Thinking about switching from Axe Fx 2, to Kemper. Not happy with AFX2. Would Kemper be better for me, or would it be more of the same?

  • ^Beat me to it. The punch you're looking for comes from the power amp. And lots of volume to get the speaker coils moving.


    I absolutely agree, nakedzen.


    However, with that said, I have to admit I still prefer the fidelity with which the Kemper captures the power amp and speaker dynamics and interaction, versus the Axe-Fx II -- even at lower volumes.


    While I don't personally own the Axe-FX II, my buddy does. Don't get me wrong, it is a formidable piece of kit, and if I didn't own the Kemper, I am sure I would be quite happy with an Axe-FX. Nevertheless, when I compare them side by side (which I have done on multiple occasions), the Kemper just "feels" and "responds" like the actual reference tube amp, as compared to the more sterile (IMHO) experience with the Axe-FX. I especially notice this more on crunch and cleaner tones. With the KPA, it reacts just like the original amp, in terms of the attack, note bloom and decay. When I played through the Axe-FX, it just sounded a bit more clinical and sterile...as if it were trying to accurately recreate the reference tube amp, but something was lost in the translation. I don't get that "lost in translation" feeling with my Kemper.


    And, of course, the proof in the pudding is actually profiling your own amp, and then make a real-time A/B comparison beetween them (something only the KPA can do). That is when you truly recognize the amazing capability of the Kemper system.


    Anways, just some random thoughts.


    Cheers,
    John

  • That is hopefully my theory. Axe Fx being a computer simulation of what someone thinks the amps should sound like, where as the Kemper just grabs the tone of the actual amp, which is why it sounds more authentic.

  • That is hopefully my theory. Axe Fx being a computer simulation of what someone thinks the amps should sound like, where as the Kemper just grabs the tone of the actual amp, which is why it sounds more authentic.

    Is this the Tritium i know, with different pic, or another user? Cool pic btw :D


    I think the "mojo" of kemper is in the cab sims. You have a great cab right there, mic it the way you like, and it will try to replicate that. Axe Fx comes with cab sims that are more "another person's idea" of what cab sounds you want. But the amp sims are great, super close to the real amps.


    I think the best one can do for "feel" with either device is to get a relatively transparent tube power amp and a real guitar cab ;)


    PS: Wrong quote, I meant to tag Tritium.

  • Is this the Tritium i know, with different pic, or another user? Cool pic btw :D
    I think the "mojo" of kemper is in the cab sims. You have a great cab right there, mic it the way you like, and it will try to replicate that. Axe Fx comes with cab sims that are more "another person's idea" of what cab sounds you want. But the amp sims are great, super close to the real amps.


    I think the best one can do for "feel" with either device is to get a relatively transparent tube power amp and a real guitar cab ;)


    PS: Wrong quote, I meant to tag Tritium.


    Yeah, John's reverted from his pretty-faced avatar to his original one from when he joined the forum, Dimi.


    Yes sir, gents, it is me. As Nicky mentioned, I simply switched back to my original Avatar. After all, HAPPINESS IS A WARM PUPPY. :thumbup:


    Cheers,
    John

  • HAPPINESS IS A WARM PUPPY

    I totally agree.


    Here's my dog --

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    Mods: this is not derailing. This is happiness.


    And when it comes to power amps for "real feel" I suggest the Fryette Power Station. Even my most used tube amp feels and sounds better when run through that, let alone kemper.

  • I totally agree.
    Here's my dog --


    Mods: this is not derailing. This is happiness.


    And when it comes to power amps for "real feel" I suggest the Fryette Power Station. Even my most used tube amp feels and sounds better when run through that, let alone kemper.


    Ahhhh. Bella is too cute, Dimi. I love her head tilts as you talk with her. :thumbup:


    Here is a pic of my girl, who regretfully passed away last year. She lived a great life (she was fifteen, which is an old age for a Gordon Setter), and she was so very much loved:




    Back on topic (sort of)...


    Do you own the Fryette Power Station? I have read so many great things about that device. If I didn't have the powered version of the KPA, the PowerStation would be at the top of my list for the external amp, due to all of it's unique features and capabilities (re-amping, loadbox, attenuator, etc.)


