Only 1 profile works well for gain and I've had my Kemper for 2 years

  • Now this is not a Kemper bash - I am sure there is something wrong with my setup that I just can't nail down.


    I have tried thousands of profiles both commercial and not, and the only ones that don't have weird overtones or sound outright muddy are the Choptones MAR900 profiles. Even their other profiles sound strange to me now.


    I'm using a Zoom UAC-2 with the gain knobs at 0 as I was told to on this forum. They were up before but I had problems then.


    I'm using Yamaha HS-5s and K240 headphones.


    I have multiple guitars.


    On this computer, not only the Kemper but also software like Helix Native and S-Gear sound muffled and bad.


    Plugging the kemper direct to speakers or headphones gives a slight clarity boost, but still not like other peoples' youtube videos.


    I cannot figure it out. Clean sounds are no issue. Gain sounds are just not clear and often have some weird overtones like bees in a can or something.


    It's really driving me crazy. Any ideas?

  • Gain sounds are just not clear and often have some weird overtones like bees in a can or something.

    Can you make a recording of a Kemper Factory Rig (with no edits), and post it? Please use a relatively common guitar or type (you mentioned you have several).


    Doing that may help people give you some suggestions, because we can compare how that exact same rig sounds when we record it.

  • Sound test


    Actually these profiles don't sound bad in terms of overtones, but they are muffled. You can hear the MAR900 is way louder and gainier - but that's the point. It came loud and clear. No other profiles come that way.


    1971 Mars Golub Crch

    GB - Diesel VH Four

    MB - Kranker Rev Jr 1 8

    Choptones Brit 900 2CH EL34 - no effects

    Choptones Brit 900 2CH EL34 - with effects



    Done with a Les Paul with Duncan Custom.

  • Through my speakers, the Golub has a similar amount of high end (with lower output and higher gain) as the official ACDC video of that song on youTube. The 900 is much brighter than the ACDC song.


    You indicated other digital amps sound muffled - Does the ACDC song sound muffled through your speakers, too? My guess is that the issue can be improved with some of the below tweaks:


    Are your monitor speakers aimed directly at your face? Do your speakers have tweeter level controls that can be turned up a bit?


    Does your soundcard have some kind of global EQ or room compensation that is set to be dark sounding?

  • For the monitors, it's ear level and direction. Can't adjust them though.


    Turning down rig volume does make it less clear.


    I'll have to check out the original song through the setup tomorrow.


    I kinda get the feeling most users here are going for the recorded song level of clarity where it sits in a mix, whereas I'm using it to practice guitar as a solo instrument and want lots of presence and clarity. Maybe my goals are just unusual?


    To me all the factory ones just sound like there's a blanket over an amp to me, or like the amp is in a completely different room. That said, a lot of classic songs also have that quality to them.

  • What I could hear in your sound clip is not muffled sound, but a room effect dominating the scene.

    This is probably what you called „different room“.

    Please check in the OUTPUT menu, if you have accidently turned up the „Space“ Effekt.

  • The Choptones sound very bright to my ears too... I really like the others, a bit less the Kranker. I also had some issues of experiencing muffled profiles in the beginning. I had to crank up definition as well as treble and presence. I play almost exclusively through headphones. I had Audio Technicas and switched to the Beyerdynamic, which improved things dramatically (I know that plenty of people here are very happy with the Audio Technicas though). For my taste, there were just too much low-mid frequencies with the Audio Technicas.


    With time and experience (and with help from people in this forum), I also noticed that rig volume plays a huge role. The frequencies at louder volumes are not the same (Fletcher Munson). Try and increase amp volume (within the amp block) and rig volume. This made a huge difference for me. I disregarded so many profiles because they sounded so dull / muffled at a first listen. This lead to another "problem" though: I had to go through all my +2.000 profiles again :D


    I hardly need to adjust definition and top end now. I only play single coil guitars though (my Les Paul is getting dusty), and I would image that increasing top end would be necessary with humbucker guitars.

  • Instead of turning up nearly every rig you hear to make them as loud as the 900 rigs, you may want to consider turning the 900 down to match the output level of the Kemper factory rigs. To ensure you don’t lose the sound that you already like, do a “save as”, And make a copy that is quieter than the original. Then, you can turn the master volume of the KPA up, and you may find out all rigs appear to be brighter.

  • Hey guys you lead me in the right direction to diagnose a major issue: my monitors!


    I have to fool around with the headphones still, but I looked on the back of my HS-5's and noticed I had the high trim on -2b. Turning it to 0 made it much better. I also increased the volume on the monitors themselves and that also seemed to help. I'll keep fooling with the monitors and see if that is enough.


    Thanks!

  • Also a quick fix to remove mud is cut low mids around 300hz. But first, are your monitors elevated and aimed off the table? Preferably on iso pads as well. You might be hearing table reflections that cause a boomy/muddy sound.

    Thanks for writing. I will try the eq change.


    As for my monitors, they are about 1 foot below my head level, but aimed at my head. I'd need to buy a new desk if I were to elevate them more as there is a shelf that blocks them from being raised. I am using rubber door stoppers under them to angle them toward my head. If I lower my chair though, where I am directly level with them, there isn't a big difference.

  • Thanks for writing. I will try the eq change.


    As for my monitors, they are about 1 foot below my head level, but aimed at my head. I'd need to buy a new desk if I were to elevate them more as there is a shelf that blocks them from being raised. I am using rubber door stoppers under them to angle them toward my head. If I lower my chair though, where I am directly level with them, there isn't a big difference.

    If I'm reading this right they're on the table, not raised off it? That will definitely give you some excessive low end reflection from the surface even if you angle them slightly. I'd recommend getting something like these to separate them from the table:


    https://www.thomann.de/gb/mill…top_monitor_stand_dm2.htm


    The tweeter should be at ear level on those.


    You can try and see how much of a difference this would make, if you position your speakers on the edge of the table, so there's no table surface in front of the speaker.

  • I can't seem to find the "Mar900" on their website. Is their pack called something else?