NAMM 2018

    I am cautiously optimistic. It's NAMM. They've had something significant (or several things) every year - that's HOW they drive sales.


    CK is a very smart and (unexpectedly-hey, he's German ;):D ) funny person. He has spoken to me, at length and surprisingly honestly, about many things that have to be done to improve the product, it's marketability, and continue it's trajectory. I never felt like I was listening to a salesman, rather a smart, impassioned engineer who was looking at the real world and what he needed to do to make the Profiler excel in it.


    BTW, he could have blown me off like most people at NAMM do when they see that you're not a buyer; but he didn't. For my part, I haven't betrayed things spoken of in confidence. I can't go to NAMM this year, so I will wait on the sidelines like everyone else and see what develops. Like I said, I am optimistic. 8)

    Edited once, last by Dlaut ().

    Like 10
    Quote from Dlaut

    They've had something significant (or several things) every year

    Perhaps in years past but last year they just basically showcased the new delays which were released well ahead of the show. The only possibility would be things "under the hood" from the latest beta and release, or perhaps a beta for an editor. Hardware like a floor model is always a possibility, as well. Regardless, speculation is merely that, though NAMM has less and less become a place to surprise people and more a place to showoff things announced in advance of the show.

    Quote from MementoMori

    Perhaps in years past but last year they just basically showcased the new delays which were released well ahead of the show....

    I'm not sure about that. , I'm sure that some of the delays that were demonstrated in NAMM weren't already released even though some delays were for sure released before NAMM. I don't recall when .


    there's constant improvement happening. with too many items to list including load time that used to take long and that was improved without a specific announcement.


    My guess is that because of this Prior to NAMM release of delays last year, many customer were also still expecting more things at NAMM 8o and it was almost a let down for those folks , so this year maybe they planned to save the announcement for NAMM acknowledging that most people expect announcements in NAMM.

    Edited once, last by Dean_R ().

    Quote from Dean_R

    I'm not sure about that. , I'm sure that some of the delays that were demonstrated in NAMM weren't already released even though some delays were for sure released before NAMM. I don't recall when .

    No, when I asked I was told it was just to show off the new delays. There may have been a second batch in beta, but again it was released prior to the show, not surprising anyone. There also wasn't any signage about the delays, so I think more or less they were they just to be there and the delays happened to be the newest thing to show off from the year before. No doubt they wanted to get them out before NAMM, but there wasn't a big deal made out of it at all. The only way you'd have known it was by asking someone working the booth.

    Quote from MementoMori

    ..., but there wasn't a big deal made out of it at all. The only way you'd have known it was by asking someone working the booth.

    It was on the company news page, and in NAMM, To everyone following any company NAMM is a big deal and gives a hint of where the company is heading. Some forum member is not pulling the trigger to buy the kemper in anticipation of what will be announced in NAMM and the possibility of Kemper 2, so NAMM is generally always a big deal specifically those who are embracing products on the cutting edge such as modeling devices. Who knows, maybe Digitech or some new comer will also announce something big,

    AFAIK, Kemper didn't announce or show anything new at NAMM 2017.
    If they don't annonce anything new at NAMM 2018, i fear they are preparing actively the Kemper 2, which would be a bad news for me since i bought it 6 months ago.

    Quote from vjau75

    AFAIK, Kemper didn't announce or show anything new at NAMM 2017.
    If they don't annonce anything new at NAMM 2018, i fear they are preparing actively the Kemper 2, which would be a bad news for me since i bought it 6 months ago.

    I think you are safe. Any Kemper 2 announcement would likely be a full year before general availability IMO..... and would you really want to exist a full year without your Kemper? Not me ;)


    The Kemper is currently the best sounding digital guitar processor out there IMO. It is by far and away the easiest to get good tones out of. The tube amp tone is so good that it is virtually impossible to tell the difference between the Kemper and the real thing.


    How much "better" could a Kemper 2 really be?


    Having said all this, at some point in time a Kemper 2 will be needed simply because the processor they are currently using will reach end of life and Kemper won't be able to build new units with the old design any more.


    I am thinking that a Kemper floor board would make the most sense .... especially if such a beast could be made in the $1K price range.

    The only way to reach a lower price point would be to move the fabrication out of Germany to a country where the labor costs are lower.


    I think it will happen in order to stay competitive.

    Quote from OneEng1

    How much "better" could a Kemper 2 really be?


    I think the possibility of running two profiles (with two cabs) at the same time would be cool.
    Probably also the possibilty to profile pedals...
    And last but not least, probably an improvment on the cab front, i guess their are pôssible improvements on the IR definition.
    All those points require a new hardware.
    I would personnaly not be interested by a floor model.

    Quote from Dlaut

    The only way to reach a lower price point would be to move the fabrication out of Germany to a country where the labor costs are lower.


    I think it will happen in order to stay competitive.

    I don't think this will happen because the Kemper has an enviable reliability that is important.

    Karl


    Kemper Rack OS 9.0.5 - Mac OS X 12.6.7

    I have been reading these wish lists on a few different sites now and have avoided putting my 2 cents in. Maybe I am missing something here based upon how I use my Kemper, so perhaps some of your replies will open my mind to new possibilities.


    I bought my Kemper for two reasons:


    1) I needed something more versatile and easier to cart around for my live gigs.
    2) I needed something that sounded and felt at least as good as my vintage amps.


    My latest band does a mix of everything from the 60s to today, so I needed something that would allow me to easily and seamlessly switch between various tones but be more portable than my tube amps. I place my powered head, controller, two expression pedals and all my cables and other accessories in a wheeled tool bag and then place a small 1x12 tweed Deluxe extension cabinet with an EVM 12S on top of that. I can then comfortably wheel all that and my guitar into any venue in one trip. It's light, compact, easy to move and kicks ass. Also, it all fits into my convertible's trunk.


