# New Custom Order From A.C. Guitars in the UK



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Hey guys, I just confirmed an order for a custom bass! I was so happy with my Marchlewski that I had to go again... I've been working with a great luthier in the UK... We finally come to terms and work has just started on my A.C. Guitars Recurve - you can see the website at http://www.acguitars.co.uk/.

Here are the specs:


4 string modified Recurve design
black limba body
camphor burl top/back on the body
camphor burl facing on the headstock
birdseye maple neck w/back limba strips
quited maple fingerboard
2 proprietary FatBas humbucking pickups made by Aaron Amstrong (Kent's son)
black hardware (hipshot brindge & tuners)
electronics TBD - looking at some cool options

Unfortunately, you can't see an exact copy of the bass on order there on the website because we've revised the body shape. Here's the template:










And here's the camphor burl that we're going to be using for the body and faceplate on the headstock:










And here's a great shot of what will be the fingerboard:










I am SO pumped!!!


----------



## james on bass (Feb 4, 2006)

That's going to be very nice. Those woods are beautiful!


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

james on bass said:


> That's going to be very nice. Those woods are beautiful!


Thanks James! I'll post more in progress pics as they arrive. This is going to be so cool!!!!


----------



## Xanadu (Feb 3, 2006)

congratulations, that's going to be one hell of a bass.:food-smiley-004:


----------



## oddio (Feb 26, 2006)

Aha! The woods you've selected are truly beautiful. As others have said, please keep us posted on your progress. Congratulations!!!


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

oddio said:


> Aha! The woods you've selected are truly beautiful. As others have said, please keep us posted on your progress. Congratulations!!!


Thanks Andrew, I'll keep posting progress pixs as they arrive from Alan (the super-luthier).

And hey, this doesn't mean that I'm not interested in that other item that we were talking about a month or two ago! *smirk*


----------



## oddio (Feb 26, 2006)

basse said:


> And hey, this doesn't mean that I'm not interested in that other item that we were talking about a month or two ago! *smirk*


Not forgotten, my friend. I will keep you posted. Nonetheless, it looks like the bass of your dreams is well underway! :food-smiley-004:


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Some more in progress pics...

Here's the first shot of the body now that it's shaped with the camphor burl on the top and bottom:










Here's the back of the body showing where it will be shaped and the control cavity:










Alan tells me that the neck should have the headplate and a back plate on tomorrow - both with double veneer contrast lines! And then the headstock will be shaped once the headplate is dry. The rest of the week will be spent routing cavities and putting on the camphor heel - again with double veneer and then finally fitting the neck.

This is getting REALLY exciting!


----------



## Xanadu (Feb 3, 2006)

sexy, it looks like its coming along real nice.:food-smiley-004:


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Thanks Xanadu!

And the photos just keep on coming... Here's the front of the headstock before the logo goes on, I love the way the fretboard is looking...










Here's a side view of the headstock showing the veneers and accents...










And finally, a shot of the body with the neck laid on top!!!!










I can't believe this is coming together so quickly!


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Here are the most recent photos:

The neck inserts:










The neck affixed to bass to make sure everything fits before the carving starts:










And the front and back of the body now that it's been carved wiped down with mineral spirits to give an idea of how it'll look once it's been sprayed:



















We should have some word on the electronics we're going to use very shortly too!


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Hi guys, I was just talking with Alan at AC Guitars via e-mail and we're still making choices on where to go with my ReCurve. 

I'm hoping to have photos of the neck being carved in the next couple of days. Alan's been experimenting with a slightly asymetrical neck and I like the idea - and I can't wait to see how that progresses.

What was that line by Tom Petty... "the waiting is the hardest part"? Boy, he got that right!!! Thankfully, Alan's an amazing guy to deal with and keeps in touch almost every day so I really feel a part of the process!


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

The frets are now in the fretboard... I'm really liking the way that it's looking, particularly the combination of the quilted maple and the camphor burl! Wow!!!


