Mental's DI is a lower tuning, as you mentioned, so that might colour some of your perception. But at the same time, I did notice quite a difference in the quality of his DIs versus yours - his seems to have more girth or body, yours are a bit thin. It's likely to be due to the way you recorded the DI, perhaps you used a lower clean sense setting, which could have affected your DI recording.
Take a look at the reamping guide in my sig and see if you can adjust your clean sense appropriately to get a strong DI signal.
Also, check your SPDIF volume in the output section. You want it to be at full signal strength when recording a DI.
Thank you very much for the answer. His definitely has girth, whereas mine are thin.
I have been wondering about that Clean Sense. I have set it to around -6, can't remember now exactly. I have set it there just because anything higher will turn the light red in the input. I can't have it going to red all the time, right?
This involves Kemper, but I guess since my focus is more on the pups, it's better to post it in this section.
I have had a long, painful quest of getting good distorted sounds out of my Kemper and it still continues. I appreciate feedback and thoughts.
As I was still thinking it could be a fault in the Kemper, a member by the name of MentaL was kind enough to supply me with his DI recording to test my reamping. It turned out that the Kemper was working correctly. And that made me think, the problem must be then the signal going to the Kemper, that is: strings, guitar, pickups; or then possibly my audio interface. His DI sounded really awesome, while nothing I could make sounded so good, or made the Kemper sound so good either. I have tested a lot of different strings, and even went and bought a new ESP E-II Horizon to upgrade my guitar situation. But still... his sound is better, and makes better reamps. Now I'm thinking at least part of the thing is the pickups.
And before going further I would really like to know, if we both record DI through the Kemper, so it's the Kemper doing the analog-digital conversion (as I am lead to believe), does the audio interface have any part of forming the sound? Because if it's the Kemper doing all the work, and the interface is just receiving 1s and 0s, does it make any difference whether it's a Focusrite Scarlett as I have, or something much more expensive as he most probably has? The reason I'm asking is that, while he has a lot more low-range, it doesn't sound boomy or muddy at all. It sounds really defined and good. Is this due to the pickup or the audio interface?
To continue... I have made several DI recordings, and then their reamps to make a comparison. All bridge position. All mine are in D-tune.
1) Mental's DI. He said he has a Ibanez JEM with Dimarzio Breed and cobalt strings. C-tune. Don't know gauge. 2) ESP with month old DR DDT 11-54 strings, and EMG 57 with a 24 V mod (because it was clipping on 9 V even at 5 mm distance). 3) Same ESP with brand new cobalt 11-54 strings. 4) Number 3 EQd with EQCurve to match number 1 (to test how it affects reamping). 5) My brothers Kramer with couple of months old DR DDT 11-54, passive SD pups. There's somekind of a boost switch.. here ON. 6) And here OFF. 7) My Kramer with about 2 month old DR DDT strings, EMG 81 pup with 9 V, and as you can hear it clips a little.
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As you can probably hear, number 1 has much more low-end, and much less high-end. Also, even looking at the image of the recording, compared to all my recordings, it's very flat, like compressed. I have big transients, and the sound fades after them, while his doesn't. Is this due to pickups?
The rest of the clips are the reamps in order. I used something from Guido Bungenstock. The outgoing clips all peaked at -0.2, so should be same level of volume. A difference is of course that since I have bigger transients, what happens after the transients will have less distortion in my clips. I know that one reamp is just one case, but I have perceived a problem in my sounds through-out all my distorted rigs, and I think his illustrates what the problem is in all of them.
Some might say that there's not a big difference. But for me it's always about making it work in the mix. And there it matters. The sound needs to be defined and clear to have it sit well in it's pocket in the mix. For me at least, number one is the best. And from the rest, I would maybe choose number 4. That was the EQ matched one. So I would say that definitely the frequency distribution in itself is playing a big part. The rest of them have a lot more high-end, but for me they sound brittle, not bright. And I guess that is a big part of the problem I keep having with Kemper.. distorted sounds sound brittle, not sturdy.
But as number 1 is sturdier, thicker and more defined compared to it's EQ matched equivalent, it's not the frequency distribution only. So what is it then? What I find puzzling is that the strings seem to blend more in number 1, but still the frequencies sound clearer, like there's more separation. With all that low-end, it's not boomy or muddy at all. This is what made me question if the audio interface has something to do with it. Can you hear what I'm talking about?
So.. this is what made me consider switching the EMG actives to Dimarzio Breeds. I'm quite sure that I would prefer it that way, because I seem to find that high high-end making everything brittle. But before I purchase anything, I would like to understand what is happening. Is the audio interface playing a role here? How come his sound is so defined, is that due to pickups? Would you choose one of my reamps over his? Any thoughts?
I don't know how I'm supposed to add an image here, so I just put it as my avatar for now.
You can see the "twins" there. Not identical, but twins. They are basically the same guitar, with slight differences in the electronics. And now of course the pickups are different brand, as discussed before.
