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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 14th, 2009, 2:55 pm 
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Carmine you have a truly amazing collection, I commend you sir!

The internet has been very enlightening to me for the fact that it has made me aware of how many manufacturers produced lefties. When I was a young player the internet had yet to be invented and I lived in the hinterlands of west Texas. Though I read every copy of Guitarplayer I could get my hands on and was aware of many different brands the only quality instruments that were available to me were the "Big 3". There was one shop in town that had one or two different specimens like Alembic and Aria and I always recieved (and lusted over) the Carvin catalog but that was it and a true lefthanded instrument was a fantasy.

Perhaps that was for the best because I believed that the only way I was ever going to have the kind of gear my heros had and play an Alembic (my Holy Grail at that time) was to become a famous rock star. To even have a chance at that meant that I had to become the best bassplayer I could and play with the best musicians in front of audiences every chance I got.

Well, I never became a rock star and I've still never owned an Alembic but seeing collections like yours gives me hope that I can at least add lefthanded versions of some of the more unique instruments I dreamed about all those years ago! :mrgreen:

I would be interested in your opinions of the Ibanez Rics, the Arias and Vantage basses. Also, have you ever had or handled any early model Villette-Citrons?

Once again, Thank you for posting your collection.


Cheers!

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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 1:15 am 
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AustinLeftyBass wrote:
Love the Yamahas, I see we string our basses the same way.

Basshappi wrote:
The internet has been very enlightening to me for the fact that it has made me aware of how many manufacturers produced lefties. When I was a young player the internet had yet to be invented and I lived in the hinterlands of west Texas. Though I read every copy of Guitarplayer I could get my hands on and was aware of many different brands the only quality instruments that were available to me were the "Big 3". There was one shop in town that had one or two different specimens like Alembic and Aria and I always recieved (and lusted over) the Carvin catalog but that was it and a true lefthanded instrument was a fantasy.
pjmuck wrote:
I'm fascinated by every company's unique take on design aesthetics, mechanics, and attempts at innovation

It's a common story that so many of us have been influenced and/or motivated to some degree by the near impossiblity of laying hands on a Lefty bass. Back in the mid 70's I grew up a kid of modest means in a small midwestern town of about 35,000, 3 hours from the nearest major city. I got interested in playing at age 13 because my 2 years older (right handed) brother played guitar in a garage band and I wanted to be able to hang out with him (not to mention the girls that would gather outside our garage whenever he and his buddies would jam ;) ). Everybody wanted to play guitar or drums so there was usually an opening for a bass player, but I couldn't afford an instrument. For the first 2 or 3 years I didn't have my own bass...I would just beg and borrow if one of his friends would let me use theirs. This is why to this day I still play strung righty, it was out of necessity so I could pick up anybody's bass and play it. In some ways this was perhaps a good thing in that it motivated me to really apply myself, my playing advanced rapidly beyond the garage bands and I soon became a very sought after bassist playing out in clubs with older working musicians, with my fake ID and all. All through my early playing career I played upside down righty basses. The right handed basses I owned were either semi- symetrical in design, or didn't look completely stupid played "upside-down". My righty Gibson EB3 (I was/am a Jack Bruce fan) and later a Kramer DMZ5000 were designs that worked well for me in this regard and thus achieved a special place in my heart.

Looking back on the pre-internet days, there really wasn't any good way to know that there were lefty basses being made. There was always those Carvin catalogs, but I really couldn't afford to order a guitar (like a lot of musicians my equipment upgrade M.O. was to trade something in and add a few loose bucks until I could pay something off)... and even out on the road, while my right handed band mates would making those great pawn shop finds, I never ever saw any lefty basses in the stores. That's also probably why I was a "Fender Hater" for many years :evil: - I had no idea they made ANY lefty basses and I refused to play an upside down Jazz or P bass... but I was always envious of all the great opportunities and choices the right handers had.

When the internet began to take off and I first started being able to afford to buy more basses, my goal was to get all the old cool, obscure and/or innovative basses that I had only read about or seen in guitar magazines and lusted after in my youth (stuff like an Acoustic Black Widow, or Electra MPC, or a non- reverse T bird) as long as it didn't look too ridiculous upside down. But then as I became more and more knowledgable about all basses, I gradually became more aware and amazed that even back in the day there were companies that had been building a few lefties all along :shock: -- and my quest shifted to getting my hands on every good old lefty I could find. Subconsciously I think part of my motivation for collecting is a response to the frustration of my early years-- almost as if I still can't believe they actually existed (go figure, who knew?!). It's truly a pleasure to able to share these with you guys, as I have been inspired by your collections as well! PJ you know I love your stuff, and trust me you won't be the first guitar playing friend to use me as the poster boy for proving to their wife that there's someone even crazier out there :roll: ... I happily accept the honor...


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 12:45 pm 
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Great stuff, Carmine, but I think you're holding out. Didn't you have a couple of lefty Kramer Voyager basses too? :mrgreen:

Your background story is fascinating and it gave me an idea that it might be interesting to hear how we all came about finding our first bass and the plight of being left handed. I'll throw a thread up in the Leftorium.


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 4:31 pm 
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Carmine, truly an amazing collection! I'm pleased to see that a good majority of your basses are not only beautifully made, but are in the affordable range for most players. It's incredible how well instruments are made these days, and how inexpensive they are. If I see any-one area that makes a well built, affordable bass or guitar so-so, it's in the electronics. Which, as we all know, is just an internet order to your favorite pickup or EQ manufacturer away to making that so-so instrument sound as good as it looks.

