Do i have a defective unit?

  • Hello, fellow KPA users,
    It´s my first day using the Kemper and i really need to know if there is anything wrong with my unit.
    The first time i plugged my guitar cable into the unit, it sounded horrible, lots of fizz and crackling noises, and they seem to oscillate whenever they want to.
    Another thing, every factory patch sounds horribly distorted, muddy, or shrill, and i mean every single one of then, even those with ´clean´ as part of the title. Is this supposed to be normal?


    I have already

    - Listened through the headphone jack and through the main out (KPA -Motu 828 hybrid mk3 - reaper)

    - Perfomed a system reset (supposed problems remain intact)

    - Tried different guitars

    - Tried other devices with the same listening aparatus (interface and headphones) - Sounded normal.


    Please, any opinion is highly appreciated


  • Is your Input light going into the red? If your pickups are too hot you might need to lower the clean sense setting on the input page.


    That doesn't sound like a little clipping, but it is something I would check first.

  • Check input and output led's, they have to remain at max yellow, if one of them is fixed on red then you're clipping

    "Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" Serghei Rachmaninoff


  • I had this and the fix was a flash memory format. Contact support for details.

    I will, thank you, sir.



    Check input and output led's, they have to remain at max yellow, if one of them is fixed on red then you're clipping

    Yes, they hit yellow sometimes but seldom red. Both clean and distorted senses are at 0.0, gain is at 0 eq is flatted out volume at 1.
    Even with the top three sections bypassed, it sounds bad.


    Is your Input light going into the red? If your pickups are too hot you might need to lower the clean sense setting on the input page.


    That doesn't sound like a little clipping, but it is something I would check first.

    Both at 0 , man.

  • Sounds like the cab block is disabled. Contact tech support, but also check 1) That the Cab light is on and that it's not locked. 2) that on your output settings you don't have the speaker emulation disabled (I forget the name that KPA uses for this setting, but it's in the "Master" section I'm pretty sure, although Iit might be under rig or system).


    Otherwise it really sounds like it's clipping like a crazy mofo. Definitely not right.

  • Sounds like the cab block is disabled. Contact tech support, but also check 1) That the Cab light is on and that it's not locked. 2) that on your output settings you don't have the speaker emulation disabled (I forget the name that KPA uses for this setting, but it's in the "Master" section I'm pretty sure, although Iit might be under rig or system).


    Otherwise it really sounds like it's clipping like a crazy mofo. Definitely not right.

    Cab on or off, it sounds terrible, still. And the cab simulation is not turned off.

  • Lots of questions instead of answers, sorry:


    1. Which OS version are you running? (Press & Hold "SYSTEM" and then go to page 9/9 and look for "KPA Version")
    2. Which guitar(s) are you using, which Pickups (very hot?, active?), any kind of gear connected between guitar and KPA?
    3. Have you reduced the MASTER VOLUME?
    4. Have you done a System Reset to factory default values?
    5. Have you read the wiKPA document provided by viabcroce?
    6. Have you contact Kemper support?


    Cheers,
    Martin

  • No problem, man.


    1- I am using the latest Firmware 1.6.0, sent by the very support team.
    2- Ibanez RG1527 with blaze neck/custom , RGA 8 with Lace Deathbars
    3- If you mean the soft knob, yes. I also turned inputs and outputs down.
    4- Yes. Did not do any good.
    5- Reading as we speak.
    6 - Refer to 1, please. :)

  • Ok, Lace Deathbars are known to have very high output. Have you tried to dial them down to some barely audible minimum? If you still experience this horrible distortion or clipping, even with a "clean" rig ... I would send the unit back (i.o.w. get another, new unit in exchange) and let others track down the issue.
    The KPA is not a device, someone should have to mess around 2 days or more to get it working as expected. It should be a "wow" experience right out of the box ... as it was for pretty much all of us here. :)


    Cheers,
    Martin