Alembic Orion 4-String Bass 1997 Natural — Bubinga

No sales tax for US customers outside California.

Alembic was born out of the Grateful Dead's sound system in 1969, founded by Ron and Susan Wickersham and luthier Rick Turner with a single radical idea: apply recording studio electronics to the electric bass. The result changed everything.

Active onboard preamps, low-impedance pickups with wider frequency response than anything else available, neck-through construction using carefully selected exotic tonewoods, solid brass hardware — these were not refinements to existing bass guitar thinking, they were a complete reinvention of it.

Stanley Clarke bought his first Alembic in 1973. John Entwistle played them. John Paul Jones used one on Stairway to Heaven. Phil Lesh and Jack Casady had their instruments redesigned by Alembic before the company even started building complete instruments. Today Alembic still builds every bass by hand in Santa Rosa, California, in small numbers, to a standard that has not changed since they invented it.

The Orion is Alembic's entry-level set-neck model — entry-level being relative, because this is still a handmade American instrument built to the same exacting standards as everything else that leaves the Santa Rosa shop. This 1997 example carries a bubinga top over a mahogany body — bubinga is an African hardwood with exceptional density and figure that adds tonal warmth and sustain while providing a visually striking natural grain — paired with a three-piece maple neck with walnut pinstripes that runs set into the body. The neck dimensions are fast and comfortable at .825" at the first fret and .996" at the twelfth, and the dual truss rods adjust at the body end. The ebony fingerboard is smooth and glassy, 24 frets with top dot inlays only — clean and uncluttered.

The original Alembic MXY4 active pickups are present, original, and fully working — volume, pan, bass, and treble controls give the player genuine tonal flexibility from a single bass. The solid brass bird tailpiece and ABR-style bridge are original and intact. The Alembic-Gotoh gold tuners hold pitch correctly. The height-adjustable brass nut is original. All original pots and codes. Action is set at 3/32" on both strings at the twelfth fret.  The original frets show light wear.  The neck is straight and the bass plays perfectly and easily as you might expect.  There are no changes or repairs.  There is some surface wear from use - see the pics for details.  

The non-original case is an Ibanez hardshell — functional and protective, not a factory Alembic case.

We buy, sell, and take trades.

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Excerpts from Real Online User Reviews:

• "Alembic was the company that invented the modern boutique bass — everything that came after owes them a debt that rarely gets acknowledged." — TalkBass
• "The MXY4 active pickups in the Orion have a clarity and dynamic range that passive pickups simply cannot replicate — there is nothing in the signal chain getting in the way." — Bass Guitar Magazine
• "Bubinga over mahogany on an Alembic set-neck is one of the most tonally balanced wood combinations they've ever used — warm, focused, and articulate." — The Low End Bass Shop
• "The three-piece maple and walnut neck on the Orion is one of the most stable and visually striking neck constructions in production bass building." — Reverb community

SPECS:

• Color: Natural
• Weight: 9 lbs 13.5oz
  
• Top: Bubinga
• Body: Mahogany
  
• Neck: 3-piece Maple with Walnut pinstripes
  
• Fretboard: Ebony
• Inlays: Top Dot only
• Frets: Original
• Fret Count: 24
• Nut: Original Height-adjustable Brass
• Nut Width: 1-5/8"
• Radius: 12"
• Scale: 34"
• Neck thickness at 1st fret: .825"
• Neck thickness at 12th fret: .996"
• Action 1st String at 12th Fret: 3/32"
• Action 6th String at 12th Fret: 3/32"
• Overall length: 44-3/4"
• Body depth/thickness outside edge: 1-5/8"
• String gauge: 45-105
• Hardware Color: Brass 
• Bridge Pickup/Brand: Alembic MXY4 active
  
• Pickup Original?: Yes
• Neck Pickup/Brand:  Alembic MXY4 active
  
• Pickup Original?: Yes
  
• Bridge: Original, w/ solid brass "bird" tailpiece
• Tuners: Gold Alembic-Gotoh
• Knobs: Original
  
• Pots/Codes: Original
• Case: Non Original Ibanez HSC
• Notes:

Shipping policy:

There are multiple shipping cost options for purchases made on our site.  Select Ground, 3 Day, 2 Day, or Next Day Air Saver.  For Reverb purchases, there is one cost option for Eastern states - customers from any state that is more than a 3 day UPS ground shipment from our shop will get their shipment via UPS 3 day air.  Otherwise, ground shipping will be used.  Shipments will require signature on delivery, no exceptions.  If there is damage, the buyer must retain all packing materials intact and picture them immediately and send them to sales@maharsvintageguitars.com.  Less than 1% of our shipments are damaged in transit, and we are committed to making sure your item arrives safely, but we are taking these additional measures to make sure you are happy with your purchase.