Used to love Kemper but not so much anymore

I sent my Kemper back to be fixed as it was generating awful noises. (As heard on the video below)

I tried different Guitars, leads, power supplies, updates, locations and nothing worked.

MOV_0484.mp4

Kemper sent it back after saying nothing was wrong with it, but couldn't/wouldn't tell me what the horrible noises were.

The unit in the video was coming back to me in exactly the state it was in on the video and there was nothing I could do about it.

Because Kemper couldn't recreate the problem, they signed it off as ok and put it straight back in the post.

Luckily Andertons replaced the unit at a cost to them, otherwise I would still have the same faulty unit in the video to this day.

I loved Kemper, but this experience has stayed with me ever since. I've tried a number of times to reignite my faith in Kemper but every time I contact them I get the same poor standard of customer service.

Time to give up on Kemper now and move on to a company who treats their customers better and makes sure they have a fully functioning product they can rely on.

Quote from roadrunner

Are you saying the unit signed off by Kemper was replaced by Andertons, the problem went away and everything works ok now?

Thankfully Andertons replaced it with a new one.

I'm saying if Andertons hadn't been so good, Kemper would've been happy for me to have the unit back in that state.

I had to go through trading standards to be advised to refuse the unit from the store. If I hadn't known that, I'd still have that faulty unit and Kemper would be fine with it.

Out of interest, would you be happy to receive that unit back ?

Andertons solved the problem and were out of pocket, the problem went away for Kemper but their customer service is still poor which I believe needs to be highlighted so this doesn't happen to someone else.

Thankfully Andertons have incredible customer service

Quote from roadrunner

No, I wouldn't be happy at all. Thanks for clearing that up for me, I was having a blonde moment. This is something for Kemper to answer, as there's always two sides to a tale, but it doesn't look too peachy at the moment.

No worries, I would have plenty of blonde moments if I wasn't grey ha ha

I probably didn't make it clear either tbh. The unit was sent back to Kemper through Andertons (where I bought it from)

We ended up in a stale mate where the unit was already on its way back from Kemper with no work done to it and with no explanation to what the problem was (All the noise on the video and recorded audio from different times), but with no work done to it.

I asked over and over what the noise was in the Video and recorded audio and I was never given an answer.

So in my mind, the unit was in exactly the same state as in the video.

If I hadn't refused to take it back from Andertons, I'd still have the unit in the video now (in the same state)

I decided not to share the video and my experiences on this matter to start with, as I hoped Kemper customer service would change for the better. I loved Kemper but I'm now selling my Kemper due to this experience and their continued poor customer service.

As sad as it sounds, I was hoping for some kind of reassurance from Kemper that this kind of treatment was a one off and wouldn't happen again, but what I've found is when support go back over the case, they all sing the same tune.

So I've figured out that this is the level of their customer service and you either put up with it, or sell up and move on.

I wanted to share my experience so hopefully this doesn't happen to someone else.

If Kemper won't acknowledge that this poor treated isn't acceptable, then the companies customer service will remain at a poor standard and the user will suffer.

Thanks for your reply

Quote from Ruefus

I get that you’re frustrated. I'm must be missing something, though.

I’m not sure what you want *any* company to do when they can’t reproduce the error. How do you fix something you can’t identify as broken? How can Kemper tell someone what the sounds are....when they have no idea?

It doesn’t matter if you can get it to make the noise. They can’t. The video ‘proves’ nothing to them. They can’t recreate the issue and therefore can't diagnose it. What precisely would you like anyone to do if they can’t find the fault? Replace it on your say so? They certainly can't fix it.

That's what makes their customer service bad? They can't reproduce, can't identify a fault.....so they screwed up?

Sounds as if Andertons didn’t replace it out of the goodness of their hearts - it sounds more like you gave them no choice by refusing to accept it.

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After trying everything with that unit, Kemper told me to return it as it was not right, meaning they were saying it was faulty.

If a product is not working as it should be, I believe a reliable and fully working unit should be sent back to the customer.

Without being able to tell me what the problem is, there was no diagnosis on the product meaning they were fine with me receiving the unit back in the same state as in the video.

