Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

One of my all-time faves, Harry, nice one!

"That's fine and certainly the right thing to do if the Alembic is your dream bass but while a 4004LK that costs $7-8K will retain it's value (or possibly increase) the Alembic's resale will likely be about 25-50% of it's new price."

You are absolutely right, Brian- who knows how much your LK will be worth in a few years (or less )

If I were to order an Exploiter from Alembic, I would specify that it be routed for HB1 RIC humbuckers, and figure out a way to put a small preamp on board.

I'm the owner of the Lemmy Brian called "A very early production LK" toward the beginning of this thread. It's #9, and was made in 2001. I was walking by Sam Ash in NYC, and there she was in the window - After 24 hours of thought, I went back and gave the man $2000.

I'm amazed by the difference in the Pup placement - as you can see, mine are more crammed together than the newer instruments...

Here's another detailed picture of mine...



Look how close the Pups are...



I wonder how many were made like this before the newer spread out configuration was adopted...

You should always buy an Alembic second hand.

Subjective as ever, a Series 1 bass is still the yardstick by which all other basses are measured. Anything from the mid 70's to practically new basses can be had for far less than LK's are going for at present. There probably is no better bang for your buck, if you find a real clean example for 3-4K.

Here's a new $12K bass to make a point..
http://cgi.ebay.com/Alembic-Series-1-Quilted-Maple-Bass-Guitar-New-Mint_W0QQitemZ7362888138QQcategoryZ4713QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

No matter how good a bass a bass the LK is, even with that carving involved, an Alembic with a $12K tag at the same price of a LK, would nearly always be first choice for the serious player.

I want an alembic 5 string exploiter ...

I purchased an (Exploiter)Alembic, over 20 years ago. I don't think that I could get what I paid for it. Even with 20 years of inflation...

"No matter how good a bass a bass the LK is, even with that carving involved, an Alembic with a $12K tag at the same price of a LK, would nearly always be first choice for the serious player."

Wouldn't a serious player pick the better playing bass regardless of the make/price?" A $12K Alembic doesn't necessarily make it superior to any other bass. Most I have played have been outstanding but I have also played a few dogs. I'm not at all saying the LK's are worth what they are getting but ANY bass, no matter the price, may be great or bad depending on who is playing it and what tone/setup/feel they prefer.

Tony....sorry for not giving proper credit when I posted the pic.

I spoke to a fellow at a music store the other day that has three LK's (that he won't sell for a few years BTW ) and he said one that he received a few years ago has the tight spacing like yours but I have yet to actually see another. Makes me wonder how many had that spacing. Also I wonder if any of the three that Lemmy has are included in the 60 total or are his separate.

Brian, I'm sure it's 60 total, including those three.

Why do people hate actives ??? And why have 3 of the exact same bass. I mean 2 maybe... but 3???

I don't hate actives at all....I just happen to like my passive tone better......for now.

I'm sorry I wasn't clear.....it was a music store that has three LK's that they won't sell and I spoke to the owner/manager.

Well, as I said too Brian, it is subjective...

In this instance, it's like finding a new Bentley at half price. Now, it's the same as a new Mercedes, which is a still a great product, but when both are priced equally, there's no comparison.

In nearly all cases, a $12K bass IS superior to all others. When it's an Alembic, you would find very few people who would feel that another bass priced at a fraction of $12K is the better bass.

Now, is that Alembic six times better than a $2K bass, or twice as better as a $6K bass, and therefore the best value for money at that price? That's a totally different question, and up to the individual to decide.

In any market, the one thing that nearly always remains true though is that the perceived best is usually the most reassuringly expensive.

Hey Steve

Just wondering: did you see the pix posted previously of the incomplete lemmy "wings" from a couple of months ago?

It looks like the wings closest to the bottom of the pic are your bass

Great looking one man!

Cheers!

Joe

Brian - I wasn't looking for a photo credit - I saw those pictures and thought "That bass looks familiar"! It's nice have an instrument that's worth being discussed by you folks...

I wonder if john Hall might be able to comment on the different PUP spacing of the Lemmy - How many of the "tight" configuration were made, and why the change to the more spaced out version happened.

With the inevitable variation in the short (60) series, imagine what they'll be worth in 20 years!
I hope you guys have good security systems & plenty of insurance.

....plenty of security.....