Posts by eric86

    Has anyone tried a Wet/Dry/Wet setup with a cab (either powered or with the Kemper Powerhead) providing the dry, and active monitors on either side providing the wet left and right in stereo? Does the mix of FRFR and "amp-in-the-room" sound odd in the context of wet/dry/wet? This would be purely for home use...

    I'm considering using the Kemper with my Fractal FX8 in 4CM to make use of some of the FX8's stereo delays. I've not used the Kemper's loop before - I've only ever put the FX8 in front. I have a couple of concerns that maybe you will have some input on -


    1) Will I have issues with latency? Running from FX8 (Pre) - Kemper - FX8 (post) - Kemper seems like a lot of D/A & A/D conversion, and then there's some internal latency on top of that which may or may not be noticeable. Obviously I can set this up and try it for myself when I get the chance (and probably will) but just wondering if anyone else encountered issues using an effects unit like the FX8 pre and post with the Kemper?


    2) Has anyone ever found that running your signal back and forth between the Kemper and various digital-only effects (nothing analog) has had a negative impact on the tone (ignoring latency)? This is for a recording, not performing live. If sending the signal back and forth would have a negative impact I could look at placing the FX8 entirely pre-Kemper, or entirely post-Kemper (if I really need the stereo delays etc.). Or would anyone advocate trying to keep everything in the Kemper and avoid going out to the FX8 at all? I should say that I've not really noticed any negative impact when running the FX8 before the Kemper...


    Lastly, in case it's relevant, these recordings are being sent on to a studio for mixing but will probably have some additional processing (most likely analog, outboard gear) before being mixed.

    Thanks all for the feedback. Based on your comments it seems like the Behringer will be fine then. I was really hoping that would be the case as using the Behringer is much more convenient for me. I can record from home when I can find a few minutes here and there. To record with the Apollo would mean recording elsewhere and probably needing to take a day to make the most of it.


    In saying that, these are recordings for release, they're not demos. However the music is more vocal and keys-centred with the guitar playing a fairly subtle role. The recordings will be sent on to a studio where they will most likely go through some outboard gear before being mixed. In the context of all that, and in light of your comments, I don't think recording with the Apollo would make much/any audible difference.

    I'm looking to record a couple of songs over the next few weeks. I have a cheap Behringer UMC404HD interface at home which I'm very happy with it for my needs. My other band mate is using an Apollo Twin, mainly for vocals etc. My view (from the little I've gathered online) is there shouldn't really be much of a difference between them when it comes to recording with the Kemper. Would you agree?


    I'm not looking for any colouration from the interface - just a clean, accurate reproduction of what the Kemper feeds it. In that case should they essentially perform the same?

    With the dual amping, would you also recommend recording each amp with different mics? Or keep it consistent across both? Obviously this will be with the Kemper so it'll all come down to which profiles I choose.

    Thanks for the input. Some great info here - really appreciate it.


    In terms of the genre, it's sort of alternative/indie. Mostly piano-based with twin harmonised vocals. Songs usually have a dark/moody/hypnotic feel. Bass, drums and electric guitar play a sort of supporting role.


    I want to give the producer enough options without going overboard. I'm thinking I'll have to make a decision between recording with two different amp profiles, the same profile with two different mics (say an SM57 and a Royer 121), the same profile through different speakers (same mic or different mics), or the same profile but with two different guitars. Obviously I could combine these different approaches and record, say, a Tele through a Vox AC30 with Alnico Blues mic'd with an SM57, and then a Les Paul through a Princeton with a ceramic Jensen speaker mic'd with a 121. Naturally I'll need to use my ear and decide what sounds best, but would there be any standard advice for considering these different approaches?

    Does anyone know of any packs of a low-gain amp (e.g. Fender/Vox/Matchless) where the one amp is profiled with different individual speakers and mics? Not looking for profiles with blended speakers or mics. Want to keep them separate to blend myself. Closest I can think is Tone Junkie but their mic options are only really available as part of separate cab packs which would have to be swapped in. Mic options are probably a bigger priority than speaker options it both aren't available. Appreciate any suggestions!

    So I've used the Kemper for a few years now but mainly for rehearsing and recording rough demos. Normally for an actual recording I'd go into a studio, use a Fender/Vox-style amp, and have it mic'd. This time around I'm going to be recording with the Kemper and then forwarding the tracks on to the studio where it will go through some analog outboard gear/high-end plugins before being mixed. I'm looking for some tips on achieving a professional recording with the Kemper.


    I'll be recording into Reaper but essentially leaving all post-processing to the studio. With that in mind I'm wondering what is important to get right on my end and what do I not need to worry about?

    There will be reverb and delay provided through either a Fractal FX8 or the Kemper itself however is it a good idea to provide a dry track as well?

