Broken network jack on the back of the kemper..

  • Well the flimsy network Jack on the back of my kemper is now broken. This has been my only complaint with he kemper since day one. I thought no biggie, No one else will be back there pulling on cables or anything and if I treat it gently, it will be fine. NOPE. cables will click in but will pull out and lose connection easily resetting or turning off remote. I hope its not one of those tiny direct to board soldered on jacks but I fear it probably is.
    Anyone replace the one in theirs and/or mod it to include the neutrik style locking jack yet ?
    How Long is the warranty ? I think it has been Just under Three Years but Not Certain.

    Edited once, last by tntent ().

  • Apparently, if your under existing warranty the coverage is to be determined by the service center determination. A service center is checking my serial to see if I am under warranty and waiting for a reply on cost if not covered. If not, I'm likely to investigate reengineering a neutrik style connector myself depending on how tight the board is.

  • It's bonkers to try to save a dime or two by using a RJ45-socket instead of a proper neutric ethercon on a mobile device this expensive. Whoever came up with that design deserve a proper spanking.


    A solution for those who have their KPA in a rack is to mount an ethercon-socket on the back of the rack that stays permanently connected to the KPA. Even simpler is to use an ethercon coupler with a short cable with RJ45s permanantly attached to the KPA and use a proper ethercon-ethercon cable to hook up to the remote. This coupler will also accomodate the normal remote-cable if you're not prepared to shell out for a new cable or to replace the RJ45-plug on the original cable with ethercon.

    Edited once, last by heldal ().

  • Well, I must say that Kemper stepped up and Got my unit fixed for me though I had a difficult time initially with the us warranty person whom Im Told left the company. I now have quite a bit of insight int this and I can tell you there is NOT a comparable network Jack of the neutrik locking variety available to even install inside the kemper. Therefore I would not expect Kemper to propose anything much different. The best alternative would be a short length of high quality cable to a seperate mounted ethercon style jack as has been suggested..

  • I now have quite a bit of insight int this and I can tell you there is NOT a comparable network Jack of the neutrik locking variety available to even install inside the kemper. Therefore I would not expect Kemper to propose anything much different. The best alternative would be a short length of high quality cable to a seperate mounted ethercon style jack as has been suggested..

    It is of course not possible to simply replace the socket on existing units, but there is plenty of room for a proper ethercon-socket on the back of the KPA had it been planned when the box layout was designed. It is a, IMHO rather serious, design flaw. There are ample opportunities for improvements to connectors in the next iteration of the KPA-design if there ever will be one. A balanced pair of monitor connections (XLR) would be another such improvement.

    Edited once, last by heldal ().

  • I'm scared to touch mine now. Tempted to duct tape it in place and just coil the cable on top. This is a critical path thing that can ruin a gig. Plus I live on the other side of the world, so I could be without my rig for weeks.
    When I was making my purchase decision the cable for the remote looked really pro, with the XLR looking end. I just assumed that the jacks were robust and that strain relief was part of the whole design. Can't fault the KPA in any other way though.

  • What would be the point in using a coupler with 2 non locking jacks.

    The cable from the coupler to the KPA could be permanently connected and thus eliminate most wear and tear on the KPA's socket.


    I would however recommend to spend a little extra to get an ethercon-coupler instead. With ethercons in place on both ends you can use standard ethercon cables to connect to the remote.