Anyone on here gone Kemper?

jeztone2 · October 2014

It s fucking ugly, my mother had a teasmaid that looked like that...

Drew_TNBD · October 2014

jeztone2 said:

It s fucking ugly, my mother had a teasmaid that looked like that...

Why don't you go and flambe your own cock?

chrisbirch · October 2015

For my money the biggest draw with the Kemper is the ability to access a massive range of sounds and effects, it helps if you suss out what to ignore or not use and the range of options is daunting to figure out at first, I have found in a lot of cases less is definitely more but again once you suss it out it's easy, the ability to programme the unit and foot controller (You need one of these !!) to be able to switch profiles/sounds for different songs / parts is useful, it makes doing the river dance on the effects board a thing of the past, one button does the lot if you get it right

Be choosy with the profiles that you use and pick ones from credible sources, and use ones that make you sit up from the off it's like recipes some of them are just plain shit and don't work well, another issue I have found is the old "polishing a turd" scenario, if you start with a bad profile, you're gonna struggle trying to adjust it into something you want. I spent weeks trying to do this and eventually deleted everything in the unit and started again, the rig manager software is essential for efficient management of profiles you can try them and tweak them if you like before you load them which is a good option, I now have less than 30 profiles in total in the unit, and that's maybe too many if I'm honest.

Once you find the right profiles and get your head around the Global output and amp EQ's there should really be no issue with playing live through a cab, if you run a line out to the desk the cab can be basically a stage monitor anyway and you have different settings available for the line to the desk and the cab outputs anyway so you can tweak what you like. I use both a JCM 900 4 x 12 and a Jet City 2 x 12 with mine depending on circumstances and yes you need to tweak the Kemper to account for the differences but it's no great issue.

Previously I have been using Marshall and Blackstar valve amps for a number of years , I still own a JCM900 Twin Reverb 100w head, which never gets used I hasten to add, and some of the profiles I have for more unusual / classic amps, Plexi's, AC30's, Matchless DC 30, Selmer 50, Hiwats, JTM's and the like are awesome, and some of the others too, Diezel, Engl, EVH 5150, Soldano and Mesa Twin Rectifier are amongst my favourites.

Lastly I would say due to the costs involved it takes some thought before you buy, it took me the best part of 3 or 4 months to get my head around using the Kemper, and I'm not there yet, so having one for a week or so probably won't unlock the box enough but that's only speaking from my experience, I'm no gear officionado, and I'm not pretending that I have the greatest sound in the world but I sure have a whole bunch of options available in one little box that I never had before and all this is just my point of view for anyone that's interested

Cheers, Chris

jeztone2 · October 2015

Drew_fx said:

jeztone2 said:

It s fucking ugly, my mother had a teasmaid that looked like that...

Why don't you go and flambe your own cock?

Will do when your girlfriends finished with it, then I'm gonna form a Russian Circles tribute band.

Drew_TNBD · October 2015

jeztone2;809200" said:

Will do when your girlfriends finished with it, then I'm gonna form a Russian Circles tribute band.

I don't have a girlfriend B-)

Nerine · October 2015

Kemper.

GREAT in the studio. I mean, absolutely unrivalled. Massively flexible, easy to use, easy to capture amps, sounds bang on, does what it says on the tin. Etc etc etc. absolutely LOVE mine as a studio tool. Saves me having to run amps flat out at work every day.
Ever band is always totally blown away by how they can't tell the difference between their micd amp and the Kemper.

Live. Mixed feelings. Good to a good PA. Not sure about using one through a guitar cab. Direct profiles are probably much more usable in this scenario now though.

millstudios · October 2015

Had mine for two years now haven't used anything else since ....loved it so much that when I sold the amp I did have ....I used the money to buy a second one (from here

Great in the studio obviously but use it 3-4 times a week every week for gigs ...switching between Acoustic,Electric,Bass,Mandolin,Banjo and even Sitar Guitar now ....straight into PA sounds great ...no heavy cabs to lift etc ...can't see me changing unless the Kemper 2 arrives

Drew_TNBD · October 2015

Nerine said:

Kemper.

