doctor_of_the_bass

Awesome! Looks as though it might have had newer pickups fitted to it at some stage? Nick

Ah! You and me both m8!

heheheheheh!

Alo! For the money, they look very good - if it were me, I'd say `assembled' in the UK as 'hand-built' suggests that they are actually built by you from scratch from raw materials here as opposed to being crafted in China etc. You can of course argue that `hand-built' is not the same as `hand-made' but to many punters, the terms are interchangeable! Good luck with what you are doing; I've been there (bass company - E Basses) and its tough! I recall both Rob Green and Chris May telling Ian Hancock and myself to `treat it as a paid hobby' - on reflection, they were right. At that time, we sold around 19 completely hand-built custom basses over a period of two years which was commendable given that we were just working at weekends etc but to compete with established marques is nigh-on impossible.

Et tu, mon ami! I recall that it weighed a tonne! Very well made though as per all Alembic instrumentes!

[quote name='ped' post='268692' date='Aug 24 2008, 01:24 AM']T'was from Ben in Abingdon... ring a bell? A superb chap and great player. We went to the Fox on Boars Hill with Kiwi once for a Tuna Steak Au Revoir ped[/quote] Bonjour! I think my mate, Jon Ridel may well have sold the bass to Ben - it was originally up for sale up at Electro in Doncaster - assuming its the same bass!

[quote name='Exile252' post='268652' date='Aug 23 2008, 11:49 PM']I've had this problem when I was in Liverpool before. There are the three music shops right next to each other, Curlys, Dawsons and Dolphin music. Curlys wouldn't let me try a bass as I wasn't going to by there and then, yet there was a 14 year old emo kid try a rather expensive bass for quite awhile, i mean wtf?. In Dolphin I managed to get the guy to let me have a go on a bass, he was reluctant at first. But at Dawsons let let you try anything, its quite impressive. The best service I've ever had at a guitar shop was in Florida. Shop called Georges Music (its just outside Universal Studios). They let you try anything in anything, whilst my brother was trying a MIA Fender Strat through a normal Fender Amp, I went ahead and tried an Ibanez EW Acoustic Bass and a Ibanez electric guitar through the Joe Satriani sig amp, both head and cab, worth over £2000. It was awsome [/quote] Just to add, I too have been to Georges - they are great guys! Funnily enough, I was not that impressed by Bass Central - Grasshopper was polite but the rest of the staff looked down their noses at me! Maybe because I'm from Peterborough!

[quote name='brummie' post='268687' date='Aug 24 2008, 01:09 AM']I quite like being wrapper in sellotape and have jelly babies thrown at me. Ooops, sorry, wrong website.[/quote] I take it you are into hip-hop then, being a `wrapper'! Sorry! Talking of rapping etc - around about 1983, I remember playing rugby (rugger as it was called back then!) at King's School in Ely! We got there, played the game against the Kings lads, stuffed them 99-0 and then, went back to their refectory for an after match meal. Afterwards, some of their lads were intrigued by some of our lads `body-hopping' as they called it (popping!). They then came at us with a load of cutlery and we got the blame for the ensuing melee!

And they are???

Ped! A good friend of mine owned a very similar bass - where and when did you purchase said Alembe !? Many thanks! N

Below! Are you referring to the Pangborn Yahoo Club? I will try and get on there - have had major problems with this pc so will have to try and borrow somebody's! The original Pangborn tribute site can still be accessed via: [url="http://www.geocities.com/yobrode"]http://www.geocities.com/yobrode[/url] Cheers! Nick

As self-proclaimed `King of The Collector's'* I welcome you to the world of GAS!! Take it from me, there is no cure... * sorry - not intended to come over as an overbloated braggart but it might just be the case!

..black leather elbow length gloves with matching boots...er, umm, ahhh. Sorry! Wrong forum! Has to be a sharply angular body, headless, with a graphite neck, or of course, a 4001-esque wooden body with the slimmest, sleekest most beautiful woven carbon fibre thru-neck with a big V on the headstock!

