Kemper vs. AX8 vs. Helix vs. BIAS Head - BLIND TEST!

@schreckmusic

'Global Gain' would not be correct, since Dist Sens doesn't influence the gain on clean rigs.

I guess because the Kemper can also represent the FEEL (not just sound) of an amps that playing style is going to be a big factor.
Now Imagine if you had of sold your Kemper !

Yeah Sinn is really dedicated and not about profit, there are plenty of similar good folk on the forum who are willing to help brother.
Make us all a deal, before thinking of selling a unit in future, lets first try and get to the bottom of it here

Don is going to bring out the big stick and whack my backside..(as i never focused on the the mentioned underrated factory content)
i went back and checked some of the "neglected" Factory content , Don have mercy... i have to say surprise!! Don is right!

Ash

I don't think that these kind of ...vs....vs...vs....-demos and vids are representing the endless options of modern guitar-gear.

I'm glad that there are several really good digital amps on the market right now and the rest is simply very subjective. For me the Kemper is the "holy grail", because with the right profiles for me it feels and sounds like a real amp. And of course I can profile my own amps, no other gear can do that. I'm also a big fan of the "all-in-one-box"-solution, just the Kemper and the Remote, that's actually all you need, of course Helix and AX-8 offer this, too.

The only thing I really would like: a floorboard-Kemper similar to Helix and AX-8, I easily could take on a plane.

I'm sure that the search for the "perfect" gear generally is overrated, a good guitar-player will sound good on most amps, traditional tube-amps or digital amps. I'm more than happy with the KPA especially for tours and recording, for other guitar-players it might be something else.

Quote from ashtweth

Don is going to bring out the big stick and whack my backside..(as i never focused on the the mentioned underrated factory content)
i went back and checked some of the "neglected" Factory content , Don have mercy... i have to say surprise!! Don is right!

haha
It seems to be a common preconception that's hard to overcome (the factory rigs, not me carrying a big stick) seems like you did it.
congrats!

Quote from DonPetersen

It seems to be a common preconception that's hard to overcome (the factory rigs, not me carrying a big stick)

Ha! Speak for yourself, Don; I've felt it, brother, and it whipped me into shape real good.

Personally, I've never had that problem regarding the factory Rigs, and haven't taken them for granted. I've always been impressed by the great variety of contrasting tones on offer, so many of which feel and sound very warm and natural to me.

Yet another comparison video. 1971 Marshall JMP vs Kemper vs Axe-FX II vs Bias Head | Amp Matching Fight:

Quote from fredrikn

Yet another comparison video. 1971 Marshall JMP vs Kemper vs Axe-FX II vs Bias Head | Amp Matching Fight:

In the comparison by Ola, I thought Bias Head sounded the closest. In this comparison, once the samples were lined up in my DAW and level matched, I thought the Kemper was indistinguishable, hands down. The Axe was slightly mid heavy. Bias is missing a bit of high-end and slightly mid heavy, as well.

And I agree with ColdFrixion.. When I line them up and match the levels. The Kemper sounds the same

One more thing on the Vs Stuff. I know people who owned the competition and sold it. I do not know ONE kemper owner who has sold his Kemper to goto the competition mentioned in these "tests".

I know plenty of AXE heads who jumped ship. Point being show me the Kemper guy that FOR A VALID REASON
switches over.... TRY THE KEMPER FIRST, you wont even look at the other three.

That my friends is a FACT.

Ash

To be fair, there is the odd one, like our old friend @lasvideo.

@sinmix no one seems to get that.

Quote from schreckmusic

@sinmix no one seems to get that.

Let me know when you guys can get the real thing to sound as good as the Kemper equivalent, at low to moderate,as well as bedroom volume levels. Not all of us are recording 24/7...some of us actually like to play live, as well as practice at unusual times of the day or night. Even when playing out, many of us may play smaller clubs in which it simply is not possible to crank a tube amp up into it's true sweet spot.

Furthermore, most of us are not pro's when it comes to recording. We neither have the necessary facility (room with appropriate acoustical treatments) nor the small fortune invested in mics, preamps, mixers and recording equipment. Most of that infrastructure is eliminated and made unnecessary with the Kemper's direct recording capability.

@schreckmusic and @sinmix, this is not meant as an argument or a disagreement with your thoughts, opinions and experience. I just don't want us to lose some perspective, here. It's all good, mates.

Cheers,
John

Quote from Tritium

@schreckmusic and @sinmix, this is not meant as an argument or a disagreement with your thoughts, opinions and experience. I just don't want us to lose some perspective, here. It's all good, mates.

Cheers,
John

No friggin idea what you going on about. @sinmix his English is better than mine. He can help, it might end up with something about a mic and cab though. Cheers

Quote from schreckmusic

No friggin idea what you going on about. @sinmix his English is better than mine. He can help, it might end up with something about a mic and cab though. Cheers

Hi Schreck,

I was just making the suggestion that "the real tube amp" is not always the best, nor the most ideal solution/answer for everyone, depending on the circumstances. Forgive me if I am over generalizing...however, both yourself and @sinmix are strong advocates of the following proposition: There is no substitute for the real thing (so to speak).

I was simply trying to suggest that the KPA can in fact be the superior substitute/alternative (compared to the original tube amp), in many occasions.

Cheers,
John

@Tritium I have never said that. Not sure where you are getting this impression. My view is the Kemper can be improved with the higher gain response. Whatever I say on this forum is to discuss to see if others agree. I am here to learn and suggest. I want my Kemper to work for me, so please do not assume. Sinmix is the one who says nothing replaces a real amp.

Edit: I couldn't care less about these shitty comparison videos. I got involved because a profile was posted and I wanted to hear if anyone here can actually get their Kemper to sound that good. My experience with those profiles was not a positive one.

Edit 2: and based on what I've heard from Sam and Dean, still not even close to the samples TopJimi provides. Not sure how he does it, but man it sounds amazing. It's not all playing technique, I do believe the Kemper is working its magic. I want to understand how to get there with mine!

I don't think it makes much sense to make a comparison-vid with 3 or 4 distorted guitar-tracks playing all at the same time. To hear the difference it would be much better to hear just a single guitar track and nothing more.

In this exmaple the pure amp sounds best, followed very closely by the Kemper, Axe FX-II sounds ok, Bias Head sounds artificial and cheap.

Ok I went back to see if I could do better with a Topjimi profile and this is how I did. Any recommendations on how to tweak it better to sound like his clip?
Edit- I know some people will not understand the joke in the beginning. The clip of me playing is in the 2nd half

Quote from ColdFrixion

In the comparison by Ola, I thought Bias Head sounded the closest. In this comparison, once the samples were lined up in my DAW and level matched, I thought the Kemper was indistinguishable, hands down. The Axe was slightly mid heavy. Bias is missing a bit of high-end and slightly mid heavy, as well.

My ears told me what your analysis found out. Exactly how I heard them. Though I liked the Axe's tone, little more JCM 800ish, just wasn't as accurate. Bias also seemed a little too thin.

Quote from schreckmusic

Ok I went back to see if I could do better with a Topjimi profile and this is how I did. Any recommendations on how to tweak it better to sound like his clip?
Edit- I know some people will not understand the joke in the beginning. The clip of me playing is in the 2nd half

I played with your sample a bit and this is what I was able to come up with:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/p8jbuxmj8tl3hlw/TJ.mp3?dl=0

I added a mid-range bump at 700Hz, a bit of verb and a widener. Your tone sounds more compressed than Top Jimi's.