Steinberg Ur22mkii and the Kemper

  • I'm currently using this interface and it sounds horrible. Low, muffled and icepick highs but the headphone out from the Kemper is fine. I'm using a ts cable from the main out into the first input on the ur22mkii. Has anyone gotten a decent headphone sound out of this unit?


    Is this a limitation of the headphone amp on the interface and should I look at a new one or would an xlr cable improve the sound? This interface does not have spdif.

  • I'm currently using this interface and it sounds horrible. Low, muffled and icepick highs but the headphone out from the Kemper is fine. I'm using a ts cable from the main out into the first input on the ur22mkii. Has anyone gotten a decent headphone sound out of this unit?


    Is this a limitation of the headphone amp on the interface and should I look at a new one or would an xlr cable improve the sound? This interface does not have spdif.

    I had this unit UR22 for a while...Sounded very good But I think you got the wrong culprit... Give us all the chain.... KEMPER -- TO UR22-- then what soundcard? and what amp ? and what speaker?....


    If you got shitty speaker for instance dont wonder why it sounds like sh-t and good in headphone

  • I'm running my interface via usb into my PC and using my sennheiser hd280 pro headphones to monitor via the ur22mkii headphone out. My only connection is using a guitar cable to run from the left main out on the kemper to the first input on the ur22mkii.

  • USB? no audio cards?


    I think you should get a good audio card first of all you know... And its not a question of using Spdf or not. Your problem is the lack of a decent audio card My humble opinion...

  • USB? no audio cards?


    I think you should get a good audio card first of all you know... And its not a question of using Spdf or not. Your problem is the lack of a decent audio card My humble opinion...

    I'm not sure I'd even have enough room on my motherboard with how big my graphics card is. Shouldn't audio over usb be sufficient in most cases?

  • I'm currently using this interface and it sounds horrible. Low, muffled and icepick highs but the headphone out from the Kemper is fine. I'm using a ts cable from the main out into the first input on the ur22mkii. Has anyone gotten a decent headphone sound out of this unit?


    Is this a limitation of the headphone amp on the interface and should I look at a new one or would an xlr cable improve the sound? This interface does not have spdif.

    I've had UR22s and always got great results from them. I'm fairly confident it's just a configuration problem to be sorted out.

    I'm running my interface via usb into my PC and using my sennheiser hd280 pro headphones to monitor via the ur22mkii headphone out. My only connection is using a guitar cable to run from the left main out on the kemper to the first input on the ur22mkii.

    Which DAW are you using, and how are you routing in and out? Also, in the output section of the Kemper, what source are using for your mains?


    Additionally, the UR22 has a Mix knob on it - how is this set? And are you using input 1 or 2? I ask because input 2 has a high z button.

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10

  • I'm using reaper right now, guitar straight into input 1 on the interface. Reaper is setup to use a mono in from input 1 and stereo out back through the interface. I'm using a single cable to connect the kemper to the interface and I had it set to stereo out. I switched the master to mono out and it sounds somewhat better. It's not on par with the Kempr by any stretch but this might be the best it's capable of. Mix is full on daw otherwise I can't monitor other tracks when recording.

  • The UR22 is an audio interface, so there's no need for an additional audio card.

    Yes there is coz he use USB and that sounds bad usually . Anyway the problem is not the UR22 as he was suspecting that the problem was the UR22 he was picking the wrong way to find a solution. So the next thing in the chain to check is the USB even if you disagree

  • I'm using reaper right now, guitar straight into input 1 on the interface. Reaper is setup to use a mono in from input 1 and stereo out back through the interface. I'm using a single cable to connect the kemper to the interface and I had it set to stereo out. I switched the master to mono out and it sounds somewhat better. It's not on par with the Kempr by any stretch but this might be the best it's capable of. Mix is full on daw otherwise I can't monitor other tracks when recording.

    Your mix is 100% DAW, so the first thing I would do is turn it to 100% Input side and play guitar. That should give you a good representation of what's coming into the UR22 from the Kemper out. If it sounds bad there, it's probably cable or input gain settings.


