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NBD - Alembic Content


hiram.k.hackenbacker

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I'm finally back in the Alembic fold after a fairly long absence.

I have wanted a Spyder for some considerable time and had all but given up on the the chances of getting one after an initial quote ran into five figure territory - and it didn't start with a '1' either!

It's a limited run of 50, but they have been available for over a decade and Alembic still haven't made all of them yet.

Also, they have not been made sequentially either. The last time I checked the following were still available, although I think one of them has been commissioned since:

22 of 50
27 of 50
28 of 50
29 of 50
35 of 50
48 of 50 

It's bit of a beast and I accept it's not for everyone, especially those that have bad backs, but I have to say it doesn't feel that heavy. I think part of that is that it's well balanced.

It's 10 years old this year and has been a Case Queen for all of its life. It's set up ridiculously low and really is everything I hoped it would be. That said, I haven't put it through my gig rig yet, so I have that to look forward to in 2020.

The case is an absolute monster (see photo for comparison with a standard size case) and the bass in its case weighs just under 42lbs.

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34 minutes ago, White Cloud said:

Congratulations... probably the last remaining bass on my bucket list. A truly phenomenal instrument.

Yes, it’s been on my list a while along with three others. One of them I very much doubt I’ll ever get my hands on. One is easily ordered, funds allowing and the last one, as fate would hate it, has just popped up on FB 🙄

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1 hour ago, bassfan said:

Wow 😍

That’s a stunner H ! The back/ neck looks sublime. How does it play? 
I can’t believe how big the case is either!! 

It's really smooth, almost effortless to play in fact. So perfectly finished IMHO. I do love a nice piece of flamed maple.

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13 minutes ago, AndyTravis said:

I played a Clarke brown bass which was tiny, but 12lbs, so that surprises me.

Yes, I played a couple of Stanley’s at Bass Central and they were about the same weight, but with a smaller body shape and a lot of neck dive. I was pleasantly surprised by the Spyder, although I did fear the worst when I picked it up in it’s case for the first time. I had flashbacks off carrying my Trace Elliot V8 about 😬.

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20 minutes ago, drTStingray said:

What a great looking Bass. Looks great - love the body figuring.

What I'm wondering is how you managed to persuade Mrs H you really do need some more basses again! From your description this has come up used - where did you come across it? 

Mrs.H is an absolute diamond. I showed her a picture of it last week and she said ‘just buy it’, which is the standard response. I usually don’t like rushing into things, which I think is what bothers her. I like to bounce the pro’s and con’s about until I’m happy. Usually off her 😂. So no persuasion needed. I do have two basses up for sale you know 🤪.

A couple of times a month I like to have a rummage around eBay for certain brands, Alembic being one. I just happened to search when this was up on a 7 day listing. I don’t think it had been listed before. Luckily I happened to see it on day one. The seller lives in Belfast and he drove it to Essex himself yesterday. Via Stranraer and then Cardiff. In one day. That’s service for you!

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1 hour ago, Chiliwailer said:

Very cool bass pal, great score. Would love see some pics if you gig it in all it’s glory.

I suppose you won’t want that horribly light and ordinary looking Wal Mk3 anymore then...? 🤞

Mmm, let me think about that for a millisecond 😂
I will gig it. I’ll just have to choose the right venue.

Edited by hiram.k.hackenbacker
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14 hours ago, AndyTravis said:

I played a Clarke brown bass which was tiny, but 12lbs, so that surprises me.

The only Brown Bass I played was pretty light, maybe 8lbs or so. Weighed way less than my Stanley Clarke Deluxe, which I had at the same time and which was probably more like 10. Was it definitely a Brown Bass, not an SC Standard, Deluxe or Series?

Thinking about it, was it one of Loz’s? I know he had a buckeye SC Series but I think he did have a Brown Bass too. 

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Just now, 4000 said:

The only Brown Bass I played was pretty light, maybe 8lbs or so. Weighed way less than my Stanley Clarke Deluxe, which I had at the same time and which was probably more like 10. Was it definitely a Brown Bass, not an SC Standard, Deluxe or Series?

Thinking about it, was it one of Loz’s? I know he had a buckeye SC Series but I think he did have a Brown Bass too. 

Oh yeah it was a fancy one with cocobolo lid and lights...so it was an SC deluxe.

Crazy heavy for a small bass

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