----------



## Xanadu (Feb 3, 2006)

basse said:


> The frets are now in the fretboard... I'm really liking the way that it's looking, particularly the combination of the quilted maple and the camphor burl! Wow!!!


man that;s the coolest fret board ive ever seen. Props:food-smiley-004:


----------



## oddio (Feb 26, 2006)

Wow! Now there's a fretboard that you don't see every day. That bass is shaping up to be a real beauty.


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Thanks again guys! And the photos just keep coming, I can't believe this is coming together so quickly AND so beautifully...

Here's the back of the neck now that the initial shaping has been done - yes, it's been wiped down with mineral spirits so it appears darker than it will once the lacquer is applied - holy crap the stripes in the neck and camphor heel and headstock look amazing with those veneers as accents!!!:










Here's the back of the bass with the neck laid in - once again wiped with mineral spirits so it is darker than the finished bass will be:










Here's a close-up of the side of the bass, once again with the neck laid in but without the mineral spirits:










WOW!!! I am so incredibly fricken' impressed! :food-smiley-015:


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

More photos of the neck in progress...

Here's a close-up of the headstock with the logo laid in:










And here's a photo of the top of the neck showing the fretboard and the headstock with the tuners:










And here are the pickups, 2 ACG FatBas custom wound humbuckers... Ceramic magnets in the bridge with Alnico 5 magnets in the neck:










I am so pumped!!!


----------



## Xanadu (Feb 3, 2006)

are those the pups that are warwicks?


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Xanadu said:


> are those the pups that are warwicks?


Actually they're custom made and wound by Aaron Armstrong (Kent's son) specifically for Alan at AC Guitars. I think what's great about them is that he uses different magnets for the neck vs. the bridge positions.

That's just one of several things that made me decide to work with Alan on this bass. He provides a phenomenal level of craftmanship, he offers custom pickups that are unavailable elsewhere, really cool designs that he's not adverse to modifying, great build times compared to a number of "other" builders and more. 

BTW, stay tuned because we should be able to talk about the pre-amp details in the next week to 10 days too.


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Thanks again for the comments guys! Alan at AC Guitars assembled and strung my bass earlier today so that he could make sure that all of the parts fit before he started spraying. 

He tells me that he also cut the nut. No adjustment was needed on the truss rod and it had pretty nice action - even without fine-tuning it. He also states that it sounds pretty resonant, in fact quite bell like. :hyper: :hyper: :hyper: 

The body still needs some more sanding but another session should see it completed.

There are a few small holes in the camphor which is as expected. He's going to fill them with lacquer which takes a fair bit of time but stops any of the colour discrepancies that can happen if you use filler. FYI, the white circles that you see on the bass are marks around those small holes that will be filled - but will also be wiped off before spraying starts.

Side view...










Body view...


----------



## Lowtones (Mar 21, 2006)

Very nice! The Skelfman does wonderful work.:food-smiley-015:


----------



## SCREEM (Feb 2, 2006)

that is the sickest quilt i've ever seen on a neck....damn nice stuff man :food-smiley-004:


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Thanks again for the comments guys! This time Alan at AC Guitars finished the sanding of the neck and body and he's started spraying them. This is the first photo of a thick coat of lacquer that he sprayed to fill the pore holes in the camphor burl. His next step is to sand off almost all of this coat so that the pores are filled and there's a flat surface to spray for the finishing coats.

I'm really happy with the way that this looking - darker than the wood on it's own but lighter then when it was wiped with mineral spirits! I can't wait to see the contrast between the fingerboard and the body!


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Alan at AC Guitars just sent me a photo of the finished neck:










I'm REALLY happy with the way it's turned out and especially how the fretboard is looking in contrast to the camphor burl.

He also tells me that we should have word on the pre-amp early next week! Stay tuned, it'll be interesting!!! :rockon:


----------



## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

A wonderful guitar. Also a very nice job you are doing here on thread and pics. Keep it up. :food-smiley-004:


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

GuitarsCanada said:


> A wonderful guitar. Also a very nice job you are doing here on thread and pics. Keep it up. :food-smiley-004:


Thanks ! Much appreciated!!! And on to the next post...