Mine is Kramer American Custom 1, and my brother's is Kramer American Deluxe. I think the model name "Pacer" is also connected to these, but it doesn't read anywhere on the guitars at least. It's just a name I deducted reading a website about vintage Kramers, since they didn't mention separately Custom or Deluxe.
Man oh man... yesterday I replied to all the new posts, but maybe I didn't push submit in the end. (e: is it possible it didn't submit because it was too long with quotes from about 5 messages...)
To summarise: Thanks for the messages. I tested the action thing, but the problem is the wood. The floyd roses are in both "black original" (find link below), so I'm having trouble thinking it's from the tremolo. I'm telling you, it's the wood. It even feels different, the better Kramer springs to life when strummed, like starting a car, it purs. The worse one just doesn't respond like that. It's a great guitar in many other ways, but the wood is either of a different type, or there is something deficient about it. It's really odd because they are basically the same guitar, and yet there's so much difference in the resonance.
I think the original passives suits it better to give it more transients, as the sound is lame, so I will put them back and save my EMGs for something else. I think someone suggested this already.
True, but a categorical difference is not due to a week older set of strings. Only nuances.
Trying to solve this problem I have went through Elixir, Ernie Balls, NYXL and finally now DR DDT. And different gauges. None of them removed the problem, whether they were brand new or they had been there for months.
Strings, age of strings, fingers, pick, pickups... yes, all of them have an effect. But I feel that categorically they are just bringing flavor. They don't mean anything if the gear doesn't work properly. There's no way to play or EQ your way out of a deficient piece of gear.
My guitar is deficient, the strings just don't ring and the wood just doesn't resonate as it should. I have no way to explain it to myself how it has taken me years to reach this conclusion! I feel utterly embarrassed. I have blamed Kemper, tweaked kemper, changed strings, changed pickups, changed to SPDIF, reinforced my floyd rose springs, dampened the springs, dampened the strings beyond nut, sorted intonation, I have brought it to storekeepers for a listen... and all this time the answer has been sitting on my lap! But as I have said, I have learned a lot about sound.
testyMM sounds softer to me. You sure they're equally loud? (I did not measure)
I measured from after the first transient to before the next transient. I put it on a loop to see what volume it shows. They were equal down to 0.0 dB. But the transients are louder in JJ, definitely. But to me the only important thing here is that I have been struggling with that faint and cloudy guitar sound for months and months, and since JJ doesn't have it, I know now for sure that it's my guitar. And for the following reason, it doesn't really matter if they are equal in those samples...
Yesterday I compared the guitars with just strumming them without any gear involved... and the difference is clear. Plain and simple, it's the guitar itself, not pickups or anything. It's disturbingly odd because they are basically the same guitar. Exact same shape, color, floyd rose, price was categorically the same (if I remember correctly). Only he had one more SD pick up in the middle, and as I said, I changed my SDs to EMG actives (along with tone pot), and he has a 5-way switch, mine has 3, he also has some other little switch there, but I'm not sure if it's working properly.
Almost identical guitar, and even just playing it acoustically there's a big difference. The "JJ" is much punchier and brighter, almost like something in the "MM" is dampening the strings. The floyd roses should at least be the same, so then it would leave nothing else but the wood body itself. I can't come to any other conclusion.
Just in case you want to hear what I was trying to show earlier: MentaL's Jem (raw), my bro's Kramer American (testyJJ), my Kramer American (testyMM). The transients on testyJJ are louder than on testyMM, because that guitar is much more dynamic, but measured from the parts where the strings just ring, the volume should be about the same (I got -6.1 dB on both before bouncing). I didn't match them with the Jem, so there might be a volume difference.
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My brother's guitar hasn't been maintained in over a decade, except that I cleaned the fretboard and changed the same strings to it than to my guitar to make it as "equal" as possible. There's some odd sidesound to it, but I would still say that it sounds just good compared to MentaL's clip. Categorically, I would say that they they both sound good.
My guitar sounds bad. It just sounds weak and cloudy. That cloudiness stacks up in mixes where you want to layer many guitars, and it just doesn't work. It sounded quite like that with the original SD passives, that's why I changed active EMGs to it, thinking it would help, but it didn't resolve anything.
If you still say it's the fingers... I don't know what to say. For me, there's two good sounds there, one bad sound.
I'm sad that this is the case, because that guitar that I have wasn't a cheap one, and it's one of the fastest ones I have ever played. I really enjoy the thin neck and low action. And it looks good too! But on the other hand, I'm happy to finally start to grasp where the problem has been, and as I have been desperately searching for answers, I have actually learned quite a lot about EQing, guitar maintenance, Kemper's tweaking options, picking technique, etc. So it hasn't been a complete waste of time either.
Do what you want with my DI. No 'real' magic at all - just drop C tuning - a real Ibanez Jem and Dimarzio breed pickups.
I meant the file named "raw" that you sent me, not the DI. The raw file you sent me is the result of reamping through Kemper, I get the same sound reamping through my Kemper, so it is purely DI + Kemper. But the sound that you have in SoundCloud as the demo of the profile is a bit processed. It sounds a bit different from the "raw" file you sent me. It sounds better, crispier, a little cut from the mids.
