I had an Axon for a few years. Long enough for me to conclude that what is possible with a guitar as a synth controller is severely limited. You can't do a plausible imitation of piano or organ or most any sound that can be generated with a traditional keyboard. The fact that the guitar has strings is very limiting. Monophonic synth sounds can be done pretty well, but guitar synth is limited in too many ways IMO. The devil is in the details or not in the details in this case.
YMMV
….another aspect is taking this incredibly dynamic signal, processing it and providing an audible output .in no more than 30 milliseconds.
Otherwise the lag becomes way to noticeable.
Much easier said than done.
Mentioned in 5. above. 30ms is an arbitrary latency figure. Some users can recognize latency below 10ms.
...why cant we get a transpose that works cleanly,, ??
Just asking, not trying to be a wise assss,,,,,is it really that hard to move it cleanly a semi tone up or down without all the artifacts
I'll take a brief, although admittedly incomplete, stab at it. My goal is to mention a few of the issues that can lead to artifacts.
1. The output of a plucked string is analog and must be digitized(in most implementations) and quantized. Quantization can lead to accuracy issues.
2. Plucked strings generate a fundamental frequency plus harmonics. One could view the harmonics themselves as artifacts. This can create confusion in identifying the note the player intended to play. The fundamental plus the harmonics must ALL be transposed in the case of an ideal transposition. All of these frequencies must be discriminated and transposed accurately. If they are not, then there are artifacts.
3. The string can be bent so the guitar can generate frequencies that are not in the twelve tone row. The frequencies between the twelve tone row fundamental and the harmonics are infinite in theory. Each player squeezes out the notes in a slightly different way. Your C is slightly different than other guitarists and unique to your touch. This means infinitely precise recognition and generation of frequencies.
4. There are also transient properties as well that must be recreated as well. This can be the source of another set of artifacts. These change with the force used to pluck the string for instance. How long does the note sustain? The precision of the analog to digital conversion could a problem in regard to the transients. This can lead to more artifacts.
5. All these processes take time(latency). This is another artifact.
As mentioned, this is a non-trivial process to implement accurately.
+ is soldered to the terminal of the Jack that connects to the Tip of the speaker cable when it is inserted.
- is soldered to the terminal of the Jack that connects to the Sleeve of the speaker cable when it is inserted.
This is the normal convention for mono wiring. There is no stereo in the manual's diagram. If it was wired in reversed polarity(+ and - swapped), the cab would still output sound and it is doubtful that you would be able to audibly notice the difference.
I am flabbergasted that any guitarist would want to play a full gig with EVERY song through a transposer. I have never used one that didn't have artifacts. I can't imagine being in the crowd listening to that all night. Much less playing through it all night. I don't get it, but I suppose I don't need to.
Can't tell you about the Kabinet for bass. I normally use SVT and B15 profiles for live gigs with a Darkglass DG212NE cabinet. This is a great cab IMO. I also have run those profiles through a PA that has JBL SRX712s(no subs) and there is very little bottom end and girth. I don't expect you will get a full, fat bass sound out of a Kabinet.
Pure nickels are actually my favorite on electric guitar, but the slight improvement is not worth the money IMO. Started using D'Addario Nickel Wound Regular Light Gauge 10/46 in the 70s. Currently using them. Over time I started 'optimizing' gauges for guitars. 10s on solidbody Gibson scale. 9.5s on Strat, and 9s on Teles. Teles sound more like a Tele with lighter gauge strings IMO. Gibson 400 has flatwound 12s. Acoustics Martin SP Flexible Core 12s. Light gauge flats and rounds on different basses.
I'll state it again - the GOAL of regression testing is to make sure that the system is fully functional after changes are introduced. Whether 100% coverage is achievable in practice is a different question. That depends on the complexity of the system, the talents of the designers and time allotted. In any case, I've had my powered Kemper for about 1 year and have suffered with several issues which I believe are FW related. These include the recent dropout issue, no sound through the power amp into cab requiring multiple power cycles to resolve, distorted sound on all patches requiring one or more power cycles and/or a reset to resolve, USB connectivity while in RM. I am not listing the plethora of RM issues as I don't believe those are likely FW related. Some of the issues I experienced may be related to the power amp section and interface. This could obviously result in differing experiences for those with and without the built-in amp.
Long way of stating a different opinion regarding the OP's concern about quality vs features. This has much to do with relative experience. V8's post is positive regarding quality. The OP experienced a serious issue very early on in his experience. I use mine live for both bass and guitar. Much to my chagrin, I am always lugging a backup head based on my experience. I don't trust that the powered Kemper won't fail. During a gig last week, I power cycled 3x before sound check to get any output. Then another power cycle right at the moment of the first song because the sound went dead again. A major point here is that someone else's positive experience has no bearing on issues that I am having in the moment. "Hey everyone, I have no sound, but a lot of other Kemper users do" said no one to the audience.
I'm gigging with it tonight on bass. I'm wishing myself luck.
...How do you know they aren’t regression testing properly? An edge case will sneak through every now and then, no matter how much money you through at it.
