Looking to do studio work. Kemper or Axe (can only afford one)

I can't advise you with regards to kemper vs axe-fx. But using the Kemper with other people's profiles is a VERY reasonable line of thinking!! And also the way most people use it, I'm pretty sure.

Hi and welcome

I've never tried an Axe FX but before I brought the kemper I was looking into it. A lot of what I read were people saying that the Axe needs lots of tweaking to get the right sound and to me running a studio time is money. Clients don't want to pay for me to sit there and tweak they wanna get down to the recording and get a polished but finished result quick and cheap even though I always say you can only have 2 of the things below you can never have all 3

1 Cheap
2 Quick
3 Good

I purchased the kemper on the fact that it was cheaper and easier to get a good sound than the axe. All my clients are blown away with how good the kemper is and how real it sounds. This I think is one of the main reasons I'm sure that I keep getting repeat business (oh and of course how good my mixes are)

In my opinion I would invest in the kemper, it's pure quality and after 2 years of owning it, it still impresses me still. I no for a fact you won't regret it

Hey Bassman, welcome

Of course I love the Profiler and chose it over the Axe. But I'd like to warn you about the Axe sounding "digital".
TBH I don't think this is the case; this is probably just a way to describe things, but many users who are not accustomed to mic amps (specially distorted ones) will find a kind of harshness in the sound that, when coming from a digital device, they define "digital".
I believe you'll come across this kind of sounds with the Profiler as well (with certain profiles and settings), so you'll have to learn to deal with them. One thing is for sure: the Profiler sounds like the mic'ed amps, in good and bad!

And yes, playing with others' profiles is what most users to.

Also, not sure how the Axe deals with bass, but there are specific and dedicated profiles and functions available with the Profiler. By your nick I guess this could be interesting for you
It is for studio work anyway

Welcome to the forum Bassman.
Having long experience with both products I can say the fractal forum is very different than the kemper forum.
The fas forum mods/owner frequently censors-banns users and deletes threads, so many normal critical axe posts, kemper posts and even lately Amplifire threads are gone from the off topic secion over there. The Fas owner is also a bit notorious for slamming and making up stuff about competitive gear. Here it's perfectly ok to discuss other gear.

I have good experience with both units and prefer the kemper for all amp and cab sounds and some effects, easier work flow (still keeping the axe for some effects). I must say that the profiling technology places the kemper in a new and different category compared to modelers and I have never seen a digital amp product gaining so much praise from producers before. More and more studios and bands are using kempers both live and on albums.
From a thread found on thegearpage listing a large number of producers and bands with info links how they use it.
http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=1371198

The eq matching in the Axe fx 2 (which was marketed as "our own profiling" by Cliff Chase) is simply traditional eq matching that's been available to anybody with a studio DAW for +15 years. It can only copy eq. If copying a guitar tone from a song is important with the kemper then you can simply add an eq matching plugin in the signal chain when profiling to the kemper.
Example by ivan91, Dream Theater, About to Crash (Reprise)
Dream Theater-About the crash (Rig)
First original song, then the kemper profiler

The difference with profiling is that it captures and analyzes everything from the amp rig chain, dynamics, feel, compression, attack, distortion, eq. Also with the ability to directly compare it with the original amp source. With modelers your're stuck with whatever programming a company thinks an amp should sound and behave like.
That to me is why profiling is a very big step in the right direction compared to amp modeling and static IR's. That's also a big reason why so many bands, studios and producers are using it now, having their amp rigs saved and ready to use at any time.
Another important thing in the studio is workflow and I find the kemper to be very quick and intuitive to work with. No product is perfect but I do belive they hit a homerun on the first try with this one, and more features and fixes are added with each fw.
Try both is always the best way of knowing what you prefer.

I'd say the vast majority of kemper users rely on other users profiles, and there are thousands of profiles to choose from with new profiles being added daily on the rig exchange. You have all amp sound categories covered even if you don't have any amps of your own to profile.

I've found that the Kemper has more of an "amp in the room" sound, however, the AxeFX "moves more air."
Sorry...couldn't resist.

If both units gave the same exact options and audio quality the Kemper is hands down a better designed platform for musicians. If you are already into computer programming and love wasting an afternoon tweaking editing software profiles then perhaps the Axe would be your cup of tea, otherwise Kemper is the way to go IMHO.

