Motion Sound KBR-3D: Best Practices

[SamuelBLupowitz]

There have been a few threads about this amp over the years, but nothing I found that's dedicated to how to make the most of the many options it offers. Since I got mine (heavily used but in great working condition) about a year and a half ago, it's become a key to my live (and often studio) rig, and a fantastic compromise between authenticity and pragmatism. Sure, I'd rather have a full Leslie and a dedicated amp or DI for every board, but I love that I can bring one box that can handle all the synths and pianos and still give me a real spinning horn plus a crossover for the low rotor sim -- and I only need to ask for two XLRs from the sound engineer.

 

I've covered left-hand organ bass with it, too -- I hardly ever turn the sub frequencies on the rotary channel up past one, and when I do, the low end kicks like a mule. I mean, I've plugged bass guitars into the clean channel in rehearsal in a pinch; I have a sneaking suspicion that with a SansAmp in front, I could bring it to a trio gig where I double electric bass and keyboards and it could be my only amp.

 

I'm interested in the handful of other folks who use or have used this amp on the forum, and how you like to set it for different organ and non-organ instruments. I love having full control over the amount of low rotor volume, plus the amount of the digital rotor effect (though I've never found a use for that anywhere other than fully off or all the way up), but I've often wondered if there's a sweet spot that's more authentic to a Leslie. This goes for the slow/fast speed and acceleration adjustments as well, though I know those are more a matter of personal taste.

 

Also curious about your use of the stereo "expander," and any tricks for how to set the EQ in the clean channel for various instruments, since the EQ boosts and cuts frequencies more dramatically than some other amps I've used. And I haven't done much with the horn mic balance controls, or ever used the line level inputs in the back of the amp (would that be better for the output of my laptop interface for gain staging purposes and a flatter EQ, I wonder?). There's a lot going on.

 

Anyway, sometimes with tools with this many options, I figure out something that seems to work for me and then never explore any further. I love a good knowledge share.

 

(Oh, speaking of the speed adjustments, don't you just love taking this thing apart to make them? My engineer friend who has helped me do some work on the amp calls this "a textbook example of bad practical design." When I pointed out how the Pro-145 has those knobs on the front panel rather than hidden deep inside the cabinet on the circuit board, he said "maybe because a disgruntled amp repairman shot the original designer.")