I will post a new thread dedicated to the whole process once I compare them all. I’m excited for the sarno too. Especially the variable impedance control.
All can help..
I have studio monitors (tannoys) which are great for mixing(' love them) but they are so "lifeless" that they "suck" by the meaning of the word(' hate them)..I wonder if a little "bit of tube" can help here..not only for electric guitar but also other string-stuff.
All can help..
I have studio monitors (tannoys) which are great for mixing(' love them) but they are so "lifeless" that they "suck" by the meaning of the word(' hate them)..I wonder if a little "bit of tube" can help here..not only for electric guitar but also other string-stuff.
so I ordered this thing
https://ifi-audio.com/products/micro-itube2/
To tubify my monitor signal.
Will keep you posted if you’re interested.
Typically I set up a rig for a particular guitar and purpose.
Switching guitars.. Especially pickups.. It's enough to ruin whatever mojo was there, perhaps surprisingly often.
But that's quite similar with the analog source tone, not just the profile.
I think the buffer helps unify different pickup outputs into something that doesn’t clip the Kpa input in a harsh way. I have a less Paul with very hot pickups that sounds like shit on all my kemper profiles (commercially bought). I almost swapped the pickups on the guitar because it was unusable with any kemper profile. It clipped the input in a very harsh way. I tried decreasing distortion sens as recommended by kemper but still it didn’t sound right. Now when I use this guitar with the buffer it’s like night and day. Actually now I don’t really have to worry about different guitar pickup outputs. All the pickups I have are useable with all the profiles I have on the kpa.
Maybe it’s all in my head, that’s why I need other people to help me confirm or dismiss this whole thing.
Everything is better with tubes, I even added some tubes to my protein shake this morning lol.
I think the buffer helps unify different pickup outputs into something that doesn’t clip the Kpa input in a harsh way. I have a less Paul with very hot pickups that sounds like shit on all my kemper profiles (commercially bought). I almost swapped the pickups on the guitar because it was unusable with any kemper profile. It clipped the input in a very harsh way. I tried decreasing distortion sens as recommended by kemper but still it didn’t sound right. Now when I use this guitar with the buffer it’s like night and day. Actually now I don’t really have to worry about different guitar pickup outputs. All the pickups I have are useable with all the profiles I have on the kpa.
Reducing distortion sens is typically not the same as reducing the preamp gain on the real amp though. That can be a good or bad thing, depending on what people are after.
That said, the point would be that without profiling a set up right there, a set up that works with your pickups, giving you the intended tone, it seems difficult to know if kemper's input is to be to blame in regards to reacting differently compared to the amp (while keeping distortion sens to 0 too).
The commercial profiles were probably made using quite different pickups to yours. It may be these real source tones also suck pretty bad with the hot PUs, but that setting these amps differently, for your pickups and desired gain level, EQ, even micing, would yeald awesome tones.. And that this would translate to the profiles too.
That's part of why it makes sense to profile, imo.
In other words: pickup A into amp with preamp gain at 8/10 and particular settings may sound great. But hot pickup B into the same set up -- real SET up -- may push the amp in a relatively different way. It's not even just about "distortion level", at that point, imo, but other meaningfully separate tonal characteristics. Of course this depends on how the amp works and how we construct our concepts.
Now if the profile is ideally faithful to the "amp at that setting" and reacts much he same way, it should reflect the "poop" tone you'd get with the hot pickup into the real source tone at the profiled settings. But... reducing distortion sens, at that point, would reduce distortion level while these other, meaningfully-separate-from-distortion characteristics will still be retained on some level.
And these may not work in your favor.
Then again, it's also possible that you like how the profile (WITH kemper gain/distortion sens reduced) of amp at 10/10 sounds like compared to real amp tone at 7/10 or profile of that setting, considering you'd be maintaining some of the "character" of the amp at the higher preamp level, but ending up with less distortion... In fact, I've had quite a few cases like this myself.
But imo this can be more complex when pickups are quite different, relatively speaking 
For me, all the more reason to profile amps. And surely I think the above can be relevant in the whole "what kemper's missing" discussion in terms of narrowing down things.
Not that the devices you mention may not improve a given tone nonetheless, of course.
Power Sagging, Compressor and Tube Bias are pretty powerful parameters in the AMPLIFIER section to influence how a Profile feels.
Hmm, I never really thought of that. What about adding the buffer after the wirelesss receiver?
I think it would actually need to be the oposite. The buffer would need to come before the wireless transmitter as the experience you are describing is mainly about the impedance loading on the pickups. Of you put the wireless transmitted first in the chain the pickups output is already loaded by the wireless so the buffer doesn’t have any effect on the way the pickups and amp react to each other.
