Posts by JimmyK

  • Your Honest opinion on Kemper as a live rig

    Quote from szykman

    do you used your kemper output on a return loop or in front of the amp? already notice that much pick attack but did not related with the loud volumeyou may try a class d amp or tweak the clean and distortion sens....

    The signal went from the monitor output to a poweramp and then to the cab. Also gave the engineer an xlr of the main out, and sent me back my guitar signal to a side monitor on stage, so I was hearing my guitar 50/50. Whenever I plug the kemper into a guitar head, I always go through the fx return, in order to avoid having a doubled preamp section.


    I've tried different ss poweramps and cabs, many profiles and different guitars and pickups but this unnatural attack and punch is always there. It's nice at the cleans and the crunch sounds, but at the leads this weird pick attack is really annoying. I only get this strange feel at high volumes, don't know why...Maybe I should try my mesa 2;90 with it, but the whole point of the kemper was to lighten my rig haha...


    I also messed with clean and dist sens with no results.


    I'm glad that someone else noticed the same thing, because I started thinking I was crazy...Maybe they tried to make the kemper very punchy to react like a tube amp but they overdid it somehow...


    I love my kemper for studio use, but I think for the gigs I'll go back to my classic tube rig...except if someone comes up with a solution to the problem...

  • Your Honest opinion on Kemper as a live rig

    Had my second gig with the KEMPER last night. On stage I used a real cab with a solid state poweramp (monitor out), and and monitor (main out). No mic used, just sent from main out to FOH. Sounds very nice and clean, but when at loud volumes (-20 db and more) it FEELS strange. It doesnt behave like a normal amp, tube or solid state. It has too much pick attack (I experimented with the parameter, doesnt change much), the transient is unnaturally strong and in your face, it has an unnatural "punch" but without the real depth of a pushed tube head. That happens with all profiles. The pick attack is so strong and unnatural that thins out the notes on the high strings when soloing.

  • Best Volume pedal?

    Hey Keith, I use Boss FV-50L at the loop of the Kemper, it's affordable and compact, gets the job done perfectly, does not affect the tone at all and does not cut the tail of the effects (perfect for swells etc). Before that, I 've been using it for many years with other amps/rigs and it's still like new. The only disadvantage is that you need two cables to use it that way.

  • Lead Tone Problem - HELP - Problem remains

    Update: Problem remains.


    At last night's rehearsal, plugged the kemper into a different poweramp, different cab. Tried with the same guitar (strat), and even brought another guitar (prs custom 22) which is much more fat-sounding. After 10th-12th fret the sound thins out at high strings, even with the Prs. So, it's clear that it's Kemper that causes the problem.


    It's a bit dissapointing, because I have perfect cleans, mid-gain and crunch sounds. Even the leads are good if you don't use the high strings.


    I have exactly the same problem which is described at this thread:


    Best way to Fatten up my lead tone


    "So I was really happy with my Rhythm, Cleans sounded great, Crunch sound great really great, but my lead tone just sounded a bit thin.
    But on the high strings up the neck, it might be hard to explain.


    Around the 12th fret the notes start to thin out and looses body. Like I have turned up the treble and lost Mid and Bass."


    Unfortunately, it can't be fixed with eq. Tried everything, if I reduce treble-presense or use more bass/mids the sound and the feel just gets worse, and remains thin and weak.


    It happens with every profile I tried for high gain leads, at least 20-30 Direct Amp and Studio profiles, most of them commercial from the well known sellers but also some free ones.


    Also tried with pick attack and definition, but nothing. Maybe it's a general bug of the Kemper when playing loud with real cabs?


    The problem occurs only at high volumes with poweramps and real cabs. The input and outputs are always green, so there is no clipping.


    Other similar threads describe the same problem here


    Sound at gigs lead and rhythm???????


    Help with high gain highs.


    When I play at home with the same rig at moderate home-volume, the lead tone is just fine. Maybe it has to do with the output of the Kemper when it is set high (If i remember correctly i was at -20 db and the poweramp is 150W mono)??


    Please help, it's a pity. I love my kemper and this problem is the only thing I've found that keeps it away from perfection :(

  • Lead Tone Problem - HELP - Problem remains

    Hello, to everyone, I'm using the Kemper through a solid state poweramp through a real cab 4x12. I play with a strat with a SD JB on the bridge.


    I have great cleans, and I've found some very good direct profiles for mid/high gain crunch-rhythm tones.


    During my band's rehearsals (that means we are at relatively high volumes) , during solos, especially when going high after the 10th fret on the high strings, something weird happens, the sound becomes thin and weird, it's almost like having the "direct mix" parameter on at 4 or 5, but it's on 0. It's hard to play, imagine a thin lead sound blended with the direct sound of a bridge hambucker at 50% :P No power, no fat singing tones.


    Very weird because the rhythm sounds are the same profiles and sound very natural when playing rhythm, chords etc. When I was playing with tube amps with the same guitar I had almost the same rhythm tone but the leads where full and normal, without unnatural situations like this.


    I tried reducing treble/presence or reducing pick attack but the problem remains, and the sound becomes quite muddy.


    Does anyone has experienced such problems? I made a search and found a few threads that mentioned problems like this (they were talking about "thin fizzy sound" on high strings, not exactly what i'm saying but...) Any help appreciated, thanks


    EDIT: I dont have such problems when playing with studio monitors at home or recording. Only through real cabs and at high volumes.

  • Best DI Marshally Profiles for use with a real cab LOUD?

