Help. Frustrated. Kemper Kabinet isn't my solution.

  • But I'm convinced (and will soon have a chance to try) that all the hype of FRFR in plastic boxes falls apart, when the cabinet is solid, heavy and made of wood/birch.

    I am betting on the wood cabinet sounding much better. The low mids and bass will be much better.

  • I dont think anyone would be able to tell the difference between plastic or wood. Especially when dealing with a solid state head to begin with. Plus the last thing you want with any profile is a cabinet adding color.

    I don't care about adding coloration, as long as it doesn't sound lifeless as in plastic boxes. And soon I will have an opportunity to check if box material (and size) makes a difference.

  • I am betting on the wood cabinet sounding much better. The low mids and bass will be much better.

    Better is just a word. Ears will judge, they will catch nuances , texture, feel. I could add lows and mids with DXR10, but this was only more lows and mids.

  • Better is just a word. Ears will judge, they will catch nuances , texture, feel. I could add lows and mids with DXR10, but this was only more lows and mids.

    The tightness of the lows will be better with the wood cabinet. The thinner poly cabinet does not support the vibrations as well. Of course this is all my opinion from my experience with both.

  • But maybe DXR10 doesn't serve primarily as a guitar speaker, yet it is recommended everywhere.

    It isn't a guitar speaker. It's meant as a flat-response powered loudspeaker. Which is what the KPA - without a Kabinet - needs. Unless you turn the cab off and use a guitar specific cabinet.

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

  • You have many options, all of which can potentially be great solutions.


    I haven’t used any of the standard FRFR cabs so can’t comment on them specifically but they clearly work for many people and may be ideal for you too.


    I started off using my powered Kemper with a Mesa Thiele EVM12L cab and a Mesa Rectifier 212 with C90s. Both sounded great but made every profile sound very similar as the speaker and cabinet play a huge part in the overall tone.


    I also have a pair of fairly good studio monitors (Adam A7x) in a well treated room (which makes a massive difference) and they are my preferred choice for day to day playing.


    I also have a Kabinet which is amazing for “amp in the room” feel. I am likely to use that as an on stage monitor if we ever get back to gigging again post COVID but I personally prefer studio monitors at home and at lower volume.


    I did some side by side comparisons between the Kabinet with an EVM12L imprint and the real EVM12L in the mesa cab. They were close enough to sound like the same speaker in two different cabinets. The Mesa cab is clearly deeper and punchier and if I was playing Metal would probably be a better choice but for my use the Kabinet is a better match.

  • I bet most of the Kemper users, don't need that, what Kemper needs. They need that raw tube sound ans feel, a grunt that can't be somehow delivered by plastic box.

    You're mixing things here. The plastic box isn't the issue. It's the mic'd cab sound the KPA sends. Unless you're using a Kone or regular guitar cabinet.


    I agree people want amp-in-the-room sound. If you don't have a Kone or dedicated cabinet then something like a DXR is going to give you the best sound for the KPA.

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

  • something like a DXR is going to give you the best sound for the KPA.

    Both "something like" and "best" are loose definitions.


    I've had DXR10 for long time and while it sounded better than KPA through studio monitors, it was far from the "best".


    I've had a Kabinet and haven't noticed "WOW" difference to DXR.


    And I still believe that plastic box is, what subtracts texture, resonance and feel from the amplified guitar tone - soon I will check it myself.

  • Which is exaclty is why I put them third on a list and was intentionally vague.?

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

  • My 2 cents brother, this are MY setups and what I use them for (or why I keep them):


    Unpowered Rack +


    1.- Headrush FRFR108 (for practice and runing the aux directly, has enough body not too much air pushing)

    2.- BAM200 + Kabinet (pushes more air than the FRFR, not so much spl, but more amp in the room, I had a PS170, sold, it sounds almost the same after pushing mids in the bam and dialing bass and treble one or 2 notches back)

    3.- 125ASX2 diy amp + 212 classic leads cab (for stereo and performing, tons of amp in the room vibe)

    4.- Katana Artist mkii power amp in (Also ton of amp in the room feel, a bit coloured, but I really like the speaker)


    I enjoy all of my setups, for different ocassions, anything you do like this will improve your playing experience, the easiest is the Headrush, has the lowest rating in the "amp in the room" feel, but unless you are running at rehearsal level, you wont miss the "amp in the room" too much. Now, if you reaaally want air pushing, you can go the PS170/200 with a 4x12, but will be costly and sound muffled unless you turn up that volume. There is no right answer, really I enjoy all of these, surprisingly enough, I am using the katana artist more and more, after taming the waza speaker on it, it sounds like the best 112 or 212 (it sounds way more full than a 112) I ever had.

    The answer is 42


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