I sent recorded audio as well as that video.

Out of interest, what would you do if a unit you knew was faulty was being sent back to you? Knowing it was unusable.

I don't wish that situation on anyone, I had the horrible feeling I was going to receive a faulty unit back which had haunted me as it deteriorated and there was nothing Kemper would do about it.

I hope no one ever has to be in the same situation, and I hope me sharing my experiences will help others in the future.

Quote from tubelube

Did the noise go away with the new one Andertons gave you?

The new one is fine, so it was that unit which was faulty.

If Andertons hadn't sorted me out with the new one, I'd still have a £1200 unusable unit on my hands.

Quote from Crispy Panther

Reading your posts through thoroughly, trying to comprehend what is going on.

It would appear that the fault you’ve experienced is either an intermittently occurring issue or a fault peculiar to the circumstances of your situation.

When I started in the music business, we had a staff of electronic engineers, so gained insight into the type of issues that can plague customers equipment.

From a repairman’s point of view its better that a unit doesn’t work at all or that whatever the fault is, that is remains consistently apparent and thus clearly detectable.

The worst situation for them, is when they are faced with a unit that is reported to be faulty, but which whilst in their repair shop, operates perfectly as normal, exhibiting no fault whatever.

Usually, the approach taken to such devices is to leave them on a soak test for 24 hours or even perhaps two or three days consistently in the hope that whatever the issue is, over time it becomes apparent.

Of course, I have no way of knowing if that was the procedure used here, but I would be amazed if that wasn’t the case. To me, it would be standard operating procedure. But I know from experience that there are times when a fault, just doesn’t expose itself, when it’s on the bench.

The possibilities here are 1. that it wasn’t soak tested which I would like to think is improbable. Or 2. that the soak test had gone on for what was deemed to be a reasonable period with no apparent fault being detectable. As these units are professional tools and their return usually eagerly awaited, the repairman is in something of a Catch 22 situation.

If they simply hang on to the unit, soak testing it ad infinitum, the customer will be unhappy and complain about the slow turn around, whilst Kemper appear to pride themselves in a fast customer repair turnaround.

If they return the unit to the customer without actually finding a fault, they take the risk that the fault might subsequently reappear afterwards when used in the customers particular situation and then the customer will once again be unhappy.

A doctor needs to be able to clearly detect and understand the symptoms a patient exhibits, in order to be able to accurately diagnose the illness that they are suffering from.

What does a doctor do when a patient says they are ill, but no actual symptoms are clearly apparent or detectable?

It’s a difficult situation on both sides of this, if one really thinks this through!

In my experience, usually such issues are commonly only resolved after a number of visits, or returns and where more and more information regarding the issue is disclosed.

I wonder whether Kemper had the benefit of the sound file of the issue that has been posted here and of course a typed description and full explanation of the problem in detail?

Without that and with no issue apparent to them they are completely in the dark.

However, there is another fact that I would like to enlarge upon and in doing so its probably helpful to explain that I have decades of experience with major manufacturing companies, brands you will know and probably greatly admire.

All manufacturers from time to time have unwanted issues with their products.

The real issue then comes down to not whether a fault occurs, but how the unwanted issue is handled by the company concerned, and whether it is resolved in a timely manner and entirely to the customers satisfaction.

Unbelievable amounts, millions, are spent by companies I have been involved with on various aspects of marketing, and most especially, consumer research.

Thus, by expensive, intensive research it has been clearly determined that whatever problems an unhappy customer has with a product.

Whatever it costs to make that consumer happy and fully satisfied with their purchase at the end of the day.

Costs much less than it ever does to attract an entirely new customer to the brand.

In others words, retaining and building a strong bond of customer loyalty by fully satisfying a consumer, no matter how disgruntled they might be.

Is far cheaper by a country mile, than it will ever cost the company to engage consumers through marketing and enticingly captivate a completely new customer to the brand, to the point they, will finally make a purchase.

So satisfying the customer, is definitely a cost to the brand, to provide thoroughly outstanding customer service; but from the company’s point of view, especially where premium products are concerned, it’s the best and actually the cheapest option available.

Unhappy consumers have multiple global platforms available these days to advertise their complaints.

