| Author | Message | ||
| hendixclarke
Intermediate Member Username: hendixclarke Post Number: 165 Registered: 6-2007 |
What are some good rules to check before placing a bid for Alembic goods (from a buyer's perspective)? | ||
| jazzyvee
Senior Member Username: jazzyvee Post Number: 1041 Registered: 6-2002 |
Firstly find out if the seller is a member of this forum, you stand a much better chance of getting an honest description of the item if its one of us.. :-) Plus you may be able negotiate a better deal than you would expect to pay on ebay. I'm sure i've read examples here of member selling basses on ebay and offering them to forum members at a discount. You could also get the serial number and check it it on here to see if it's listed, failing that contact Alembic to verify the number and check if its a stolen Alembic. Sometimes there are phantom alembics, usually series I's being put up for sale that the seller does not own. Just this year there was a Series I or II bass up for sale twice in the UK. If my memory serves me correct it had a buy now price of £900 ( approx $1800US), I emailed the seller with some questions and got a completely random reply to my questions. It was too good to be true and it probably was as it was withdrawn very quickly after my questions. It appeared again a few weeks later then disappeared before the end of the auction. Like most things it pays to know a something about what you are buying and a few pertinent questions about the item would help you make a judgement as to whether the person selling the bass actually has the item and knows something about it. Jazzyvee | ||
| bassman10096
Senior Member Username: bassman10096 Post Number: 1046 Registered: 7-2003 |
Absolutely --- do not fail to confirm the ser number with the seller and with Alembic before you buy. I bought an Alembic on the 'bay recently that had been stolen from its owner. The seller and I BOTH checked the listing on the Alembic site showing basses reported stolen. The ser number was not there, so we both assumed all was well. It turned out that the theft had not been reported to Alembic yet... All worked out OK, but the Alembic folks would have been able to put me in touch with the actual owner of the bass because the sale would have raised red flags to them. Always, always get Alembic to check before you buy. Apart from that, buying from a Club member or someone known here is very helpful. Jazzy's comments above represent all-too-common problems. Bottom line - be skeptical and don't hesitate to demand info and confirmation from sellers. I don't mean to scare you off - lots of good Alembic purchases have been made via Ebay and others (I've bought a lot of basses on the 'bay and only got shook up on the Alembic above), but caution is a great idea. | ||
| hendixclarke
Intermediate Member Username: hendixclarke Post Number: 167 Registered: 6-2007 |
All these thing are fine... What if the original owner sold his Alembic, and yet he never updated his title to the new owners at Alembic. Now, suppose 10 years later, the orignial owner see's the same bass, on eBay from different sellers. (different people or person from the original transaction) Say the original owner, say: "That's my stolen Alembic, and I have proof with Alembic of title!..." Owners could commit this act of crookery too. All I could say: Be very careful because sometimes, you might be tricked and fooled by past owner(s). "If it could be done, it will be done"; I promise you that... | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 5846 Registered: 5-2002 |
Email the seller asking about the instrument, but you can also ask for a telephone number and address. If you're seriously considering buying the instrument, call the phone number; and verify the address with an on-line search. Ask detailed questions. Like Jazzyvee said, fraudulent listings or usually made by people who know nothing about the instrument. Ask for more pictures. Fraudulent listings are usually made with stolen pictures and text; the "seller" of fraudulent listing won't have more pictures. Determine whether the instrument comes with a hard case. Ask how it will be boxed. Another thing you can do is post about the listing in the "Seen on Ebay" section of our board, and let other members know that you are seriously looking at bidding on the instrument. The downside here is that you may draw potential bidders to the instrument; the particular instrument may be one that a certain club member has been patiently watching for during the last two years. On the other hand, many club members will defer to a fellow club member who's announced their intention to bid. In those situations, you need to let your fellow members know if you quit bidding on a listing so that they still have opportunity if they're still interested. The big thing here though is that your fellow club members may be a able to spot a fraudulent listing. Somebody may recognize the instrument. There may also be a club member who lives close to the seller and can actually see the instrument in person. Following is text that I copied from one of my previous posts. It pertains to a particular ebay listing, but the general idea should be helpful. 1 - The listed "seller" had a feedback rating of 2. This in and of itself isn't bad, and fraudulent listers have hijacked other users' accounts with lots of feedback, but it should draw your attention. Often a fraudulent lister will set up a new account and stock it with a few low doller sales to make it look legitimate. In this case, clicking on the "seller's" feedback, the two previous transactions had nothing to do with music equipment. Here the user account may have been hijacked, or it may have been set up by the scammer. 