GREAT in the studio. I mean, absolutely unrivalled. Massively flexible, easy to use, easy to capture amps, sounds bang on, does what it says on the tin. Etc etc etc. absolutely LOVE mine as a studio tool. Saves me having to run amps flat out at work every day.
Ever band is always totally blown away by how they can't tell the difference between their micd amp and the Kemper.

Live. Mixed feelings. Good to a good PA. Not sure about using one through a guitar cab. Direct profiles are probably much more usable in this scenario now though.

I don't know about live, but I personally struggled to get it sounding close to my VHT Sig X. I don't know why, but I sent Christophe some audio clips, and he swore down that they were exactly the same. To me there were massive differences. I could get it fairly close to my Diezel, but not the VHT. Weird.

I sold my Kemper to get the Helix, because live use was more important for me and the Kemper wasn't flexible or quick enough at switching patches for me. But now I'm not getting the Helix.

richh · October 2015

I've got the Kemper Remote, and I can't hear any delay when switching patches, not sure what it is like with other footswitches, like the Behringer. As regards sound quality, that is a personal thing, and may depend to some extent on what you're monitoring it through. Lots of other options though, such as Helix, AxeFx or real valve amps...

ragingben · October 2015

Yeah, with the remote in performance mode there isn't any noticeable delay, I know this is something they really focused on. There's also now an adjustable X fade between rigs if you want to do that but personally I don't see much point. Live it's a mixed bag, I've had much better luck with the newer merged profiles and a decent cab in a more traditional set up rather than through a PA and monitors, I haven't tried a FRFR cab though. At the moment I'm using PRS Archon profiles from Origin Audio, no idea what the actual head sounds like through the same cab, but it's by far the most happy I've ever been with a rig, just really thick and meaty.

Norwegian_Blue · October 2015

@redrighthand Been borrowing one from a friend lately... it was the very same AC20 profile that knocked me out as well!

Bork · January 2023

I got one for Christmas and I'm still exploring it. There are a couple of Mesa Quad profiles that absolutely nailed the sound I wanted to hear from that kit. The noise floor is exceptional as well. Quite a bit of tat in the user defined rigs but there are some gems as well. I learned one thing though, all amps are derivative of four basic types. It's a great respite from GAS if you can't afford to indulge in the real thing.

PAL · January 2023

Most of these units do sound good and it's like the real amp in a room with a mic in front of it but they don't do what a real amp does in as much you don't get that power translated through the speaker in a real way. You may adjust a like this as silent
stages are becoming more common. I'm sure you can adjust to any type of amp if you want to.
The thing is you won't know until you try one for yourself.

CaseOfAce · January 2023

Bork said:

I got one for Christmas and I'm still exploring it. There are a couple of Mesa Quad profiles that absolutely nailed the sound I wanted to hear from that kit. The noise floor is exceptional as well. Quite a bit of tat in the user defined rigs but there are some gems as well. I learned one thing though, all amps are derivative of four basic types. It's a great respite from GAS if you can't afford to indulge in the real thing.

I'm intrigued to know what the 4th basic type is?
I'd say Fender, Marshall and Vox for the first 3..

Mesa recto chug sound as 4th?

ragingben · January 2023

Wow necro bumps, I'd forgotten about this thread!

So in the end I bought a power head in 2014. Fantastic bit of kit, the remote came out which made it easier to gig and I was generally happy. Sonically it's awesome, I played it through a 112 H&K can and then a Zilla 212. Never let me down and always sounded excellent however I rarely use it these days. I just don't get a buzz from it like I do my valve amps. I missed flicking the toggle from standby to play and hearing the clunk of the switch snapping in to position. Also, option paralysis kicked in and I got fed up faffing with presets, balancing volume between rigs, updating firmware etc.

Personal things but in the end they added up to reduce my overall satisfaction from playing.

