NAMM 2018

  • In my professional live, I‘ve developed features to a deadline several times. While that was fine when a (premature) announcement had already been made, it has never helped the product overall. In the times of internet, social networks, and firmware updates, there is no need to rush things for an already great product. Take your time, release what is finished and proven, and tell us in any channel. The news will spread anyhow, as fast as the news that there is no news.

    francisco jent - 2 powered toasters & 1 remote

  • I totally agree with @elemefjot.


    The Kemper is an almost unique product anyway, because of all the feature updates and upgrade we received for free.
    There is absolutely no need to make any announcement regarding the next firmware until they know for sure.


    And if they don't know yet - then what's there to talk about.


    Anything a company will announce prematurely will almost always be used against it, when something happens internally, the schedule falls apart or unexpected difficulties delay the release.


    I can see why some people want an editor, but the critique about the company's "bad communication" is blown a bit out of proportion, in my opinion.

    90% of the game is half-mental.

  • Think for yourself, or others will think for you wihout thinking of you

    Henry David Thoreau

  • You are a guitar player not a tweaker then. With an exception of a few recording engineers who do tweaking as a job , lots of people who buy digital are gear tweakers/collectors so we get threads like this, main reason being boredom.
    Congratulations on recording an album!

    But there are tweakers and you cant send them all to Fractal or Line6..or ..maybe you can but for what reason;We may tell them "take it or leave it" when they post 1000x the same post about why they will sell their profiler for the only reason because it does not have an editor..


    There is a stubborness on "both sides) I have seen here during the last months which reminded me personally of myself in the very first days here in this forum.For the simple reason I always had the feeling (during the last 20 years or so..) that I have to "defend real music" and "how to do it" from the evil digital zombies..


    Indeed during the last two years I became more relaxed on some issues.I am saying this as a hardcore tube guy.For some reason..wont say more because indeed I fear I would sound like a "fanboy".


    Dont take me as role model ( :/ ) but when I can become more relaxed about some issues I am quite sure 99% of the nice people here can achieve this too.. :D


    Anyway..


    @djemass


    Man..congrats for your new album from me too.

  • Of course. TBH I don't really give a damn whether there is an editor or not, if Kemper sounds 100% like tube amp I just profiled, whatever was announced (or not) at NAMM. I had a really good laugh at Andertons joke, though. There is a lot of great gear out there, Kemper's got a very prominent place next to other amps I own.


    The deal is a company (any private company) does not have an obligation to announce, update or communicate anything after they sold us a product which does what it says on the box (Kemper does), It's just social media generated illusion and entitlement, combined with threats (I am going to sell and buy competing products, X or Y is catching up and will take over if you don't do what I want etc.), speaking for "everyone" or "most users", bringing out 95% statistics and "knowing" exactly how the market looks like at any given moment and what is the next best move. It doesn't matter whether it's praising or slamming the product - if it's done in that way, it's just a pile of ridiculous BS.


    Bring on Kemper Mk II ! :)

  • While I was not one of the many here who were hoping so diligently for an editor, I would have liked to see a demonstration of the new verbs.


    Such a demonstration would have given me an idea of when it would be out in a release (say this year).


    Without such a demonstration, I feel that a major update to the Kemper line is underway ..... but we won't hear any official word on this for another year or even two.


    I suspect that the existing KPA will receive an update to the verbs as this has been alluded to more than one time and has been confirmed again this year, and it is likely that the rig manager will be updated to include some new features as well (hopefully preset management).


    I still love my kemper. I can see it being my go-to rig for another 10 years. I will admit though that I am disappointed with NAMM.


    I do trade shows for my company all the time. You don't say "nothing is coming soon" ..... ever. You say that you are taking user suggestions and determining the content of the next major release at this time and that you expect an announcement after the show in (fill in the blank quarter).


    The KPA is a great product. I think the marketing at NAAM was handled pretty badly.