Being the resident Ibanez ATK zealot in this forum (although I think Jeroan may just edge me out because of the number of ATK's he owns, and he has a 305L - Damn! :) ), I'm surprised that you either don't own one, or didn't post it.

Again, thanks for all the great pictures.... your post will become literally a reference library for me.

Aloha,
Ian

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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 6:52 pm 
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fivebass52 wrote:
Being the resident Ibanez ATK zealot in this forum (although I think Jeroan may just edge me out because of the number of ATK's he owns, and he has a 305L - Damn! :) ), I'm surprised that you either don't own one, or didn't post it.


He does have an ATK up there. Not a 5 stringer though.


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 8:54 pm 
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pjmuck wrote:
Great stuff, Carmine, but I think you're holding out. Didn't you have a couple of lefty Kramer Voyager basses too? :mrgreen:


You're right PJ-- I did, but they've been sold earlier this year.


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 8:56 pm 
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pjmuck wrote:
Your background story is fascinating and it gave me an idea that it might be interesting to hear how we all came about finding our first bass and the plight of being left handed. I'll throw a thread up in the Leftorium.

Cool idea, I'm sure there are a lot of interesting stories out there we can all relate to!


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 9:05 pm 
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Basshappi wrote:
I would be interested in your opinions of the Ibanez Rics, the Arias and Vantage basses. Also, have you ever had or handled any early model Villette-Citrons?

Nope, never got my hands on any Villette-Citrons...which is one of the things that's so cool about this forum, no matter how much stuff you've seen, you can never see it all but there's almost always somebody on here who has! I'll try to comment on the Ibanez Rics, the Arias and Vantage stuff in the next day or two....I'm thinking that I'll go back and insert commments inline with the pics as time permits, and I'll start with the ones folks have asked about!


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 Post subject: Carmine's SALE SALE SALE!
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 9:34 pm 
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Hey guys---ironically, just as I've finished posting the collection, I came across an opportunity to get something I've been after for quite awhile, however I'm a bit tapped on funds and I need to move quickly, so I'm going to post a few basses in the "FOR SALE" forum--mostly stuff I have more than one of or stuff I'm just not getting around to playing, and see if you guys have any interest before I go to "the Bay" with them. so please go over and check them out!!


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 9:57 pm 
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How do you typically deal with the nut situation on stringing those up side down? New nut? Flip it?

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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 15th, 2009, 11:30 pm 
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rcubed wrote:
How do you typically deal with the nut situation on stringing those up side down? New nut? Flip it?


Flip whenever possible, if not then new nut, modify existing nut or in some cases just reverse the strings if the nut works as-is.


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 16th, 2009, 3:47 am 
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pjmuck wrote:
fivebass52 wrote:
Being the resident Ibanez ATK zealot in this forum (although I think Jeroan may just edge me out because of the number of ATK's he owns, and he has a 305L - Damn! :) ), I'm surprised that you either don't own one, or didn't post it.


He does have an ATK up there. Not a 5 stringer though.


You're right PJ, I went back and saw the ATK. Don't know how I missed it, as it's the same color as mine. Should have known Carmine wouldn't have excluded an ATK from his vast collection.... ;)

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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 16th, 2009, 4:52 am 
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fivebass52 wrote:
Being the resident Ibanez ATK zealot in this forum (although I think Jeroen may just edge me out because of the number of ATK's he owns, and he has a 305L - Damn! :) ), I'm surprised that you either don't own one, or didn't post it.


Well, I think we're even now, I have just two ATK's left after selling one of the ATK300L's. And I haven't really played the ATK305L anymore since first plugging in my StingRay 5. But I'm keeping the 305 as a backup for the Ray, and it's a very close match tonally. The neck profile is very close too, but the feel of the neck finish on the Ray is really a class all of its own.

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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 17th, 2009, 3:54 am 
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Quote:
And I haven't really played the ATK305L anymore since first plugging in my StingRay 5.
Heart quickens... :o

Quote:
But I'm keeping the 305 as a backup for the Ray
Shoulders slump.... :cry:

Jeroan, you know that Stingray is as solid as a rock, and doesn't really need a backup... so do the right thing, and sell your 305L to me! :mrgreen:

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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 17th, 2009, 9:18 am 
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fivebass52 wrote:
Jeroan, you know that Stingray is as solid as a rock, and doesn't really need a backup... so do the right thing, and sell your 305L to me! :mrgreen:


Start writing my name correctly for starters ;)

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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 17th, 2009, 2:06 pm 
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Jeroen wrote:
fivebass52 wrote:
Jeroan, you know that Stingray is as solid as a rock, and doesn't really need a backup... so do the right thing, and sell your 305L to me! :mrgreen:


Start writing my name correctly for starters ;)


Jeroen, so sorry! :o I was up and writing this way too late. Well, there goes any "brownie points" I may have scored....! :lol:

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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 17th, 2009, 2:46 pm 
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Man, you guys spelling Jerowin's name wrong... :P


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 17th, 2009, 4:44 pm 
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Carmine - Very interesting bio vis a vis the collection!!


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 17th, 2009, 11:23 pm 
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Agent00Soul wrote:
Carmine - Very interesting bio vis a vis the collection!!


Thanks Agent- I'm always interested to hear what stories other folks have to tell; (for example back in the day I used to think I was the only lefty that played strung righty but I've since found that there's are a whole lot more than you'd think, and I always wonder if it's for the same reason as me). Hopefully PJ will follow thru on his threat to create a bio thread over in the leftorium?


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 Post subject: Re: Carmine's Lefty Bass Collection
PostPosted: November 18th, 2009, 8:35 am 
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Carmine, regarding the basses you're selling and I see you put some up on ebay now), how many of them do you have original cases for?


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