Posts by MKB

    I've been able to successfully implement the NRPN's for looper control in a 8 button prototype footswitch using an Arduino Uno. 6 buttons are for the looper, and I added Delay on/off and Tap. It was very simple using the information from this thread:


    How to get the looper working with any Midi Device


    ...and this arduino midi library:


    https://github.com/FortySevenEffects/arduino_midi_library


    I also added a midi in connector and implemented a midi merge so that the looper pedal can be placed in series with the midi out of a FCB1010/Uno4Kemper, and the looper functions will be added to the 1010 control. The prototype works extremely well so far with its board switches and FCB1010, but I need to install it in a floor pedal.


    The code is still incomplete but I can place it on dropbox for download if anyone is interested. It wasn't difficult and would be an easy build if anyone has a few electronics chops. I'm not that great a coder, but found it surprising how easy it was to do.

    This is a sincere question. Why couldn't you just ramp up enough manufacturing so we could all just get the remote without having to wait 1/2 a year or more? Its kind of absurd and frustrating.


    I've had around 30 years of experience designing and performing manufacturing engineering on equipment somewhat like the Kemper pedal, and there are several reasons that deliveries could be delayed, many have already been mentioned. It is possible that the present pedals are being assembled in a facility with limited production capabilities while that or other facilities are being readied for higher volume production. And it could be that the preproduction run did not anticipate the volume of sales that actually happened, so another batch is being built, and that takes time. It is not unusual for a company to have 6-8 week lead times from the manufacturer, and delays in delivery can increase from there.


    It is also possible that some of the parts used in the pedal are on backorder, this is somewhat out of Kemper's control. That delivery time may get tacked onto the 6-8 weeks, if it is a critical part then the build cannot happen until the parts arrive.


    The fit and finish of the Kemper gear I have seen is as good as anything I have ever seen anywhere, all the way down to the detail of the labeling on the chassis. My toaster is basically perfect, the only weak issue is the print on the serial number label. It is not easy to find a shop that can make and finish metal parts to such a precise standard, especially in small quantities. So that could be another bottleneck.


    I am sure in time the footswitch will have its manufacturing delays ironed out and the supply will stabilize. But until then we can expect some intermittent delays. Perhaps the Kemper profiler had these same issues, but it took a while for it to catch on in the market, so the delays may not have been as noticeable.


    I can guarantee you that the folks most concerned about the delivery delays are the Kemper people themselves. Someone is probably get a good chewing out right now if they have so many customers wanting product and it isn't available to sell.

    If you aren't averse to modifying your guitar, make sure the volume control used with the high output Tele pickups is 500k, and not the stock 250k. Nothing will suck the tone out of the highs of a humbucker more than running it with a 250k pot.


    Another thing that might help is to install a no load tone pot. I recently had a SSL-5 in my Strat and it had a muddy high end. Installing a no load tone pot made a huge difference in the trebles.


    All that being said, I have found a number of stock Kemper profiles that sound sparkly with the 57 Classic humbuckers in my LP and Epi ES-175. Many of the clean AC-30 profiles, especially Top Boost profiles, can get nice and bright with humbuckers.


    One band I play in is an ABB trib band (Idlewild West, shameless plug) and I do the Duane stuff and keep trying different profiles trying to hit the At Fillmore East tones (as I recall, Duane used a '69 or '70 Super Bass with, I think, JBL- loaded cabs, not exactly standard Marshall cabs), I've gone through through a bunch of profiles, Marshall Plexis, Super Leads (though I have yet to try r-u-serious' profiles, I will audition them tonight), also the PRS DA, but turns out the closest I found was the freebie Marshall DSL40, which I also just happen to own and was using just prior to buying my Powerhead. Maybe I'm biased, but with some tweaks it gets pretty danged close.

    Another little factoid I thought I might mention, to add to the discussion: my "Dickey" partner in the ABB trib band uses a meticulously-tweaked Digitech RP-1000 into the clean channel of usually either an Egnater Tweaker 40 or a Mesa Nomad 45 and he gets great tones (sounds like crap when he goes direct from the Digitech, however). He really likes the Kemper, but he is happy with the Digitech/amp combo and doesn't want to shell out the bucks. Just goes to show more than one way to skin a cat. :)


    FWIW, back when I was still struggling with Line 6 gear and Marshall tones, I also had a Logidy EPSi impulse response unit. It had in it a IR for a 4X12 Marshall cab with JBL's. For grins I took the Line 6 XT Marshall model, disabled the internal cab, and ran it into the EPSi with the JBL IR, and it got very close indeed to the Fillmore tone. I played it for quite a while and was surprised. The JBL's have a unique treble response that is critical for the ABB tone, the Celestions of that era were too crunchy sounding in some cases.


    If someone has a good Direct profile of a Marshall Super Bass 50 (for Duane tones) and a Super Lead 100 (for Dickey tones), and pair this with a 4X12/JBL IR, it might start getting close. I haven't had a chance to try this myself but plan to if I ever get the time.

    Thanks for all the welcomes. I've used the Kemper for a practice and three performances so far, with a FCB1010/Uno4Kemper. There is simply no comparison between the HD500 and the Kemper. The Kemper is astounding in every way, especially in tone and feel. I became a power user of the HD500 (never even used the computer editor) and tweaked it incessantly for over 4 years, never finding a Marshall tone I really liked. I had the Marshall tone in my head in the Kemper in under 30 minutes, and that is straight out of the box with no previous experience (it was a mbritt profile off the Rig Exchange).


    One might be well advised to consider the cost of all their tweaking time needed for Line 6 HD products in the calculation for justifying the cost of a Kemper. With a Kemper, the tone is just there. And all of this is with factory profiles; I haven't even gotten into any of the 3rd party profiles yet. I'd be perfectly happy with the few I've gotten from the stock profiles so far. But a few Michael Britt packs are definitely in my future.

    Thanks so much to the OP for posting this information. It got my wheels churning and now I'm working on a project to make a simple Arduino based box that will access the looper functions through midi. So far it is looking to be simple (6 buttons and a handful of other parts) and might be a good project for those just starting with Arduinos. If anyone's interested I'll post my progress here (might be a while as I'm too busy gigging and recording with the Kemper).


    Thanks also to mortl for sharing his footswitch project with us, it has been inspirational. DIY Midi-Footcontroller .. With Tuner AND Looper

    AFAIK one thing the stock FCB won't do is stompbox mode, where the LED on a switch will turn on and off when it is alternately depressed (like a stompbox of course), also pressing a switch will not affect the last one you stepped on.


    Programming the FCB1010 can be an incredible pain, especially without a PC editor. It can be done, but it's just really tedious and can get confusing.


    If you have access to an EPROM programmer, you can download the Uno chip hex file from the Uno web site, program an EPROM, and put it in your FCB. The Uno will do stompbox mode, but again it is a pain to program.


    The Uno4Kemper chip is really worth the money, it works very well and needs no setup. After fighting the stock FCB and a Uno equipped one with several other midi devices, spending hours upon hours programming, just plugging in the Uno4Kemper and it working right upon powerup was a revelation.

    Hi all, just got a lunchbox this week, it is indeed a great sounding unit. Have been gigging with modelers almost exclusively for the last 10 years, and have been so frustrated at all the lost time trying to tweak good tones from the Line 6 gear. In the short time I've used the Kemper, it is promising to be a killer product.