Hi,

I'm looking for a little help purchasing a Stanley Clarke Signature Deluxe. How much should I expect to pay for 2014 Signature Deluxe Cocobolo with fret lights & abalone ovals? I found one for $8000 but unsure if this is a good deal or not.

If anyone else has a signature deluxe they'd like to sell, I'm interested!

Thanks

Others may disagree but I have both a Standard Signature SC and a Deluxe and paid nowhere near that for them.  The Standard is a year older but has LED fret markers, the same inlays and a burl maple top.  The 2012 Deluxe is walnut. Cocobolo is nice but not at twice the price I paid. 

you could pick up a really nice used short scale series bass for $8000.

Thanks for the input!

Is $6500 a good price for a 2015 Brown Bass? Are these generally cheaper or more expensive than a signature deluxe?

Also, how do these differ sound-wise?

Thanks again

I think you would get a wider range of tones from the brown bass because they have controls similar to those on a series I bass in the sense that they have separate volume controls for each pickup rather than the blend control which is standard on a signature bass. . So you would find you have a greater scope for tone sculpting.

Brown bass: http://club.alembicguitars.net/index.php?topic=282.0
Signature Bass: http://club.alembicguitars.net/index.php?topic=276.0

Quote from: jazzyvee on January 19, 2021, 03:30:31 PMI think you would get a wider range of tones from the brown bass because they have controls similar to those on a series I bass in the sense that they have separate volume controls for each pickup rather than the blend control which is standard on a signature bass. . So you would find you have a greater scope for tone sculpting.

Thread drift: How does that work exactly? I've on a couple occasions heard that same party line, that two separate volume controls offer more timbral variations/combinations than one master volume and one pickup balance, but I can't wrap my head around why that would be the case (presuming the pickups are active, low impedance, and that all other aspects of the instrument's electronics are identical). Thanks.

Quote from: Bob_Ross on February 02, 2021, 08:13:44 AMThread drift: How does that work exactly? I've on a couple occasions heard that same party line, that two separate volume controls offer more timbral variations/combinations than one master volume and one pickup balance, but I can't wrap my head around why that would be the case (presuming the pickups are active, low impedance, and that all other aspects of the instrument's electronics are identical). Thanks.

I don't get that either. I think some people are just more comfortable with two volumes and some prefer volume and pan.

Here is a link to a discussion under the Must Read page, other discussions on the topic have taken place on the forum as well for more info...

http://club.alembicguitars.net/index.php?topic=309.0

Quote from: rv_bass on February 02, 2021, 08:49:00 AM
Here is a link to a discussion under the Must Read page, other discussions on the topic have taken place on the forum as well for more info...

http://club.alembicguitars.net/index.php?topic=309.0

That was an engaging read, thanks...although it still didn't really answer the question!   Lots of conjecture, a couple anecdotal "It seems this way to me" posts, one post that started to get at the heat of the matter (dfung60's from June 27, 2016, 10:11:59 AM), but nothing definitive.

I do get how the inclusion of a Master Volume Control in addition to two separate pickup Volume Controls makes those two discrete controls more useful...and I could almost agree that in that configuration there might be more timbral combinations available than simply having a single Master Volume Control plus one pickup Balance control. Almost...

But in an active circuit with low impedance pickups, why would there be any timbral difference -- not volume difference, just tone -- between, say, Neck pickup at 90% and bridge pickup at 40%, versus the Balance knob skewed N% towards the neck pickup? (Sorry, I realize this is a math question and so perhaps solving for N might answer that question...maybe?)

Thanks.

On my Series, I like to max out the bridge pickup volume, and turn up the neck pickup volume to taste. If I isolate either pickup, they are significantly less loud than combined (mind you, my custom does have a master volume, but no pickup selector, and I run it mono).
As long as both volumes are in the upper 30% (or thereabouts) then the loudness doesn't vary very greatly.
With a blend pot, the loudness is pretty even across the range, so it seems like it must behave differently.