HI Todd

I'll do my best see my answers under your questions in bold. But what you should do is head down to a shop and try it for yourself tone is a very personal thing.

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Thanks for such a quick replay David.  I've got a barrage of questions, I hope you don't mind.  It's great having input from someone who uses the devices I'm considering purchasing.

So the X3 has all the same interplay functions with the Variax Bass?  You can change all the settings with a single switch, like you can with the Bass Pod?  Is there anything lacking in the handshake between the two devices?

No, nothing lacking it all works I set up in Gearbox (the editor for the X3) the Variax model the all the tone settings in the guitar and these are stored with the patch in the X3 Live

There's been some discussion on the forums about the X3 not having the same modeling as the Bass Pod, specifically issues with a lot of the bass tones & cabs not having a full low range (being geared more towards the higher pitched guitar strings).  Is that true?

My understanding is that it has exactly the same amp and cab models and the X3 has a higher bit rate, so in theory should be better. I have found the bass amps and cabs have plenty of bottom end, try the Sub Dub and you will see what I am talking about.

Someone at Line-6 has commented a few times that all of the cabs & effects that come with the BassPod are also in the X3, but users have commented that is not true.

I have all 28 amps and 22 cabs in mine so it is the same

I've only ever played 4 string bass, is the 5th string on the 705 lower than the E string, or higher than the G string?

You can do either I have a low B on mine, this is also the lowest the Tuner will go on the X3 Live, this would help with your drop tuning problem which is why I got it.

Do you know of any way to set Drop-D tuning to a switch on the Variax Bass?  My friends Guitar has that feature, and it's one of the features I most long for.  I hate tuning back and forth between E & D during a show... I especially hate when we start up a song and I've forgotten to change tuning, that's just embarrassing.  I'm so easily distracted.

Unfortunately they did not provide the Variax Workbench for the Variax Bass this is nothing to do with what pedal you use, it is a Variax application and as the bass is discontinued I would not hold my breath for it. This is the application that lets guitarists program alternate tunings. So if you want that get a 5 string or a Hipshot and fit it for the drop D on a four string.

I don't have a great understanding of the features you mentioned lost from the BassPod to the X3.  You mention bi-amping, which I'm assuming means just mixing two different amp sounds at varying percentages, right?  And you mention duo-tones on the X3.  What's the difference?  Does duo-tones mean you can mix multiple effects, but not multiple simulated amps?  Or by "tones" do you mean you can have two completely different setups mixed (a cab with an effect on one channel, a different cab and different effect on another).

Biamping is a crossover where your direct different frequencies to different cabs in my metal days I used a Perreaux Mosfet into a Yamaha preamp with a crossover and drove the high end through a Laney 4 x 10 and the bottoms through to JBL 15s. But you are right in your assumption with dual tone on the X3 Live you can have two amps and two cabs blended for one sound, takes a bit of finessing but sounds great. I use the dual tones to simulate biamping.

So many question!  I wish a BassPod user were on this forum and could pitch in his 2 cents.

Sorry can't help with this one as I chose the X3 Live and I sure don't regret it

I like the idea of stereo out, but not if the low-end tones are compromised.  A lot of effects require stereo output to work properly.

I have not detected any compromise in the bottom end with the X3 Live and having a stereo chorus ping pong in the front of house is fun

Anyway, if you have time, please go through each question and let me know what you think.  If I'm ever in your town, I'll have to buy you a burger or something to say thanks.

I'm in Australia so thanks will have to do.

Cheers,

Todd