Posts by MementoMori

Christoph has said in a past interview that a new hardware was inevitable and in the same interview even outlined limitations with processing certain features that were asked of him in the current iteration. However, I don't really get the sense that Kemper is close to releasing a new format if I'm relying on how slowly new updates & features have come out. They seem relatively content.

People have to also remember how much older the AxeFX is than the Kemper when discussing the different hardware it's gone through. Processing needs and advances have changed dramatically (and quickly) and at least they've shown every ambition to stay ahead of the curve, especially with how they frenetically update features compared to their competitors. Kemper definitely benefited from the modelers that came before them.

Bottom line is don't hold your breath for a Kemper II.

I don't see why he would care.

Quote from nightlight

But what I hate about it is the fact that they only gave you three foot switches and expect you to buy whatever floor unit Fractal puts out or use some other midi board.

I just think that's really unfair to your customers. FFS, just add a $100 or even $200 and give us as many goddamn foot switches as we need to make a go of it and an expression pedal to boot.

This kind of design just screams obsolescence. What next? A FM6 or an FM12 with more foot pedals?

Not to say I couldn't do with this. But as a customer, it makes me really frustrated when I see a design that's been nerfed by the manufacturer.

I've heard some rumblings about an FM6 or something like that.

I find it odd that Line 6 comes out with the HX Stomp and it's widely hailed as a very inexpensive and compact version of the Helix. Fractal does the same and seemingly everyone but Fractal owners has an issue with the compact solution. I do think that an FM6 or FM8 or FM10 or whatever is necessary for people who want a larger board is desirable as an option, but there are people of course who don't want a larger board. There are also people who run all their patch changes through laptops and don't really need all the footswitches.

Nothing about it screams obsolescence to me. It would go away likely if it doesn't sell, but the response thus far seems to suggest otherwise. We'll find out.

Quote from ncbassplayer

I understand that Chris Benson hates Kemper and he basically created these bad profiles as a big F/U to the Kemper profiling community.

He doesn't like the Kemper, but I know someone who owns one of his amps and spoke to him on this. He did it because a certain commercial profiler did a pack on his amps, which pissed him off. He didn't take it very seriously and only did so as a way to make what little money others may be making off his name. It wouldn't surprise me if they were poorly done given his attitude about it.

Quote from don1960lp

Hornets nest, i.e.; Somewhat crowded field of all-in-one modelers.

Line 6 HX Stomp - $559

Atomic AmpliFire - $599

Boss GT-1000 - $999

Headrush Pedalboard - $999

Fractal FM3 - $999

Line 6 Helix - $1099

Fractal AX8 - $1099

That FM3 thread has been an eye opener. There's over a hundred pages discussing (and bickering) over a product that's not even been formally introduced on Fractal's forum or FB page (last I checked).

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Crowded, I suppose, is a relative term. Considering how many options you have out there for guitars alone, and the newcomers who manage to stay profitable despite the saturation, a handful of serious manufacturers in the modeler domain doesn't seem excessive, especially not with Kemper's established reputation. And don't forget that the Kemper does already compete in this hornets nest. Before I made my purchase of the Kemper, I did exhaustive research, which included the floorboards. I decided on the Kemper based on my what I'd heard and my needs at the time, but of course as I've started gigging more, those have evolved. And that includes having the Remote.

Any time there is a new company product, you can expect forums to explode. This very forum has some very long threads of their own and include its share of arguing/bickering, many times revolving around consumer demands for a variety of topics. But this one is also not nearly as populated as TGP. I still don't see why a thread on TGP should influence what, IMO, is a sensible addition to the Kemper range.

As for the FM3, it's been announced on their Facebook, Instagram, and forum.

Quote from don1960lp

I hope Kemper stays out of that hornets nest.

Hornets nest? They make a product that competes directly in that hornets nest already.

Quote from don1960lp

The current remote is more than capable considering you can add 4 extra momentary switches or 2 expression pedals to it. And with the new editor, having a small laptop or tablet on stage is all you'll need.

