| Author | Message | ||
| funkyjazzjunky
Senior Member Username: funkyjazzjunky Post Number: 431 Registered: 5-2007 |
To all my Bassist Brothers (and the one or two bassist sisters on the forum)… It is time for us to eliminate the scourge of 4 string bolt-on passive basses. Too many musicians are handicapped by the cheap basses. Too many musicians are hindered by sterile sounding passive basses. Too many of have only four strings. Do you talk on telephones from the 50’s or 60s? Do you drive cars from the 50’s & 60’s? Do you watch a TV from the 50’s of 60’s? Think of what James Lee Jamerson could have done has an Alembic been available for him. He would have loved a high-C and a low-B. Why play a bass built on specs from half a century ago? (Unless it is an Alembic) We must declare a new age: B.A. for before Alembic and A.A. for After Alembic. (Message edited by FunkyJazzJunky on May 27, 2009) | ||
| mike1762
Advanced Member Username: mike1762 Post Number: 322 Registered: 1-2008 |
This should be interesting... | ||
| 57basstra
Senior Member Username: 57basstra Post Number: 943 Registered: 4-2005 |
I have several four string Fender basses that I play regularly and I like them a great deal. (I also have other bolt ons) I do talk on a land line phone from the early 1960s and I have a 1947 Ford Super Deluxe Convertible (canary yellow) along with a few 1960s Mustangs which I drive regularly. Different is not bad to me. Old is what I know. "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." - George Santayana, a Spanish-born American author of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 3864 Registered: 7-2004 |
"Do you talk on telephones from the 50’s or 60s?" Actually, my mom still has the old black rotary dial phone that I grew up with in the 60's and it still works. Meanwhile, I have been through who-knows-how-many push button phones over the years. "Do you drive cars from the 50’s & 60’s?" I would in a second if I could afford an old Ferrari, Gull-wing Mercedes, D-Type Jag, or a host of other classics. "Why play a bass built on specs from half a decade ago?" Well, it's not a bass, but my Strat is 48 years old and stills plays and sounds outstanding. The right specs are the right specs, regardless of the year that someone comes up with them. Do Stradivarius violins suck because they're so old? In about another 10 years, Alembic designs will be 50 years old. Will they turn into junk then? Bill, tgo | ||
| hydrargyrum
Senior Member Username: hydrargyrum Post Number: 577 Registered: 3-2004 |
No, I think he's making a pretty good point here. The best thing to do would be to send me all of your vintage and bolt on instruments so that I can make sure that they never harm your tone ever again. I'm just that nice a guy that I am willing to make such a sacrifice. /crosses fingers . . . | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 3865 Registered: 7-2004 |
Kevin: You are indeed a prince! lol Bill, tgo | ||
| elwoodblue
Senior Member Username: elwoodblue Post Number: 692 Registered: 6-2002 |
I went back to a black rotary after I noticed the wireless heating up after long calls...no apps though. | ||
| svlilioukalani
Member Username: svlilioukalani Post Number: 56 Registered: 6-2008 |
I guess this is your idea of the final solution. This is an extreme example of an ethno-centric bass player. Most non-alembic bass players complain that Alembic basses sound too sterile. The trend these days is going away from active basses, and using passive pickups with a tube pre-amp. My Sawowski, Mike Lull, and Warwick basses are anything but sterile. And no active electronics on any of em. James Jamerson would most likely not have liked Alembic basses. This is a man who used extremely high action with 10 year old strings. The book Standing in the Shadows of Motown, may help to give insight into what this master was thinking. He did play a Fender 5 string but didn't tune down to a low B. And since he only played with one finger with his right hand (the hook) he probably needed that fifth string. The bass players I respect the most play 4 string basses on most occasions. Ya know there names, Stanley, Marcus, Victor, Jaco, and the list goes on. And, no boat looks as sexy and sails better than a Sparkman and Stevens from the 40"s. | ||
| eligilam
Intermediate Member Username: eligilam Post Number: 177 Registered: 2-2006 |
I was surprised to see that Hal (hendrixclarke) didn't start this thread... | ||
| gare
Senior Member Username: gare Post Number: 439 Registered: 11-2003 |
Lets not get crazy..four fingers..four strings..simple logic. Kevin..since I need to clean up things around the homestead I'll be sending you my '71 Rick 4001..(freight collect of course)..its just in the way collecting dust. Gary | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 3872 Registered: 7-2004 |
Hey Gary, Do you perhaps have an old 50's Les Paul Gold Top? Or better yet a pre-war Martin D-28? It'll be tough to make the room, but I'm willing to sacrifice to relieve you of your burden with these old funky outdated obsolete instruments. I'll even pay shipping. Bill, tgo | ||
| gare
Senior Member Username: gare Post Number: 440 Registered: 11-2003 |