    If it sounds better panned to Input than it does panned to full DAW, that tells you the sound coming into the interface is good, and there's something about coming through Reaper that's the issue. Also, while positioned at 100% Input, adjust your gain knob and note where the optimum level is. And while I don't think that it would affect sound quality, be sure that +48v is turned off on the back.


    Another thing that needs clarification is the scenario in which it sounds bad, which I neglected to ask about - monitoring or playback of recorded tracks?


    If you're at 100% DAW, are you talking about sounding bad as you monitor your playing? If you record and then playback the track, how does it sound then - the same as when you're monitoring your playing, or better / worse? If it sounds okay when playing back a recorded track, but not good while monitoring, then you need to look at Reaper's direct monitoring settings. I use Cubase and have no experience with Reaper so I'm of limited use to you there but it would indicate that something's not set right in Reaper and that's what's affecting your sound.


    By the way, back when I used the UR22 for tracking, I would set it at 50/50 between input and DAW and mute direct monitoring in Cubase. When monitoring through software it's going to introduce latency, which really distracts me. With 50/50 I could hear the direct signal of my guitar with no latency, as well as the backing tracks I was playing through.


    Get back to me with the info from above and we'll keep beating on it until you get it sorted.

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10

  • Yes there is coz he use USB and that sounds bad usually

    With respect, that's not been my experience. I get excellent quality from both the Steinberg interfaces as well as the Yamaha TF mixer (which offers a USB interface), and people also do well with offerings from Focusrite and others.

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10

  • I am getting the wavy chorus like effect that can happen.

    That's a very worthwhile thing to note. My guess is that what you're hearing is two signals coming into the interface, one with more latency than the other. That would certainly give you comb filtering, the chorus like effect you're talking about, as well as phase cancellation that can cause frequencies to disappear.


    Run those tests and let me know what you find out, but I'm guessing that the output from Reaper to the UR22 is somehow merging a couple of different routes of your guitar to the output. It would be great if someone who has experience using Reaper could chime in.

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10

  • I think it's fixed for the time being. I uninstalled my drivers and daw, then did a clean install. Phasing issue is gone and it sounds *much* better.


    Thank you everyone who helped!

  • The UR22 is an audio interface, so there's no need for an additional audio card.

    One day he'll need to record a voice or other instruments than Kemper right? So a good pre amp an audio card will be usefull for a pro result. But if its a hobby then of course Ur22 and cubase and USB thats ok

  • One day he'll need to record a voice or other instruments than Kemper right? So a good pre amp an audio card will be usefull for a pro result. But if its a hobby then of course Ur22 and cubase and USB thats ok

    Oh, there's always room for more gear! :) And the PCI stuff is an excellent choice for many environments. I went that route myself for many years until the USB offerings were ready for prime time (and you're right, back in the day they weren't).


    That said, the UR22 has two mic pres, and they're solid quality, very transparent. They also support phantom power so you could track vocals with a U87 if you had one. Naturally, with a transparent pre you won't get the coloration of outboard gear like Neve, Api or SSL, but those are creative choices, not requirements for quality work. Also, the mic pre is only one small part of a pro result. Gain staging, input chain, the mix, the mastering and of course the quality of the musicianship all factor in, just to name a few. If you know what you're doing, you can absolutely create radio quality work with this and many other USB audio interfaces.


    That said, once upon a time your assessment of USB interfaces really was closer to the truth. Back when they were first starting to come out, many USB products didn't measure up to something like an RME PCI card. These days, however, there are lots of excellent quality interfaces out there. USB can be a factor in terms of overall bandwidth to be sure, although I've tracked 32 channels simultaneously without issues. Beyond that it really has little to do with USB - it's all about the quality of the converters.


