Probably taking the KPA plunge soon, a couple of general questions

    Hello all! After about a year of bouncing around between Kemper, Fractal and Two Notes for a much-needed home/late night recording solution (and possible gigging, though that isn't happening right now), I think I've finally settled on the Kemper I just wanted to ask a few questions from the users beforehand


    The most important question: is there any likelihood of a hardware upgrade in the near future? I read a thread about this from a year ago, and the answer was a resounding "no," but that was a year ago. My biggest fear (and the main reason I haven't bought any digital equipment in years) is that, 31 days after purchase, they announce the 'Kemper 2 XL+' and I'm stuck without [insert most-desired shiny new feature here].


    Second: I have a pretty cool music room, but a real studio it is not. Nor do I really have any studio mic experience. How important would you say the room is when profiling an amp. Assuming that I learn all there is to learn about mics (or just enough to mic an amp), can home-made profiles math up with the commercial profiles that I imagine are done in the proper environment? I will definitely be downloading/buying tons of other profiles, but I really want a few of my current sounds (especially from my Mesa Mk V with super specific settings on the 5-band).


    And that's it. "Will my new gear immediately become obsolete" and "what are the odds I can make this thing sound right" are really my only hesitations I originally had more questions, but in the few days it took to get my verification email to set up my account, I sorted the others out. Thank you to all who take the time to respond.

    Obviously none of us can see the future, but my hunch in regards to whether or not new hardware is on the way would be a pretty solid no. They just released the controller, so there definitely won't be a new controller coming out any time soon. And my guess would be the same for the KPA itself because they put so much time into their (awesome) firmware updates, which continue to add new features to the unit. It doesn't appear as though the processor in the system is being slowed or anything like that, so I think the unit we have is going to be around for a while.


    I can't comment on the profiling piece as I haven't tried that yet. But again, my guess is that you should be able to create some great homemade profiles. And the nice thing about the homemade profiles, is that you can tweak them however YOU see fit, during the profiling process to get them exactly as you want them.


    Long story short: BUY IT!

    The answer this year from forum users will still be a resounding "no", based on the original timeline mentioned in an interview from when the KPA first came along. Anyone with more current information than that interview would not be able to share it, I suspect.


    But, just like the tube amps that did not become obsolete when digital amps came along, a KPA will always sound just it does, even if another model comes out someday.

    Quote from BurntGerbil

    can home-made profiles math up with the commercial profiles that I imagine are done in the proper environment?


    The room has very little impact, if any at all, when close micing a cabinet. It all comes down to mic(s) and their placement. To a certain degree the preamp, although much less than mics and placement.

    Welcome BurntGerbil :)



    Quote from BurntGerbil

    is there any likelihood of a hardware upgrade in the near future?


    Pretty sure there will be no Profiler II (Eng. Kemper expressly stated that).
    I would not be surprised at all if Kemper released a floor player à la Helix tho, with a more robust effect handling, more CPU and some most-wanted functions and options that have emerged from the userbase.
    I know I'd design one ASAP if I were Kemper :D




    Quote from BurntGerbil

    My biggest fear (and the main reason I haven't bought any digital equipment in years) is that, 31 days after purchase, they announce the 'Kemper 2 XL+' and I'm stuck without [insert most-desired shiny new feature here].


    I'd strongly suggest you to buy the device which better fulfils your need now. If you feel there's something missing you should not buy, IMO




    Quote from BurntGerbil

    can home-made profiles math up with the commercial profiles that I imagine are done in the proper environment?


    They can, because you'll get the sound of your amp the way you want it set up. This is priceless, and in fact is being the real "wow" moment for many converts users :)

    Quote from paults

    a KPA will always sound just it does, even if another model comes out someday.


    Well, as a newb who's been playing a long time and has/had lots of gear, let me just say that I had the same fear as you regarding the Kemper II, but I took the plunge anyway and it's the best piece of gear I've ever purchased, by far. (Well, except maybe for my PRS Santana.) I've resigned myself to take the financial hit if I ever want to upgrade to the Kemper II, if it ever comes out, but in the meantime I'm getting my money's worth and more. Once you hear the factory profiles and sign up for Michael Britt's mailing list, you won't be sorry.

    New KPA model any time soon? Highly unlikely.


    Odds on creating good sounding profiles? As good as your previous ability to get recording tones you liked from your old setup.


    Having said that, there's always a little bit of "hit and miss" to recording an amp. Shifting a mic just a 1/4" can make a difference. Changing the angle of the mic to the cabinet can make a difference. In fact everything seems to have some kind of sonic effect. I always wished I could get a precision robot arm to really nail down the right mic position while listening thru monitors ... but that's another story.


    I think you'll really enjoy the KPA.