Is it possible to mic a FRFR cab?

    This may be a dumb question, but this would be my first experience with FRFR cabs, so "dumbness" should be expected. (c:


    I've got my first Kemper on the way from Guitar Center. I ordered the non-powered version. Right now I'm leaning toward using it with a power amp and cab. But, I also may have the option of buying a Friedman ASM-12.


    Two questions:

    • Is the Friedman my best option to give me a FRFR monitor, while also doing the best job of replicating the "amp in the room" feel? I've heard the Friedman so I know it is definitely loud enough and has the bass response that I'd be looking for on stage to make me happy. I'm just wondering if it's a good FRFR option for the Kemper.
    • If I went with a FRFR monitor (Friedman, Yamaha, etc.), is it possible to mic it like a normal guitar cab on stage? The reason I ask, is because while I'd LOVE to be able to use a FRFR montior and send the same signal direct to FOH, often times we do sound ourselves on our smaller PA, and then other times we'll have different sound guys running sound for us on larger PA systems. I'm just wondering if in the case we get a sound guy who struggles to get my direct signal sounding good, can I just mic a FRFR cab? I know technically, you can stick a mic in front of anything. But would it sound horrible since there is both a speaker and a tweeter in most of them? How would you go about doing that?

    Thanks!

    I have never heard that FRFR cabs, or any other monitor for that matter get microphoned.
    Remember that the FRFR solution already contains and presents a miked cab (coloured by the cab and its microphone).
    You won't want to do this again.
    The results will be unpredictable and therefore I don't recommend it.

    Thanks Ingolf. That's what I was afraid of.


    I'm worried that if I go with a FRFR monitor, and really like what I hear coming out of it on stage, how do I ensure that's actually what is coming out of the PA out front, even though it's a direct signal? Should it be very similar regardless of what kind of board and PA we're running through? When we do sound ourselves, it's a relatively small setup consisting of 2 subs on each side along with 1-2 mains on each side (I think they are QSC or maybe Yamaha 12" with a horn). For the other half of the gigs we do, we use the in-house PA systems which are generally much larger PAs.


    The whole point of using the Kemper direct is to ensure that your getting a very close replica of the sound on stage and out front, correct? I'm just envisioning nightmares for our sound guy if I'm going between a rig that has a distorted BE100, then to a Fender, then to a Marshall. Volume wise, I guessing the Kemper can control all of that easily by matching the output levels of each patch/rig. But the EQ for each of those rigs (if I want them to truly sound like the original amps) would probably vary quite a bit, meaning the sound guy would have to adjust the EQ and mix out front every time I change a rig. This would be even more complicated when we're doing sound ourselves from the stage.


    Am I missing something?


    No, you are not missing a thing. That sound guy will always mess with the eq settings. The problem is that while you have a great sound in your in-ears or thru a FRFR cabinet, it will always translate to a different sound out of the PA. It all has to do with the acoustics of the room. So while you are boosting all kinds of frequenties, these could clash with the sound in the room. So the the PA guy will lower them. It's a fact.

    This is all good info. Thanks guys. I've got a 30 day return period to test the Kemper, so I'm trying to get as much info as I can before I receive it so that I'll have a head start.


    Normally at a gig, we'll do sound check and get a good baseline. Then through the first 2-3 songs, the sound man does any adjusting that he feels is necessary. From there on out, there really isn't much that is touched over the course of the night because for the most part, I use 1-2 rhythm tones, a couple cleans and a solo tone based off of the rhythm. So the EQ is all very similar throughout the night. And once the mix is set properly, the only thing he's really adjusting might be the levels of the overall mix.


    So I was concerned that if I'm using 10 different rigs for example, that may be 10 different tones. And I'm assuming a heavy Mesa tone I use on one song for some modern covers, may sit differently in the mix than a slightly distorted Marshall tone that I use in other tunes for classic rock, etc. Maybe I'm just overthinking it. I have a tendency to do that as I'm researching new high priced gear.


    The Kemper just seems to be one of those "to good to be true" scenarios. Having a ton of different amps available in an amp that weighs a fraction of my tube amp and can still produce professional sounding tones live? I'll be thrilled beyond words if that's what I get. Fingers crossed!

    Quote from OhG

    I'm worried that if I go with a FRFR monitor, and really like what I hear coming out of it on stage, how do I ensure that's actually what is coming out of the PA out front, even though it's a direct signal?

    This is hard if your monitoring rig color the tone significantly as a trad amp/cab does. The whole point of FRFR is to avoid this issue, and you largely will with a decent neutral monitoring solution. At some point you have to trust the soundman or recording engineer to get it right anyway regardless of whether he takes a mic or a direct signal. However, I would not totally dismiss your cab microphone as some of the above. The key to make this work is to use a more neutral microphone than the typical Shure SM57 or Sennheiser E606/609s often associated with electric guitars. A directional condenser that can handle the punch of a guitar cab would be a much better choice, and place it further (2ft or more) from the cab than one normally would do with a cab-mic.

    Edited 2 times, last by heldal ().