Using pedals in front of KPA

  • I use a couple OD's up front. They work the way you'd expect just as going into a traditional amp. I use an Eventide H9 in the effects loop after the amp block, mostly for more extreme stuff that the Kemper doesn't do: in particular ambient delays/reverbs. The only downside is that with only one effects loop and limited midi functions, you do lose a bit of the ability to program everything ahead of time and will likely need to do at least a little bit more tap dancing than using everything inside the Kemper. Although, with enough extra equipment, (a multi-loop midi-controlled switcher for example) you could use all this external gear and have it programed. However, even here there are limitations.
    For example
    Use only the Kemper and you need: 1 guitar cable to kemper input, 1 cat5e cable from remote to Kemper, plus whatever you need for amplification.
    Use the Kemper with just a single OD and one post amp effect like delay and you need:
    1 guitar cable to OD input, 1 cable from OD pedal to kemper input. Two cables from kemper's effects loop to pedal board for delay effect, possibly a midi cable from Kemper to delay effect, power supply and/or power strip on your board and power wires to pedals, and extension cord or power source available where you will be standing, a pedal board to hold the remote and all this junk, a case for your pedal board, plus whatever you need for amplification.


    This means not only cost but more to carry and much longer set up times. It is also more work to program my H9 than if I only had to program the Kemper to get those effects. It works for me since I exclusively leave my gear set up at a church. And when Kemper comes out with the delay and reverb effects that they have been talking about, if they can compete with the H9, I'll probably just use the Kemper and the Remote.

  • I use pedals in front, mostly OD
    Echo Plex, MXR Bonnamassa FET driver, Ibanez Mini Tube Screamer, Fulltone 2B and a Strymon Blue Sky that I run both in front and after my Kemper.


    I have a Voodoo Labs PX-8 and Ground Control that I use for midi switching of my pedals. Works great.


    Will post a pic

  • How do you guys set up the Kemper's input gain so that your overdrive pedals and boosts don't overdrive the input into the red? I tried using some petals for a little while and felt like it was killing the dynamic response because it push the front end too hard. But I probably didn't have it set up right. Any ideas?

  • I've started using a Damage Control Liquid Blues in front of the Kemper. Works really well, the Strymon guys were really good at dirt pedals too, it's a pity they were so outsized and needed an outlandish power supply.


    Still, it sounds so good that it really got me thinking about more tonal possibilities with stomps. We all know that the Kemper OD/DS stomps are modelled... IMHO, the real analog stuff will trump them because they are not like profiles, just digital representations of what a pedal sounds like, or how Kemper Amps thinks they sound like.


    That's not to say they aren't great. I've always been partial to the green scream.


    But I'm now on the lookout for a few more pedals to add some grit to tones. Maybe a TS9, a HM2, one of those Jimi Hendrix fuzzes, a Klon Centaur if I can find one for a reasonable price, or maybe a clone of one... So many choices!


    I'm planning to get a few Strymon pedals to run after the Kemper as well - reverb and delay mainly, I want some textures that I can't get with the Kemper at present Maybe the Mobius too, if I can swing it. Could also go with a Source Audio Nemesis, seems real sick.


    There's something real fun about planning out a pedalboard too! I spend hours just thinking about pedal A vs pedal B.


    I don't plan to run any of the pedals in the loop of the Kemper, I'm using all my slots and can't spare them, got some interesting stuff going on in the post-amp section of most of my rigs.


    Great part is that I've started running my Kemper in the volume loop of my Loopholic 5 pedal switching system. Can't do that with a lot of the switchers because the loop will get overloaded by the Kemper signal. This allows me to have 5 pedals in front of the Kemper and 5 behind the amp section. So I can switch pedals in and out of the signal path while also changing profiles at the same time.


    If only I had more money, haha! Got to scrimp and save, grumble, grumble, snort, rip...

  • How do you guys set up the Kemper's input gain so that your overdrive pedals and boosts don't overdrive the input into the red?


    When producing the hottest possible signal from your external chain, turn Clean Sens down until the red is barely touched. Save it as a preset with a meaningful name :)
    Note: this might lead to very low cleans tho, so I'd keep the overall volume from the fx chain (and each stomp's output) properly balanced with the cleans. Almost unity gain might be a starting point?

  • for leads I always use a Barber Supersport
    Also use a BB Preamp for a long time, an a few other ODs in passing
    never have issues red lighting, but I really don't boost more than a tiny bit

    Spotify, iTunes, Bandcamp, etc... Lugosi Smile