I’ve had lot of people asking me what’s the deal with the pre-amp for my ReCurve bass from AC Guitars and why I couldn’t say what kind of electronics were going to go into it yet. In short it’s because it’s going to be a brand new offering that will only be available through AC Guitars as it’s a proprietary design. It’s been going through the design and build stages and Alan’s finally got a working prototype that he’s been testing for the last week or so. I’ll give you some of the details on the amp itself but I’ll leave it to Alan to chime in on how it sounds (because I don’t have it in my hands yet) and what he thinks about it!

Unlike most on-board (“on-bass”) electronics this system will be filter based. As far as I know the only 2 existing pre-amps that use this type of system are in the Wal and Alembic models (feel free to correct me if I’m wrong). And you know how much Wal and Alembic users swear by the flexibility and variety of sounds that they can get out of their basses!

And to top it off, Alan worked very closely with John East at E-Pro, the designer of the phenomenal J-Retro and U-Retro bass pre-amps. And yes, if you want one of these new filter-based pre-amps you can order one but it has to be done through Alan via [email protected] as it is proprietary and as such, won’t be available through John. However, it will still be John’s design, expertise and manufacturing behind every single AC Guitars pre-amp built.

The pre-amp will of course be active (9V) and use 4 stacked pots. Here is how John East describes it:

The AC BASS-EQ-01 is designed for two pickup basses. It consists of 4 stack knobs allowing control of volume and blend between the pickups, individual low pass filter characteristics for each pickup, and overall treble control.

Details of System & Controls:

*VOLUME/BLEND STACK KNOB*

** LOWER RING*
- Active blend for smooth and even control of pickup balance.
** UPPER KNOB*
- Low impedance volume control.


*2 FILTER/PEAK STACK KNOBS (One for each pickup)*

** LOWER RING*
- Sets low pass filter frequency for its pickup.
** UPPER KNOB*
- Sets the level of overshoot peak for its filter.


*TREBLE STACK (“Pick Attack”)*

** LOWER RING*
- Sets the frequency for the treble shelf.
** UPPER KNOB*
- Sets the level of treble.


*GENERAL*

** INPUT STAGES*-	Two gain adjustment presets are included to allow fine-tuning the level of pickups individually.
-	Each pickup input has its own buffer amplifier allowing non-matching pickup types to be used successfully.
-	Each input includes a sub filter to prevent harmful 'power-soaking' frequencies below your bass spectrum, reaching your rig.

** INSTALLATION*
-	The system comes completely wired including battery clip and jack.
-	All connections to the inputs, outputs and power are via small screw terminals, so no soldering will be required.

For more details on the mechanical elements/components and specs please visit Alan’s website at AC Guitars - he talks about it right on the home page.

This is big!!! This is a huge deal!!! Not just because it’s yet another new pre-amp model but look at the combination of things involved… A completely new, custom built, filter-based unit designed and manufactured by John East based upon concept by Alan Cringean, the luthier/designer/builder of AC Guitars himself!!! I am so pumped about this!!!

Let me or Alan (Skelf) know if anyone has any questions and I’m sure that Alan would be happy to address them here in this thread or via PM.


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Now that Alan at AC Guitars has his filter based pre-amp (a la Wal & Alembic), here's how the layout of the knobs and switches will look for my ReCurve:


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

Hi guys:

My ReCurve from AC Guitars in Scotland has been finished and assembled! Now all I have to do is wait while it sits for a week to ensure it doesn't shift too much and then again until it's delivered from Scotland to Canada. That wait is gonna kill me.

Here are the specs again quickly:

*Top/Back Wood:* Camphor Burl
*Body Wood:* Black Limba
*Neck Woods:* Black Limba & Maple
*Fingerboard:* Acrylicized Quilt Maple
*Wood Accents:* Ebonized Maple
*Pickups:* proprietary AC Guitars Humbuckers
*Pre-Amp:* proprietary AC Guitars Filter-Based pre-amp (by John East)
*Hardware: * black Hipshot Ultra-Lite

Here are the photos:


































Additional images ton follow in next post...

