Powered Kemper not loud enough

  • What is the best way to crank up the volume on the KPA in order to achieve comparable volume levels with a tube amp? Through the master, monitor or rig volume? having three knobs to control the volume feels a little confusing. I'm plugging in my powered kemper through the speaker output to an EVH 2x12 cab, I do have the Power boost volume activated all the way through 9. Thank you!

  • Hi @christiansectas.


    Had a bit experience of this myself in the past with my powered Kemper.


    The first thing is your cab is rated at 16 ohms. Although the Kemper can be run with a 16 ohm cab no problem it has to work about twice as hard to get the same volume you would out of an 8 ohm cab. You will have to drive the power map much harder to match an 8 ohm cab providing you are using the same senstivity speakers.


    The good news is from what I understand is the EVH 2X12 comes with Heritage G12H speakers which are 100dB sensitivity so you will get back some of the volume there compared to running say a G12M which is only 97dB sensitivity. Bad news this this cab (from what I've read) is only 60 watts power handling. Bare in mind although class D 600 watts which the Kemper power amp is is no where near as loud as if it were a 600 valve power amp it's still rated 10 times what your speakers are, so when driving this cab hard be very wary of blowing your speakers. I blew 2 Neo Creambacks rated at 60 watts each totally 120 watts running at 16 ohms doing exactly this trying to keep up with a n Engl Powerball 100 watt amp and a 4x12 Engl cab running V30's.


    Hardware wise this is where you could be running into issues, once I got a Mesa Recto 2X12 that is wired at 8 ohms, with 100dB V30's I could hold my own again due to former specs plus the high mid spike the V30's give out helps cut live.


    Things you can do to help with the volume using what you have is add a 1dB or a bit more of mid range in the monitor output EQ section that feeds your cab (red output jack on the back), that will help your sound cut more and appear louder in a live situation.


    I'll admit though, in a very similar scenario till I changed cabs I couldn't compete with a 100 watt valve amp neither, which is probably what you don't want to hear.


    Hope this helps and you find a solution.

  • Definitely I have to do more experimentation but the information you provided is pure Gold, So THANK YOU!!! But now, what would be the best way to control and turn the volume up, through the Master, the monitor out or the Rig Volume? Thanks again.

  • To be honest, to play silent with a good sound was the reason for me, to buy a Kemper.
    (and the band sang Halleluja because they could hear themselves again)
    And to have an Amp with no weight. (my back sings Halleluja every time I climb a stage)
    If you want it loud, play a tube amp.
    ;)

  • I selected my loudest tone (my lead tone in my case), made sure that the input was just below clipping and that the output was the same - either by the stack volume or in the amp block. The output light should be flickering between yellow and red, then turn it back a touch). All my other tones are set lower than this by the same manner and a good number of professional profiles come up quiet against them.


    Then, the only volume I touch is the master as it changes all the saved profiles by the same.


    I'm running a 16ohm cab, so theoretically only 300 watts but I have never lacked enough volume in a band with drums, bass, second guitar and vocals.

    Edited once, last by chu ().

  • Definitely I have to do more experimentation but the information you provided is pure Gold, So THANK YOU!!! But now, what would be the best way to control and turn the volume up, through the Master, the monitor out or the Rig Volume? Thanks again.

    Master volume. The other volumes really for balancing. Also check linked volumes as that can affect output. Uncheck them...


    You should have no problem keeping up with a valve amp but as said earlier, watch your cab limits.

  • I have the power rack and it can literally blow you out of the room with volume. If it’s not loud enough there’s some other issue going on.


    Yep. I also have the power rack, and often run it into a Marshall 1960A set to 16 ohms (which makes for a good power match with the KPA power amp, as the 1960 is rated for 300W). There's enough power available in the KPA to peel the paint off of the walls. The trick is proper setup of the various volume levels in the KPA.

  • If your 2*12 cab has two 8 Ohm speakers and ends up with 16 Ohm overall, those must be wired in series. You could change the wiring und put both speakers in parallel and would end up with 4 Ohm overall instead. The Profiler can handle 4 Ohm and delivers 600 Watt in that case. Theoretically it could even deliver more, but it has a power limiter at 600 Watt. This prevents exceeding 600 Watt and is causing short sound breaks. But as long as you stay below that 600 Watt ceiling - which is reasonable anyhow - there is no issue.