mellowgerman
Senior Member
On the block is my 1985 Alembic Spoiler bass. Quite the featherweight as far as Alembics go, at 9 lbs even! 32" scale, koa top, with stunning flamed headstock veneers on front and back. Plays and sounds exactly as a fine Alembic should. Frets just got a professional crown and level at my go-to luthier shop and both truss rods work as they should. Cosmetically it has the dings and hairline finish cracks you might expect on a regularly gigged, 38-year-old bass, it is structurally sound and a monster player.
One thing to note: the volume potentiometer has no stop - which is to say that when rotating it clockwise it smoothly goes from 0 to 10 just as any volume control does, then plateaus at 10 for about 1/8 of a rotation, before going back to 0. The replacement potentiometer can be sourced from Alembic for $80 and requires no soldering to swap out, but since the current one functions just fine as is, it honestly hasn't bothered me one bit and I never put the order in.
Comes with a substantial custom marble-design flight case.
Really an amazing instrument and the only reason I am letting it go is because I prefer my short-scales (2 of which have filter preamps as well). I actually find this to be a really comfortable bass all around, but once I'm playing with others, eyes closed, feeling the groove and improvising, the longer scale seems to clash with my muscle memory. So since the first-time-owning-an-Alembic honey-moon period of a few months had past, this one has mostly just sat in it's case. 32" scale simply might not be for me. I'm not hurting for cash and wouldn't mind holding on to it, but figured it may be better of living with somebody who will play it regularly.
Asking $3800 + shipping, depending on your location. CONUS shipping only. Happy to donate $50 to the forum if it sells via this post at full price. Local, face-to-face deal welcome! I live just North of Orlando and might be willing to drive and meet half-way, depending on the deal and where you're located. It will also be coming with me to the Orlando International Guitar Expo this Saturday.
Would consider partial-trade offers (maybe up to a 1/3 of the price here), but there's nothing specific I'm in need of currently. The only straight trade I would consider might be for an exceptionally clean or rare iteration of a Bisonic or Alembic equipped Starfire bass OR an early, hollow M85 bass.
One thing to note: the volume potentiometer has no stop - which is to say that when rotating it clockwise it smoothly goes from 0 to 10 just as any volume control does, then plateaus at 10 for about 1/8 of a rotation, before going back to 0. The replacement potentiometer can be sourced from Alembic for $80 and requires no soldering to swap out, but since the current one functions just fine as is, it honestly hasn't bothered me one bit and I never put the order in.
Comes with a substantial custom marble-design flight case.
Really an amazing instrument and the only reason I am letting it go is because I prefer my short-scales (2 of which have filter preamps as well). I actually find this to be a really comfortable bass all around, but once I'm playing with others, eyes closed, feeling the groove and improvising, the longer scale seems to clash with my muscle memory. So since the first-time-owning-an-Alembic honey-moon period of a few months had past, this one has mostly just sat in it's case. 32" scale simply might not be for me. I'm not hurting for cash and wouldn't mind holding on to it, but figured it may be better of living with somebody who will play it regularly.
Asking $3800 + shipping, depending on your location. CONUS shipping only. Happy to donate $50 to the forum if it sells via this post at full price. Local, face-to-face deal welcome! I live just North of Orlando and might be willing to drive and meet half-way, depending on the deal and where you're located. It will also be coming with me to the Orlando International Guitar Expo this Saturday.
Would consider partial-trade offers (maybe up to a 1/3 of the price here), but there's nothing specific I'm in need of currently. The only straight trade I would consider might be for an exceptionally clean or rare iteration of a Bisonic or Alembic equipped Starfire bass OR an early, hollow M85 bass.
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Spoiler alert! 