Display MoreIn other words: pickup A into amp with preamp gain at 8/10 and particular settings may sound great. But hot pickup B into the same set up -- real SET up -- may push the amp in a relatively different way. It's not even just about "distortion level", at that point, imo, but other meaningfully separate tonal characteristics. Of course this depends on how the amp works and how we construct our concepts.
Now if the profile is ideally faithful to the "amp at that setting" and reacts much he same way, it should reflect the "poop" tone you'd get with the hot pickup into the real source tone at the profiled settings. But... reducing distortion sens, at that point, would reduce distortion level while these other, meaningfully-separate-from-distortion characteristics will still be retained on some level.
And these may not work in your favor.
Then again, it's also possible that you like how the profile (WITH kemper gain/distortion sens reduced) of amp at 10/10 sounds like compared to real amp tone at 7/10 or profile of that setting, considering you'd be maintaining some of the "character" of the amp at the higher preamp level, but ending up with less distortion... In fact, I've had quite a few cases like this myself.
But imo this can be more complex when pickups are quite different, relatively speaking
I think Kemper knows how the amp would react at the current gain level and below. Also I wonder if it’s better to use a high output pickup when profiling because any other pickup used later on with the profile will be less gainy. Therefore it will not be loading the input as the original pickup used for profiling.
I think Kemper knows how the amp would react at the current gain level and below. Also I wonder if it’s better to use a high output pickup when profiling because any other pickup used later on with the profile will be less gainy. Therefore it will not be loading the input as the original pickup used for profiling.
I really think it makes sense to test these things by profiling amps. Neither of the above have been my experience. I don't mean to be patronizing or keep repeating the same, just think it's the best way to narrow down issues Cheers
I wonder if having a few extra parameters would help.
Power Sagging, Compressor and Tube Bias are pretty powerful parameters in the AMPLIFIER section to influence how a Profile feels.
Sometimes I feel like it's, Morgan Freeman is standing in front of you talking and you know it's him. You can see him, you can hear him. But for some reason, he's holding a paper napkin in front of his mouth a foot and half or so in front of his face. You can hear him just fine, but you could hear him a little better if he just put that damn napkin down. LOL
It’s more of a general feeling of the units response rather than sound. It’s hard to explain, it’s like the difference between a tube rectified vs ss rectified amps. It’s a difference in how the notes bounce under your finger. With Kemper I feel the response is dampened a little. Like having sex with a condom lol.
Also I wonder if it’s better to use a high output pickup when profiling because any other pickup used later on with the profile will be less gainy. Therefore it will not be loading the input as the original pickup used for profiling.
The pickups play no part in the Profiling process.
Other than how you set the amp, obviously 
The pickups play no part in the Profiling process.
Other than how you set the amp, obviously
Obviously I still have a lot to learn about this whole process lol. Never tried to profile an amp and I don’t see myself doing it anytime soon. For most of us mere mortals, Kemper allows us to try amps profiled by pros or at least people who have access to good amps and professional recording setups.
I would love to try profiling at some point down the road.
It clipped the input in a very harsh way. I tried decreasing distortion sens as recommended by kemper but still it didn’t sound right.
If the input clips (and yo can tell it by the Input LED) the parameter to check would be Clean Sens, which (among other things) accounts for the PU's output level.
DS is just a global distortion control, and will not affect the PU-Input relationship.
If the input clips (and yo can tell it by the Input LED) the parameter to check would be Clean Sens, which (among other things) accounts for the PU's output level.
DS is just a global distortion control, and will not affect the PU-Input relationship.
I was referring to the video tutorials on Kempers YouTube channel. They said that if you want to adjust for pickup output use distortion sens to globally affect all rigs. I never really understood what clean sens does. They say it controls the difference between clean and distorted volume. I’ll mess with it and see how it relates to pickup output. Thanks!
They said that if you want to adjust for pickup output use distortion sens to globally affect all rigs.
nope
it affects the amount of distortion on all distorting rigs.
nope
it affects the amount of distortion on all distorting rigs.
So is it like a global “gain” setting? that’s when you start to lose me, where to draw the line between distorted and clean rigs? Even clean rigs have some degree of clipping or distortion in them if we are using tube amp analogy. I’m really confused.
from the manual:
"Distortion Sens should normally stay at zero (middle) position. Every Rig will react as if you had connected your guitar to the original amplifier. If you feel that your guitar tends to drive the distortion too hot (or too soft) for most of your Rigs, then calibrate your guitar by adjusting Distortion Sens accordingly.
Clean Sens is not a simple input gain; you will notice that it does not affect the gain of a distorted sound. Distortion Sense is also not a simple booster, as it does not affect the gain of clean sounds. Neither of these parameters colors the sound."
If you feel that your guitar tends to drive the distortion too hot (or too soft) for most of your Rigs, then calibrate your guitar by adjusting Distortion Sens accordingly.
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I wonder why the LXII was never released. That video is from 2012.