Nope sorry Bill. Closest I can come is a '67 Rick 330/12..but I'm using it at the moment..it's the 4th leg of dinning table  | ||
| tom_z
Senior Member Username: tom_z Post Number: 578 Registered: 7-2004 |
"Why play a bass built on specs from half a decade ago?" Oh no - by my calculations "half a decade ago" was 2004 - the year my first Alembic was built. Is it already obsolete??? | ||
| 811952
Senior Member Username: 811952 Post Number: 1675 Registered: 10-2003 |
Heck, my Alembic was born in 1981! That's 28 years ago! I guess I'll be throwing it out.. ;) John | ||
| gare
Senior Member Username: gare Post Number: 442 Registered: 11-2003 |
Please drop your aged Alembics in the designated boxes marked 'Alembic Drop Off' conveniently located near you. After pickup,I can assure you they will be recycled in an earth friendly manner. And dont forget to check my Craigslist postings which are updated daily. | ||
| serialnumber12
Senior Member Username: serialnumber12 Post Number: 430 Registered: 12-2004 |
1972!  | ||
| bracheen
Senior Member Username: bracheen Post Number: 1464 Registered: 11-2003 |
'Nough said, Keavin | ||
| mike1762
Advanced Member Username: mike1762 Post Number: 324 Registered: 1-2008 |
While they are admittedly "1 Trick Ponies" from a tone perspective, my Stingrays fit me like a glove and I would never part with them. While bolt-on construction is inferior to neck-through from a mechanical perspective, it translates into a tone not obtainable with a neck-through (and vise versa of course). Therefore, I just don't see all my basses as necessarily interchangeable. If you need a Phillips head screwdriver, a Flat head just isn't going to get the job done. Gary, I don't think James Jamerson played a 5 string bass... it was a 1962 Fender Precision. Our own Jimmy Johnson was one of the pioneers of the 5 string and I don't think that was until 1976 (I might be wrong about that... Jimmy???). | ||
| svlilioukalani
Member Username: svlilioukalani Post Number: 57 Registered: 6-2008 |
Here's a quote form a web sight talking about James's 5 string. And a second quote talking about his bass. (Which is my rational for assuming the extreme high quality of Alembic basses may not have been his bag.) The movie Standing in the Shadows of Motown has some clips of him playing a 5 string. My point being, he tried it and didn't care too much for it. Ya know 4 fingers, 4 strings. He bought a refinished black '57 P-Bass (Fender Precision Bass®) from a friend in 1960, replacing it, when it was stolen, with an early Sixties sunburst model. When that bass was likewise stolen he purchased a '62 sunburst P-Bass, nicknamed the “Funk Machine,” that he owned up until it too was taken just before he died. Over the years, he experimented with a 5-string Fender and an 8-string Hagstrom, as well as a fretless model. To most other musicians, that bass was unplayable. Jamerson kept his action very high, and his neck was bowed due to lack of truss rod maintenance. He rarely cleaned his guitar, and he never cleaned the fretboard. To Jamerson, the sweat and dirt on the bass was the secret of his sound, the essence of the funk. There is a bass of that vintage for sale at BassNW. http://www.bassnw.com/Used%20Basses/fender_1968_1971_bass_v_602577.htm | ||
| mike1762
Advanced Member Username: mike1762 Post Number: 325 Registered: 1-2008 |
I stand corrected... I knew there were some 6 strings from that era (really more baritone than bass), but I didn't recall seeing any 5 strings until the late 70's. | ||
| jacko
Senior Member Username: jacko Post Number: 2253 Registered: 10-2002 |
Eligilam .. post 177. I nearly spat coffee over my keyboard ;-) Graeme | ||
| 811952
Senior Member Username: 811952 Post Number: 1677 Registered: 10-2003 |
Those old Fender 5's were strung with a high C and sure didn't seem to be long scale... | ||
| hieronymous
Senior Member Username: hieronymous Post Number: 599 Registered: 1-2005 |
The Fender Bass V was 34" scale - you have to see one in person or a picture of someone playing one to understand the proportions. I would love to try one someday... | ||
| adriaan
Senior Member Username: adriaan Post Number: 2230 Registered: 6-2002 |
And remember that Jamerson bought a FAIRLY NEW instrument, never a vintage one. | ||
| 811952
Senior Member Username: 811952 Post Number: 1678 Registered: 10-2003 |
I've played a couple of the Fender 5's, and they felt more like Mustangs to me. I guess the short neck/fingerboard probably had a great deal to do with that. A collector friend of mine has owned a few of them. He also owned the only Hofner solid-body beatle bass I've ever seen, and man was that thing heavy.. John | ||
| white_cloud
Senior Member Username: white_cloud Post Number: 685 Registered: 11-2007 |