Musicwolf · January 2023

I've had mine (unpowered rack version) since May 2015 and I still love it. It's my go-to in the studio and I've gigged in many times although I nowadays use a Helix for portability / better MIDI capabilities. I do own a ‘proper’ amp (a vintage Fender Pro Reverb) so I completely understand the lack of amp in the room feel but, in my opinion, the only person who benefits from that is the player and I’m very much about audience first (and since I’m on in-ears it doesn’t really matter to me). At the end of the day it’s all about personal preference so, amp or modeller, go with whatever floats your particular maritime vessel.

I did find the vast choice of amps bewildering at first but these days I use two, or maybe three, amps 90% of the time.

roberty · January 2023

A mate of mine got one the other week. He's going to come over and profile some of my gear. Should be a fun day. Will try to get some A/Bs recorded

elstoof · January 2023

ragingben said:
I just don't get a buzz from it like I do my real amps.

Might want to get the grounding wires checked out on those amps

BGG · January 2023

Been gigging the powered rack one for a couple of years and it's been brilliant. Kept in a rack case and the Remote easily fits in the lid of a 4U rack case.
Started off using it through one or two MatrixNL12 cabs for some on stage noise, stopped after a couple of gigs as couldn't hear them ... bloody drummers

Now i just have a bit of me in the monitor and let the PA do it's job, it's been working really well for me. Another plus I find is that I can place the rack anywhere on stage, it doesn't matter. It's usually on it's side and inbetween the drummers stands LOL.

Now a couple of weeks ago I became interested in the simplicity of the Quad Cortex menus, so easy to set up. Went and tried one today, and it's as easy as it looks on YouTube and it sounds superb. Had to have one, not gigging it yet but if it sounds as good as the Kemper then it's a keeper, as I hate tweaking.

Bork · January 2023

CaseOfAce said:

Bork said:

I got one for Christmas and I'm still exploring it. There are a couple of Mesa Quad profiles that absolutely nailed the sound I wanted to hear from that kit. The noise floor is exceptional as well. Quite a bit of tat in the user defined rigs but there are some gems as well. I learned one thing though, all amps are derivative of four basic types. It's a great respite from GAS if you can't afford to indulge in the real thing.

I'm intrigued to know what the 4th basic type is?
I'd say Fender, Marshall and Vox for the first 3..

Mesa recto chug sound as 4th?

1) Fender-ish (includes Vox, Mesa, CAE etc.)
2) Marshall-ish (includes Friedman, Soldano etc.)
3) 70's UK 'glam' amps Orange/White/Matamp/Burman/Hiwatt/Sound City
4) German high gain amps (e.g. Diezel)

Number three is up for debate.

Bork · January 2023

ragingben said:

Wow necro bumps, I'd forgotten about this thread!

I thought better to resurrect an old thread rather than start a new one and have someone point out I'd missed earlier ones.

ragingben said:

option paralysis kicked in and I got fed up faffing with presets, balancing volume between rigs, updating firmware etc.

I've become fed up with my pedalboard for pretty much the same reasons. Although, if I'm honest, I've been happiest with rack gear anyway, mainly a Marshall JMP1, a Mesa Studio pre with Lexicon and Rocktron multi effects. The Kemper takes that one step further with a convenient user interface plus opportunities to tonehunt hundreds of thousands of quid's worth of gear at next to no cost. The one drawback is planned obsolescence in the software - I hope that in ten years time, the rig manager will still be compatible with all previous versions of the profiler.

elstoof · January 2023

Not sure I’d classify vox as a fender-ish

susbemol · January 2023

elstoof said:

Not sure I’d classify vox as a fender-ish

I would suggest most people wouldn't.

grappagreen · January 2023

Used a Kemper Stage exclusively for the last two years live and wouldn't go back..

Running a single Powered Kabinet at the mo and will be adding another one this year..

It's a tool and does a great job.

Si

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Anyone on here gone Kemper?

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