Just tried a Kemper.....

Haych

I popped up to see a friend for a while this morning. He has a selection of lovely guitars and has just acquired a Kemper. Obviously I had a go........

I have only one criticism and that’s there’re too many options to play with. The actual sound is unbelievable, I was blown away. 

I’m sure this kind of thread has been done to death but just thought it was too incredible to believe so had to say so. 

I think I know what my next amp will be. 

guitarfishbay

Digital is getting very good these days. I’ve been impressed with a lot of Kemper clips I’ve heard, seems a really cool piece of gear.

I’m using a regular pedalboard at rehearsals right now and I had forgotten how much I dislike tap dancing. That’s the other nice thing about digital, all the switching can be really easy.

Wazmeister

I owned one and its strengths is that it could sound like any amp I wanted it too... It very accurately modelled my Carr Rambler and Redplate RP50R - no mean feat.

But, and Im with you @Haych it had ultimately too many options and volumes choices for me personally...

I also realised that with a Redplate, Carr and the possible Divided By 13 options, I would never really need to choose any other amps !!!

But for a gigging musician, they would make a superb back up.

Incredible device really...

crunchman

If there is a decent PA, they tend to make the experience better for the audience as well.  The first time I ever saw a Kemper was when I saw a band where the guitarist was using a Kemper.  I'd seen the same band in the same venue the previous year, and the front of house sound was much better with the Kemper.

If I can sort my monitoring out I'll probably start using my Kemper live.

Haych

crunchman said:

If there is a decent PA, they tend to make the experience better for the audience as well.  The first time I ever saw a Kemper was when I saw a band where the guitarist was using a Kemper.  I'd seen the same band in the same venue the previous year, and the front of house sound was much better with the Kemper.

If I can sort my monitoring out I'll probably start using my Kemper live.

That's something else I'm unsure of now that you mention it.  From what I understand, to get the best out of a Kemper a FRFR speaker system is required, and a good one preferably, and they're not inexpensive by all accounts.

I was doing a spot of Googling last night, as you do, and most FRFR systems are active - certainly the good ones are, so if using through FOH and active FRFR is there any point buying the powered Kemper?  

It's a technology that opens up a whole host of other questions that I can't answer and without knowing enough it just equals mucho confusion to me.  I'm sure my knowledge will increase and the market will respond to enable guitarists in the dark ages (like me) to get up to speed without the hassle. 

I also think we need a few high profile professional players to to a 'rig rundown' of their Kemper rigs complete with monitoring etc.  Maybe it's just me but I like to know what gear other people are using to make their sound, it's educational and as a guitarist probably one of the most common ways of learning about new gear, it is for me anyway.

richh

The costs can mount up if you buy the Kemper, then FRFR amp, then FRFR cab, then perhaps the Kemper remote.  Some people are happy plugging a Kemper into a standard amp of course.  I got a Kemper, then got all the other stuff listed above - when you add up the cost it is quite a bit!  For that price, you can have a very good conventional amp.  Obviously if funds are unlimited you can have both, but in the end I sold the Kemper rig and went with high end valve amp combo.  As well as the cost, a basic valve 1 x 12" combo amp is easier to grab and go - no setup involved.

Kemper stuff is great, depending what you're doing, it's just a 'horses for courses' thing ultimately.

robinbowes

My opinion is that you need a different mindset to use a modeller, esp. live.

I use a Helix with an active wedge on-stage and I love it. I love the flexibility - clean, crunch, gain, crazy effects - all just a click away. And it's plug-and-play, no mics/cabs to worry about.

Does it sound great out front? Yes
Does it sound great on stage? Yes
Does it sound like a regular amp on stage? No.
Does that bother me? No.

I get to concentrate more on playing, singing, and mixing FoH (!).

R.

Kebabkid

I've just been to a weekend AOR rock festival where the backline was mainly Marshall stacks with some sort of delay or pedal board reinforcement but a couple of guitarists used powered Kempers and they sounded fantastic.

Really good and consistent sounds.

I've now seen a few bands live using either a Kemper or Helix (no AXE FX yet) and I've been very impressed. Thing is, as a guitarist plugged into one of these things, can you feel it under fingers or through the speaker and does it have the same response and body as going through an amp?

joeyowen

The issue isn't with too many options, it is my resistance to toying with them.  It is difficult sometimes, having a great profile and wondering what else you can do with it.

I've learnt to ignore 95% of the options in truth.  Profiles often sound great out of the 'box' and I try to enjoy using them.

The effects all have pages of options, where in reality 3/4 would do.

crunchman

The nice thing with the Kemper is that it does sound good when you just plug it in, find a good profile, and get on with playing.  If you want to dive in deeper you have that option but it's not essential.

I've found with every bit of digital kit that I've played with it when I've got it, set up some sounds I like and then leave it.  I've been using the same presets on my Timeline for years now.

Chalky

You do not NEED an FRFR setup with a Kemper.  It is easy to get a great sound without FRFR.  FRFR is for purists/cork sniffers/fools who believe what nerdy bedroom players write on the internet*

*Pick the description you think fits.

robinbowes

I would say that you need *something* to play your modeller through so you can hear it.

