Most CATS (producer/engineers) Praise The Alembic choice but as in all areas in life we come across  nay sayers to almost anything.

Those nay sayers are also in orchestras regarding the tonality regarding Trumpets . For example if you come into a brass section of Trumpets and the Conductor and/or other Trumpet players have the Bach Trumpet Preference Thing in their head and you come in with say with a Selmer Paris Trumpet  or a Courtois or a 'Monette you might get a similar reaction.

HAL
 
it's like  'THE BORG in  STAR TREK  ________
   
WE ARE BORG, YOU WILL BE ASSIMILATED, RESISTANCE IS FUTILE.
 
     I can envision the independent BORG that got away playing an ALEMBIC !!   That would be the SMART BORG to set a Precedent for the others to follow!
 
  Hal ___   Please_  We need an image of a Borg playing an Alembic . You are the Computer Generated Visual Artist among us! This  thread needs some colour ! I have always appreciated such visuals.

if I want my series one to sound like a P Bass, I just throw a blanket over my rig and I'm in the ball park.  
I've had nothing but high praise live and in the studio concerning my series one tone. In my area, if you want a Fender tone, there are PLENTY of other cats that will deliver...but if you want the BEST sounding bass tone in the world, then I usually get the call.....go figger.

To MY ears my  Alembic Series II  or my Alembic Distillate  or my Alembic Essence  sound better then any of my other Bass's. AND play better as well.

If I owned three cars in the front of my house, and a passenger stands there not knowing which cars I own, nor which car I would eventually ask her/him to enter...this may put the passenger in somewhat of a blinding (unknown) position; and it maybe a inconvenience to the passenger as well. However, the passenger is a fair mined person, and really just wants to get from point 'A' to point 'B' so could care less what car (just as long as it's a car...).  
 
On the other hand, I believe its plain blatantly  arrogant if the passenger to says out the gate: I don't know which cars you own, but none of these before me, are good enough for me to sit in comfort...
 
How do you deal with this passenger?  
 
It's completely up to you...
 
 
Peace and Love -
 
 
 
 
(Message edited by the_jester on December 29, 2009)

Basses are tools, made to create sounds and make music. Lets look at just the sound for a moment (not the level of construction, customization, where it was built etc.). Just sound and we listen to:
Paul McCartney, Pino Palladino, Jaco Pastorius, Bernhard Edwards, Paul Jackson, Anthony Jackson, Marcus Miller,... I dont think any of these Bass players sound incomplete, lacking or inferior (to alembic players). And I dont think they could even be improved when any of these players were given an alembic.  
On the other hand, Alembic's craftmanship, custom options, attention to detail, materials used and so on is quite the best way a bass guitar can be made.
Still an Alembic will never sound and feel like a passive P-Bass. It might get close, but its not the same. But it wasnt even made to do that. Same goes vice versa. And why would you want that, when there are both,
Whatever floats you boat

Also I think alembics have a very distinct sound to them. A sound that I very much like. For example Jimmy Johnson's bass sound. I have never really seen that Jimmy Johnson does a whole lot of knob tweaking. It seems like he plays with a certain knob setting on his series basses for 90 percent of the time.  
I never was into alembic because they have 100 different sounds or can sound like any other bass (which i dont believe either). But because they can give you your own sound and because of the one sound character that is common to all alembic basses and guitars. Clarity, even tone respone, sustain, no noise etc.
 
(Message edited by chrisalembic on December 29, 2009)

Let me just say this...
 
I had been wrong many times thinking a particular sound of a bass was a fender or something else, and it was indeed an Alembic.  
 
Peace and Love.

Yes Sir______ It's completely up to you  
 
      This is where I would correlate all other variables into the equation. such as: Various circumstances  of the identity of the passenger and weather  or not I am receiving compensation.My ideal response should be of a deliberated nature ,at least that is what I strive for rather then a purely emotional response.It's a professional thing.
   
                  I have already had numerous such experiences in life.This is just one example of many such events that i have had:
Once when I was doing a stage hand/roadie gig  I had set up the Amp & Guitar for a certain 'Famous; Guitar Player ( I can't reveal his name for obvious reasons ) who was completely EXHAUSTED from a U.S. TOUR. He had wandered off the back stage area into the balcony of the venue and was curled up sleeping.  I was sent out by the stage manager to find him because SHOW TIME  was in less then 15 minutes_ WHERE IS HE ?  Well I found him , woke him up and led him on stage just seconds to SHOW TIME! All the way to the stage I had to suffer his cursing &insults until I had him on stage and handed him his Guitar and told him OK ,  I tuned you up, and plugged you in and  your Amp is in  stand by now I am switching you on !  He was then SO GRATEFUL and apologetic   and played that Guitar like he was ON FIRE  !   and had a GREAT GIG !   The stage manager thanked me for my GOOD Handling  of the  whole scene ,   and that was COMPLETELY UP TO ME . It is a Professional thing.

Jeez, can-o-worms time!!
 
Alembics are great, so are many other basses. I am watching 'The Song Remains the Same' right now and the Fender bass JPJ is playing sounds super. Listen to later 'The Brothers Johnson' with the Stingray bass or 'Yes' with the Rickenbacker bass. Yamaha TRB-JP's are bolt on but sound amazing. Series ones and the rest sound amazing, but a lot of it is still in the fingers! Each quality bass is a tool with a unique personality.  
 
My less than .02 cents worth!
Dave

Wolf,
 
That was quite a story, and you made the best decision not to fight the guy, for the good of everyone.

Thanks  Hal.  
                        My apologies to all for us going off topic.I tend to have a propensity to digress_____________ _____________ ___________ ___________. Maybe it's an old guy thing.Story telling that is .

I own two basses now, my Excel and P-bass. The Excel can get close to that P-bass sound but has a little more gowl to it.

Its not the Bass it's the Playa....(me on my jazz Bass) .....Warningffensive Lyrics!!!