I had the same conundrum a while back in which way to go and although the Axe is a great piece of gear the Kemper just is designed to perform and be tweaked as an analog amp and effects. The quick access to all the functions makes the Kemper so simple to use and hassle free.

Either way you will have a great sounding amp but with the Kemper you will be playing more music, tweaking less and never feel the need for any editing software.

Good luck with the deciding. Perhaps we will see you around here in the future.

I used to have the Axe Fx Ultra and from personal experience I can tell you the Kemper blows it out of the water on all levels. hope this helps. cheers.

Three weeks after buying the Kemper, I was able to throw my Viagra away.

Quote from elvisscottyandbill

Three weeks after buying the Kemper, I was able to throw my Viagra away.

Lol

Welcome!
Well actually it's pretty easy.
You want do to studio work, you use FX in your DAW.
The Kemper is your choice, without doubt.
The Kemper's raw amp tones are unrivaled.

Quote from elvisscottyandbill

Three weeks after buying the Kemper, I was able to throw my Viagra away.

Three weeks after trying the Axe I gave up Viagra.

I own both,and I prefer KPA than Axe most of times for recording. The sound of KPA fits better in the mix IMO.

I think the only area where the Axe is bit better is that it is more flexible in the effects section. But since you plan to do studio work, this is no problem, because for the rare cases one needs complex effect routings, normaly in studios all kinds of effects-units are available and the Kemper has an FX-Loop. Plus the Kemper company continuously publishes updates with new and improved effects so it might not be long until the Kemper catches up to the Axe in this area as well.

As has been pointed out already, obviously there will be sway towards Kemper here. However, having owned an Ultra, a 2 and the Kemper, if you're looking for the most realistic amp tones then the Kemper just pips it.

Saying that, if you did go for the Axe I don't think you'd be at all dissapointed, and certainly there's not such a huge gap in a mix between the two.

Also, don't let it be said that the FX in the Kemper are inferior, they're definitely not, they're just not as varied as in the Axe and don't have quite the same routing flexibility.

You can tweak the axe-fx on a lot of different parameters, is my impression. The kemper has less options for doing so. Arguably, it doesn't need it.

For me, this makes the Kemper the winner on workflow alone.

Are you a tweaker?

You can't go wrong with either setup. Both have their positive features.

I have never owned an Axe FX of any version. I simply prefer the look and feel of the Kemper as it was more intuitive for me with more controls on the front. With the Rig Manager working great, it has made it even easier to find great profiles. I also wanted the option of being able to borrow and amp and actually profile it so that I could include it in the collection.

It's a great unit live as well. I've used 3 different version of the Kemper (lunchbox, powered rack and now rack) and prefer the regular rack version.

-

No contest. Buy a Kemper. It's better.

There. I said it.

If you want my more detailed view, the Kemper gets the most basic thing right: i.e. my basic tone. I'm not a commercial profile user, I rely on the free stuff due to cost and other considerations. But the Kemper continues to surprise me with the kinds of tones I'm able to either source from the rig exchange, or modify with existing profiles. The rig librarian is one of the coolest ways to check out new tones, in my opinion, with it, you can try out all 5,000 profiles on the rig exchange without any fuss. And while there are quite a few profiles that I feel don't scratch the surface of the Kemper, some of them are simply too good.

I'll say that what swayed me more toward the Kemper over the Axe-FX was the fact that the tone was more organic, or analog, rather than digital. Since it captures the sound of real amps to a T, I can safely say I'm getting exactly what I wanted out of my toaster: analog-sounding and complete tones that sit well in a mix with minimal tweaking. And on stage, the sounds trump all lesser processors.

And then it gets other stuff right too: there are some really wonderful effects in the box and they are far more tweakable than would first appear. The harmonizer and pitch shifter are my favourite, stuff like formant shift and pure tuning are leagues ahead. And the delays and reverbs, though limited in number, still encapsulate the basic requirements of a guitarist (or bassist). The wahs are also excellent and there are some zany effects in there too. Sure, they're limited in number, but the quality is my primary consideration and seriously, how many zany effects do you really use in most modellers/processors?

In short, the Kemper gets the basic stuff right and then gives a little more in the form of "gee-whiz-bang". Best guitar-related purchase you'll make ever.