    Cheers,
    John

  • I think the Kemper and Michael Britt's Dumble pack are all you'd ever need to get the John Mayer sound. I know one of MBs Two Rock profiles is my go-to for that sound.


    Now, I own a house so I don't know what is too loud in an apartment setting, but there will always be something special, and a little different, about plugging into a Fender tube amp and jamming out. You could always get an attenuator or, like me, use an MXR 10 band in the loop (HR Deville) and pull the level slider almost all the way down, and get great tone at low volume. Plus the Kemper profiles are just incredible through the Fenders power section.


    I messed with a axe FX iiXL for a bit, I thought the high gain tones sounded great and the ability to run two amp sims was a cool feature, but it was way too much effort to navigate through if something was off in a patch, and often times it only got worse or the problem shifted elsewhere when trying to tweak it. With the Kemper I can just switch to a different profile and problem solved!

  • Steve Fryette is a great guy. Helped me bias my VHT on the weekend when I blew a tube so I could be at 100% for my gig. Sent me the schematics as well.


    Using high end gear has its advantages. Maybe some day CK will phone me over the weekend ;)

  • @Tritium I don't own it but have borrowed it for like years :P


    I think it's the best at what it does. Powered kemper is great too, but comparing side by side I love the projection you get with the tube power amp.

  • And when it comes to power amps for "real feel" I suggest the Fryette Power Station. Even my most used tube amp feels and sounds better when run through that, let alone kemper.


    I agree! You can see one in my avatar. I use it as an attenuator, for silent recording with tube amps and even to reamp my 1w Marshall JTM1 50th anniversary from 1w to 50w. And as poweramp for my current digital amp of course.

  • One day shy of 3 weeks with my KPA I have already sold one of my Ax8's


    Huge glaring difference's following 6 years with Axe II then Ax8:
    Axe II or 8 had to run way more gain to fill out hard rock tones. Then you had to gate it so hard it cut off solo notes. When I would go back to my real Friedman JJ I would think dang that is so clear and articulate. Not that fractal wasn't clear it just required so much gain -and were talking 5150 Blue ch with an OD in front as my main tone, so not like I was running and Uberschall or anything. So I would find while soloing there would be extra 'string noise' as a result of running high levels of gain.


    Kemper with a stellar profile (KEY) has so much more note articulation with lower gain amounts. Also the Califorinication factory clean pre set is the 'The' Fender' tone I could never get in 6 years with my Fractal. they were thinner and just not that great. I have bought packs and IR's and am very familiar with the rig, but still could never get something that Fat and great on my Strat or Wolfgang.


    The solo tones in the KPA require less gain but every bit searing and face melting is just so much more articulate in the notes. Now I must say I have heard Many profiles that would make me stay with the Fractal, but because I immediately bought a pack that worked for me and allowed me to hear all these obvious and glaring differences I am all in!


    The noise gate is so much better on the Kemper too. I can gate down my gained tones and still get killer sustain with much more natural trailing notes nd feedback where I want it which is so important to dynamic live tones that compare to real amps. Never attainable for me on the Fractal. granted if one of their engineers came in to my studio like they sent to Metallica's guys to show them how to set it up I could get it right.


    The effects are great too. Fractal may have more and better delays but the Kemper's are just fine


    Both have decent Reverbs which I run in the background at low levels because it's not a huge part of my tone.


    I was not happy at first about going back to a floor unit and a head as I love the all in one Ax8, but with that you always had to have a laptop to make adjustments while at a new venue and with the KPA head I can make quick adjust ments even while playing live which is coo!


    Gapless switching on the floor unit is so frickin cool wthe KPA remote!!!!!!!! A huge bonus. The Fractal was never truly gapless and always had some drop out while switching pre sets.


    My 2 cents!

  • indeed, the pre-stomp noise gate is friggin amazing, as well as the noise gates in the stomp section. Another amazing and powerful effect is the compressor that is part of the Amp block parameters.

  • indeed, the pre-stomp noise gate is friggin amazing, as well as the noise gates in the stomp section. Another amazing and powerful effect is the compressor that is part of the Amp block parameters.