If your modeller is also modelling speaker cab (and maybe microphone) then you need a pretty flat-sounding *something*, ie. an FRFR setup.

To my mind, "FRFR" is just another way of saying "monitor", but then I have a background in PA as well as playing guitar so I'm not suckered in by the cork sniffery that is the FRFR market

R.

Lestratcaster

More and more bands I'm playing gigs with are using Kempers and I'm so envious not only cos of the tone, but the now simplified process of loading their gear in! Usually its a flight case and their guitar!

I do find though the venue needs a good PA for it to sound decent coming out the speakers. The other guitarist in the band I'm playing in at the moment uses a Line 6 Pod Pro with a Laney head as a pre amp. Still means lugging cabs and stuff around but he sounds good.

I like the idea of having one button to push for a certain sound, e.g 1 is clean with delays, 2 is dirty riffing rhythm sound and another is lead solo sound. They can all be with different amps and cabinet settings as well.

Haych

robinbowes said:

To my mind, "FRFR" is just another way of saying "monitor", but then I have a background in PA as well as playing guitar so I'm not suckered in by the cork sniffery that is the FRFR market

So, hope you don’t mind me asking but when you say “monitor”, would a PA monitor work? 

Reason i ask is is that I have a very decent but basic (although quite old now) Yamaha PA. is that going to give a decent representation of what the Kemper “thinks” it’s sounding like, if that makes any sense? 

Dominic

Yes,certainly 95% of the way there if not more

Jez6345789

They are pretty addictive but its not essential to spend hours geeking out. I have about 10 tones I actually use on a regular basis.

spark240

I use my Kemper as  bedroom studio amp really, I have used it live and I just stuck in the FX return of a Vox ADV120 to monitor and direct out to PA...TBH I didnt think it sounded great in the Vox...but when I listened back on some video it sounder pretty good !

I since got the pedal board and Mission expression...Oh and a DXR12 ;-)

digitalscream

robinbowes said:

Does it sound great out front? Yes
Does it sound great on stage? Yes
Does it sound like a regular amp on stage? No.
Does that bother me? No.

This, in spades. No, it doesn't necessarily sound like a regular amp on stage*, it sounds the way the audience are hearing it. That's more useful, IMO.

* I'm currently using my Helix into a power amp and a guitar cab, which actually does sound like a regular amp on stage. I'm only doing that because of the plethora of idiot sound guys on the toilet circuit who can't cope with the idea of a DI guitar rig, but I much prefer going direct with a FRFR monitor pointed at my head from the floor - far clearer sound, at much lower volume.

digitalscream

For what it's worth...the sound guy at a recent gig asked me if my power amp was a boutique guitar amp, "...because it sounded fantastic, and it's got to be something expensive to make Line 6 effects sound good!".

It's a power amp I got for peanuts.

robinbowes

Haych said:

robinbowes said:

To my mind, "FRFR" is just another way of saying "monitor", but then I have a background in PA as well as playing guitar so I'm not suckered in by the cork sniffery that is the FRFR market

So, hope you don’t mind me asking but when you say “monitor”, would a PA monitor work? 

Reason i ask is is that I have a very decent but basic (although quite old now) Yamaha PA. is that going to give a decent representation of what the Kemper “thinks” it’s sounding like, if that makes any sense? 

Yes, absolutely.

Think about it... If you go Kemper -> PA for front-of-house, that's what the audience is hearing. Using a wedge on-stage is just the same thing, except it's what you're hearing.

R.

paulmapp8306

I dont use FRFR to monitor.  Ive often thought about it but...

1.  Most gigs I do play, venues are too small to mic up - so vocals only.  In those the audience is used to hearing raw amps anyway.  So going power amp/real cab gives the same tones.

2.  I can still go FRFR is a large venue but feeding the desk - then the onstage sound is for me only, and I still prefer a real cab.  Yes I know it limits the versatility as the cab is a large part of the sound, but it works for me.

3.  Even at home, I prefer going though the amp and ab at low volumes over using my studio monitors.

I dont use a LOT of sounds (Im AFX not kemper, but its true for my modeller).  My main reason for going that route was because I have never found an amp I like.  Either clean is good but drive isnt or vica versa (as I dont have space for multiple amps).  Even with the tones I do like - theres often something that niggles in the spectrum or response.  The AFX lets me tunes those out to my tastes.

The upshot of that is - after 10 years, I have about 6 sounds I use.  They are all very similar in tonality - its the tone I hear in my head - though they cover all gain ranges.  Theres a couple of exceptions that are tonally different, but there specific for certain things.

What the AFX has allowed me to do, is find the sound of the amp I want.  Actually in the real world there isnt one.  Even the "models" I use arnt the same as Ive tuned them a little to taste - something I cant do with the real world equivalent.

So - its a lot of money, for a few tones BUT when I bought my first, I intended it as an FX processor only (my G Maj had gone tits and it was the AFX or an Eventide - similar price).  The fact I like the amp stuff now (over the years its improved) and Ive tuned it to me is a bonus.

I have no pangs to get the AFX3, not a kemper or Helix.  I do get the odd want for a real amp, but then I try them - like one sound but not the rest, and realise why I went the way I did.