Buying amps, profiling, returning. Frowned upon????

  • I have just bought a kemper and a Hughes & Ketner switchblade 100 combo to work together as a total package as the switchblade has a full midi floor board that you can use to switch the KPA and by running the KPA into the amp loop and running the guitar straight into the KPA then you have the ultimate rig. So as I see it KPA's will not reduce amp sales they will only enhance the way we use our amps at home on stage and in the studio. The KPA is the gel that can bind a lot of gear together to work in a more dynamic way.


    Hi!


    This is quite interesting.


    I also have a H&K switchblade 100 (the very first version of the Head, I know there are new models) which I use with various cabinets, such as a Mesa Boogie 2x12 Black Shadow, a 2xV30 Framus, a Thiele Small cabinet with 1 EV EVM 12L, or a very large cabinet with a 40 years old 15' Pacific loudspeaker, and I find that it is a very fine amplifier by itself. However, I would have thought that it would have too much gain for using with the KPA the way you use it. So I'd be very interested to know what are your impressions with it.


    Also, can you easily program the floor board to work with the KPA ? Mine is a FSM-432, with A B C D Up Down and Tap switches, and a 7pins midi. I'm not sure that with it you can easily send consistent program changes to both the H&K and the KPA. May be yours is different ? Or maybe you use only the H&K as a power amplifier, and the program changes have no effects on the amplifier section (but only the preamp section) when you switch programs ? Let me know your configuration and your findings (may be in a different thread!).


    Best regards.


    Jean-Jacques.

    Edited once, last by meow461 ().

  • The debate definitely sparked some emotions and some good, productive discussion. I think I'll stick with the rig exchange and encourage any/all KPA users to dig into your closets and storage spaces and keep those profiles coming! :thumbup:

  • Hi Jean
    sorry I have only just picked up the gear but according to my reading it will work fine as you can send midi messages from the amps midi thru outlet and if the amp and KPA are set to omni then when you click on the FSM-432 a midi message will be sent to the KPA and this will select a rig that has been saved to that midi preset 128 of them. Also I intend to use an A/B switch on my guitar feed so that I can send the signal either to the KPA or to the guitar input on the switchblade and then on the switchblade preset have the loop selected or not so that by clicking two buttons one can go from the straight switchblade preamp without the loop & KPA or defeat the switchblade preamp by selecting the guitar signal into the KPA and having the loop selected.
    It will take me a few weeks to get it all sorted but when I do I will post a full set up of what I am doing , heck it might not work and sound like crap! but I reckon this will work.
    Regards Rob

  • The debate definitely sparked some emotions and some good, productive discussion. I think I'll stick with the rig exchange and encourage any/all KPA users to dig into your closets and storage spaces and keep those profiles coming! :thumbup:



    This was the intent for me personally. I want to see what peoples reactions are to the idea, because lets be honest, it is going to cross alot of peoples minds. Going to make a dent in the market of people buying and returning amps? I personally highly doubt it, but it is worth the discussion in my opinion.

  • This was the intent for me personally. I want to see what peoples reactions are to the idea, because lets be honest, it is going to cross alot of peoples minds. Going to make a dent in the market of people buying and returning amps? I personally highly doubt it, but it is worth the discussion in my opinion.


    Agree+1 :thumbup:

  • I think, on a positive note, that it will create an opportunity for more amp manufactuers to create full range frequency response amps designed to respond to the KPA. There is a need for a 2 x 12 coaxial stereo combo amp with some real balls for amp modeler/profiler users. I hope to see that market grow. Its all about change...we still need amps, just a different type.

  • Just my opinion


    I think it's wrong to borrow a new amp knowing you'll take it back...


    it's also not really fare on the shop or center, and it makes the amp B stock, so selling for a bit less and used... not moral at all in my opinion


    I honestly don't think we need more than we really have available at the moment anyway.... I could get by for the rest of my life with what we have already :) and I really mean that.


    Steve

    Leg em down and yackem smackem

  • I might have done the buy and return years ago, but I'd feel too guilty these days given the state of the economy. Most towns have a rental company or maybe a small studio that rents amps, so that's an option if you really feel the creative need to make your own profiles.


    Honestly though, there are so many great profiles available of amps that I'm never going to see even in a Guitar Center or anywhere else in my lifetime, that I don't see the need of me ever profiling an amp myself. I have pretty good ears, but I will never profile an amp like And44 and some of the other famous profilers on this forum, so why bother? As far as profiling an amp to my liking with different tweaks, the commercial amp profiles And44 does have several different variations that cover any knob twiddling I would do anyway.


    As an analogy, I love good coffee, but I see no need for me to grow my own beans, harvest them, and roast them when there's a Starbucks every 200 feet. If you hate Starbucks, then insert your own preferred brand in its place. ^^


    The only real amp I still own after having my Kemper for several months is my trusty Fender Champ, and that's mostly for sentimental reasons.

  • Absolutely. Some things are clearly wrong, and this is one of them. :thumbdown:

    Go for it now. The future is promised to no one. - Wayne Dyer