I used to have a nice FIIB and had several of the KRB basses as well. Kawai used to make great basses, based on my experience. I thought the KRB passive basses sounded really great, but their active models weren't as great. The FIIB was built very well, I thought, and it had some great tones to offer, but I would not say that it sounded like any Alembic that I have heard or played. It looked and felt very Alembic-like (or, OK, more Alembic-like than Fender-like...) but it didn't really compare in terms of tone, quality, detail, playability, etc. But then, for $400 - $600 that is what you get: a somewhat rare, made in Japan bass that looks pretty cool. I have had a S.C. Signiture Deluxe, an Essence w/Europa Electronics, and Elan, currently own a Europa and I am having a new Europa built for me. I no longer own any of the Kawai's... I guess that says it all... but then I have dropped thousands or dollars for these basses - every one of which was 100% worth it. You get what you pay for, by and large, in my opinion.
Andy
