Hello from Tennessee! I mentioned this in another thread, but I just arrived in the Kemper universe with a Stage unit. I used to be an analog/tube purist and have been through many, many, many amps and effects over the years (been playing guitar and bass for 32 years). I started my foray into the digital realm with the Helix Floor, then the GT-1000 (at the same time), the Tonex (still have & love), and now the Kemper. The Helix was certainly easier to use and program, but the dynamics and feel were not quite as good as the Kemper in my opinion. And the Kemper’s effects are just as good; even better in some instances - notably reverb (spring especially) and rotary (which is as good as my Strymon Mobius and simply bad in the Helix). The UI of the GT-1000 was similarly difficult to grasp as the Kemper, and tones were good (not as good as Helix) and the effects were not to my taste; even though I really liked the MD-500.
So far, I am liking the Kemper best! And I am coming to grips with the work flow and Rig Manager. I do like browsing through all the user profiles, but it takes time and can get tedious. I feel like the Tonex and Kemper are on par with each other as far as tones, dynamics, and feel are concerned. But there aren’t as many great free profiles for the Tonex - which makes sense given Kemper’s time on the scene! I actually bought some profiles for the Tonex, which I really thought I would never do!
Now I have a conventional pedalboard with the Tonex and my Kemper Stage to give me two fantastic options!!! 
