Alembic Blaster (a.k.a. The Stratoblaster)

Phil Lesh's Alembic "Mission Control" Bass

Jerry Garcia's Doug Irwin "The Wolf"

Jerry Garcia's "Alligator" Strat

I recently decided to install an Alembic Blaster (variable gain pre-amp) in one of my Strats. Being a sucker for all things Grateful Dead, and a wiring nerd, I thought it might be a fun project that may yield some Jerry-esque tones from one of my Strats. 

To be fair, the Blaster featured in Jerry's Alligator Strat and The Wolf both featured modified circuits but it's my understanding that they were essentially the same preamp, just configured differently.

I've always been taken by the look and layout of Phil's Alembic basses... they're sonic works of art. When they (the Dead) were still playing using the wall of sound his bass controls could actually select "banks" of speakers to play through... pretty impressive stuff for '74. So while familiar with the Alembic name, I did not know that they sold preamps for guitars (as well as other goodies). 

This is the new version of the Blaster, formerly known as the Stratoblaster. To be honest, I don't know what the difference between the two are, perhaps there's none except that the older version is shaped differently (a rectangle instead of borrowing the lines of the Strats oval jack plate). In doing some research I discovered that this basic circuit is also the basis for a few stomp box pedal "boosts". I guess the benefit of a pedal would be that you could more easily adjust the gain level, whereas with the Blaster, you have to use a small screwdriver to adjust a trim pot (located just below the toggle). But being the mini-toggle junkie that I am, I thought I'd opt for this setup instead of a boost pedal.

Old Version

New Version

In any event, I recently saw a used 70's Strat for sale on eBay with one of the older versions installed and did a little research and discovered that Alembic is making them again. They run about $100 with shipping (+$20 if you want a chrome or black control plate instead of brass). It seemed like a relatively affordable project/experiment so I pulled the trigger. 

I was not nuts about the idea of having to install the battery (9v) under the pickguard so I decided to use the trem cavity instead for easier access to the battery. This meant having to block the trem... no big deal considering I rarely use it. The initial plan was to use battery clips and have two batteries in the cavity, the one being used and a spare. Because of space restrictions, this wasn't possible. As it was I had to rout out a little battery shaped pocket that was about 1/8" deep so the trem cover would sit flush as the battery was just a little too tall. I put a little adhesive foam down to keep the battery from wiggling around in there. Not being terribly impressed with the cheesy battery connector provided from Alembic, I ran to Radio Shack and picked up a nicer connector. I also picked up a lithium 9v battery with a supposed 10 year shelf life (in a smoke detector). Alembic states that a Blaster battery can last roughly 10 months... we'll see if the lithium battery was worth $12 or not.  

Installation was simple... a few soldering connections (3 to be precise) and it was ready to roll. Rock and Roll that is, WHAT A MONSTER!!! 

For my test run, I played through my regular rig (Fender Twin RI and a host of effects). I adjusted the trim pot so it's roughly 1/3 of the way turned up. Alembic says that the gain range of the unit is from 3-14 dB. The single coils sound sweet... they're Fender Tex-Mex and I already loved the tone of them. IMHO, they are the best budget pickups out there. Don't bother with GFS when you can get a set of these for $75 or less off eBay. (Not that I have any particular beef with GFS pickups... I've tried a few sets that are just fine) 

With the Blaster engaged, the Tex-Mex are even more amazing... more lows, more highs (without being shrill) and WAY more oomph. Engaging the bridge pickup in split mode with the Blaster on yielded those great sparkling highs that Jerry was known for. With the bridge in humbucking mode, it was game-on. The Dimarzio Super Distortion was belting out singing sustain that could be coaxed into a very controllable feedback reminiscent of Trey Anastasio when using both my TS9 and Keeley Mod MT-2 (see my effects post for more info). It was not what I was expecting but a very nice surprise indeed. Engaging the Blaster did require that I adjust (significantly) the sensitivity knob on my envelope filter but that's to be expected. I'm looking forward to trying this axe out with my super champs... I think pounding the front end of them with the Blaster engaged should make for some sweet tones. 

In conclusion, it worked out perfectly. I was a quick project and anyone with soldering experience can handle this with ease. I've basically doubled the tones attainable from an already hugely flexible guitar. When disengaged, all your regular tones are intact and sound just like you'd expect a Strat to sound. When the Blaster is on, it's like a whole new instrument, capable of powerful single coil cleans and blistering humbucker scream. My only gripe was the cheap the 9v connector but it was an easy fix. I'd highly recommend trying one out if you're cool with straying from the vintage Strat look and looking for some extra juice from your guitar. Cheers.