  • I agree.
    Quite unprofessional for the manager of a reputable company to say" we don't have anything new to show/tease/announce" at such a big event. That, and you don't drink during the show, but after.
    Sorry if I offend any Kemper staff, but that's my opinion.
    This Anderton quick video was really bad marketing for the company.

  • The Wet reverb is a great pedal. But I haven't felt compelled to take mine out of the drawer and use it with the Kemper more than two or three times—just to make sure—since getting my Kemper five years ago. New reverbs will not change our lives much, beyond a bit more internet bragging rights in gear demos. Big woop. I'm making sweet recordings with these effects. An editor .. well sure for us lazy recording artists who imagine ingenious variations between rigs using the KPA's deepest parameters, yes that would make it easier. And it also might result in stupid amounts of time tweaking that don't amount to anything. I want stuff. I really do. But I don't need it. And playing and writing always does more for my Kemper, the box I already own, than anything I can blame on the device or the designer or an update or a lack of one. The internet is the source of the letdown, not the man or the company or the device. And I'm pretty sure that none of the people who critique his marketing acumen has created a worldwide hit product, much less two. Tell me if I'm wrong. And yeah, through no fault of the device or the company, again sure this namm is kind of a letdown. But if you could hear the tones I was ripping this morning, you'd remember that all this other static is a big waste of time.

  • I think @CK cleared many things up..


    First of all he told any potential new customer that money is not wasted on the current profiler.So all the guys who wanted to know if they "should wait" for a floorbaord or even the KPA2 got their answer.This is news.


    Other than that Kemper made clear that they continue to work on the long term planned software updates.Since new reverbs were announced in the past it is only logical to expect new reverbs sooner or later..in any case they are working on them as we speak.


    No word about the editor ofcourse.The controversy will continue.I dont know if this is what @CK wants but..it seems he has no problem with the fact that this controversy will keep the profiler on the daily agenda in many,many internet discussions...not only in this forum. ;)

  • thats what i meant when i wrote CK is frustrated and should get over it , cause he damages his own company...

    Sorry guys, but I think it's far out what people are expecting here. Some are acting like a bride that was stood up at the alter. If updates are the most important part of amp modeling rig we all really need to ask ourselves the question, did I buy the product because it sounded and felt good? Or am I buying it because it's guaranteed to get updates?


    Very simple question because at some point, it will stop getting updates and if I'm not able to deal with that, then I should sell my Kemper tomorrow and buy a product that doesn't sound as good, but is updated much more often and I would spend my time reworking my patches every update because they no longer sound the same as I enjoy the thrill and excitement of the updates even though the sound quality is not as good as the Kemper because after all I didn't buy the product to play it but to keep it as investment and hope that the market value remains high with regular updates or to keep me editing because I enjoy editing and tinkering more than playing guitar.

  • 1. NAMM = National Association of Music Merchants
    2. It's a trade show for manufacturers, dealers and distributors


    Of course it's also an opportunity to showcase the latest stuff to a much wider audience (e.g. by trying to get press coverage).
    But it's not restricted to that. Companies attending these trade shows (NAMM or Musikmesse) can have different goals in mind. Meeting with plenty of "influencers" (musicians, producers, ...) is a piece of cake since many of this species gather right there. And it's easy to connect with dealers from around the world ... or even bring influencers and dealers together.


    Both, NAMM show and Musikmesse have lost quite a bit of attraction in recent years. Nowadays it's way easier to get the word about new products spread with much less effort. We have Youtube, we have lots of social media, we have a gazillion self-proclaimed news outlets who can't wait to be the first to share the next big thing.
    So I don't wonder why goals might shift for companies that still attend these (in NAMMs case officially business-only) shows. Also keep in mind that the "next big thing" might not seem to be that big if it has to compete with a few hundred other "big things" being announced at the same time. ;)


    Bottomline:
    Relax, make music, don't over-analyze what happens or doesn't happen at these events. ;)