The remote is nice, but it still requires the head or rack, and together those are significantly more expensive than an all-in-one floor unit. Now you add in bringing a laptop (which even that suggestion many users here mock incessantly) vs having it all at your feet.

Quote from don1960lp

The all-in-one floor market is already saturated, and as the FM3 thread over on TGP shows, you simple can't make everyone happy trying to meet both a price point and a form factor. Everyone clamoring for an FM3 will be selling them off and climbing all over themselves when the FM6 (or whatever) hits the market in 12-18 months.

Look what's happening now with AX8s - which is a killer unit and was praised up and down as such when it came out. Now it's old news - yet Kemper's 7 year old design is still the king of the hill when it comes down to doing the one thing these units are suppose to do best - sound and feel like a real amp.

We are guitar players and we tend to chase the dragon no matter what it is. How many amps & guitars have you owned? How many have you sold & flipped to try out something new? This preoccupation with Fractal having new hardware and people selling the old hardware (to willing buyers, mind you) is nothing new or controversial. Why do we care about another companies products resell value? If you're happy with it and it serves all your needs, there's no obligation to sell it or buy a new iteration. But maybe you want to try something new or cutting edge. Why do we talk about this like it's some unethical or unusual attitude?

Quote from don1960lp

Again, stay out of that pond IMO.

Kemper has an existing customer base, and that base has repeatedly made it known throughout the years that they would prefer to keep with Kemper but prefer a floor model. Many have purchased AX8's, Headrush's, BOSS GT-100's, GT-1000's, Helix's, even Mooer's to accommodate that desire. The idea that Kemper would bog themselves down by simply having another form factor with an established, willing, and even eager customer base is rather ridiculous.

IMO Kemper sounded the worst in this comparison. Of course we can ask what profile was used, what settings compared to the others, etc. By no means does this mean the Kemper is bad or can't deliver as good or better with the right profile. Just goes to show that any 1 example can be good or bad and isn't indicative of these devices/plugins as a whole.

Quote from BB2019

I have been called a fanboy because I am biased they say.

Nothing wrong with being a fan of a product or preferring it over others. "Fanboy" only comes up when someone gets emotionally defensive or attacks over their gear as if they've been personally insulted.

Kemper does things in a more streamlined fashion for many, especially if you already have a setup to profile. Axe provides ultimate versatility to sculpt a sound, but of course not everyone wants or needs that. I've always been a more "plug and play" type person but over the past few years I've grown to be a little more scrutinizing. Not always a good thing since I kind of miss the days when I would plug into anything, turn a few knobs and let my hands do the rest.

We all have biases (and I'm certainly no exception), but some level of introspection at least helps us confront or test them in an attempt to be as logically sound and consistent as possible. Easier said than done, of course.

Quote from Dean_R

How many times you need to test before it's confirmed that Fractal is not up to Par and that something is definitely wrong with their modeling Algorithms that doesn't allow it to fit properly in a mix.

Except you're the only one saying this. You've been offered many occasions to pick out the Axe vs others, including in a mix. The point is if you find it so easy to detect because it doesn't sit in a mix or sound fake, the task should be simple. Without it, such hyperbole simply lacks credibility and seems to be founded on emotional distaste more than anything.

Yes, Fractal can sound bad. Kemper can sound bad. Amps can sound bad. Hell, Metallica's live sound for a long, long time when they were using Mesa's wasn't great either IMO. Regardless, there are clips of current day Metallica which sound infinitely better than this. This one from earlier this year sounds like Metallica to me, and that was just at the top of a "Metallica live" YouTube search. Though, no device can save from their sloppy playing. When you skip around and they are in sync, the tone is exactly what you'd expect and doesn't have any trouble cutting through and sitting in the mix.

You've been challenged many times to pick out Fractal vs Kemper or amp and you refuse consistently on many different threads. Sure, we can spend all day cherry picking when Axe or Kemper or amp sound good or bad depending on the sample. That's fairly uninteresting at this point since people who are honest with themselves know they are all tools that can be made to sound great and useful, and all are used on current and old records without a complaint or problem. Of course, your preference of solution may vary. Suggesting otherwise is simply appealing to bias.

