Kiwi

[quote name='dood' timestamp='1418322368' post='2629198'] If you haven't already, circulate these details round to the local Crack, sorry, CASH Converters shops as there's a great chance they'll turn up at one of those shortly after theft. (Along with other secondhand gear outlets) [/quote] And the shops on Demark Street (incl. Wunjo's), Bass Gallery and any other places that might take in secondhand stuff. BF cabs are going to be distinctive and not easily overlooked.

Could be a deadspot related issue as well. See if putting a weight of some kind on the headstock makes a difference. I sometimes brace the head against a wall.

There was a hint from Mark King on Twitter that he might be playing a Jaydee next year.

Ah well, made in Germany/Sweden/UK carries more weight with me so I stand corrected.

The pricing is a bit of a shame. The two Mesa Boogies I've owned (Bass 400+/Strategy 400) have been fantastic bits of kit and the only reason I sold was due to the weight...which is why these latest amps were of such interest. It's also a shame that Mesa Boogie can't arrange for parts to be shipped direct from supplier to an existing European builder and have them assembled under contract...its not like 'made in USA' carries the same significance here anyway.

I've been a fan since university - still have a copy of Vivid (which Mick Jagger produced) on vinyl and it counts as one of the best albums I've ever heard - not a single dud track on it.

Fantastic basses. The Euro models punch well above their weight in terms of value for money. I replaced my Smith BSR5GN with a Spector NS5CR and have never regretted it.

The price of exotic and decorative wood has shot up since 2009. Jon Shuker told me that the slab of flame maple I was using on the BACK of the bass I was building cost £400. I remember bagging a piece of even nicer quilted maple back in 2003 for less than £100. Jon sources most of his wood through an importer though, I got mine straight from the bloke that chopped the tree down.

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1418138787' post='2627249'] "Kemper" [/quote] Whhops!

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1418137470' post='2627226'] When I play bass I always have at least 4 sounds in every song, let alone between songs. It takes time to set them right, but once they're right, it's done. Why would switching amps or amp profiles be any different?[/quote] That is like a completely different world to mine. Does your sound engineer have anything to say about the effect that has on the FOH eq. settings?

[quote name='cliffyspliff' timestamp='1418136718' post='2627215'] for me .... part of the fun and appeal of playing music live .... is playing through quality gear and trying to get the best sound I possibly can on stage [/quote] But what do you mean by "best"? And how does the Kempler fit into that expectation? It's definitely an interesting piece of kit which promises a lot. As an ultimate test I would be curious to hear how well the Kempler can replicate amp sag. Guitar Rig has it as a setting but I've not noticed a significant difference (although I haven't played with it at volume).

[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.