Posts by dougc84

    An alternative solution is to pick up something like a MacBook Pro and upgrade the RAM and hard drive to a solid state drive. Don't worry about those specs right out of the gate.


    Depending on the interface and display you plan to use, and depending on the year it was made, the Mac Mini will probably need an adapter for the display (they used the old Displayport connector - my old Mac Mini's lying in a bin because I can't find a monitor to plug it into anywhere). The one I have also does not have Thunderbolt capability, which could be a problem (my monitors are all Thunderbolt now).

    dmirale - this is a flat-format or conversation-style forum, whereas reddit is a reply-only forum. Most individual web site forums are in this format where it's a chain of replies. To reply to something someone else said, select their text and click quote, or the little quote icon in the bottom right of each post to quite that entire post. You can quote multiple in a reply, just be aware of formatting.


    Without knowing much about your settings and what you're trying to achieve, it's hard to point you in the right direction. I'd suggest possibly checking out some premium/commercial profile makers. SinMix (http://www.sinmix.pl) is pretty amazing for metal sounds, but there are tons out there. Most of them offer free samples. My favorite metal profiles are the G1 Purple Nightmare profiles: http://g1productions.com/product/driftwood/ - they have a Vai-like clarity but stays tight and lean.


    I'd advise against the whole "send a DI, we'll EQ it for you" thing, because the profiles are guitar-independent. Not saying others haven't had success with it, but it seems unnecessary in my opinion.


    Finally, just so you're aware, the stuff like you're playing is HIGHLY influenced by the bass and drums. A treble-heavy sound (which is what it sounds like you have) certainly doesn't sound amazing on its own, but it's probably the perfect sound in context with other players. You don't want to blend into a mix - you want your part to stand out.

    let me rephrase this.... Never in my life have I played a gig without a monitor in front of me, or IEM's... Not once, not ever... I'm astounded by how many posts I see like this were people have never played with hearing their guitar thru a monitor...


    While it may have already been hinted at, your experiences are not everyone else's experiences. I've probably played more gigs WITHOUT monitoring (save for a shared wedge for the vocalists) than with them. Say what you want about FRFR (and I'm a fan, don't get me wrong), but a guitar sounds different going through a traditional guitar cab vs. a monitoring solution or FRFR. The point that's really different is the addition of the mic to the signal chain (and no one's smart enough to be able to replicate it without... yet). A cranked 5150 on a stage, by itself, through a half-stack of speakers, sounds very different than listening to that same sound through an SM57. Even if that sound is blasted through thousands and thousands of watts of Class D power into a top of the line matrix array of PA speakers... it doesn't sound like a set of Creambacks pushed hard. And, again, the primary difference is not the speaker, but the mic.


    The sound of a guitar through monitors, and even more so with IEMs where you're "closed off," just doesn't sound the same. I've gotten used to using modeling and pushing that sound direct to house since, well, as long as Line 6 has been around. But, honestly, one of the best sounds I ever got from Line 6 was pushing an X3 through a Vox AC-15, set as clean as humanly possible. It had the liveness of a real amp, with the benefit of being able to pull up a model of whatever I wanted, and it still sounded great. I've debated doing the same with my Kemper simply for some "liveness," but I haven't tried it.

    I could never understand the complaints about the FX section. I think the KP has some of the best sounding reverbs and delays I have come across. The leslie and the phaser is great as well. I have had Strymon, TC, Lexicon and the likes, I do not think they sound better (in fact I prefer KP).
    I record into Logic X everyday (loaded with waves, NI and other plugins) and often enough I decide to use the delay and reverb from the Kemper.
    OK, the big muff could be addressed in future updates. Tube driver model would be great as well.....


    Alex


    The delay and reverb are great if you want a simple digital delay or an almost transparent reverb. For many players, that's good enough. However, if you want an analog, reverse, or shimmer delay, you're out of luck. If you want a spring reverb or a spacious, ambient reverb (the ambient preset just doesn't cut it) that blooms or shimmers, you're out of luck. Most of what I play depends on these kinds of delays and reverbs, so I'm stuck with using outboard effects.


    No one has said they're not good. They're just not very comprehensive. It's more akin to having a Boss DD-5 and a Boss RV-5 locked on the Hall setting, which are both really good sounds, but certainly not indicative of what all players use.


    The delays and reverbs are what I'm most excited about in upcoming releases. I doubt I'll rid my rig of my Strymon stuff, but it'll be nice to have a reverse going into a shimmer for some cool effects.