The pros use everything, not just the Kemper. Yes, including floorboards like the Ax8, Helix, and soon to be FM3.

But it should really be about what is useful to the average consumer since they make up the vast majority of the market share.

Quote from Nikos

The KPA is "top-pro"..you buy it and you get what the "pros" are using.The exact same thing.Nothing "downscaled"..and all this for a very (already) more than fair price,top service & support plus longevity in a digital world..This is their reputation.

You continually undersell other similar devices, such as the FM3, by referring to the KPA as "for pros" and implying the others aren't, which is plainly untrue. Lots of pros out there using Helix and Fractal solutions, and of course lots using Kemper. Let's stop this narrative that one is "pro" and the others aren't so we can have a serious discussion.

Quote from Nikos

Just because there is a "market" for something it does not mean that you have to follow it blindly.

Of course, but it's not as is a floorboard format is any kind of philosophical violation for what the Kemper offers. They have a remote, so clearly they understand players need solutions at their feet.

The FM3 is just the latest comer to the scene that fills a want & need that clearly exists. Kemper would be wise to participate in this segment of the market with a number of users here saying they would buy one without hesitation. Until then, the FM3 is likely to eat into those users who want an all-in-one floor solution.

That sounds highly unusual. I've had the KPA freeze and crash on me a number of times but that's been over the span of years, not in immediate succession. Perhaps a factory reset would help, or contact Kemper support.

Quote from nightlight

Just because the Kemper isn't 1:1 versus an amp in terms of the control layout doesn't mean there isn't fun to be had.

When did I suggest otherwise? I was responding to Nikos' characterization of it, especially contrasted to his previous statements. Personally, I've grown up using digital tools that tube purists would thumb their nose at so I have no apprehension to embracing "non-tube" sources of tone.

Quote from nightlight

For example, the Kemper is capable of dialling out undesirable characteristics in some amps. And I've found that if you actually dive into the amp and cab menus to tweak a rig (rather than using the front panel controls), you can get some amazing results.

Kemper provides lots of great tools and deep parameters to sculpt from, hence the usefulness of an editor to more easily find them at a moments notice from your desktop. Though IME it does more to dial out mic/cab undesirable characteristics than the amp portion.

Quote from Nikos

This is what I really love about the KPA..it brings us guitar players to admit what close minded creatures we are..

Synth,bass-players and drummers had to adjust much earlier during the last decades than us electric guitar players..thanks to the KPA we finally start to discuss interesting issues like "amp-in-the-room",FRFR,the role of different speakers,cab sizes and finally the "real role of the EQ" on vintage tube amps..all funny stuff but yes we finally did it.Congrats to ourselves!

The discussion of differences in feel, mic'd vs in the room, and FRFR solutions far outdates the Kemper, and goes back to when modelling first came around. It may be the case that you personally haven't discussed these matters until buying a Kemper, as is the case for plenty of people here I'm sure.

Quote from Nikos

Believe me my friend..if there is something you should be happy about then it is the fact that the EQ of the KPA does not "work exactly" like the ones of the profiled amps.

Well, that would be your opinion, but it sort of flies in the face of your earlier argument that the Kemper behaves like a tube amp for "tube guys". If the "tube guy" wants and expects the EQ to work like an amp (and I understand the actual limitations here, but we are referring to expectations), it wouldn't exactly be that way. I guess if your point was that he has to turn physical knobs, that's amp-like, then ok, but the results wouldn't be the same. Mind you, I don't dislike the front EQ, though I seldom use it.

Quote from Nikos

The point I agree is the "modeller"-thing..I also never saw the KPA as a modeller

Quote from Nikos

The KPA is the modeller which reminds all "usual tube guys" most of all modellers of an amp.

?

Quote from nightlight

Cutting back on certain elements in the FM3 may not necessarily entail that it won't sound good, but it would imply that it isn't really an Axe FXIII with a small footprint, kind of like the Kemper Lite we have been discussing.

