So, I made a tit of myself on an AxeFX thread and it's come back to bite me on the arse...
This is the issue I have with stuff like this, I know these units are not particularly new but my trusty valve amp will never need such firmware updates and go obsolete. Don't want to start any arguments, but this has always put me off buying the AxeFX and where digital fails, IMO. It's the same with buying consoles or PC parts. Upgrading is a necessary evil...something we don't need to worry about with valve amps.
On Saturday, took my "trusty valve amp" to my first rehearsal in years and it crapped out on my...couldn't believe it. I use this thing daily at home and now it decides to cause issues. I won't go into the details, but needless to say, it let me down and I was gutted.
Got me thinking about the AxeFX and Kemper, and I've been ogling video's all weekend raving about how great they are. I've been pleasantly surprised by what I've heard.
It's not just about reliability and consistent tone, it's also about portability. If I could get my sounds easily from one box, that sounds like a good plan. I'm at a point where I think that I don't really care about what gear I use, if I'm happy with the sound, that should be enough for me - this mindset is helping and allowing me to see past my fascination with pedals and the merry go round that comes along with having a cool pedalboard.
So the question is, where do I start? Do I go Kemper or AxeFX? There's a huge price difference. Anyone local have one I can try out?
I've heard that the midi implementation on the Kemper isn't that great, in comparison with AxeFX. But heard that the amp's sound more real on the Kemper. I like all the effects on the AxeFX, but with the Kemper, I guess I'd be able to keep some of my existing board.
So I've got a lot to think about, can anybody who has experience with these things chime in and lend some advice?
Also, those who have made the shift, have you gone all in or do you still have your amps lying about? I'm kind of an all in or nothing kind of guy and would be hesitant to keep anything lying around that I'm not using.
Cheers!
Comments
i don't play anything much in the modern metal arena but love all the classic amps you can call up that I would never get to own, again I am simplistic with effects and only ever use the classic stuff delay verb, and then odd stuff once in a while.
if if you get one from Thomann you get the 3 year warranty collected back to Kemper if it goes wrong mine has not misbehaved but nice to know past 1 year Andertons said your job to ship it back as they only acknowledge the legal 12 month UK warranty.
Good third party profiles converted me I nearly sent it back due to the low quality of a lot of the original stuff not sure if that improved but there are a lot more really good profiles out there now in all types of Amps.
i tend to be home studio based so not lugging to the dog and Gun every Friday night but when I have used it with a powered cab for rehearsal or a PA everyone comments on how good it sounds.
if you use Thomann you get 30 days to send it back there's your free trial
there will be another black box with flashing lights out in another 6 months that will be better, and in another 6... and on and on
The Kemper is probably the simplest to incorporate in your existing rig - it is mostly aimed at the amp modelling.
But one of the AxeFX units or a Helix could replace the whole lot, including your pedals, and give you much more flexibility with scenes/snapshots and expression controllers.
In terms of sound quality I would say they are all excellent, so your choice ought to be driven by how much change you want from your current rig, and which one you get on with best in terms of the user interface.
The 3 big guys, Helix, Axe-FX, Kemper are all excellent now to the point where 99% of players will get the sound they want from any of them, so the differences are in the form factor and the interface and that sort of thing.
Try them all.
I’m so bored I might as well be listening to Pink Floyd
I haven't really heard enough of the Helix to be able to tell, but the clips I have heard suggest that this isn't anywhere near so much of a "problem".
The Kemper, however, sounds like the amp you profiled (assuming the profile was made well). It's a hell of a lot less flexible than either the AxeFX or the Helix, though; not so many effects, very little in the way of fancy routing options and the like.
It comes down to what you want to do with it, really; if you want to experiment, I'd say Helix. If you want to just do a straight replacement of your gear with a single digital box, I'd say Kemper. If you enjoy spending lots of time fiddling with deep editing, go for the AxeFX.
Personally, I'm going Kemper as soon as funds allow. It's worth noting that with some ingenuity, you can actually use the Kemper to improve on the original amp by getting around some of its shortcomings (like my Kraken's second channel).
Not sure about that... they seem to be doing the firmware update thing these days to increase the life cycle. Besides, some people do this with valve amps too...
However some people are searching for the perfect unicorn tone, and the fact you can deep edit means they feel they should. I do think the Axe FX 2 better suits someone who knows exactly what they want, and ideally that amp is modelled in there. I mostly use Rectifiers and 6505/5150 IIIs and the models sound really good IMO, in fact for recording I'm having more success than when I had a real Rectifier. People who've been trying to get the sounds of amps not modelled have sometimes been less successful though, so if you want a really specific sound the Kemper may be better.
I think the Helix is worth a look but I feel the low end of the higher gain amps doesn't quite have that tracks the note low end weight (but I feel the Fractal and Kemper do), the mid gain and clean sounds seem pretty good. The interface looks the best of all these units and the effects seem good. I've not used it but heard many clips @Drew_TNBD has made with it (and also he's had all these units and picked the Helix).
For my needs I still think the Axe FX 2 fits me best and works the way I want it to, but if I was keeping amps I'd get the Kemper to make my own profiles, or if I was more interested in messing with effects a lot and less interested in high gain amps I'd get the Helix.
All 3 units can get a good sound, it basically comes down to priorities and workflow.
They are designed.
They are manufactured.
They are used.
They are recycled.
But my origonal POD 2.0 is still going strong.
As is my PODXT
The original POD.- must be getting on for 10 years old now?
I’m so bored I might as well be listening to Pink Floyd
On the long term serviceability point, I've only heard good things about line 6 and fractal in this regard.