But customers who have experienced difficulties BUT had them addressed to entirely to their satisfaction, or beyond what they ever had a right to expect.

Similarly have multiple global platforms available to them to express the full emotion of their joyous delight in having their problem completely resolved, entirely to their satisfaction, and relieved are happy to use them.

They become the very best possible word of mouth advertisement for the brand.

Furthermore, the good will that is incurred more than often results in additional, repeat sales.

Having been fully satisfied by a company approach to service, they are most likely to return to the brand for ongoing, further purchases.

Customer satisfaction builds brand loyalty, and it’s not because there are never any problems, as no company on earth can provide that. But its that the issues are resolved fully to the customers satisfaction.

There’s just one further point I feel I should point out.

It appears that in this instance, the consumer has not communicated or dealt directly with the manufacturer.

This is entirely understandable, as he has returned the unit to the dealer he purchased it from. However, in my experience it is most often in such circumstances that misunderstandings and miscommunications occur.

That over hasty judgements can be made and over hasty conclusions drawn, simply by the fact that a middle man who is not directly involved in the repair processes, is communicating to the customer, and the customer entirely dependant upon what they are told. I like Andertons I think they are a good company as dealers go, but I have enough experience with dealers to know that at times the overall picture can be misrepresented.

I hope some of the thoughts here are helpful to some degree, to both sides, and that ultimately you can be persuaded to reconsider your present views and now it has been highlighted, give Kemper a chance to address and rectify all of your concerns.

Of course it's possible they already have. As Kemper may well have agreed to give Andertons credit for the unit with the issue. In which case that satisfaction expressed toward the dealer actually should lay with the manufacturer.

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Thanks for your reply.

Loads of interesting points in there, thanks.

I communicated with Kemper support directly but had to send the unit back through the store I bought it from.

All contact was with Kemper until the end when they posted the unit back. That's when I aired my concerns with Andertons who literally replaced it at a cost to them to make sure I had a working unit.

At one point in the communication with Kemper support, I felt the support guy wasn't very helpful. It turns out when you message the customer support side of Kemper to let them know your concerns, the same support guy picks up your email on a different email address and answers you, so I can't imagine that complaint going far lol.

What's sad is I was a big fan of Kemper, and I know multiple people who bought Kemper units after my appraisal.

I completely agree with what you said about holding on to valued customers.

If a company treats me right, I'll go out and tell the world about how great I think their product is.

I don't like bad mouthing companies and I didn't share my experiences for ages in the hope Kemper would regain my faith in them, but I've learnt I get the same poor customer service and same response, so nothing's changing.

Thanks again for your reply I really appreciate it.

Quote from Kemper Support #1

@ThrustTony would you mind telling me the ticket number of your case so I can take a look at it?

please can you private message me and I'll give you my email address

Quote from Ruefus

My question was - if Kemper can't recreate it the problem, what would have them do? Blindly replace the unit?

I expect anyone with decent customer service to make sure the customer receives a fully functioning and reliable unit back. Fact is, the new one is fine, so that unit was faulty and they sent it back.

Would you be happy taking back a unit you know is faulty?

Quote from BayouTexan

In every marriage, there are good days and some bad days. Sometimes the sting of the bad days overshadows the good. Enjoy the new one and rock on to many more good days!

Kind of feels like I was living a great married life, then my Mrs farted loudly on the tip of my nose, and now I can't forget the experience ha ha

Quote from Kemper Support #1

@ThrustTony would you mind telling me the ticket number of your case so I can take a look at it?

Or if you could let me know an email address, I'll send my email address over.

The whole case can be found under my email address.

I've found the case gets looked at, I get told the end of the story which is various engineers looked at the unit, couldn't find a problem, so sent it back.

No change is ever evident in the way customer service will deal with future situations like this, and I'm back to the start.

If I was in the same position tomorrow, I truly believe it would be dealt with in exactly the same way as Kempers customer service hasn't evolved at all

This is the reason I've lost faith in Kemper and I'm looking to sell my Kemper on.

I'm very much into supporting brands who support me and It's been made clear to me Kemper don't have any desire to look after loyal customers.