Gearslutz has taken a close look at Hammond B-3X, and they were so impressed that it was awarded the maximum score for each of their review categories together with their valuable Gold Review Award.

Here are some of the comments from the in-depth review, courtesy of expert keyboard and technology guru, Dennis Wilkins:

"A truly fine B-3 emulation with excellent Leslie and extra FX."

"The B-3X sounds better than some real B-3’s I’ve heard since many are over 50 years old and some have been through rough times!"

"And it sounds a lot more 'realistic' than a couple other B3 emulations I have."

"The harmonic contribution of the tonewheels have a clarity that is lacking in the other simulations. It certainly sounds like a B3 should sound."

"Playing a run of notes on a B-3 with the percussion effect requires a staccato technique in order to obtain the percussive sound for a run of notes. This 'limitation' is accurately reproduced on the B-3X."

"The amp section creates a distinctly colorful tone, not a clean amp by any means, and provides a lot of character when you need a sound to cut through a mix or just be dirty."

Dennis's final verdict was:

"All thumbs up for this very fine B-3 emulation – it is a pleasure to play and fun to experiment with the features you’d find on a real B-3. And it’s a lot cheaper than a used B-3, more reliable (remember those 1,000-plus switches!) and weighs a lot less than 425 pounds!"

Key Pros

+ Excellent sound that really emulates a B-3
+ Clean layout of both the overall keyboard with controls, and the separate Controls view
+ Lots of additional sound mangling tools in the Cabs, Stomp Box and Post FX sections
+ Comprehensive computer-based presets along with the traditional B-3 keyboard preset controls
+ Window can be continuously resized from 1156 x 734 pixels up to your full monitor size
+ Modest CPU resource requirements
+ Hammond-Suzuki approved!

Final score:
Sound quality     5 out of 5 stars
Ease of Use        5 out of 5 stars
Features             5 out of 5 stars
Bangs for buck  5 out of 5 stars
Overall                5 out of 5 stars

Hammond B-3X wins maxmimum score in all categories and the Gearslutz Gold Review Award

Read the full review on Gearslutz
Learn more on Hammond B-3X