How much do you tweak?

  • Hi guys,


    I got a Kemper like a week ago,

    Loaded in profiles (M.britt, tone junkie, Amp Factory etc) and there are very few profiles that I am satisfied with as is...


    So I wondered - How often do you tweak your profiles? To what extent? Which parameters you're tweaking the most?


    Cheers!

  • Welcome, have fun here in the forum and with your Kemper! :thumbup:8)


    That's a classic question you have there. Try to use the search functionality of the forum to find some similar threads from the recent past :)


    Personally I do not tweak too much. I have my big handful of goto profiles which worked well quite from the beginning. Tweaking starts with some more specific needs, e.g. less gain, a bit more body. I very often use the Definition control. Clarity and Pick here and there. As stated in another thread I always put an EQ in the X slot with high and low cut.


    And remember if you do tweaking (or sometimes audtioning) of profiles then please do this at rehearsal volume or at least loud enough. Bedroom playing / low volumes can create some false impression of profiles due to a loudness effect sometimes (Google: Fletcher/Munson if you like for further explanation).

  • Agreed. I tweak little if at all. Definition and EQ primarily. If a profile is so so, perhaps changing the cab helps. If it is horrible I waste no time; I just look for another profile that suits me. And I try to test profiles thru headhones, monitors and a cab.

    Never too old for rock'n'roll

  • Agreed. I tweak little if at all. Definition and EQ primarily. If a profile is so so, perhaps changing the cab helps. If it is horrible I waste no time; I just look for another profile that suits me. And I try to test profiles thru headhones, monitors and a cab.

    Are you tweaking the EQ on an Equalizer like a graphic eq or on the "Amp" eq? or is it just hi and low cuts?

  • I massively tweak them. Like, a lot. I look for potential from a profile NOT necessarily one that is ready to go, because I haven't found that yet. I've been playing tube amps, well, my first amp was a tube amp at about 12 years old so, 40 years. So I think I'm pretty good at getting a proper tone. I thought I was gonna throw up the first week I got the Kemper because I thought everything I heard was crap but after getting to know it, I don't think it can be beat. Just remember It's the sound of an amp Mic'ed up not "in the room." good luck.

  • Just remember It's the sound of an amp Mic'ed up not "in the room." good luck.

    Great point and that's something some missunderstand when they buy a kemper at first . And it's a matter of how it sounds in a band/mix content that matters first and most. And that profiles that sound great in solo usually don't work together in a band/mix. Solo I love darker tones but they never work in a mix. Too muddy. Tweaking? I usually never tweak at all. At the most a very few steps on treble and presence at the most.

    Think for yourself, or others will think for you wihout thinking of you

    Henry David Thoreau

  • It is a good idea perhaps to make folders in the manager for live use and others to record with, and/or duplicate rigs to adapt them for either purpose. Some vendors lean towards live work and you may need some low cut and perhaps some extra definition or presence, esp when you replace a Strat with, say, a Les Paul. I have folders with favorites per guitar. I find It useful. You may copy n paste or simply move them there.

    Never too old for rock'n'roll

  • does clicking load profile count as tweaking ?


    basically I almost never touch anything except removing most effects and replacing bog delays and reverbs with something more subtle. Even then I tend to have a basic reverb that I’m happy with just locked in the Rev slot so I don’t even tweak that much.

    :thumbup: I'd bet that our kempers are very similar (apart from the obvs. visuals)!

  • Hi @YoavHanuka and welcome!

    Coming form the Fractal Axe-Fx where I used t tweak a lot....like a lot, I was surprised how little I needed/wanted or have to tweak since I've go the Stage. Not better or worse just a different way of doing things.

    Anyway, I've found a profile that I liked and the only thing I did was to lower the Bass a little the Amp. I always look for a profile that is 'right' for me. I f yo need to tweak a lot it's better to move to the next one.

  • Some people will advise you to not tweak profiles at all. That method definitely works for some and might work for you. You just gotta find what works for you


    For me personally, I've gotten the best results by tweaking profiles. If I were you, I'd try tweaking the Definition, then Presence and Treble, then Mids and Bass. I'll occasionally tweak some other parameters but those are the main parameters I'll always need to tweak. And if tweaking those parameters didn't work out, try swapping the cab to a different cab section. Try saving a few cabs as presets, from a few profiles you really like the overall sound of. And then try swapping the cab section and see what happens:)


    Honestly, in my opinion, the cab section you use will make the biggest impact on your tone. The Cab is underestimated and in my opinion shapes a huge part of your tone. So try experimenting with that a little bit and see if you can get good results.


    One important thing I would suggest is to only tweak profiles that are at least close to the tone you're after, or profiles that you really like something specific about (gain structure, response, feel, etc). I've wasted a lot of time trying to dial in a profile I thought was only okay, just seeing if I could get the tone I wanted out of it. And most of the time I can but, it'll take more tweaking than was worth it. Most of the time I'll get the best tones when the profile doesn't need so much tweaking. Sometimes I won't even need to tweak it and just changing the cab section makes all the difference.


    So the people in the forum saying to not spend too much time tweaking a profile and to not waste time on profiles you aren't vibing with, definitely have a solid point and it's very valuable advice ^^ It'll save you TONS of time lol!

    But at the same time, the Kemper has a very powerful EQ and powerful parameters in the amp section that can shape the sound. It can be empowering to learn how to use them to your advantage :)


    Different things work for different people. You'll find what works for you ^^ Especially with all the advice and knowledge the others in this forum share with each other! And you'll have some great advice to go off of at least ;)

  • I don't leave profiles alone completely but I also don't start out tweaking much. If I have to do much beyond the definition control and mild eq I start to feel like I'm chasing my tail. My thought is "I'm not stuck with 2 or 3 sounds from the amp I have, so don't limit your thinking. Why twist a bunch of knobs? Find another amp."

    “Without music, life would be a mistake.” - Friedrich Nietzsche

  • Yes I agree with what a well known producer said, that 80-85% of the tone is the cab. Amps don't matter as much as most of us guitarists like to believe. The cab and how it was miced matter more. If a profile is good I sometimes try another cab and see if it suits me better. But the profile(s)need to be done very good. Otherwise it won't help swaping cab. It still will be a mediocre profile.

    Think for yourself, or others will think for you wihout thinking of you

    Henry David Thoreau

  • I don't tweak much but for a different reason.


    I'll make a change and think is that better? Its different but not sure its better....I used to have the same issue with Mid on a valve map...never knew how to set it.


    So I go with my gut, my initial reaction. Does it sound good, yes or no. If not, I don't always know why so i move on.


    I have stated before, I have crap ears. I'm not deaf just don't have the ultimate tone in my head and know how to get there.


    Its like wine to me. I know what I like and what I don't but I don't naturally analyse why, so I move on. Tweaking for some people is enjoyable and part of the experience. For me, searching for sonic nirvana is not fun, just a means to an end. Hence why I'll never make a good sound engineer....I have no drive for perfection :).


    Ultimately there is no right or wrong here. The KPA is very tweakable, many of the parameters are powerful or subtle but its also very good off the bat, so I think it makes us all happy :)

  • I'm a tweaker, always have been. So I find a profile that's pretty close to what I'm after, then I adjust EQ a little to taste, play with definition a little, and, if it's a lead sound I'm after I almost always add some tasty delay, increase rig volume, and add a morphed pure booster just in case I need more when I hit the stage. Lead sounds almost always benefit from that, especially if you're looking for "live" rigs, which is mostly what I do.


    So to me it depends on the setting in which you're playing that dictates whether to tweak or not and how much; studio or live.

    Gary ô¿ô