    I typically use compression in my signal chain although the compressors available to the studio will be way superior to what I have. I assume I can still use a little compression on my end and have additional compression applied after if necessary?

    Any thoughts on double-tracking with different amp profiles/mics?

    I'm also considering recording some stereo delays although I'm not sure if it will be used in the final mix - I assume these can be summed back to mono easily enough if necessary?


    The guitars are mostly clean to slightly overdriven. Basically any tips you have to improve the quality of the recording as a starting point are much appreciated!

    Have you both tried to select "Kemper amp" and physically disconnect the cable from the Profiler Send to the reference amp input? How could you possibly hear the reference amp now?

    Hi Burkhard, I just tried this yesterday and when I do there's silence. No reference amp or Kemper. Does this mean whatever the issue is relates to the XLR return to the Kemper? I know the DI box output is working fine as I use it between a keyboard and mixing desk without any problems.

    I have experienced exactly the same thing when profiling, direct profiles and studio profiles… And I believe that all I am hearing on both reference and kemper push buttons is the reference amplifier…
    This is very discouraging for me as all of the videos on YouTube show people compare a reference amplifier and kemper in the final sound - proving of how close it profiles… I don’t know if there is an answer for this but I sure would like one.

    Hi Squarehead. Did you ever get to the bottom of this? I haven't tried profiling in a while and was going to try again this week. Searching around here and elsewhere I still haven't found an answer to this...

    I came across one or two threads were people suggested using the Radial Cabbone to switch between different cabs with their powered Kemper. However no one seemed to mention that the Cabbone spec states it can only handle 300 watts. Is there a risk of damaging the Kemper using a cab switcher like this? I don't if any cab switchers in the market that can handle 600 watts.


    Although, the speakers I'm using in my cabs are both well under 600 watts (50 watts and 130 watts). However, i had read that once you don't crank the volume too much there is no real risk of damaging the speakers (typically I'm playing at bedroom to rehearsal level volumes). Is it the same with the cab switcher then? Once the volume isn't excessively high it's safe to use?

    Hi all,
    Hoping you can help. I've been trying to do some direct amp profiles and mostly it's worked fine. However for some reason where there's an option of comparing the kemper to the reference amp, that is i) when setting the return level before profiling, and ii) when comparing the sound of the kemper compared to the reference amp after profiling, I only ever seem to hear the reference amp.


    When setting the return level, no matter what it set to, the volume between the kemper and the reference amp is identical.
    After profiling, when switching back and forth between the two during the refining stage, there is no sound difference. At first I thought this was due to the Kemper doing an incredible job at capturing the sound of the reference amp, however when I adjust the parameters (e.g. Clarity, Pick) there is no audible difference to my ears, even at extreme settings. The other thing I noticed is that if I adjust the real eq on the reference amp during the refining stage, I can hear the sound change on both the "Kemper" and "Reference" sides. This has led to me to believe that all I've ever been hearing during profiling is the reference amp. It's like i can't hear the Kemper at all.


    What's interesting though is it is capturing the profile. And I receive no errors at all. If I save it and hook up the Kemper as normal, I can play the profile back and it's pretty close to the original, although slightly different.


    I'm hooking it up as follows -
    Guitar -> Kemper Input
    Kemper Direct Out/Send -> Amp Input
    Amp Speaker Out -> DI Input
    DI Thru -> Speaker Cab
    DI Out (XLR) -> Kemper Return (XLR)


    In case it matters, the amp is a H&K Triamp Mk2 head. The DI is a BSS AR-133. I've set the DI to -20db.

    It's okay - I'm an idiot. As paults pointed out I was using the wrong output (should have been using the speaker out with passive monitor). Checked this morning and now sounds perfect using the speaker out. No sign of any damage to the kemper luckily.


    Thanks to everyone for their help!

    So I just picked up a used Kemper power head and Matrix Q12 (passive). I'm going from the monitor out to the input of the speaker. Both the input and output levels are fine (very occasionally flashes red but more or less always green) however once I strum hard I get this clipping/overdriven sound. It's sort of harsh/fuzzy and doesn't sound right. This is across all rigs. Reducing the master volume, rig volume and gain doesn't seem to improve things - the overdriven/clipping sound still remains if I strum hard. Also the overall volume level is fairly low. Reducing clean sens doesn't make a huge difference either. And I've got the cab enabled on all rigs.


    I've tested the kemper going from the speaker out into a real cab with all settings the same and the overdriven/clipping sound is immediately gone and the volume is also noticeably louder. Sounds great this way. Plugging back into the Matrix cab using monitor out and the clipping sound is back and volume drops. I tried resetting general settings and it hasn't made any difference. I don't think there's an issue with the Matrix speaker because I played through it with the kemper a week earlier and it sounded fine.


    I'll try the speaker using something else to make sure it's not faulty. In the meantime are there any other settings I should be looking at?