| Author | Message | ||
| briant
Senior Member Username: briant Post Number: 533 Registered: 12-2004 |
I can't even begin to put into words and properly articulate how pleased I am with this bass. At some point I'm going to try to. For now I'll just be dropping off these pictures from its inaugural show last night. There were roughly 300 people on hand to witness the splendor. The band is Platinum Spandex. We’re a hair metal tribute band if that isn’t painfully obvious from the awful clothing.     | ||
| briant
Senior Member Username: briant Post Number: 534 Registered: 12-2004 |
...and a few more     | ||
| skyboltone
Member Username: skyboltone Post Number: 53 Registered: 11-2010 |
Not to be obnoxious (well sort of obnoxious) are the chin whiskers painted on? Lord it is hard to make a living in music eh? Still, looks like fun. I've been taking pictures of guitars for years and I haven't figured out any foolproof way yet. Early morning or evening sunlight is often best for some guitars. Others like full sun. Mica seems to have a knack. | ||
| artswork99
Moderator Username: artswork99 Post Number: 1408 Registered: 7-2007 |
Congrats on the inauguration! Must sound great with those Mesa cabs back there ;) | ||
| mario_farufyno
Senior Member Username: mario_farufyno Post Number: 588 Registered: 9-2008 |
Glad for you Briant, it looks that you really enjoied it | ||
| charles_holmes
Intermediate Member Username: charles_holmes Post Number: 113 Registered: 3-2009 |
I dig the blue dot markers on the neck man! That rig of yours looks like "The Wall Of Death" Are they all 15"'s that your using? Please tell me about your rig too! Groovy dude! Keep it Low Homie & Rock On....Hard! Chalie | ||
| tmoney61092
Senior Member Username: tmoney61092 Post Number: 654 Registered: 9-2008 |
i love that Alembic changed the standard headstock on the Essence. that's a real sweet bass and love the look of the "black quilted maple." keep rockin' her!!! ~Taylor | ||
| briant
Senior Member Username: briant Post Number: 536 Registered: 12-2004 |
"Not to be obnoxious (well sort of obnoxious) are the chin whiskers painted on?" Ha! I did a crap job of applying the temporary hair dye is what is happening there. Or it smudged some. My hair color is naturally brown/sandy blonde and sadly more and more gray. I dye my facial hair for gigs so it matches the wig. Totally agree that the Orion style headstock looks better on the Essence. Truth be told I ordered that option and found out that it wasn't an option anymore - it was standard. My rig: yes, those are two Mesa Boogie Diesel 2x15 cabs. To share a secret I only plug in one of them. The dummy cab has a blown speaker that I haven't bothered getting reconed yet. One of those things is just absurdly loud. That band is all about over the top. That was kind of the point of that awful hair metal stuff from the 80's. Currently it's being driven by a Stewart World 1.6 power amp and an Aguilar DB680 preamp. It sounds like thunder. | ||
| briant
Senior Member Username: briant Post Number: 541 Registered: 12-2004 |
I have been making attempts at getting some good shots of this beast. What a pain in the ass! I can't believe how difficult it is to capture how the finish actually looks in person v. how it decides it likes to be photographed. Like most/all Alembic transparent black finishes it looks purple apparently whenever it feels like it. This has been Photoshopped a bit to try and get the color more "real". This is fairly close but still not perfect.  The rest are unaltered pictures with varying degrees of success     | ||
| briant
Senior Member Username: briant Post Number: 542 Registered: 12-2004 |
How does it play and sound? Amazing. Incredible. Outstanding. Inconceivable. Unbelievable. More words that are like those. It sounds exactly as I wanted. If you read back far enough in my FTC thread I mentioned that I got the idea for this bass from my existing Essence. I just wanted to give it a little more flexibility with the bass boost/cut knob. It has a vicious attack when you want it to that can make that Entwistle type of sound just explode out of the speaker cabs. However with the right touch and some adjusting of knobs it can be mellow and easy going as well. It plays itself. Really. The neck is so comfortable and fast that it’s absurd. I immediately noticed that the neck/body joint is shaped different now than it was in 1993. I like the new variation much better. Access to the last 4-5 frets is far easier and just feels smoother. In the end I couldn’t possibly have been more pleased with this bass. It is everything I hoped for and I had very high expectations. I can’t thank the wonderful people at Alembic enough for yet another job well done. | ||
| artswork99
Moderator Username: artswork99 Post Number: 1413 Registered: 7-2007 |
Brian, That's a really beautiful bass! Glad to hear how pleased you are with it. Play it Healthy! Art | ||
| rjmsteel
Intermediate Member Username: rjmsteel Post Number: 145 Registered: 7-2008 |
Brian, Your Logo looks insane.. so Cool! As does the (I assume) nearest neighbor backplates. I`m diggin those blue LED`s and that BTC looks great. Beautiful bass and awesome setup too! Rich | ||
| briant
Senior Member Username: briant Post Number: 545 Registered: 12-2004 |
Thanks guys. The logo is so amazing. It changes radically depending on the light and angle you are looking at it. Rich - I'm really looking forward to seeing yours done as well! | ||
| bigredbass
Senior Member Username: bigredbass Post Number: 1609 Registered: 9-2002 |
That's easily the very nicest Essence I've ever seen, bar none. My favorite 'small' Alembic. Doesn't require size 46 reach like a lot of them. And while I realize I'm treading perilously close to blasphemy, I HATE the 'cone' pegheads !! Sustain block, LED's, abalone logo, matching covers, just really, really nice. Well Done ! Yeah, I figured 'Platinum Spandex', you know, probably not a country band . . . just beware of the occupational hazards ! J o e y | ||
| fc_spoiler
Senior Member Username: fc_spoiler Post Number: 1223 Registered: 5-2006 |
Best Essence ever for sure! Freakin' awesome and looks like a killer band also! Such an Alembic through 4 EVM15's, how many casualties you have on average per gig? | ||
| briant
Senior Member Username: briant Post Number: 557 Registered: 12-2004 |
After gigging this bad boy for a couple months I figured it was time for a little update. Oh hey! Guess what? It rules! It's done every gig, rehearsal, and recording session since it arrived at my door. I could not possbily be happier. I'm quite positive my other Essence is feeling ignored and my Rogue jilted. |
