Kemper vs. AX8 vs. Helix vs. BIAS Head - BLIND TEST!

    Quote from sinmix

    @schreckmusic we can try one thing, record for me a short DI track with your guitar just few random riffs, tell me which amp and cab mic I need to use. I can reamp this DI with "real chain" and kemper profile (i want to use DI from you to set amp sound also for refining process) i send you this profile and you can record also something and then we can compare how close all recording sounds ok? So its just like a "custom" profile made/refined with DI from You.


    Stay Metal!

    it is a nice offer sinmix.
    I just feel compelled to point out that the guitar does not matter for the refining process (it's about dynamics), before THAT myth gets revived again. :)

    @DonPetersen well maybe, but it helps me to set propertly a amp (eq,gain level) also mic pos :D some guitars spunds very tight for example with active EMG pickups and harsh/fizzy :D then tight sounding amp dont need a boost (Engl Savage etc...) and still sounds very tight, soo when i have specific DI track its easier for me to find good combination of amp/cab/mic pos - and for sure i also refine a profile with this DI - to be sure that iv made all what i can with specific source :D


    Stay Metal!

    @Monkey_Man of course it's more than just the volume on my guitar I need to adjust :D I messed around last night and a couple of factors helped out a lot. Guitar volume / tone, distortion sense, and definition. My tendency is to adjust the gain on a profile when I should start off with the distortion sense.


    I actually learned something new last night but will share that tip when I have more time to work it out. It's something I am very excited about that the Kemper can do. It might be something a few of you guys do already or I might give you a new idea. Who knows, but I need to work on it more before sharing.


    @ashtweth Focusrite Scarlette 18i8 with Hosa SPDIF,and monster cables.


    @sinmix you a awesome man! People on here do not know we have actually spoke about this in the past. I have to say @sinmix is actually one of the coolest guys always offering to help. Way more than most of the "commercial" sellers that either did not provide help or were vague. I won't get into names but I have bought from almost all of the top vendors.


    Edit- @sinmix post above was my thought about why the profiles do not work for me. He just put it into words better than I did. My guitar and playing style needs to be involved from the beginning.

    Quote from sinmix

    @DonPetersen well maybe, but it helps me to set propertly a amp (eq,gain level) also mic pos :D some guitars spunds very tight for example with active EMG pickups and harsh/fizzy :D then tight sounding amp dont need a boost (Engl Savage etc...) and still sounds very tight, soo when i have specific DI track its easier for me to find good combination of amp/cab/mic pos - and for sure i also refine a profile with this DI - to be sure that iv made all what i can with specific source :D


    Stay Metal!

    @sinmix
    I absolutely see your point about setting the amp and placing the mics - that was never in question.
    I also understand the logic behind refining with the DI to stay consistent in your approach.
    I merely wanted to point out that the refining procedure is not guitar dependend to prevent the propagation of this myth by someone reading this thread and taking this out of context. This was not so much directed at you as it was at the aforementioned casual reader ;)

    Quote from schreckmusic

    Many other users have complained about using other people's profiles. It has been said repeatedly that it sounds thin and not even close to what the original profile maker intended. The variables of achieving the same tone I feel are too complex to recreate. Different guitar, pickups, cables, playing style, pick thickness, string gauge, etc.. I am a well seasoned guitarist and know EQ extremely well.

    I own several of Top Jimi's profiles and use a Les Paul. I haven't been able to reproduce the tone I hear in his samples, so it's not just you. However, I think results vary depending on the vendor and profiles used. For example, Guido Bungenstock's profile samples sound fairly representative of what I hear in my own recordings using them. I do think the guitar, pickups, pickup height and playing style all play a role, though.

    @schreckmusic. This video contains many excellent examples of how the sounds of profiles change with guitar volume knob changes:

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    Quote from ColdFrixion

    To get back to the original post, after lining up all of the tracks in my DAW and A/B'ing them against the real amp, I actually thought Bias sounded the closest.

    You are right. Sorry for the off topic. I think a lot of good info came out of it that might help someone else in the future. Guys I will create a dedicated thread in the future for my quest of getting the tone I desire. I truly appreciate all the help. I'm not jumping ship yet and always open to learn something new.


    To sum up what I've learned in case it will help someone in the future. Gain staging with the Kemper is in 3 main areas. Guitar volume, Distortion sense, and the amp stack Gain. Once you get the thickness/saturation you desire, adjust the Definition. I am sure there is a ton more to achieving a great tone but this is what I just learned from this thread.


    Thank you


    Anthony

    Quote from schreckmusic

    I actually learned something new last night but will share that tip when I have more time to work it out. It's something I am very excited about that the Kemper can do. It might be something a few of you guys do already or I might give you a new idea. Who knows, but I need to work on it more before sharing.

    Looking forward to hearing about this!! :)

    Quote from schreckmusic

    @Monkey_Man of course it's more than just the volume on my guitar I need to adjust I messed around last night and a couple of factors helped out a lot. Guitar volume / tone, distortion sense, and definition. My tendency is to adjust the gain on a profile when I should start off with the distortion sense.

    Hold on :) dist sense is actually like a global gain control for all rigs across the board. So if you set dis sens at +X, that would equate to increasing ALL rigs by a gain amount of +Y. It's not 1:1, but it is the same EFFECT.
    EDIT: As DonPetersen points out, this is ONLY for non-clean rigs! Dist sens has no effect on clean rigs.

    Quote from Michael_dk

    dist sense is actually like a global gain control for all rigs across the board. So if you set dis sens at +X, that would equate to increasing ALL rigs by a gain amount of +Y. It's not 1:1, but it is the same EFFECT.

    I'd really like the ability to apply it on a per rig basis.

    "Distortion Sens
    If you feel that your guitar tends to drive the distortion too hot (or too soft) for the majority of Factory Rigs, calibrate
    your guitar by adjusting Distortion Sens accordingly. At zero (middle) position, every Rig will react as if you
    have plugged your guitar to the original amplifier. For individual adjustments of gain, use the Gain knob, as usual."

    Quote from DonPetersen

    "Distortion Sens
    If you feel that your guitar tends to drive the distortion too hot (or too soft) for the majority of Factory Rigs, calibrate
    your guitar by adjusting Distortion Sens accordingly. At zero (middle) position, every Rig will react as if you
    have plugged your guitar to the original amplifier. For individual adjustments of gain, use the Gain knob, as usual."

    Personally, I watched the video tutorial regarding Distortion Sens, however they don't mention the Gain control for individual profiles. I mean, it very briefly mentions that it's a gain offset that's applied globally, but for someone who's just coming to terms with the Kemper, it's not explicated in the way you just recommended.

    Oh geez! Thank you @Michael_dk


    @DonPetersen You should want the Kemper to be user friendly where we do not have to use a manual. Granted profiling yes. But silly question, why not name the controls what they actually are???


    Clean sens change to Clean Input Level
    Distortion sens change to Global Gain


    Those other names are extremely counter intuitive and adds to the users confusion. All just my opinions as usual. Take with a grain of salt.