is the case. The AXY are more "J" shaped and the MXY are more "Soapbar" shaped. I prefer the MXY pickups. To me, they look better, and if you're one to rest your thumb on the pickup (I'm not), the MXY will close your hand slightly more and be a bit more comfortable. The maple top on the left has AXY pickups while the walnut top on the right has MXY pickups; the two basses sound identical. The four banger in the rear has PJ pickups.
 

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