New Kemper User - Stage - Convince me?!

  • Hello, I'm Alex, from the Netherlands. I teach and play guitar for a living.


    After much deliberation and somewhat careful consideration and research, I finally bit the bullet to join the Kemper family by purchasing my first Kemper product and decided to go for the Stage.


    On the one hand I would be using the Kemper in the studio most of the time and strongly considered the Rack for this purpose. But for reasons of practicality and because I sometimes do play "out", to not at this time having to invest in two+ seperate Kemper products fulfilling essentially the same purpose, I decided upon the Stage, albeit somewhat hesitantly.


    I am a longtime digital product user, coming from the Digitech world. I used the 2112/2120 way back when (still have it!) and then the GSP1101 (w. Control2 fc).


    Today I unboxed the Stage and my first couple of impressions are what got me here.


    • Observation #1: the first thing I thought was: did they really glue some kind of stickers onto the chassis? This does not look sturdy or durable to me at all. :/
    • Observation #2: are the... are the knobs really some kind of plastic? No, it couldn't be on this 1600E good old German quality product... But I would swear they ARE plastic... X/
    • Observation #3: the jack sleeves on the back, is that... more kind of plastic AGAIN?!?! On a STAGE device? Where jacks are being plugged in and out ALL the time? Where someone might accidentally in fact step on a jack plug in which case I want the plug, NOT the input on my device to break first? X(
    • Observation #4: when rotating the 'stepped knobs' (browse, type) I was immediately transported back to my Digitech 2120 days where worn out knobs reduced the functionality of the interface. Will these knobs outlive my purpose for this device? ||
    • Observation #5: this being 2019, and having heard many good things about the Kemper, I gave the digital realm no second thought as I considered it a no-brainer that ANY device, especially one with a stripped down device-interface, is nowadays shipped with a fully functional editor for Mac/Win. Observation #2 got me visiting this forum and reading up on stuff, only to discover NOW that the Kemper upto now ONLY was released with Rig Manager software and to my complete and utter MIND BLOWIFICATION, *NO EDITOR*?!?! My friggin' GSP1101 even has a well-functioning editor, what =O the heck?? ;) I'm in it for SAVING time, not spending more of it.
    • Observation #6: on this forum I read about many 'teething' issues with the stage. When ordering, I thought it a given that a company with the reputation of Kemper and especially a German company, would self-evidently only release with stellar quality control. But here I am reading about completely unnecessary bugs and hardware failures. :/


    So here I am now. Looking for encouragement. ;)

    I WANT to enjoy my 1600 euro purchase. :)

    I WANT the Stage to work in my studio and in live situations.

    I WANT to *save time* and headaches and just plug, play, create. 8)

    I WANT to trust that the announced editor will actually arrive this month (seeing as they targeted summer 2019). X/


    What would you advice?

    Should I return the stage and go for the rack after all?

    Or should I just enjoy the product, confidently expect updates and have faith that the 3yr warranty will help me out if something would actually fail on me?

  • Welcome to the forum! Kemper will stand behind the product, of that I'm certain. The editor will be out very shortly, so hang in there. You've not mentioned how it sounds. I've been a Kemper user for well over 7 years, and would not go back.

    Go for it now. The future is promised to no one. - Wayne Dyer

  • Welcome! I have a Toaster and totally happy with it. As for the Stage, remember it's a brand new product for the company along with OS7 that it's running on but Kemper's reputation for taking care of customers has shined through for many years.:thumbup:

  • I think all the thinks you have mentioned are just teething problems due to new product and new FW. Kemper are a great company and look after there customers as well as making sure there products are fit for purpose. Once these little issues are ironed out I’m sure the stage will be an even better product than it is already. I remember when I first got my toaster kemper nearly 8 years ago, there were issues with these eg LED’s dying, FW having bugs. But these all got sorted and the kemper became what it is today, IMO Andy industry standard for both studio and live use

  • Have a gander at this. It should make you realise quite quickly why the profiler is the best...?

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  • Hi and welcome.


    I’ve had the kemper powered rack and remote for 3 years . Sounds great, works great and couldn’t be happier. If the stage is half as good as the product I have and all the support and upgrading of software I’ve experienced in that time, then I truly believe you have a great product.


    Even though I have real valve amps I do tend to go to the kemper more and more for both versatility and sound. But like anything in life it’s all about personal choice so you will have to make your own mind up as time goes by.


    Someone would have to pry my kemper out of my cold dead fingers....

  • I’d have researched more before buying and then realising the lack of an editor. Many many threads on this.