    In my studio, I have racks of SSL mic pres as well as some Neves. My audio interface that gets things to my PC is my Yamaha TF5 mixer, via USB, which appears as 32 ins and outs in my DAW. When I track vocals, I typically run mic -> Distressor -> SSL / Neve -> mixer channel (flat) -> DAW. The Distressor and SSL / Neves are for the characteristics they impart. I've also tracked vocals straight into the mixer. The quality of the resulting vocal track is just as good, it simply doesn't have the seasoning from the compressor and mic pre. Yamaha is among the mixers you'll see at FOH in 50,000 seat arena concerts, so they have some experience with quality mic pres. My point is that USB connectivity is completely irrelevant in this scenario. Good is good, bad is bad, and both can use USB.


    The only reason I'm mentioning all of this (beyond the fact that it's just fun to talk about this stuff with friends :) ), is to make sure the OP understands that there's nothing wrong with the interface he owns. It's absolutely capable of producing pro work as long as he's got the requisite skills and gets his configuration issues sorted out.


    Once upon a time, if you didn't have a $100,000 Pro Tools rig, you were a "hobbyist" (which, while I'm sure it wasn't your intention, is often offered as a dismissive insult, i.e. someone who is too much of an amateur to produce professional quality work). But technology marches on, and that hasn't been the case for many, many years. It's really astounding how much great gear is out there today at a price that anyone can afford.

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10

  • USB can be a factor in terms of overall bandwidth to be sure, although I've tracked 32 channels simultaneously without issues.

    MOTU rewrote the standard of what's doable here. A couple o' years ago it doubled its 32-simultaneous-ins-and-outs maximum to 64. That's 128 channels at 44.1 or 48kHz, and using USB2 no less. This, at a time when everyone else's limit was 24 channels.


    USB's audio "issues" were never about bandwidth; that was the perception (an assumption) fed by glitchy performance from many interfaces. As it happens, it was all about driver integrity and guaranteeing uninterrupted streaming.


    Many have wondered why MOTU went with USB2 and not USB3 as one of the I/O options on the AVB line of interfaces. I asked the company early on in the piece and was assured that it had nothing to do with bandwidth and that in its eyes USB3 offered no practical advantages over USB2 for interfacing the AVB line. That was when 24 I/O channels were the maximum allowed. Not long after that it upped the limit to 32 (64), and a year or so later doubled that to 64 (128).


    15 years ago or so I calculated the disk-streaming rates necessary for various audio track counts 'cause in those days it was a consideration when buying HD's. I realised way back then that USB, even spec'd as it was at that time, ought to be able to accommodate decent numbers of channels. Unfortunately it took a long time for manufacturers to realise (in the true sense of the word) this in the real world.

  • MOTU rewrote the standard of what's doable here

    Not surprising, given that MOTU has been a major player from the very early days of audio interfaces. And while I never used their stuff (back in the day I seem to recall them being Mac only) they've always been highly regarded.

    USB's audio "issues" were never about bandwidth; that was the perception (an assumption) fed by glitchy performance from many interfaces. As it happens, it was all about driver integrity and guaranteeing uninterrupted streaming.

    Perception and assumption are major players in this area.


    In a previous lifetime, I ran a sales training / consulting company. I frequently recommended that clients raise their prices to increase sales. Naturally, that made their brains reboot, but perception is reality. People assume a more expensive product is higher quality than a cheaper one, as well as the reverse, and I made a lot of money playing to that assumption.


    Steinberg did the same thing with Nuendo years ago when they wanted to be taken seriously in the post market. They tripled their price from $800 to $2400 while adding zero new features (and I should know, I was a Nuendo user at the time), and a couple of months later all the trade magazines were effusing over this great new entry for pros in the post market. But when it was only $800, it was widely dismissed because it wasn't serious, "professional grade" software.


    In a similar manner, USB audio interfaces are colored by assumptions of price and quality. "Oh, that inexpensive USB stuff is just for hobbyists, it's not pro quality." I can assure you, if the interfaces cost as much as the average Pro Tools hardware upgrade, there would be a completely different perception.


    There's also the matter of elitism. When something's expensive, only a few can afford it, and it's valuable. If the price drops to the point where mere mortals can afford it, it's instantly labeled as inferior because now you don't have to be special to own it. Or more specifically, ownership no longer increases your status, so you go in search of the next expensive thing that does. Human nature is reasonably predictable. :)

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10