I'll get you a review once it's been here for a week or so and I've had a chance to get familiar with it!!!


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

More images...


----------



## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

Super nice job. Compliments to the luthier on this one. You should love it. Full review of course.


----------



## oddio (Feb 26, 2006)

(tick, tick, tick....)

The seconds seem like hours, don't they? 

Of course a preliminary review is due on arrival, and you'll owe us a further FULL review after the first few gigs. :tongue:

Stunningly beautiful instrument BTW.


----------



## skelf (Jun 26, 2006)

The seconds do indeed feel like hours.
I have to wait to find out if Dave like's the bass.
These are trying times.


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

oddio said:


> (tick, tick, tick....)
> 
> The seconds seem like hours, don't they?


You are so right! Every time the phone rings or someone walks by my office I keep jumping up because I'm hoping that it's here! I can see through the web that it arrived in the country yesterday, but beyond that I know nothing because the tracking page hasn't been updated! I don't know if it's stuck in customs waiting for duties to be calculated or if it's sitting in a truck winding it's way here It's killing me!



oddio said:


> Of course a preliminary review is due on arrival, and you'll owe us a further FULL review after the first few gigs. :tongue:
> 
> Stunningly beautiful instrument BTW.


Absolutely! I was tossing around the idea of beng a bit of a sh*t-disturber by wondering if I should post my review (because I'm expecting it to be exceptionally positive since Alan is such a great guy and does such good work :bow on-line first and letting him see it there a couple of days after it arrives (since he'll be able to check the delivery progress and will know when it gets here). But I think he'd explode while he was waiting!

So I decided I just couldn't do that to him because he's been so phenomenal to work with. You guys will be a quick 2nd to get the review after I pay tribute to Alan directly!


----------



## james on bass (Feb 4, 2006)

That thing is Phenom looking!! None


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

It's here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OK, I have to set this up because I'm at work and I'm nowhere near my amp...

My first impression before I even picked up was "holy sh*t, it’s beautiful!" In fact I’d have to say that it is absolutely stunning!!! And I think Alan & I were absolutely right to go with the 2 different levels of lacquer! The shinier areas on teh body and headstock look phenomenal and it really helps to show off the wood. The black accents are really nice touches because they help draw your eyes to the differences in the woods. The neck, finished with less lacquer, for less "shinyness" feels exactly like I wanted it to - not too slippery for those seaty gigs!

It’s nice and light and sits really comfortably in my lap – can’t wait to get it home and put a strap on it!

To be honest, I was slightly worried about going with the non-uniform shaped neck since I’d never played something like that before but it is comfortable as hell. Particularly towards the bottom edge where it flattens out a bit – it really conforms to the shape of my hand and makes me feel like it was made for me! Yeah, I know that it was but without having been there when the neck was being shaped there’s always a little worry about whether or not it’ll be as comfortable as I’d hoped. AND IT IS, in fact even more so!!!!

I promptly booted up my computer and played a couple of songs that I knew were tuned to 440 standard so that I could tune it up. It almost plays itself!

It also has a great ring and sustain to die for too! I can’t wait to plug it in! Although, I don’t think I’ll get that chance until Wednesday night because my amp is at our practice space.

Alan, it’s beautiful, comfortable and easy as hell to play! Thank you!!!!!!!!

I’ll definitely get back to you all on Thursday once I’ve had a chance to plug it in and play with the pre-amp! Well, well done my friend!

Dave


----------



## basse (Feb 24, 2006)

*My Review of RC4 001 from AC Guitars*

OK, time for a full-bore review of my ReCurve from AC Guitars in Scotland. Yes, this is the one with the very first production model of Alan’s John East designed filter-based pre-amp. I’ve had the chance to play it out on 3 different occasions now. Twice with my band “The Eradicators” where we only play instrumentals in the surf/rock/garage/spaghetti-western style and once in a jam with some friends where we were just doing the old rockin’ standards like Ozzy, Sabbath, The Tragically Hip (need to have your CanCon!!!), The Cars, Aerosmith, Led Zep, etc.

