Wade - but the difference is that we don't see people buying Alembics just to show off ;-)

I myself, try to showoff, myself. Its what we do. Its how and why you showoff which is the conundrum.

I really don't think most non-musician audiences can tell or care if you have an alembic or a fender bass or even if there is a difference in the sound. They just want to hear a good band play.
 
But, JV, part of what the audience is hearing that makes the band sound good is your tone.  They may not be out there thinking Wow, his Alembic sounds great!, but they are hearing good sound, and that increases the impression of a good band.  
 
Peter

They are a great bass and I certainly like the sound, but you have to balance that with the fact that most of the recordings you have heard were done with Fenders and other more mass produced basses and a whole bunch of them sound pretty darn good.

I noticed that one of my favorite bassists (Marcus Miller) uses a massive case of effects, as does Nathan East and many other bassists.
 
Stanley Clarke uses few effects.  
 
 
That Alembic tone is great without the need for enhancement

Or, as Jimmy Johnson said, he gets a great sound live going direct from his Series into a power amp and full range floor wedges with a direct box out foir the house sound. ALL his tone comes from his hands and the instrument, no effects or external EQ.
 
Mike
 
(Message edited by dadabass2001 on September 15, 2008)

I notice SWR has launched the Marcus Miller Preamp.

yikes....that thing has alot of knobs.

If it sounds anything like the protoype Marcus used when he was over herelast year, it'll be pretty amazing. I'm looking forward to trying it out - It has more knobs than the Navigator so it must be good ;-)
 
Graeme

That is a very impressive looking pre-amp!!
 
I love Marcus Millers sound - it has a great snap to it!  
 
Im assuming, like Geddy Lee, that Marcus doesnt actually play one of the Japanese replica basses bearing his name? I know Geddy's bass is an actual 72 vintage Jazz he found in a pawn shop, what about Marcus's bass...whats the story there?? Anyone??
 
John.

There's some stuff about his instruments in the FAQ section of his website.
 
graeme

You know, I think I'm the only guy I know who doesn't care for Marcus's sound....

Once again..Graeme to the rescue!
 
Nice link - answers the question perfectly!
 
John.

I just saw Stanley  and RTF and he was using a lot of effects and multiple amps and pre amps etc with his series Alembic. I couldn't always hear him as clearly as I would have liked.

I'm just curious as to why some basses are much more expensive and whether or not players and the audience can really hear the difference or is it just perception? Is it possible that it is purely ego on the part of the player? Can almost any bass sound good if it is eq'd properly as was recently suggested to me?
 
Any bass can sound good if EQ'd properly.  It has been my experience that no other bass can sound like an Alembic - no matter how much EQ you throw at it.
 
When I bought my first Alembic it was because I fell in love with the sound.  I ordered my second Alembic because I couldn't get any of my 5 string basses to sound like my 4 string Alembic.
 
I own Alembic basses for one reason: tone.  Nothing sounds like them.  I play the hell out of them.  My Rogue 5 has been to every gig and rehearsal I've done since it got in my hands back in March of this year.
 
Some people who know how much these instruments cost think I'm crazy to bring them to all my gigs.  Those people are idiots.  You're supposed to play a musical instrument - not keep it like a trophy.