PowerKemper vs NonPower

Hi, welcome to the forum!
Here is a previous post from me in another thread regarding ss vs tube watts and loudness.
http://www.kemper-amps.com/for…postID=168950&#post168950

As mentioned yearlier, a 100w is 100w both from tube or ss amp when measured, RMS. compared with exact same setup.
Yes a tube amp can be pushed above the rating, but that can only add a very small extra dB gain.
If you double the watt in an amp you only get about 3dB louder.
So a 200w amp is only 3 dB louder than a 100w amp. A 100w tube amp won't add that much dB over the rating.
If you want double the percieved volume then we need about 10xW, meaning going from a 100w to a 1000w.
It's much easier to get louder by using a very loud sensitive speaker.
sensitivity, sometimes called SPL (Sound Pressure Level)
A 40 w amp with a very loud 100dB sensitive speaker will sound louder than a 100w amp with say a 92dB sensitive speaker.
A 512 w amp coupled with an 86 dB speaker will be just as loud an an 8 watt amplifier with a 104 dB speaker.
Here is a chart good for interpreting SPL ratings.
http://www.colomar.com/Shavano/spl.html

Here is a link with some good food for thought info, Amp Power Myths, tube vs solid state:
http://www.guitarnuts.com/amps/myths.php

Here is an informative video on the subject, by Scott Grove.
Something that he brings up in the video which is often where a myth comes from is that cheap ss amps often have crappy speakers
with low dB sensitivity making them sound much lower in volume than a nice tube amp with good speakers with higher dB sensitivity.

Mythbusting, Are Tube Amps Louder Than Solid State?

Quote from MonkeyPeanutButter

Thanks for your quick and awesome response Happy Kemper!
I really had my mind blown

Now the only thing I'm conserned about is if the Kemper has a too high output for my speakers.
I heard that you can damage or even blow up you're speakers if you run them with too much power.
Sadly the Kemper would have too much power for ALL of my Cabinets.
My 4x12 with Celestion Vintage 30 can handle 240 Watts at 8Ohm, which is way lower than the 600Watts which the Kemper produces.
So hopefully you can bust another myth here and I don't have to buy all new cabinets to handle the Kemper's power.

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I don't think there are a lot of 600 watt speakers out there, which is the whole problem. But you can lower the output on the Kemper to ensure that you don't blow up a lower wattage speaker. In fact, it's likely you'll go deaf before you even get close to that 600 watts rating.

My personal experience....I couldn't live without having a guitar cab behind me. I got the powered version of the Kemper. It sounded great through my 2 x 12 cab. I had concerns about speaker distortion at times and a bad gig with no PA in a tiny pub where having the guitar cab behind me was too loud by the time it was loud enough to get over the drummer. By my side the volume was ok but I could only hear the low end.

I had tried the Kemper through the PA speakers our singer and keyboard player use in the rehearsal room and it sounded plastic and horrible.

I followed advice here and took my Kemper and 2 x 12 to a guitar shop that had the DXR10 and other powered speakers. I spent 2 hours angsting but decided the DXR10 sounded better than the guitar cab although a bit harsh on certain sounds.....but of course I hadn't tweaked the profiles to match. I had a 4-week money back deal on the DXR.

I tried the Kemper with the DXR10 in the studio, no tweaking, and loved it. Then I plugged it in with the band.....and everyone beamed.....the best my sound has ever been.....and of course now I can actually try profiles for what they are.....eg not Amp X profiled but coloured by my 2 x12 guitar cab.....but actually the sound of the original amp that was profiled....

I hope that helps some.

Btw, I'm not beating myself up for buying the powered version as I have the back up of the inbuilt power amp should I ever need it. But if I was starting again, I would have got the non-powered version.

Cheers,
Andy

I am doing it this way. I had a powered version and mine had all kinds of issues. The poweramp section was fine but my unit had some build and fit problems as well as shutting down on my regularly.

I am opting for a separate power amp. IF the Kemper goes, I can run something else like my iPad into the separate power amp. If the poweramp goes then I can use the Kemper through an amp. This way, I am with little downtime if the all-in-one unit goes.

For me it was simple.....there are more instant functions available on the front of the Toaster than the rack version...

If you choose the toaster it's easy to retrofit a poweramp should you ever change your mind.

Hello MPB, welcome here

To answer some of your questions:

No, your guitar cab will not sound like the PA, unless

• the PA is extremely linear;
• you profiled a rig of yours using the new (FW 3.0) profiling technique;
• you use the same cab onstage;
• the cab is properly placed (note tho that its sound would change if you moved around).

As for the Profiler version to consider, I went for the Lunchbox and like it way more than a rack (don't want to be a "rack guy" LOL). Furthermore, a lunchbox (as Ingolf wrote) can be easily retrofitted aftermarket and spending way less that what a Kemper power amp costs.

Sadly, there's currently no way to brickwall the Kemper's voltage output.
As HappyKemper properly pointed out, a more sensitive cab will do wonders in terms of SPL. Have a look at this clip, where a 102-dB 2x12" is used. When set @ 4 ohm you're around 121 dB\1W\1m, which is LOUD (the above means "with just a single watt from the power amp". If you set the Profiler's Master volume around 10, you get around 68 W... note that I can't get over 2 (out of 10) because windows and shelves were rattling... the headroom is astonishing.
Note that the CLR's nominal SPL is 120 dB\1W\1m. Sure, two very different devices...but you get the point