Dual amps ?!

  • I was just sitting here messing with my Klon clone pedal and it gave me an idea for the possibility of a dual amp method for the Kemper. It may have been suggested in the past but here is the idea that I have had. Since we have the rig manager and it is becoming a powerful tool. This would probably involve a bit of design but would give us the ability to have two amps in a sense. The rig manager could be used to process two amps together into a new single amp. If we had the option to set mixing between the two during the creation process it would open up unlimited options. By using the rig manager to perform the work as well would bypass the Kemper and therefore allow the process to use the computers CPU and memory instead of the Kempers DSP. This does seem like there would be a lot of heavy lifting to be done to be able to get RM to generate the new amp but with RM it seems to me that we have the tool to be able to accomplish the process. I wish I had the tech knowledge to get into more detail on how the mixing and creation process would work. If nothing else it seems like a good point of conversation.

  • I like your idea. Since everything is 0’s and 1’s in one way or the other, I could see it being achievable. But is it realistic? Probably not. I don’t have the insight of the tech world either, but I believe, that if a Kemper MKII at some point appears in the future, it will have to contain enough new elements to become relevant. There might be something in the line of this in the future business plans. I mean….dual stuff of some sort. So from a business perspective….why would it make sense to implement a solution like this now?

  • Maybe they could make a profiler in Rig Manager that profiles, profiles. An inception profiler of sorts where it basically profiles itself via rig manager. This would also be great for us that make one tone out of say, a couple of distortion stomps and an eq or two. Consolidating space for other effects . I would love this. I suppose also if you had 3 profilers this might be possible but in Rig Manager there could maybe be a consolidator of sorts.

  • For that kind of development, Rig Manager will cost you about the price of.... a profiler. Those changes require a complete recoding of the KAOS from the code for the DSP to X86/64 architecture and I very much doubt Christoff is going to devote that kind of man power unless it involves building the KPA V2.

  • For that kind of development, Rig Manager will cost you about the price of.... a profiler. Those changes require a complete recoding of the KAOS from the code for the DSP to X86/64 architecture and I very much doubt Christoff is going to devote that kind of man power unless it involves building the KPA V2.

    Exactly my thought. I also highly doubt that. And I don’t see why they should “kill” a potential KPA 2 with that move. That would just mean, that the gap between the original and the MKII will be even smaller. And with the stuff they keep doing to it, it’s still a nice piece of gear.

  • Exactly my thought. I also highly doubt that. And I don’t see why they should “kill” a potential KPA 2 with that move. That would just mean, that the gap between the original and the MKII will be even smaller. And with the stuff they keep doing to it, it’s still a nice piece of gear.

    IF a KPA2 was a focus there have been many things to have held back, like the current RM itself and the Stage unit. I have not seen anything that points to a push towards a KPA2. In fact the latest release of the Quad Cortex shows that the Kemper as is still competes head to head with the other leading units out there.

  • Yes. It still very much competes with the alternatives out there. I agree. And I don’t see a KPA 2 on the near future either.


    But I disagree upon your statement otherwise. The dual thing will be a giant leap compared to RM, which was something that we all expected to be implemented. Not that the RM didn’t demand serious development. Of course it did. But comparing doing a software “partner” for the hardware and doing a completely new dual thing is not really fair imho.


    That is….IF they implement some sort of dual stuff at some point. But it’s where the world of guitars have been for quite some time. Dual rigs/cabs. And IF they want to implement some sort of dual stuff, they won’t back down on their own expectations regarding a solution, that will set the standards going forward. Just copying others or doing a halfhearted solution is not really their thing.


    And why does the Stage unit rule out a KPA2? Can’t see the logic in that. It’s something the world wanted from them. They did the floorboard first and it was a success. With a dual solution, it’s not enough to “just” create a new platform for the already existing firmware. Doing a dual solution will probably demand way more from them to make it reach their own expectations of its use and its competitiveness regarding all the alternative solutions out there. They don’t just make something halfhearted. You must know that as a Kemper user.


    But it’s definitely an interesting idea, you brought to the table. My guess is that the tech guys in the company already discussed all these possibilities about their existing units though.


    One of the reasons I love the Kemper is the value of my money. Had it from the beginning. And now it’s a completely different beast. It has evolved greatly within its limitations. Slowly but great. So its value has been really good. And when/if a MKII appears one day it will probably be the same.

    Edited 2 times, last by b_ryan ().

  • Yes, the idea would involve a good amount of heavy lifting to pull off. With the current RM a lot of pieces are already there to use. We already have a platform that allows the KPA to interact with the computer and allow what is going on to be heard, that piece right there would allow the process to use the computers resources. The application also allows us to interact with the various pieces of the signal chain like the amp. This would not be a case of a ground up design, there are pieces already in place.


    As far as my comment about the Stage that is just one more thing they could have held back if a KPA2 was on the radar. Kemper has made itself one of the best units out there because they have not held their innovations back.


    I am sure this has been discussed in house before and I have even scene threads requesting, putting it nicely, to have dual amps before. I just wanted to offer a suggestion on how it could be done instead of making noise that it isn't there.