No matter how unpalatable it may be Alembic is certainly not the first choice to most of the finest bassist from the past or the present and neither is five string. Jeff Berlin for example is VERY anti active electronics and when you listen to his philosophy he has good reason! Are bolt on neck basses inferior in any way - really?? The best designed versions of them sound good to my ears and isnt that what counts? It is, as they say, horses for courses. Nobodys own personal choice is ultimitely absolutely correct or incorrect - if its good for you then its good. The Fender design is old but it is classic - all other basses are merely variations on the same theme brainwaved by Leo. Anyway, as far as Im concerned in this age of mass production and CNC router machines NOTHING is as well made as it used to be - let alone better, comprende!! John. | ||
| jos
New Username: jos Post Number: 9 Registered: 4-2009 |
I do understand your point “Funkyjazzjunky”. Nothing is perfect but the Alembics are on a totally different level than the normal basses today. I think that most bass players have never experienced an Alembic bass and how great and different sounds it can produce. The bass is expensive and hard to find and more than that there has to be someone to explain what you can do with the instrument and have a proper A/B test made. Alembic has a much wider, cleaner; bigger sound than any other bass on the planet. Its not too Hot, HiFi, or too active, you can adjust all that. Alembic bass it’s the leader of today’s bass guitars in every way, it’s even the most expensive. Who else has that strong and quiet pickups, strong construction and endless sustain. The thing is that most bass players, professional and amateurs, have never experienced the Alembic basses and do not know what you can do with it and how it will sound when its set up properly. This needs time and education. A great bass player will sound great with whatever he will play but with Alembic most of the guys would sound even better. But of course, not everyone needs this for his or her regular gigs. What comes to James Jamerson and the other guys, that was that time and things sounded like that then, at that time there was not the need or knowledge for other things. The sound of the -60`s and -70`s is part of the great history, I definitely enjoy those records. When I did my first recordings in the -70`s I remember that we were often asked that should we cut the low end or high end to be able to have the (LP) vinyl record sounding as loud as the average vinyl? Today you can use wide sounds and have 5-string basses sounding big on CD`s. I love all the other basses too but I guess what “Funkyjazzjunky” was telling us was that we should educate other players to understand the Alembic. The Alembic bass is really a different thing and is much more sophisticated than a regular bass guitar. | ||
| ajdover
Senior Member Username: ajdover Post Number: 716 Registered: 11-2003 |
In my stable, I have bolt ons, neck throughs, and set necks. All have their good and bad qualities. Oh, BTW, all of my basses are four strings. I've yet to find a fiver or up that I feel comfortable with. There's a reason Leo Fender's original design stood the test of time - it works. To denigrate it as antiquated is, IMHO, missing the whole point. It is a classic instrument that fills musical needs for a lot of people. I don't care whether it's passive or active - it works, plain and simple. That Leo came up with it and that it lasts today is a testament to his foresight and brilliance IMHO. Alembics are an entirely different breed, and I submit an acquired taste. Few bass players I've encountered over the years have played much less own one. There's undoubtedly a lot of reasons for this, but for most, the bolt on option is very attractive indeed. To wit: my '73 Fender Jazz Bass is highly modified. I've got a J-Retro pre in it, a Badass II bridge, new tuners, and Seymour Duncan stacked pickups. It would be difficult (not to mention expensive) for me to do that with an Alembic. But that's OK - they're different instruments that I enjoy for their completely different properties. For me, I don't care if it was made in the 50s, 60s, or yesterday. If it works, it works, period. Alan | ||
| jacko
Senior Member Username: jacko Post Number: 2255 Registered: 10-2002 |
Nothing wrong with customising a fender. Here's my '79 precision...  Rickenbacker electrics (including rick'o'sound), Schaller fully adjustable bridge and stripped the tobacco sunburst. She plays like butter and I'll never get shot of her but she's sat in a corner mostly unused since I started playing Alembics (and by implication, 5 strings). Graeme | ||
| funkyjazzjunky
Senior Member Username: funkyjazzjunky Post Number: 432 Registered: 5-2007 |
When Leo Fender made Music Man basses were they simply Jazz/Presicion basses or were they an evolutionary step? When Leo Fender wnent to G&L did he just remake Jazz/Precision basses or did he try to improve upon them? Just because my 20+ year old IBM AT computoer works does not mean that I want to use it when I have a relatively new one at my disposal. | ||
| gare
Senior Member Username: gare Post Number: 445 Registered: 11-2003 |
I think Alan hit it on the head. I too have neck thru..set neck..and bolt on. They all have a place, and none can do everything. As JOS said, nothings perfect. Does right or wrong matter if it works for you ? Many players I know have never heard of Alembic (they're sheltered), let alone afford one. Graeme..nice bass..would love to hear it. G |