I wouldn't imagine the tone to be different than an Axe III, much like the tone of the Helix Stomp doesn't change from the flagship. But in a smaller format that is less expensive, you're of course going to lose some advanced functionality. That's to be expected since the floorboard is geared towards people who want a fast, convenient, portable option. But I'm sure the FM3 is selling the core of that the Axe III is.

Quote from Nikos

The whole concept of expensive floor-stuff which cost more than 1000€|$ is outdated IMO.

Not when you consider the market still favors floorboards over head/rack configurations, if we're just basing it off sales. And it's not like pedals have gone out of style, quite the polar opposite. So if guys are still buying pedals like there's no tomorrow and making pedalboards to lay in front of them, it makes sense that your all-in-one multi-effects unit would follow the same format. Hell, with how much pedals cost these days, having a full pedal board for $1k isn't really expensive at all, especially when it can act as not just effects but also amp/cab. Besides, it's not like the Remote is inexpensive. For being a product that can only work as a slave to a single product (the Profiler), it's very expensive. Fractal also had an expensive foot controller for their flagship rack model, which is why I think a more inexpensive floorboard format makes total business sense. Same goes for Kemper IMO.

Quote from Nikos

We already have the remote.Maybe we don't need an extra floor-style "profile player" but just a (much)smaller "Pocket-Toaster"-Profile Player which could be used together with the remote?

This has been suggested before. I recall Trivium in an interview about the Kemper wishing for such a thing. But still, I don't see how this negates the use of a floor model. You'd still be using 2 pieces of hardware at roughly the same cost and functionality as if you'd just have an all-in-one solution. That's precisely why people want a floor model.

Quote from Nikos

Maybe we don't need an extra floor-style "profile player" but just a (much)smaller "Pocket-Toaster"-Profile Player which could be used together with the remote?

For very small gigs,rehearsals and jams I do not need much tweaking of my presets.An smartphone app to do basic adjustments before all starts(volume,fx-mix) would be more than enough.

A smartphone app would be useful, but the KPA isn't Bluetooth enabled, so a new hardware would have to be. Though, this seems to stray close to the "digital gadgets" you earlier dismissed, having editors and apps.

I think you consistently undersell the amount of parameters, even when it comes to I/O and how much control you have even over the cab portion of a profile. Engineers using, say, and Axe FX in the studio make those same adjustments on the fly with their editing software in place of hours or days spent mic'ing a cab in the right place with the right mic.

Quote from lightbox

As someone running 2 studios I can assure you that this isn't what usually happens. The Profiler typically is within reach of the musician. As a sound engineer you'd rather have the musician make the changes he wants ... with you being ready to show and explain only when needed.

But maybe you were referring to a very different kind of studio.

I don't run a studio myself, but based my comment on the same sentiment and feedback from several others who do, some of them on this forum in years past. Of course every studio is different in terms of setup and available space that make some setups easier.

And of course some who run their own studios solely create and make their own music, in which case having the KPA next to another musician isn't such a necessity.

Quote from Awesome_Elvis

Would it be likley the angle they are gonna use is that you can upload and purchase tone matched presets?

Some people already share tone matches, though the Fractal world doesn't quite operate like the Kemper world when it comes to marketing matched tones or prioritizing it. Axe users can control every parameter of a signal chain so their preoccupation isn't so much matching a tone externally as it is internally, whereas in Kemper land we require an existing, external signal chain to match. Tone matching in Axe land is usually treated as a "last ditch" effort to better match an existing tone, if that's what the user is after, which isn't always the case. At least this is how it was explained to me (as I don't own a Fractal product ATM).

My guess, if the AX8 is any kind of comparison, is tone matching won't be in the FM3. I don't know what the required processing power would be, but even if it's possible, they'd probably want to incentivize people to buy the full rack version in order to get all of the shiny features.

To me, it makes sense if you're getting a less expensive and smaller form device that you're going to get less functionality, especially since the incentive of buying it is for simpler, more portable, more streamlined use. If Kemper made a floorboard the size of the remote and it was less expensive, I'd expect a number of features to not be included, especially since it would eat sales of the flagship model.