Kemper doesn't sound as good as video

    Hi guys,


    Bought the kemper about a year ago and I've been trying to figure out how to get the kemper tones I hear online ever since.


    I've been stuck for awhile, so I was wondering if you guys had any idea of what I am doing wrong?


    I'm a bit of a noob when it comes to this stuff too just fyi :thumbup:


    Gear I am using:
    Ibanez destroyer with a jb/jazz duncan set
    Headphones (Audio‑Technica ATH‑M50) into Scarlett Focusrite 6i6
    Kemper is connected to Focusrite by spdif
    Choptones Fried Jerry Profile (CHP - Fried Jerry 027)


    Here's the video I'm comparing to:

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    (go to 0:52 for the specific playing of the profile)


    Clip of me playing the profile (without any changes to it):

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    I don't think my clip necessarily sounds bad, but it really lacks the depth and "aliveness" of the video.
    I found this to be the same for other profiles (such as reampzone and topjimi) and I know these guys make stellar stuff


    Any idea of what I can do?


    Thanks!

    Edited 2 times, last by blasejake ().

    Why don't you contact them on the Youtube page and ask if any tonal changes were made from the stock profile?

    The key to everything is patience.
    You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it.
    -- Arnold H. Glasow


    If it doesn't produce results, don't do it.

    -- Me

    Like 1

    Comparing those two clips he's palm muting (at 0:50+) less than you, which is automatically brighter, and when he's chugging he's only hitting the low-D, whereas you're chugging the top 2-3 strings.


    Also, the tonal difference could be explained by the guitar/pickup differences. My guitars sound drastically different from each other and pair best with certain profiles, yet terribly with some others.

    Quote from HCarlH

    Why don't you contact them on the Youtube page and ask if any tonal changes were made from the stock profile?

    Good idea. I'll be sending them an email soon about that



    Quote from benvigil

    Comparing those two clips he's palm muting (at 0:50+) less than you, which is automatically brighter, and when he's chugging he's only hitting the low-D, whereas you're chugging the top 2-3 strings.


    Also, the tonal difference could be explained by the guitar/pickup differences. My guitars sound drastically different from each other and pair best with certain profiles, yet terribly with some others.

    I've tried the profiles with the three of my guitars (ibanez, prs se, and schecter KM7), and though they do sound different, its not nearly as drastic as the video. Could the quality of the tone really be mostly from the les paul he has?

    Sounds like maybe your pickups are a bit hotter and pushing the profile harder. That can smooth it out and compress it.


    How about trying it with the gain a hair lower on the profile to see if that gets you closer.

    Quote from Finally

    Sounds like maybe your pickups are a bit hotter and pushing the profile harder. That can smooth it out and compress it.


    How about trying it with the gain a hair lower on the profile to see if that gets you closer.

    Thanks for the advice Finally. Profile does sound more dynamic with less gain but is still lacking character

    Hi, your clip doesn't sound bad at all in our opinion, maybe better than our clip ;).
    Anyway many things could affect the sound of a palm mute, first the type of guitar, pickups, action settings and more.


    Maybe you might try to adjust something on your guitar settings or regulate the distortion sense!

    Quote from blasejake

    Could the quality of the tone really be mostly from the les paul he has?

    I wouldn't say "mostly", but certainly enough to be audibly different.


    For example, I have a Swamp Ash tele with Duncan JB & Hot Rails that sounds just huge and fantastic with Plexi-style amps -- very Les Paul-ish -- and sounds gritty and ballsy with high gain amps. Then I have a Jabon-wood MM with Tone Zone/ Air Norton set that sounds amazing with high gain amps (Dual Rec, etc.) but just doesn't work well with Plexi amps like the first one.


    Have you ever seen/heard Steve Vai trying to play blues?... then you get the idea. ;)

    Quote from benvigil

    I wouldn't say "mostly", but certainly enough to be audibly different.
    For example, I have a Swamp Ash tele with Duncan JB & Hot Rails that sounds just huge and fantastic with Plexi-style amps -- very Les Paul-ish -- and sounds gritty and ballsy with high gain amps. Then I have a Jabon-wood MM with Tone Zone/ Air Norton set that sounds amazing with high gain amps (Dual Rec, etc.) but just doesn't work well with Plexi amps like the first one.


    Have you ever seen/heard Steve Vai trying to play blues?... then you get the idea. ;)

    Good to know. I'll be swapping the prs pups with either some fishmans or bare knuckles, so I'm excited to see how much it'll differ from the stock ones :D

    Quote from ChopTones

    Hi, your clip doesn't sound bad at all in our opinion, maybe better than our clip ;).
    Anyway many things could affect the sound of a palm mute, first the type of guitar, pickups, action settings and more.


    Maybe you might try to adjust something on your guitar settings or regulate the distortion sense!

    Thanks for the response! I found that lowering the gain and boosting a bit in the treble and presence helped a lot with the tone. I'm still hoping to see a bigger change to the character once I throw some fishmans or bare knuckles into another guitar, but this will definitely satisfy for now :thumbup:


    Ps I love your profiles. I'll be checking into your vl100 pretty soon ;)

    One of the biggest strengths of the KPA for me is that it reacts to different guitars the same way as the profiled amps. And, it reacts to playing style and dynamics the same way as the profiled amps. Two of my guitars are identical, and I can hear the difference between them.


    That strength can also be frustrating if trying to tone match. You may occasionally need a Les Paul ;)

    What are you all referring to, recorded sounds or the sound coming from a "monitor out -to guitar cab"? I always use my KPA monitor out-cab and I must say, I have problems sounding like the sounds on videos from commercial sellers.

    I think it's the Les Paul, mate. I've tried for years to get other guitars (PRS Custom 24 mainly) to sound like it, and nothing gets close. I gave up and sold my PRS and stuck with the Les Paul, now I'm happy!


    It has lower output pickups, as has been suggested above. That results in a cleaner, smoother and more defined sound.

    Even if you were featured in the video with choptones with the same guitar it would have sounded differently when you played.

    Think for yourself, or others will think for you wihout thinking of you

    Henry David Thoreau

    Like 2

    Your clip is hard to compare because it is louder, but certainly doesn't sound bad and is the same tone. It really comes down to playing style making the difference for me.


    Many video demos will sound amazing because of the player and then you might be a bit disappointed you don't match up. But that would be the same with a real amp.

    Karl


    Kemper Rack OS 9.0.5 - Mac OS X 12.6.7

    To me your clip sounds more distorted than the reference video.
    There you can easily hear that the palm mutes are much more clean, giving the playing a depth.


    You either play a hotter guitar, or you have increased the gain.


    Bringing the gain down a bit can make the guitar sound more colourful for all kinds of rock and metal genres.