I should start off by telling you that there was an initial scare with the neck. It had developed a bit of a bow in transit between the cold of being stored/shipped and the difference in humidity between Scotland and Toronto. I think poor Alan almost had a heart attack when I contacted him asking him about adjusting the truss rod and telling him why it needed to be done. But, in speaking to him he promptly picked himself up off the floor and walked me through adjusting it. And now, after about a week of letting it sit and adjust… The action is perfect! It is low like I like it and there is absolutely no fret buzz no matter where I play on the neck.

I know that you can see from the photos that I’ve posted how amazing it looks. But I’ve got to tell you that up close the detail that Alan puts into his work is just phenomenal. Everything is pieced together nicely, the neck pocket is tight, there’s absolutely no give in the pickups, it is amazingly fit together! The ebonized maple accents really enhance the overall affect by highlighting the different woods. The attention to detail is nothing short of superb. I couldn’t be happier! The decision to go with 2 different levels of lacquer (shiny on the body and headstock and low gloss on the neck) was definitely right too. After getting sweaty while playing my hand didn’t slip on the neck like it does on my other basses that have a high gloss finish everywhere.

Let’s talk comfort. The bass weighs in just over 9 pounds so it’s light and easy to play. The beveled edges and sculpted body make it very ergonomic with no hard edges jabbing into my arm or into my leg. The neck is a joy to play! When Alan & I were talking about its shape, the desired radius, the size of my hands, etc. he mentioned that he was experimenting with an asymmetrical curve design and we decided to go with that for a number of reasons. So that you understand it, from my experience the top part of the neck feels exactly like you’d expect it to… But the bottom part has a slight straightening to the curve. I never told him but I was always a little bit worried about it because I’d never played something like that before and I wasn’t going to be anywhere near Scotland while he was carving it. So, I just had to trust in his judgment and to what he believed felt comfortable for himself. Let me tell you, it’s one of the best decisions I made in opting for that style of neck. It fits to my hand better than a glove. I highly recommend it for anyone considering something that sounds “different” but is comfortable beyond explanation.

The bass is 100% active so unfortunately I can’t give a perspective on how the pickups sound in a passive mode. But let me tell you that through Alan’s pre-amp I now have the most versatile bass that I’ve ever owned. 

Getting used to the pre-amp and finding a number of settings that I liked took me some time because it is so extraordinarily flexible. I found that I had to deal with each pickup on its own, get a sound I liked individually and then find a blend that I liked. But let me tell you that each pickup soloed is great on its own too. Blended this thing is a monster. Aaron (Armstrong {Kent’s son}) did a great job with the custom winding and providing Alan his signature pickups. Playing around I can get everything from a deep thudding Gibson EBO mudbucker sound to a bright punchy bite like a Rickenbacker through to the growl of a Musicman Stingray and even up to the beefy crunch of my Wal. And yes, I own all of the basses I’ve just mentioned so I’m really familiar with them. But I feel that I’m still discovering what this particular bass is capable of because between the options available through the pre-amp, combined with those of being able have each pickup in single-coil or humbucking in series or parallel position that the possibilities are endless and I’ve only begun to scratch the surface of the possibilities.

Sorry, but I’m not set up to record so I can’t give you a sample of what it sounds like. I know that Alan is trying to do something like that on his website so you may want to keep in touch with him or keep checking back to his site.

Bottom line… I’m impressed as hell!!! Deciding to work with Alan is not only one of the best decisions I’ve made because he makes it so easy but because he exceeded all of my expectations. Give me a couple of months to come up with another down payment and I’ll be right back to him ordering one of his Harlots – probably with 2 Musicman style pickups!

If anyone has any specific questions please let me know and I’ll try and answer them for you to the best of my abilities!

Good on you Alan!!! F*ckin’ amazing!!!!
:bow:


----------



## skelf (Jun 26, 2006)

Hi
Just to let you know that if you are interested in the pre-amp they are now available.
Cheers
Alan


----------