    Quote from herruchs

    My favorites in this case are the merged ones from Bert Meulendijks "F-man" Pack. There are some highly usable profiles included.

    Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't like his studio profiles (I ve tried the free ones only), they are too "generic" to my taste, "mix ready" but with lack of character and punch I think. Maybe I'm missing something good though, because I see that many folks suggest them.


    For anyone who cares, yesterday at the rehearsal I checked a few direct amp profiles at high volumes with a real cab. I play with a strat with a JB on the bridge, and the Kemper goes through the return of a randall head (solid state) through a randall 4x12 cab with gt75s.


    The best profiles were Suckerfreegears Cameron Aldrich (indeed it is a great DI profile), and Game of Tones' Friedman Butterslax DI profile. Those two were really punchy, with deep and tight low end and clarity.


    Next to these was a free Aldrich di profile from eleveneleven studios, not as good as the first two (a little more muddy and loose) but nice one and free. At low volumes it sounds identical to suckerfreegear's profile, but when loud it's quite different.


    A nice one also was mfolet's free Steve Stevens friedman profile, good and tight but a bit muddy.


    Also tried Mattfig's friedman BE, did't like it very much, more "loose" bass and not so aggresive.


    The worst ones were Top Jimi's Friedman BE and Brown sound merged profiles. Although the respective studio profiles are great and probably my favorites for this marshall / friedman tight gainy aggresiveness, the merged ones were a dissapointment at high volumes.


    Next Tuesday I'll try some more and come with updates if anyone is intrested to the topic. It's easy to find great studio profiles, but for us who prefer real cabs and moving air behind us its a bit more difficult.

  • Best DI Marshally Profiles for use with a real cab LOUD?

    Hello friends, although I've found tons of great profiles for studio use, or use with a real cab at home - appartment volumes, I struggle to find any great marshally (you know any Marshall, Friedman, Metropoulos etc) medium/moderate/hi gain DI profiles to use with a real actual cab in high rehearsal/gig volumes. I'm after the Doug Aldrich / Steve Stevens /Phil X kind of tone.


    I tested many commercial studio/merged/di profiles that sounded great at home, but at high volumes they were really bad!


    Any suggestions of such profiles? Free or commercial I don't care, but I'd like to get feedback from fellows that have tested the profiles in high volumes with real cabs.


    Thank you!

  • New kemper owner searching for the best high gain sounds

    Hello,


    the best tight high gain tones I've had so far are Till's Jvm, Michael Britt's Friedman BE, Michael Wagener's Metropoulos 67 from free ones, and Reampzone's Dual Rec from commercials. Really punchy stuff! You should also check rig exhcange, there is plenty of great high gain tones there!

  • Better live sound with your Kemper

    Quote from SQUAREHEAD

    I understand what you’re saying Jimmy, but in my scenario, when the sound guy is screwing up my tone, it comes right into my in ear monitors and my playing suffers because of it

    Fair enough. I just realised through the years that the tone we enjoy as guitar players (I personally like too much low end for example) sometimes may not be the ideal for a good band mix. That's why I prefer to use a cab on stage to get the exact guitar tone I like to hear with no concern if it "cuts" well (big ballzy low end and mids, less treble and presense) and leave the rest to the sound engineer, but this is just my own way of doing it. Cheers!

  • Better live sound with your Kemper

    The sound guy will always win this argument...If you have a good one your band will sound good even if he tweaks your sound (if he knows what he's doing he is probably doing it for good), if you have a bad sound engineer the band will sound bad even if you have the greatest guitar tone ever :)


    In small places your sound comes mostly out of your cab, so you relatively know what the audience gets, but in bigger stages you dont get that type of control...


    So I agree with the guy that suggested you trust the sound guy and leave him do his job...If he sucks you wont get the results you want anyway!

  • Hello, new very happy owner here!

    Hello to everyone!


    Just want to express how satisfied I am with the little beautiful toaster!


    I have it for about three months now. Usually, when buying something new there is a beautiful period of research before the purchase, maybe a few months while I watch every relative video on Youtube, search for the best price, watch reviews and what people have to say about the product of my interest. Then, after buying it the satisfaction doesn't last long...until Kemper!


    This innovation is the best thing that happened to the guitar world after Fender, Gibson and Marshall! Having under your fingers all these great marshalls, fenders, dumbles, boogies etc, with great effects, stomps, eqs and so on, and with that portability? It doesnt get much better than this...ok, maybe when mr Kemper will manage to create a floorboard version of the toaster.


    At first, I used it through my audio interface and studio monitors...every sound you will ever need, ready to record! No more micing amps, no more searching for the sweet spot, no more cables, no more high volumes to push the speakers.


    Then, I used it through my marshall 1922 cab....and it sounds even better! Crystal cleans, pushed overdrives and super punchy high gains...fat and spongy leads or super-dynamic kikass marshall crunch acdc-type tones...Basically everything if you find the correct profiles. I giged at a small club (with my cover band) through the cab mic'd with an sm57, and a few friends who are valve freaks couldn't believe how great my tone was!


    Everyday, I look forward to return home after work and connect my guitar to get all this great tones out of it :)


    I didn't have the pleasure to record and upload a new song with it yet, but I guess this will happen soon. You can check a few videos of my original songs on my Youtube channel here https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCB3vvvDJw3nXrDAJm2Mlh7A


    So, nice to meet you all, and a big "Thanks" to Mr Kemper for this.


    PS. Sorry for my english!