    I turn off all gates always, if it's an amp it is allowed to have noise, and that, actually most often, adds to the character of the sound. To me.

  • Fractal may have more and better delays but the Kemper's are just fine

    I disagree.


    There are quite a few very musical things the Profiler's delays can do that to my knowlegde no-one else can.
    like combining a reverse, tape and pitchshifting delay into one effect.
    and the amount of "reverseness" can be specified.


    The Profiler's delays are deep and as always the parameters were very carefully chosen and implemented to maximise the musicality while avoiding cluttering the user interface.

  • My theory is that with the kemper, its the actual amp that is recorded and stored, where as with the Axe Fx, it is a programmed simulation of the amp.


    The amp models in the Axe FX aren't simply an interpretation of the actual amp. The developers use schematics from the physical amp and take myriad measurements of its components in order to reconstruct a virtual copy.


    That said, I own and love both units.

  • This thread is a little old. Did the OP ever get a Kemper?


    After reading everything here, I can relate...even though I'm new to Kemper. My very first impression, after finding a profile that hit me as "usable", was how realistic the Kemper is when responding to true tube amp dynamics. And a realistic "clean amp" just on the edge of breakup is hard to get on a "simulation". Just some quick simple adjustments on the Kemper put me right in "the zone". It really sounds and responds like a real tube amp...if you pick a profile that captured what you like to hear. That's important (I believe). But when you understand the complexities of how these tones are dialed in on premium amps, then captured off the speaker cab in an actual "room", simulating that is harder than "profiling" it. And that is where the rubber meets the road. It sounds like the OP wants not only the great amp tone, and the true dynamics real amps have, but also "the room". I hear evidence of that in some profiles, although the right reverb and almost unnoticeable short delay can create a room. Still, the cab mic (or multi-mic) position on the profile has so much to do with the tone. I actually prefer some distance to capture the full character of the speaker cabinet.


    And much of what I see here concerning "feel", and I guess also tone, has to do with your monitoring equipment. Just like real tube guitar amps, monitors benefit from having "headroom". You have to be able to respond and deliver power-demanding deep bass when you "ask for it" in your playing. Solid state amps may not have big transformers and speaker coils, which "respond" in concert to create the "feel", but do need to "deliver" it when the profile produces it. Of course, you also need speakers that cover all the frequency ranges of interest, as well. And let's not forget your own room environment and how well (or not so well) your monitors behave with room reflections.


    I've only had my Kemper for a few days, but in almost no time I have experienced exactly what I wanted from a real tube amp and well miced speaker cab in a good room. And it didn't take days to get it. I was 90% there in minutes. After a couple of hours doing as much fine tuning as I had much access to (including deep amp and cab parameters), I was absolutely floored with how great this Kemper sounded. The point is that it's possible IF you start with a profile that immediately sounds like what you like. Then it's just a matter of dialing in perfection, which is easy and painless. Of course, good ears help. I've been blessed with perfect pitch and good ears, although ageing somewhat by now. 8|


    Phil 8)

    Phil 8)

    Edited 2 times, last by PHILBERT: grammar issues ().

  • I disagree.
    There are quite a few very musical things the Profiler's delays can do that to my knowlegde no-one else can.
    like combining a reverse, tape and pitchshifting delay into one effect.
    and the amount of "reverseness" can be specified.


    The Profiler's delays are deep and as always the parameters were very carefully chosen and implemented to maximise the musicality while avoiding cluttering the user interface.

    I stand corrected I have not delved into the Delays in the Kemper enough to provide any sort of in depth or technical comparison.

  • I disagree.
    There are quite a few very musical things the Profiler's delays can do that to my knowlegde no-one else can.
    like combining a reverse, tape and pitchshifting delay into one effect.
    and the amount of "reverseness" can be specified.


    The Profiler's delays are deep and as always the parameters were very carefully chosen and implemented to maximise the musicality while avoiding cluttering the user interface.

    Yes, great delays. Unfortunately, it is a pain the a** to try to dial it in on 6 pages on the tiny Kemper screen...