Why I chose Kemper over Fractal (and all others)

  • Going back all the way to 2008...funny story.


    In 2007/8 on TGP the Fractal trolls trolled the Axe-FX Standard every day Ad nauseam as the greatest piece of gear ever that sounded "exactly" like a tube amp.


    I had been in a friends studio and we had mic'd up his Marshall TSL602 with a Drivemaster pedal in front of it and recorded a clip.

    So I posted the clip on the TGP and asked the Fractal 'wolf pack' to record the same riff on my clip using the Axe-FX Standard...after all it sounds exactly like a tube amp.

    So a few of the Axe-FX boys attempted to play the riff, not one of them could nail it, and their tones were nowhere near not even close...all kinds of excuses like my wife and kids are waiting outside in the car so I just recorded a quick attempt. :)


    In 2011, rumors were spreading on TGP that some guy named Christophe Kemper had invented a machine that could Profile tube amps.

    The Fractal wolves went berserk, including Cliff himself, impossible, Vaporware, it's never going to happen, Profiling is just EQ matching, it's never going to release, it will never sound like the Axe even if it does release, blah blah, non stop for the entire 2011.

    When the Kemper released in December 2011 guess who had one of the first Kempers in his laboratory/workshop?...Cliff. :) ...and all the updates and new models since then have attempted to equal the Kemper feel and tone.


    Moving on, 11 years later in 2019 my friend who recorded the original Marshall TSL602 plus Drivemaster clip (in 2008) decides if the Kemper can Profile his live rig, the same TSL602/Drivemaster and replicate that particular tone he'll be convinced and buy a Kemper...which he did!


    This is the original TSL602/Drivemaster clip/riff I posted in 2008 on TGP now recorded in 2019 using the Kemper Profile of that same rig.


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  • Guitartone


    That sounds exactly like what I encountered and have learned from Fractal.


    There are lots of good folks there, but there are lots of totally biased “Fractal is the best everything else sucks” fanboys that became nauseating.


    Really appreciate your story!!

  • I own both and feel that the Axe-Fx is superior. They are both good though. The difference is that I'm not a distributor for either product and don't have a financial interest in promoting one over the other.


    Maybe I'm old-fashioned but it just seems wrong to be promoting one product and bashing another if your a distributor for the former.

  • Guitartone


    That sounds exactly like what I encountered and have learned from Fractal.


    There are lots of good folks there, but there are lots of totally biased “Fractal is the best everything else sucks” fanboys that became nauseating.

    you could say the same about this forum. Lol.

  • Own both, love both. I've been warmly received in both forums. Key is to not be negative, what's the point. It bring the fanboys out on any forum. (Got to justify my own purchases/decisions=O)


    Plenty of good people on both forums wanting to help. A few jerks on both as well.


    As far as ease of use, both have pro's and cons. the AXE is undeniably more flexible, has an editor, and better floorboard integration, (easy now, JMHO) You can modify an amp as you would in real life and make Frankenstein amps that don't exist, or would burn up.


    The KPA is a matter of finding your tone through lots of profiles, or as it was intended, profiling your own amps. For those of us that never owned any of these, it can be rabbit hole. But years of KPA ownership, have made my education in what amps I prefer much more narrow. Limiting your choices as difficult as it may seems, can leave you playing more music and less profile surfing.


    My plan is to keep them both and have fun.

  • I had an email exchange with Fractal (think it was Cliff) when they had just released their first product. He was rude, arrogant, and unhelpful. I've never even considered their products since, other than trying out an AX8 when I bought my Kemper.

  • Hey Alerich.


    what Friedman BE pack were you referring to? What is your sound and style?


    Appreciate your feedback!

    The Friedman BE profiles I was referring to are contained in the MBritt Crank N Go profile pack. he doesn't offer a separate Friedman only pack. It looks like he's running a 30% off Black Friday sale through tomorrow 12/02. The amps in the pack are:


    Friedman BE-50 Deluxe Soldano SLO100 Mesa Stiletto Marshall DSL40C EVH 5150III 50w EVH 5150III 100w

    ’78 Marshall JMP 100w Super Lead Bogner Shiva Carvin Legacy V3


    There are only a few profiles each of many of the amps but a bunch of Friedman profiles in clean, BE and HBE mode. I'm a Marshall/Soldano type of guy and I like to play mostly classic rock or hard rock. I played a BE 100 once and thought it was the best sounding modified Marshall tone I had ever heard. His profiles capture it really well and that amp has a surprisingly good clean channel that he includes. His SLO 100 profiles sound better to me than any of the others I have purchased and I own a old Soldano Hot Rod 50 stack.

  • I picked up M Britts' Sweet 16 Profile Pack, Rack Pack and 65 ACE 30, 33% off with his sale.


    Great combination of cleans, mid and high gain. That plus around 10 Tone Junkie profiles and a few from Selah Sounds.... I have enough to last years...


    Do you guys tend to number or rename profiles to keep them better organized?


    Hope Thanksgiving was great for everyone. :)

  • One thing that surprises me is all of the people who do YouTube videos on Kemper, Fractal, Helix, et cetera and they still seem to have a room full of amps. I've sold five amps since I got my Kemper in April. I kept my Soldano more for sentimental purposes and a few that I built but the rest are gone. I haven't played through a real tube amp for more than five minutes since I got my Kemper. I can't see ever going back. I have a powered head but don't really care for the sound of the powered Kemper into guitar speakers. I have two Yamaha DXR10's on the floor as wedges. Sounds huge. I love this rig.

    Most people posting videos like that are trying to have a more or less succesful youtube-channel about guitar-related stuff. Having amps, guitars and tons of gear in the background is a way to create a sense of authenticity for the viewer. It just makes it feel like a guitar show, the same way they have cars in the studio on Top Gear. Or when there's fresh herbs on the table (that they never use) in a cooking show. It sells the experience.