Posts by mbenigni

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anyway doesn't matter where the sound is coming out
which counts is that it sound good

Yes, and it's great to have options. The Kemper with a power amp installed offers tons of flexible routing so you can always choose the best approach for the situation you're in.

I find that I prefer FR in some situations, e.g. when I'm sitting at home working on solo material, mixing in synths, and experimenting with techy stuff; and I prefer a guitar cab if I'm just playing rock and roll with a band. And that makes sense: traditional tools for a traditional job. If I pick the wrong speaker type for whichever environment, listening fatigue soon follows.

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Change the term 'better' to 'more familiar' and you have an exact description of your current situation.

I don't know, I struggle with the semantics here sometimes. I mean, I really appreciate the benefits of FRFR - you might even call me an apologist. I've been chasing the FR amp modeling thing for decades. But when the claim is that your FR rig sounds authentically like the actual amp in question, and then you defend its sounding different by way of its being a paradigm shift... there's a disconnect somewhere. Acid test: try running that logic by a bandmate who's getting impatient with your tone.

P.S. I'm often distracted by the fact that I prefer speaker emulation on, even when running into a traditional cabinet. It implies that the profiles in question aren't really behaving like familiar amps.

The eternal question...

IMO a speaker cab still beats FR emulation for authentic guitar amp sound and feel (obviously you're not going to get more authentic than the real thing), but FR offers important benefits in the way of versatility - i.e. being able to approximate vastly different speaker cabinets, or mix in other audio sources with broader frequency content. So ultimately it's down to your personal preferences, how you intend to use the rig, and what compromises you're willing to make.

I'm still going back and forth on this.

I love the smell of condescension in the morning LOL.

Quote from mbenigni

Kemper got back to me first thing this morning. Indicating that my KPA is still under warranty. (According to my records, the warranty would have expired a week from today! ) Hopefully I won't get whacked too badly on shipping fees.

Having a bit of a weird time with this now. Kemper Customer Support got in touch with me first thing Monday indicating this would be covered under warranty, then a US rep wrote to me asking for my shipping address, which I provided. But I never got any confirmation that my email (with that address) was received, even after sending a follow up. This morning I submitted a new inquiry via the Kemper-amps.com "Contact Us" page, referencing my original ticket number, and the really weird thing is got no confirmation email, whereas I thought that much was automated.

Are there any Kemper-affiliated moderators who can comment on the availability of customer support? I'm just trying to get the ball rolling before my warranty turns into a proverbial pumpkin.

Scratch that, just heard back.

Quote from Pick909

If it was 10 lbs lighter I would see it as the perfect grab'n go one box stereo solution for small gigs etc. But at 40 lbs it can't be consider as an easy portable cab...

While I'm not ready to pull the trigger on this thing, I will continue, for sure, to check the evolution of this interesting concept!

Likewise. I know a lot of people are concerned that it won't provide adequate SPL, and are holding out for a bigger variation. I'm actually holding out for a smaller one, for sake of portability. Not holding my breath, of course.

Kemper got back to me first thing this morning. Indicating that my KPA is still under warranty. (According to my records, the warranty would have expired a week from today! ) Hopefully I won't get whacked too badly on shipping fees.

For all my complaining, I give Kemper a lot of credit for following up so quickly. It's Monday morning, and there was an email waiting before I even woke up.

Thank you, Timo. There wasn't much enthusiasm surrounding the idea and I didn't expect to hear anything from Kemper. The plot thickens...

Ah gotcha. Not really where I'm headed, but with the right hardware that would work.

Right, right - I forgot that the Event Processor will do SysEx. Last project I took on with the Event Processor was getting the KPA looper working, and it was the KPA that wouldn't accept SysEx for this purpose.

In in any case, it doesn't change this discussion.

My floorboards per se cannot, but my floorboards plus MIDI Solutions Event Processor can send pretty much anything EXCEPT SysEx, including NRPN. So it's pretty flexible.

But the bottom line is, I'm trying (or was) to set up very minimal, single-direction MIDI to toggle effects, i.e. battery power, one MIDI cable. There's no way that's going to work (to my satisfaction) without the KPA recognizing a CC value for toggle. There's just not enough intelligence/ state awareness in the controller itself.

I don't really get where lasvideo is coming from either; I thought every response up to the point where I lost my cool was perfectly fine - even supportive.

This is not that complicated. Every other product I own can handle a toggle event. It doesn't matter anymore, really. I've had my fill.

Thanks, Zappledan.

My god that is close. If I'm like 2 days out of warranty I'd just call it true to form at this point.

Thanks, Michael - I hope that's the case. I think I bought it in summer 2012 but I'm not even sure. I sent Kemper the SN and hopefully they can tell me what my options are. If it's out of warranty maybe I'll just take it out back and beat it with a rock. A little frustrated here...

Not sure how to take that, Ingolf. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and just say: thank you.

OMFG.

So there's a new wrinkle: I turned the thing on after right after my last post... and I have a dead LED. Imagine the timing here: I've had this mint Kemper for nearly three years. I listed it for sale YESTERDAY. TODAY it is damaged goods. You could not make this s*** up.

Now I have another Kemper-related project to worry about instead of PLAYING MY &*@* GUITAR. The hits just keep coming. This is going to be the worst sales pitch in the history of pitches, but I'm seeing red right now: I can't wait to get this damned thing out of my life.

I wonder what this will cost and how long it will take... If you need me I'll be on the porch playing my Breedlove. #ihategear

Zapp - I don't think I'll scale back that far. I'll probably use a hybrid setup e.g. Bias FX/Bias Amps, FRFR or into the back of a tube combo depending on my needs. So there will still be some versatility. I know this forum would explode if I tried to imply that Bias sounds as good as the Kemper, and I won't. But for $30 I've got something I actually quite like the sound of, and when I plug in MIDI controllers, MIDI learn just works.

Damian - thanks. It's cool being part of a forum where anyone even gives a damn. But I've been waiting and waiting and waiting. It's ridiculous. And actually my needs are quite simple - check out the link in my signature. The thing is, I'm not sure it matters any more. I've been wrestling long enough to have finally stopped and considered: do I even really need this thing? I'm just a day-jobber who plays a little guitar.

Well, I probably won't stop listening - and torturing myself - until it's out the door, but I've already given it a couple hundred weeks. I already know it sounds great; it's other little snags - for instance, MIDI implementation - that trip me up. (And every time someone tells me it's fine as is, it's that much clearer that Kemper won't be motivated to make improvements.)

As I said, there's nothing inherently wrong with the KPA - more a question of whether it's what I need. I've learned an important lesson: not every piece of gear will suit everyone, no matter whether it's "the best", or whatever. You've gotta live with the stuff and really be honest with yourself about it.