| Author | Message | ||
| pmoran
Intermediate Member Username: pmoran Post Number: 171 Registered: 12-2004 |
I'm selling my '00 Surine Esprit Series "X" 5string and my '70 Gibson EB1. The Surine is THE VERY FIRST Surine Esprit Tenth Anniversary bass ever made. It is serial number "001EX." I believe most Alembic owners recognize the Surine name as an exceptional, high-end bass. This particular bass has all the bells and whistles, and Scott Surine loaned the bass to Christina Aguilera's bassist for her last world tour. It was returned to Scott Surine at the end of the tour and after being refurbished due to some road wear, Scott Surine used it as his personal gig bass for a year before selling it directly to me. Specs: 35" scale; gold Gotoh tuners; gold ABM bridge; Bartolini 9 volt electronics w/NCTCH preamp and 2 Bartolini soapbars; 8.5 lbs. in weight! Setup, string spacing and neckwidth are virtually identical to almost all Alembics. Controls: push/pull-active/passive volume; pup blend; stacked treble/bass; and an amazingly "dialable" midrange as close to sound shaping ability as anything below Alembic "series" levels where all you have are "Q's", boost/cuts, pans and blends. It's louder than all of the Alembics I've owned. It has at least as much sustain as the famous MK "Mandarin" I recently sold. Why? Well, the body is Honduran mahogany, but the rest of the bass is almost entirely Macassar Ebony. Headstock and body caps are absolutely stunning MACASSAR EBONY. The ebony fingerboard aids in the incredible lowend and sustain this bass offers. Very minor cosmetic issues clearly shown in the pics. List on this bass, with the $175 Surine gig bag, is almost $7K. I need at least $2300, including shipping and insurance. NOW, the EB1. I believe this is a '70 due to the potentiometer codes. The electronics are absolutely original and cleaner than Cindy Crawford's "humhum." I'm just guessing there. I don't know what to say about EB1's that anyone here probably doesn't already know. It's got the typical scratches and dings you'd expect and which are shown in the pics. Structurally, it's absolutely sound. Absolutely no cracks or repairs to the neck, headstock or anywhere else. There is an obvious cosmetic flaw in the "Gibson" headstock inlay. The original owner contacted me and told me the tuners are replacements. I think the bridge probably is a replacement also because it's just "too" clean. Otherwise, everything else appears absolutely original and the lined design on the back is still clearly visible and almost pristine. Frets and neck are in remarkable condition and straight as an arrow. Intonation is exceptional and the sound is nothing short of a sonic boom. Huge, huge sound. It's a kick in the butt to play "Sweet Emotion" on this thing and old Cream and Stones sound great on this bass. This bass comes with the nicest gig bag I've ever seen, and it does have the screw in plug for the tail strap pin; however, there is no "upright" pole. 30.5" scale; solid Mahogany body; passive electronics, of course. I need at least $2000 for this baby. PAYPAL ONLY! I'm a reputable member of the Alembic club and have bought and sold many basses. I will not sell anyone a piece of crap!                    (Message edited by davehouck on September 09, 2006) (Message edited by pmoran on September 10, 2006) | ||
| pmoran
Intermediate Member Username: pmoran Post Number: 172 Registered: 12-2004 |
i forgot some things about the EB1. the potentiometer code is "13769". i'm providing this because, as we all know, the club limits the size of pics and the number did not come out clearly in the smaller pixel size posting. also, the serial number is "870457", which is misleading because by most accounts in the best archive materials, this would indicate a '67, and that's impossible because the EB1 reissues weren't available until at least 2 years later. so, the experts say to go by the potentiometer codes. the "137" is the code for the manufacturer of the potentiometers Gibson used at the time. the "69" part indicates the year the potentiometers were manufactured, so it's most likely these didn't find there way into a bass coming off the line until '70. i've done alot of research on these, and i've already mentioned that the original owner contacted me when he found out i now had her and told me that he was the one who replaced the tuners. he did not remember replacing the bridge, but i just think the bridge is too clean to be almost 40 years old; although, if you look at the bridge on my '77 Gibson RD Artist, that one is absolutely pristine because i'm the original and only owner and i've babied her like i would a 1787 Chateau Lafite! (Message edited by pmoran on September 09, 2006) | ||
| fc_spoiler
Advanced Member Username: fc_spoiler Post Number: 326 Registered: 5-2006 |
If you hit enter behind every 3 pictures, this thread will be much better to read. Just hit the edit button and hit enter behind the picture codes like: \ popjpeg{31299,}\ popjpeg{31299,}\ popjpeg{31299,} \ popjpeg{31299,}\ popjpeg{31299,}\ popjpeg{31299,} Nice basses! | ||
| richbass939
Senior Member Username: richbass939 Post Number: 723 Registered: 11-2004 |
Patrick, those are two outstanding basses. I'm sure someone will be very happy to get them. Rich | ||
| pmoran
Intermediate Member Username: pmoran Post Number: 173 Registered: 12-2004 |
hi, flip. i guess i don't understand your instructions. i tried hitting the enter button after every 3 pics but it did nothing. still looks the same to me. thanks for the kinds words, rich. you were certainly right about the surine. it sold in a little more than 24 hours. so, all that's left is the EB-1. | ||
| jubeas3eyes
Junior Username: jubeas3eyes Post Number: 24 Registered: 1-2006 |
Oh man, I looove that gibson.....verrrrry tempting. | ||
| adriaan
Senior Member Username: adriaan Post Number: 1046 Registered: 6-2002 |
The bridge on that EB-1 actually looks like the one they used on Ibanez's 1970s Gibson copies - appears to have the same plastic saddles? And the tuners look cheap - they might be of good quality, but they just don't look right. | ||
| phys49
Junior Username: phys49 Post Number: 39 Registered: 4-2005 |
He said in the first post that the tuners are replacements. This is still a very rare and interesting instrument. I couldn't afford the original so I have a Univox copy made about 1969. | ||
| kungfusheriff
Senior Member Username: kungfusheriff Post Number: 544 Registered: 8-2003 |
Just gorgeous...if I weren't pining for a Wal I'd be very tempted. adriaan, the bridge is period-correct if not original...I've owned EB-0s from that era with identical bridges. Good luck! | ||
| pmoran
Intermediate Member Username: pmoran Post Number: 175 Registered: 12-2004 |
i've lowered the minimum bid price and BIN price. | ||
| mwgrient
New Username: mwgrient Post Number: 6 Registered: 7-2006 |
Hi,so, wath is the price for the '00 Surine Esprit Series "X" 5string? Hope to hear from you, Marco mw.vandergrient@orange.nl | ||
| pmoran
Intermediate Member Username: pmoran Post Number: 176 Registered: 12-2004 |
marco, if you look about 6 posts up the page here, you'll see you're too late. the surine sold weeks ago. also, the EB-1 sold two days ago. sorry. they're both gone. |