    As for the tube amps I have been using on my past gigs, I have a collection of many of the amps that modelers/profilers are advertised as sounding identical to. Some of those amps are a 1959 Bassman, 1960 Deluxe, 1964 Vox AC30, 1965 Vox AC10SRT, 1973 Marshall SL, 1988 Boogie Mark III, Carol-Ann Tucana and a RedPlate RP40. I have owned and gigged all of these amps for years and know how they are supposed to sound and feel. Yes, I know, these amps have spoiled my ear and cause me to be a bit of a tone snob from time to time, but if a guy like me can be happy with the sound of a Kemper, I think that says a lot about how great the current unit is.


    When I realized I needed something more versatile for my new gig, I checked out all of the available digital units I could find. I have an Atomic Amplifire A3 that I have been using as my headphone/late night practice tool for a few years now and it does a good job with modded Marshall tones as long as I add aftermarket IRs and tweak some cabinet parameters. However, It failed miserably in a live situation. It sounded either too compressed and dirty or too clean and dynamic. I couldn't find any usable, touch-sensitive, in-between tones that I liked. It also fails at recreating Vox and tweed Fender tones, and this is what I found in every other digital device I researched. The Kemper was the only device that I found that actually sounded and felt like my old Fender and Vox amplifiers.


    Since the Kemper meets and in many ways exceeds my two requirements from above, I am not real worked up about wanting some of the features that I see constantly being asked for. Aside from the usual techies and tweakers who insist on having every imaginable parameter to muck with, the impression I get from reading these threads is that most people want a Helix that actually sounds like the amps it is supposed to be recreating.


    As for the requests I see most often:


    Floor Unit Format - Perhaps I am missing something here, but what advantage(s) would I gain as a gigging musician by going to a floor unit as opposed to my current toaster/controller pair? How do I easily adjust volume and tone controls on a floor unit on a darkened stage between songs? Assuming the floor unit is not powered, I would need an FRFR which I don't like and are often heavy, require their own power and would take up more space than my current rig. Granted, I could just send the outputs to the monitor mix, but then I would probably need to spend some time equalizing for those monitors and then hope they do my tone justice. I also assume I would need to bring a laptop with me if it requires any tweaking or troubleshooting. Now, this floor rig is larger, not as easy to adjust on the fly, requires more power, requires I tote around a laptop and has more powered devices in the chain of possible failures. If I wanted to use this in a studio, I would assume I would need another computer or at least open another window on an existing computer to control and tweak the thing. Seeing how many computers (particularly Windows machines) are woefully inept at handling multiple, simultaneous programs designed for processing audio, I would be constantly worried about running everything from a single CPU and being greeted by the blue window of death in the middle of a session.


    Editor - This isn't a deal breaker for me and considering what the Kemper is designed to do, I understand why one was not included originally and appreciate the current layout and work flow. It works fine for me. That being said, I would definitely use an editor that would allow me to tweak rigs and design performances offline that I can later load into my Kemper. That would be very handy and used often.


    Tone Controls to Mimic Actual Amp Models - I understand the desire for this, but it is not what the Kemper is. The Kemper recreates a recorded sample of an amplifier. The amplifier has already been tweaked in the profile. The tone controls on the front panel are similar to the strip EQ on your console. What I think would be an even better solution would be a fully parametric EQ in addition to or in place of the existing tone controls. This is something I would use but again, not a necessity for what I currently do, as I select those profiles that require little or no changes to best match what I need to cover.


    USB Audio and/or DAW - I understand the convenience of this, but if I want a DAW, I will (and have) buy a dedicated unit with the specs and features I want. As for a USB interface, I have been constantly fighting with Windows updates that insist upon installing "new improved" drivers that all of the sudden render my USB audio programs useless until I either reset parameters or downgrade to an earlier driver. If I need digital out, SPDIF into my Focusrite works just fine for me without any drama or BS.


    Simultaneous Rigs - I understand how this could be useful and desirable, but can't this already be achieved via a created profile that recorded multiple amps? Being able to blend your own profiles in Kemper would be super cool, but how much would that super cool function cost?


    Updated Screen - I agree, the current screen is classic German spartanism at its best. It works well, is very legible and is easy to use on a darkened stage, but it doesn't add a premium experience to a premium piece of kit. I could live with or without an upgraded screen.


    Improved Effects and added Loops - I am not Dave Evans playing death metal in my bedroom, so I am not an authority on stomp effects. I can understand and appreciate the desire for more processing options in a single unit, but if you need all that processing, why not just go with a Fractal or Helix? When you start piling on the effects, does it really matter if your AC30 model sounds like a real AC30 any more? Better sounding reverbs would be nice and I would probably use them. As for drive stomps, I don't use them at all and prefer to use profiles that have the gain I need. I like to hear my amps, not stomps.


    Ability to Profile Amps with Multiple Distorting Points and other Devices - Now this is something that I would really like and would be very useful and I think could be done in software. Put me in the YES PLEASE! camp for this one.


    As for the future of the hardware, it is a modular design, so it may be possible to make some upgrades at a reasonable cost in the future by upgrading cards. However, I think by the time those hardware upgrades are needed, the current platform will require a complete redesign.


    These are just my personal observations based upon how I use my Kemper. I realize that other players have their own unique needs which may need many of the requested updates, so I am hoping some of the more experienced Kemper users here can open my eyes to some new potentials I may be missing. Regardless, I am quite happy with my Kemper as is and it still suits my needs better than anything else out there. Sorry for the long-winded rant. Thanks for reading!