    I agree with you that the Kemper is an amazing tool. I have only been on board since 2019 but I love the convenience and amazing tone, even if I do gravitate to only a couple of patches (love the MBritt Dumble). I still check all the time for the newest update to see what new amzing things we are getting. I did think about trading it one time to get the QC but that only lasted a couple of minutes.


    At this point I am not sure what else they could add to the Kemper as far as actual audible improvements, we have the fuzz, OD, modulation, tones , what ever it is I look forward to finding out.

  • I think that you are missing my point. Even IF it was possible to do dual stuff through RM, I highly doubt that they would do it, as it kind of eliminates some of really the big new things, they probably are going to make a potential MKII a justifiable purchase. That is a huge step compared to floorboards and RM that relies on an existing unit. Take away dual stuff and what can possibly justify a potential KPA MKII? Probably a lot that we haven’t thought about. But from a business perspective, would it be a good move to do this, IF they plan on doing a MKII at some point?


    I don’t totally agree about them not holding back. And you only being a user since 2019 kinda explains that. You have no idea on how much time and how many years we’ve been waiting for stuff like the RM when everyone else already did it years prior. And even a non-toaster version. They DO take their time indeed. But is it a bad thing? No entirely. They make sure, they only release good sh*t. But it’s kinda holding stuff back until it’s ready. I don’t think you have any idea on how long we requested RM. It was a loooong time. And suddenly out of the blue, it was there.


    And yes….it has been asked for on many occasions throughout the years and has been shut down from Mr Kemper himself. It’s not possible with the Kemper as it is. But your suggestion is indeed very interesting. But as I said….I highly doubt that they are going to take away the probably most significant and justifiable argument for even making a MKII in the future.

  • I think that you are missing my point. Even IF it was possible to do dual stuff through RM, I highly doubt that they would do it, as it kind of eliminates some of really the big new things, they probably are going to make a potential MKII a justifiable purchase.

    My initial post is not limited to KPA or a KPA II, this is an idea to get that functionality and that is all. This would not even be a hurdle for a KPA II either since this would not be a true dual amp solution only a way to essentially create a new profile out of two existing ones. In a true dual amp setup you would have the control to pan each one left, right, center, change volume levels independently which is just not going to be possible here. This more for doing things like creating an Adam Jones Tool tone from the correct VH4 and Bassman amps. If there is a KPA II then I would imagine, like the counter parts out there, you could just drop the two profiles in the signal chain. Every chain I have ever seen regarding dual amps has always had at least one person in it shooting it down because it could be a selling point for a KPA II. A feature like this could be implemented on any version of a KPA since it would not rely on the KPA's DSP.


    Making sure something is solid before release is not holding back, that is good QC. Having a completed and tested product and not releasing because you can bundle it in something to force you to spend more money is holding back. There is a LONG list of other companies that do that.


    Now as for me only having a Kemper since 2019 does not make me ignorant of what has gone on in the digital world. I have embraced the tech since the Line 6 Flextone amps were new, I have had a Helix and an AX8. I came over to Kemper only because I got tired of always tweaking and tone chasing on those units. The Kemper had been solid and insane sounding for the 7 years before I got one.

  • Yes….it is indeed an intended business strategy as well. Think of mobile phones, televisions, cars etc. If they put all they have in the basket, they will not have that much to put in the product in a few years. I guess that we agree, that Apple and Samsung does have technology in their possession, that they haven’t put into their devices yet. Why haven’t all cars have all the safe tech installed yet? And so forth. It’s business. I’m not sure that Kemper is like that. But it’s indeed holding stuff back until the right time appears. But how do you know? And since you’ve been a user for a little over a year, you haven’t been following Kemper and it’s development closely for more than that. So I would guess you wasn’t here on the forum prior to that and that makes you someone that has no clue about how much time it took for Kemper to do RM for instance. When you came aboard the RM was just released and you haven’t experienced the long wait and people requesting it. You have no idea even if you have been using other solutions out there. For you to state that you know, would demand you’ve been a part of this for many years. Being a user of digital solutions in general is not an argument other than you liking digital solutions.


    Yes…your OP was not about a KPA or a KPA2. But it logically becomes a question about what is smart if they implement a dual solution. Suddenly the gap between the original and the KPA2 becomes marginally reduced. Do they want that? I don’t know. But I wouldn’t presume so. It doesn’t matter how you put it down. It’s still a dual solution and the gap becomes less significant. If your logic holds up, I am a wizard regarding digital solutions as I’ve been using digital solutions for almost 20 years. The first being Protools in 2002 and Line 6 Guitarport and original Pod from around the same time. That does not make me knowledgeable regarding the Axe-FX. I know of its existence and what it can do and the different units, they’ve done. But have I followed their company closely to be updated on their product? No. So really I have no clue about, how long development takes at their HQ. But since I’m a digital wizard I can just buy one tomorrow and within a year I can claim, that I know what users after 10 years have experienced? It’s not to sound arrogant, but it doesn’t really hold up in real life.


    I actually have requested something very similar once. Didn’t focus mainly on the RM though. But I did suggest a solution, where one could take two profiles and merge them together and save them as one and go back and redo it, if it didn’t turn out great and keep repeating the process until the goal is reached. So I guess it’s kinda the same, since it cannot be done within the KPA itself.


    Anyway….it wasn’t to start a discussion. It was just to give you my thoughts and limited knowledge.