    I’d also have probably gone for the head or rack if your main use is studio.


    However, beyond this I personally think the Kemper is by far the best sounding and feeling digital device out there. The support is also amazing and the updates rock.


    I bought my power head around 6 years ago and wasn’t at first convinced but with some time it became easily the best purchase I’ve made in over 25 years of guitar playing

  • You bought a new product that was just released five minutes ago. Some have experienced hardware issues, and the upcoming editor is not available yet. Also, you've highlighted some design elements that you don't like.


    I have a toaster and the remote. It costs more than the stage, but is convenient for both studio and live. And the remote, not having all the Stage / Profiler related plastic stuff, is built like a freakin' tank. I love this thing, and I've been buying gear since the 70s.


    My advice?


    Return the stage and buy a head / rack plus a remote. It's clear you're not happy with the stage, and 1600 is too large an investment to be immediately unhappy. As everyone has already pointed out, all of these other products have been battle tested for years and are rock solid. You'll spend more money, but you'll be happy with what you bought.


    If you decide to keep the Stage, you'll need a mindset that is willing to deal with 1.0 teething issues. I'm guessing from your post that this sort of thing won't be an enjoyable experience for you. There's nothing wrong with not liking the Stage design, or being unwilling to deal with new product issues. It's only wrong to keep it if you know that's going to bug you, and it sounds like that's the case.


    The Kemper is an incredibly cool guitar amp system. Buy the version that'll work for you. You'll really enjoy it.

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

  • Have a gander at this. It should make you realise quite quickly why the profiler is the best...?

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    I can't wait for Glenn to start profiling his amps. His ear for tone alone tells me he will have some amazing profiles coming.

  • Hi Alex,

    I have had some of the thoughts you are having. New to Kemper and getting cold feet reading about and experiencing some flaws in the software.:/ Have been in touch with support and they have responded immediately and were very helpful. And all of the fellow Kempeneers

    here know their stuff and have proven to be a great help also. For me I am looking at the Stage at what it is. A great sounding piece of engineering what will make your tone come to live and is so much easier to dial in then the competitors. And I have tried them all. After a few days you will get to know your Stage and will only be happy you have switched to Kemper. They say relax and enjoy, and I think you should. Dial in your tones, get acquainted and please your ears, for that is what it's all about. And it looks to me that it's roadworthy enough. Time will tell, but I don't think Kemper will let you down when it comes to solving issues, might there eventually be some.:thumbup:

    Have you updated to OS 7.01B already?

    Greetz,

    Martijn

  • I love my toaster, but I am completely with you wrt the physical design issues for the stage-model. The Kemper-stage as is would never work for me. Its flimsy unprotected controls wouldn't last a week. The guts of a Kemper head or rack would almost fit inside the old Kemper remote. That with controls from a tablet/phone via USB, bluetooth or network (wired+wireless Ethernet) would make more sense, and leave a much more robust floor-unit.


    With OS7 and its new approach to FX-presets and rig-selection the KPA will be easier to configure from it's front-panel than most of its competitors. I do therefore understand why Kemper has put so much effort into the physical interface. That said, in this time and age there is really no excuse for not offering a full-featured remote-control-application ... multi-platform even (ios/android/windows/macos). Multiple windows with drag-n-drop of effects from slots in one rig to another. Drag and drop from collections of presets. GUI's do offer a lot of opportunities a physical interfaces can not. Who wants to bend over a floor unit for hours while setting it up? Nearly all of those I know who use the KPA in studios would prefer to stack the unit(s) somewhere out of sight with remote-control.

  • Not to be rude or anything but if you have played through any of the profilers then you would not need convincing. You either get excited by what you are experiencing or you are not. None of us can tell you what to feel about a piece of equipment no more than you could convince me that other brands are good or bad. It's all down to the playing experience. For me, just ten minutes playing a BM F-Man 100 profile was enough to convince me. After that I was sold... Oh and by the way, welcome. :)

  • Hi Alex,

    welcome to the family.

    The Kemper is a great tool .Enjoy it!

    Kemper Head - Kemper Remote - Palmer Box with Kemper Kone - TC Electronic BAM200 - Laney LFR 112

  • Welcome on board !


    ...switch off the mind, relax, plug and play !

    Enjoy of it ...for think about editors knobs and modify your sound you'll do tomorrow

    ...if you'll have time: I spent more weeks to enjoy of sound and only play guitar!


    PS Mainly ALL amps use plastic knobs and...Keep it far from your wife : she will try to get it out of window....


    Ciao :saint:

    Edited once, last by Farko63 ().