Here's my list of vintage/rare stuff: Pangborn JayDee Vigier Wal Manson Overwater (earlier stuff) Status (earlier stuff) Ibanez (pre '87 ish) Aria (pre '87 ish - don't ask me why! twas a good year!) Carvin (pre '85) Alembic Series basses (not so much the sigs etc) Washburn (pre '90) Tokai (pre '88) Schecter (pre '85) ..theres probably a few more etc

Wahey! Hello young Mr D! Good to have you here! Actually Peterborough is an area famed for its bassness..let me extrapolate (ah, thats better!) 1. I was born here! Most important of course! Heheh! 2. Rex Gates (who plays in the band with Karl) who grew up locally was one of the very first bass guitar players in the 1950's. 3. Colin Hodgkinson was born here, still lives locally (near Karl funnily enough!) and took up bass guitar having been influenced by Rex!!! I think the Peterborough Contingent will be getting together soon for a mini-bash - not sure where yet, but its on the cards! (this is currently in the `good idea I've just had' stage of development) Current members: Fosk, Muppet, Charic, Steve Valentine, Karl and some poser or other! Anyone else local - please add to the thread!

Well done Rich!!! Did ye go past my wonderful home city??? I nearly got killed at the gig in Stamford - some numpty barmaid threw a bucket of water at a guy stood just in front of the stage.....!!!!!!!! F*ckwits!!!

Here's some more pix! My paduak faced `Warlord' which was similar to the `Livin' It Up' bass, already mentioned! Swapped this actual bass for one of the famous red `FPPR' Status 2000's and a pink JayDee GA24...this Pang was modded by John Diggins ! and is now owned by Lou Short from Kettering: My graphite necked Warlord - crap pic - sorry! This is the one Ped and Crazykiwi like! Kingy (looking like Klaus Kinski) in the gravel pit....`livin' it aappp!' Taken from a Superwound strings advert: The man himself, 1983

Hallo! I've got four Pangs - two Warlord's, a Warrior and a Cheiftain. I did actually have a contact number for Ashley and actually spoke to him on the phone around 10 years ago - Ian Middleton and I set up a tribute website for the basses and I mentioned this to Ashley and he was very concerned by this as he thought we were trying to make money out of him!!!! I mentioned that the site was not in any way shape or form a money making venture and was simply a place to look at pictures and find out more about the range, a kind of resource page in actual fact. He calmed down a bit and then became quite touched that we'd done this! I no longer have his number but I'm sure contacting Gibson might be an idea. There was a rumour some time ago that he was going to resurrect Pangborn but as yet, I've not heard anything else! Be great if he did - they really are special basses! Here's some piccies! Wooden Warlord amongst some friends! A formal pose... Pix by Ian Middleton, the former owner of my bass... Allegedly, Ashley would spend a `large amount of time' looking at the basses on JayDee's stand at various guitar shows in the early '80s - I have this on very good authority! They are indeed similar and Ashley's control layout on the Warlord basses is the same as the standard JD layout, with pickup selector, master volume, passive treble, active on/off mini toggle and 3 band active EQ! Ony difference is the position of the master vol and passive treble knobs! Check out the pic of the Pang next to the green JayDee bass! Nick

Hallo! Lets start this one off with my wonderful Alembic 20th Anniversary model - the chocolate bass!!! Burl walnut!! Allegedly, the root wood used to construct the facings of this bass would have cost Alembic around £30K according to the father of the former owner of this bass guitar. My other Alembic is a very old Series I LS (long scale) with the `point' body, seen here alongside some other cuties!

Allo! Just to add me tuppence worth of comments! The Roadies and MK models are tonally different - yes the pickups and circuitry are the same but dont forget, the Roadie models are 98% mahogany in construction terms, including the neck! (obviously the fingerboards are normally ebony!). I found that the Roadies don't quite have the same top end as the MK or indeed GA24 models. If you were going for a bass that was more keenly priced, I'd get John to do you a custom Roadie, Series II or III body, as noted with the front pickup nearer the neck, but with a multilaminated neck with maple and walnut stringers (stronger than the mahogany neck and brighter). Then spray the whole thing pearl pink!!!

Might be there, demoing for E Basses!! [url="http://www.freewebs.com/ebasses"]http://www.freewebs.com/ebasses[/url] - not an advert - just for information purposes! I'm no longer technically a partner in the business!!!

+1 for Phoenix! Duncan is a top guy (and he's a bass player) - small shop but very good! Nick