    As far as things I don't like/things I want:
    - I wish the reverb was placeable/positionable like the delay is planned to be
    - I wish the amp block was also placeable/positionable. Maybe I'd like to overdrive the front of the amp with half a dozen pedals. Maybe I'd like to add 7 delays post amp.
    - More (and better, and more customizable) overdrive pedal options
    - Stereo effects (like the stereo FX loop) should be able to be placed in the stomps section and summed
    - A desktop editor
    - Some weird, otherworldly effects (see http://earthquakerdevices.com/shop/Rainbow Machine/cat/13100)

    As much as I would love for some more options when it comes to overdrives, and knowing that delays and reverbs are on the way, I really want:


    - A Mac/PC editor (a real one, not RM, and one that will work over USB, not MIDI - sorry Toaster). iOS and Android would be nice too, but I'll settle for a desktop app.
    - Some really weird effects. For an example, see Earthquaker's Rainbow Machine. It's totally not practical, but it'd be a boatload of fun to mess with.

    I would say that, at a bare minimum, all Kemper owners have a great ear for tone, and are incredibly intelligent individuals.


    I hear that there is a study in the American Journal of Medicine this month that conclusively shows that owning a Kemper not only improves your guitar tone, but also:

    • Reduces your risk of cancer
    • Makes you better looking
    • Greatly improves your sex life

    Just imagine what the benefits of the new 4.0 firmware may lead!


    When do the benefits kick in? Did I get shafted because I bought used?

    <p>Line 6 just released an editor for the Helix. Not that I want one for the Kemper. But their wheels are turning at a different speed sadly!</p>



    Not really sure why you felt the need to insert paragraph tags there, but, that aside, Line 6 is backed by Yamaha. Kemper is Kemper - a smaller company with two products, no sub-companies or partnerships. Getting a dedicated editor means development time, debugging, cross platform support, and, on top of all that, paying the developers to build the thing. It's different when you have talent you can just tell to "hey build this thing," it's another when you have limited resources and a small company.


    Yes, there's rig manager. Yes, it's cross platform. But the only update its really had since I picked up my Kemper about a year ago was the addition of performances. There's still no real editing, and ckemper has gone on record saying that probably wouldn't ever be a thing.


    There's one called Toaster that's open source and works via MIDI. Look into it if that's what you need.

    Like viabcroce says. IIRC, they said that morphing needs a dedicated pedal, i.e. it will be exclusive to morphing and you won't have the option of morph>volume, morph>wah or whatnot


    I don't use the Kemper floorboard. I use an RJM Mastermind GT. I can configure whatever control change parameter I want for my expression pedal. That means I can use it to control the volume on the Kemper, the feedback parameter on my BigSky, etc. I would be very, very surprised if morphing bogarts the Kemper's expression controls altogether (which would then overwrite volume, wah, or other stuff) and its corresponding control change parameters.

    Don't think it's doable


    And why wouldn't it be? Expression pedal, through my MIDI controller, would send a simple volume change. Change the expression pedal to send out the command for morphing and send out a separate CC. The way my setup is, I can use an expression pedal for 4 separate purposes by pressing a button.

    Haven't been on in a day or two, but a few things here:


    I don't have the data, but my guess is that the majority of those who bough the KPA bought mainly for the amp modeling and weren't focused on effects.


    I'm about 50/50 on this one. I had effects I wanted to use with the Kemper - a few overdrive pedals, a wah, and a delay. I've since gotten a reverb as well. I didn't buy the Kemper for the amp modeling/profiling solely, but it was one of the selling points over AxeFX. I was fully expecting the effects to be solid and usable; however, I continue to not use any effects on the Kemper except for the basic modulation effects, compressor, and EQ. I wish it were more complete. With the addition of the newer delays/reverbs, it will become more of a solid unit for me. But I can deal without for now.


    Although I'm quite happy with the drive Stomps (am I the only one?)


    No, you're not the only one. The stomps are good. But they're far from being comprehensive, particularly lower gain overdrives and super high gain self-oscillating fuzzes. Yeah, you can use shapers to do some crazy fuzz-like stuff, but I shouldn't have to.

    I use overdrives external from the Kemper. I plan on using morphing really only for modulation effects - Tremolo level, Flanger depth, etc. Besides that, I'd rather keep my expression pedal available for volume swells and such instead

    Check your noise gate. You might have it too low, and it's leaving in some pickup noise.


    Or it could be ground loop noise. Try lifting the ground on your output to the monitor.


    It could also be the result of a bad cable letting in interference. More than likely, your cable going to your monitors isn't shielded and is picking up electrical interference, which could come from anything from dimmable lights or bad electricity in the wall to simply running the audio cable over a power cable. Try a cable with better shielding or of a higher quality, but first, try a different cable (just in general).

    I gotta say, I never understood why there was two separate gates, instead of a single gate w/ a programmable ratio.


    I think what OP wants is more of an 8:1 or a 10:1 or a 20:1 gate. 4:1, when playing very staccato metal passages with high gain (djent stuff), is too little, even when the threshold is set properly. Setting two gates is an option, but it's really a band-aid on the correct solution, and you don't always have an extra slot available, particularly when you only have two post-amp slots to use for a gate.