Kiwi

[quote name='cliffyspliff' timestamp='1418123315' post='2627002'] Part of it for any gigging musician .... must be about playing through the best gear...[/quote] OK let me make a distinction here in that I've got no experience of using IEM's live. So clearly if the Kempler helps introduce more of an organic feel to what you hear yourself playing, that's fair enough and your experience will be difference to mine. Although my point about chopping and changing amp settings mid gig still stands. So my comments are really directed towards anyone thinking about using this kind of gear without IEM's. As you'll see from my signature, I don't play through crap myself. But I know from experience (of not using IEMs) that there's little point in investing in studio gear for live use because it doesn't make a big difference when faced with a wall of distorted guitar and crash cymbals. This is why I've gone from a rack based set up using a studio quality effects preamp, studio quality parametric eq and class d power amp, to using a couple of Genz Benz Shuttles and a Zoom B3 pedal. The difference in sound quality between the pedal and the effects preamp is negligible on stage...particularly when the core objective on stage is simply to hear what pitch I'm playing. [quote name='cliffyspliff' timestamp='1418123315' post='2627002'] We practice hard ...gig alot .... the cost of this thing will be covered in a few months ... so why not. [/quote] Because generally I wonder how productive and effective the Kempler is for people who don't use IEM's. Kemplers aren't cheap and, on initial consideration, it makes more financial sense to stick the money into a bit of esoteric or vintage gear (like an analogue Korg Delta synth or a Musicman Cutlass bass) that might go up in value with the right buyer. However with the Kempler (and other bits of modelling kit) there is one advantage in that in blowing two grand on the kit, it might save some musicians from blowing five grand on a succession of bass amps and cabs in the search for their Holy Grail of tone. (Which I'll freely admit I've done on the way to where I am now). So I guess the ideal situation would be if someone has access to a Kempler without actually paying for all (or any) of it, the unit is a useful (if expensive compared to a Zoom B3 or Native Instruments Guitar Rig 5) tool for exploring what amps and cabs might sound good. But inevitably, once the search is over and an ideal set up is reached, such kit tends to become surplus to requirements and is sold off at a loss on the basis the capital tied up in it could be better used somewhere else (which again, I'll freely admit is where I'm at now).

I've tended to see the kempler as purely a studio tool rather than for live use. As amazing as the Kempler is, unless you are playing pub gigs without FOH support (and in all honesty, why would anyone bring a Kempler to a pub gig if the punters won't appreciate the difference) changing amp settings between songs is going to drive any sound engineer nuts. Plus you'll sound awful through the FOH until the engineer has compensated for any changes in eq as a result of changing the settings. Plugging the kempler into another (coloured) bass amp doesn't make sense either. In order to get the best out of it the whole signal chain needs to be as transparent as possible - you might as well purchase a PA system and run that into bass cabs...or a complete Warwick Hellborg backline (pre/power and cabs). <Asbestos coat>: ON

I use stereo. The Eden WT800 is a Swiss army knife of a head. Stereo series effects loop and dual power amps means the loop will act as a set of inputs as well as the main input socket. Cheap as chips now if you can find one. If you fancy something a little more esoteric, Walter Woods do a stereo head also. But to be honest I would just go for a 2u rack based set up with a class d 1u power amp and a effects preamp like the lexicon mpxg2.

The market has moved on a bit since the first release. Hope they add a modulation delay and broader choice of waveforms including PWM.

[quote name='geoffbyrne' timestamp='1417514372' post='2621077'] Isn't the whole point of the drummer to keep the timing? If he can't do it then he's no asset to the band. yes, I've quit over drummers like that. [/quote] Me too. And drummers with no volume control.

Mark King's tone during Children Say on the Live At Wembley DVD/video was my standard for a long time. Over the years I've discovered it was from combination of the Jaydee bass, heavily pushed, mic'ed, 10" cones and DI feed into FOH. Not exactly something I could achieve in my home studio without disturbing the neighbours. Jimmy Johnson's solo'd graphite neck Alembic with Lee Ritenour is particularly nice, too. More than four strings...John Patitucci in the early days on his Smith was lovely. Ironically, Nathan East's Yamaha BBNEII has never impressed me on his recordings but I've played them in shops many times and loved what I heard. My Spector NS5CR takes the cake for tone so far though. Lovely, warm, growly sounds...I've yet to play it live but am pretty confident that it would sound amazing. My recent Status purchase has impressed me also - a surprisingly versatile instrument capable of some convincing p-bass tones as well as the classic Status snarl. While the Spector has more growl, the Status is probably a more suitable work horse.

I have one too...graphite neck.

A Peavey DPC 750 might fit your needs.

Check Basschat's facebook page.

I'll post a better pic later in the week, I couldn't resist a sneaky snap tonight after unwrapping the Steinberger. No trees were felled in the making of these instruments. They're wood free construction.

Sounds like you are looking for something that isn't mass produced...

If you are interested, drop him a line. It might still be available.