Alembic Pickups and the associated electronics are designed to work with each other but they will work with other pickups and other preamps. I certainly have done this on more than one bass, and actually my FLY shaped bass I built sports two J activators and my own preamp. I was actually offered some J activators by a teenage kid who despised them, he was running them without ANY preamp in his bass and boosted his signal via some Korg Floorbox to his amp...how that happened I don't know (it was a Hamer cruise bass)....I just had to say I'd take those defective pickups off you....!!! He wanted to sell them with the bass but I'm lefty....I suppose I could have flogged it with other pickups but I have enough on my hands...
Whether you'd like the results of pickup and preamp 'miscegenation', is really up to your ears. I have built preamps with or without EQ to work with Activators and AXYs. The Alembic on board preamp is high spec for sure but is nothing more than a clean preamplifier, it does not colour the tone. The filter however is something else altogether.....
FYI ACGuitars in Scotland have worked with John East to build a drop in Filter based preamp that is not unlike the Alembic circuit. The price is also not unlike Alembic...but it is designed for the mass market so for ease of mind and ease of fit, if you want a filter type circuit, speak to Alan at AC guitars. I suppose they are googable.