First, I don't know if they do regression testing at all, but I assume that they do. So there is that. More importantly, an edge case failing to be caught is an improper regression test by definition. The goal of regression testing is to make sure that the system is FULLY(not partly) functional after code changes are made. You can argue that since it is beta the full functionality is not guaranteed. Even so, it's an opportunity for improvement.
It’s not a coincidence that this thread was created now. I think it’s pretty unfair to imply a steady stream of problems due to the team pushing untested and unfinished software. It’s just not true.
In light of recent events, it is obvious that the FW was not tested fully. Either the FW team failed to execute the tests or the test suite is incomplete. There should be regression testing to avoid precisely the situation that recently occurred. This is a significant failure, period. The fact that Kemper responded is certainly good. The fact that they responded with a new revision containing a bug is bad. Again, this should not happen with proper regression testing and all the indications show that Kemper's regressions are problematic. In addition, this is mature hardware and the use cases are well-known and defined. After all these years, the regressions should be solid. This is not a prototype at this point. Sorry, but this points to significant deficiencies in the FW release flow and Kemper should be apologetic and embarrassed.
If the pacheo profile sounds dull and lifeless then your hardware must be broken 
What really helps the infamous profile is the mid EQ boost. It just really puts it up front. When you write "TJ45/100" do you mean the TJ JTM45 and 74 Superlead?
No, I mean what Tone Junkie calls the Marsh 45/100. You can read about it on their site. It is the best Plexi type profile that I have found so far. Fat clean and driven tones without the high end fizz that I really dislike. I do tweak it for my taste. High end fizz is not possible to EQ out without destroying the profile, in my experience.
This thread caused me to use the infamous profile at the blues jam that I host. I used it as my one amp for the full evening last night. It was a good experience and I credit this thread for the motivation. Thanks for that. I tend to use a limited number of amps in an evening because I don't like the ear shock. I don't use comps. boosts or ODs and I control tones from the guitar for the most part. I will kick on a delay, rotary, or univibe for some different flavors. The pacheo profile responds well to volume and tone changes on the guitar. I personally, don't think it is as good as some of the Britt SSS profiles or the TJ 45/100 profiles, but it is a good one and I see why many like it. Thanks again for the motivation to use it.
Yeah. And the profile is actually heavily tweaked in the Kemper afterwards. If it sounds good it is good.
Which is why I don't generally use that profile. I like the rig, but it eats a few slots as I remember and I would like to use those slots for other things.
I have gravitated to IEMs to solve the problem for myself as well. I have created a simple rig for that. My vocal mic goes into a small mixer that I control. A second channel is fed by a high quality condenser mic placed on the stage very near my location. The condenser picks up all of the stage volume and I mix my vocal in IEMs to float over top so that I can hear and avoid monitor issues. FOH is handled as normal. It works for me and puts me back in control of what I hear.
The band sounds great! I am not familiar with ALL of the Comfortably Numb versions, so my next comment might be incorrect. I really like the way you stayed with the general theme of the outro solo, but made it your own. You hit the major markers for that solo and created new licks that explore the minor theme more than the original. Very nice!!!
Singers seem to complain about a bad mix more than others. This is often for good reason and I can relate since I sing as well. Nothing worse than having to sing without proper input to stay on pitch. Being forced to over sing is a horrible situation and can lead to physical issues. My first attempt to cure this situation is to 'force' the stage volume down. Most times, the other band members won't comply. Not much to do in that case.
My standard answer for the prima donna singer that complains for no good reason is "I'll add volume if you add more talent"
This should have been implemented from day 1 IMO. By the way, the argument that a boostor/OD in front of a valve amp with enough gain/compression won’t increase volume is a very limited argument. Is is simply not true for the majority of valve amp configurations. The idea that pedals are just for gain is not true. Nashville, for one, is loaded with guys that use pedals on a clean platform to up the volume. The same invalid argument was made here about volume knobs on guitars. That argument is false in most cases as well and for the same reason.
Just because a limited case exists, doesn't mean it is always true. In this case, it is just the opposite.
Definitely the best source of the truth and not afraid to say so
Oh this is funny. I never listen to the wives' comments. I've been with them at events with atrocious sound and they haven't a clue. Me:"that would have been an incredible show if it weren't for the unbearable sound quality." Them: "I thought it sounded just fine." Your set of wives must have totally different skills than my set.
Regardless to be able to play well, its not necessary to know theory as Tab and explanation videos exist and you can use your ears to both work things out and play around/improvise.
One more thing if I could? The first 10 years that I played, I thought I played well and many others did as well. I could play interesting lines and be creative within specific boundaries and fretboard boxes. But I was limited by a lack of knowledge. I knew all the note names on the fretboard, but very little theory or how to apply it. My playing improved significantly after i made a commitment to learn theory and how to apply and visualize it on the fretboard. Playing changes in real time became possible and important to me. Being able transpose to different keys became a reality. Not just up or down a few semitones or frets, but up or down a forth or fifth for example. Playing modes made sense finally. Sorry, I couldn't resist this one additional comment.