2 - It was a short listing; it appears that it was a three day listing. Fraudulent listings typically run for a short period, hoping to scam someone out of their money before others discover and report the fraud and have the listing removed. Again, this in and of itself isn't a dead giveaway; there are from time to time legitimate listings that run for a short period. But it's a big hint. 3 - It's a relatively expensive item with a relatively low starting price and no reserve. Again, in and of itself, not particularly bad; some people list with low starting prices and no researve on items that they know will generate interest, but when they do, they usually have a long listing time. Coupled with the three day listing, this warrants caution. 4 - And this one is a big hint, the listing has a line near the end that says something to the effect of "email me at my office email address for by-it-now price" and gives a different address from the "seller's" user address. You should only use the user address and go through the Ebay system. Here the scammer is trying to get people to contact him outside the system. This hint, especially in light of the previously mentioned hints, seals the deal; it's a fraud. 5 - This particular listing includes a hint that it's a repeat of a previously fraudulent listing. The line at the end where the scammer wants you to contact him at a different address also includes something to the effect of "or your bid will not be considered". This is also a big hint, but in this case "consider" was spelled "concider" and was spelled that way in a previous fraudulent listing. So not only were the pictures and description copied and pasted from previous listings, so too the misspelled text added in a previously fraudulent listing was also just copied and pasted again. | ||
| hendixclarke
Intermediate Member Username: hendixclarke Post Number: 168 Registered: 6-2007 |
The best place to purchase Alembics are (risk 0-5) "0" is the lowest, and "5" is the higest potential of risk: 1. Directly from Alembic (risk = 0) 2. Alembic Authoized Retail (risk = 1) 3. A music store (risk = 2) 4. Owner (risk = 3) mid-point 5. Ebay with serial number (risk = 4) 6. Off-the Street (no serial number) (risk =5) | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 2793 Registered: 7-2004 |
Purchasing from a dealer or a music store is definitely riskier. Since it will be less expensive, you will walk out with more $ in your pocket, and thus create a risk of losing more $ if you are robbed. And you certainly can't trust an Alembic owner, those people are notoriously untrustworthy, especially the ones who hang out at that Alembic club forum website thingy. In fact any method of purchasing an Alembic is risky, heck, it's even risky to leave your home ... yea ... that's the ticket ... huddle in a corner of your basement and KEEP VERY QUIET! Bill, tgo | ||
| spose
Intermediate Member Username: spose Post Number: 168 Registered: 5-2002 |
yes..it's all very tricky business..trust NO ONE! heh heh, j/k  you know, not to get off the subject..but Gibson uses a ID chip in it's historic line of les pauls has anyone ever thought of putting in a GPS or ID chip in their bass? | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 5849 Registered: 5-2002 |
Personally, as a generalization, I would be much more likely to purchase a used Alembic from a member of this club than from a music store. But that's just me. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 5851 Registered: 5-2002 |
I wanted to respond to that last post by davehouck. I do think, again as a generalization, that it is important to support small locally owned businesses; and that applies to music stores. For instance, the North Carolina Alembic Club meeting this year was held in a small locally owned music store. The owner, who does occasionally post here, is an Alembic dealer, he knows and appreciates Alembics, and, most important here, he's a nice guy. To me, there is a difference in a small locally owned store and a large chain store. It's my guess that most of the members of this club have a greater knowledge of and appreciation for Alembics than most of the employees of large chain music stores. But that's just a guess; I haven't actually taken a poll. | ||
| jseitang
Advanced Member Username: jseitang Post Number: 221 Registered: 6-2002 |
but remember, buying dirctly from alembic is very costly. if you buy from one of the few authorized alembic dealers, you can get it at the retail price. which is usually lower than the direct price. | ||
| hendixclarke
Intermediate Member Username: hendixclarke Post Number: 169 Registered: 6-2007 |
You'll almost need "Title Insurance" on used Alembics in order to protect yourself. Escrow methods are also a close consideration. If I was in the market for a used Alembic, I would ask basic questions like: Original owner? Original sales slips? Why selling? Serial Number? Price? Was it ever stolen? Ever been repaired? Ever been improved? (enhanced) buyer's beware! Again, members of this club with registered basses on record, are proud owners. I would ask the sellers are they members of Alembic Club and for how long... I would love to hear more ways to be safe for others here. | ||
| jseitang
Advanced Member Username: jseitang Post Number: 222 Registered: 6-2002 |
its like buying a house | ||
| jazzyvee
Senior Member Username: jazzyvee Post Number: 1047 Registered: 6-2002 |
I like the idea of having an ID chip put in the instrument during construction if it was passive. GPS signals would probably enter the audio signal chain as noise being so close within the instrument. I think If I were to have a custom made I'd investigate id chips technology at the time and have one added to internally between the hippy sandwich laminates. |