Can I include the raw file you sent me to the comparison of the two guitars (done properly this time), so it's easier for everyone to compare to yours also? Lets' give everyone a chance to decide whether fingers or gear. I will remove it of course after a while.
By the way... your demo clip of the profile in question is processed from the raw file. Can you tell me what you did to it, because it sounds simply magnificent! Mids have been cut a little, crispier, punchier. Is it just EQ, or is there some other magic involved?
OMG... i made a mistake in the comparison, forget that! I'm such an idiot. I used the wrong file! I will remove it from soundcloud. Sorry about that. Wasted everyone's time...
@SpinnerDeluxe.. you are right, it's mono center. Wrong file, sorry.
On the bright side, I just made the reamp of MentaL's files, and the yes, the problem is not in the Kemper. I can finally conclude that. I hear no difference in the reamps and the original. Thank you very much MentaL, and everyone else, for sorting this thing out for me.
My quest for better sounds continue, and I am relieved that I can finally rule out the Kemper of the equation. I have been really frustrated with this thing, and now I feel I'm making progress.
Also good news was that earlier today I went to buy a bottle of sherry, and they asked for my ID. I'm 34!! Almost double the age limit... haha.
Here you go @MarkusUz , two Di's LEFT and RIGHT.. Pan them 100% l/r and reamp using my X05 6505 profile and it should sound EXACTLY the same as the first riff I originally played on my tone you like. By listening to it the tone I shared was 100% raw with no HP/LP or mastering... so just magic fingers.
Thank you so much! I will check it out today or tomorrow!
e: I had a comparison here with two different guitars, but I had used a wrong file in the bounce, so I removed this section. Sorry about the inconvenience!
How come? If part of this comes from my posts I would like to apologize. It was not meant this way at all. You started a very positive thread with helpful answers all around, me thinks. Thats what this forum is all about.
I am into guitars and amps for a long, long time. And my #1 reason on this forum is to learn more, especially about the Kemper - but not alone. I asked so many dumb noob questions when I was very new to the Kemper. And I learn more every day.
I want to clarify that I think your guitar track has an Ok Kemper sound and your playing is OK. Did I mention that my guitar skills are also *just* OK? Now, you are willing for more, for perfection, which is great. So do I. Please, lets go ahead that road. Alltogether.
I hope the DI track will convince you that your Kemper is in good condition. And will motivate you to play and practice more than ever. Progress is all about facing the own mistakes. The master is better than the apprentice - simply because the master already made all the possible mistakes himself. But never gave up.
All the best, good luck and do not overweigh the opinion of just one single old guy like me.
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Hey, no problem, mate. I don't have any confidence issues with my playing.
But since the core of this thread was to find out if my Kemper is working properly, and whatever other cause it might be, we are getting a little sidetracked with mixing and my playing skill. And I just meant that after the Kemper functionality has been ruled out (or in) it's time for me to dwell into the guitar or my fingering elsewhere, may it be in a different forum or not, but at least not on this thread, because that is not the topic here. I just want to find out first the Kemper, because then it's easier for me to move on to find out other possible reasons.
And I like your idea of supplying quality DIs for all to download, accompanied with matching reamped ones, because then people could do the test by their own initially before posting here or contacting support. And there's another reason, that it will give a good reference for how a good quality DI will sound that you can target with your own productions. Which is why...
e: If it's Kemper, guitar or my fingers, getting this DI would help me at least reduce Kemper from the equation. And in a way I feel that after that I should't be bothering people in this forum. I mean if it's the guitar or my fingers, I can find another place to seek answers to those. So that's why it would be just perfect to get that DI from you. But... if you happen to have... I would also appreciate just a plucked open string(s). I could compare that to my plucked open strings, and that would also leave most of the fingers out of the equation also. (Of course the right hand will still have a little role in it.) Thanks again.
So the second is yours? The first one seems to do some stereo trick, i.e. pan the close miced amp to the left and more ambient / roomish mic to the right or its just double tracking. Yours is more or less in the center. Very uncommon for that style to have a guitar sit there. A distorted guitar in a mix needs treatment. Start with left / right panning. Either a double track or the Haas trick (phase inverted copy panned opposite) or the ambient/room trick. So you get it out of the way of bass, vocals and drums by distance.
Highpass the guitar, depending on what the bass / bass drum does. Then start cutting with EQ the frequencies which clash with drums, especially in the low mids. Eventually also low pass, in case your cymbals get masked or the guitar sound seem too harsh. So you get it out of the way by frequency. Avoid soloing your guitar to check if its still great! It *must* serve the mix and sound great with the other instruments, not all alone. This is *the* biggest difference to the bedroom solo players.
Next think about reverb, which is depth. Some instruments dry, others wet gives the third dimension. Eventually reduce the reverb on the Kemper or switch it off. The wrong reverb there for a certain song might make mixing a pain.
Thanks, I hear what you are saying and I have been trying different layerings and EQs for the last two months, EQ matching with Metallica, all sorts of stuff. But then it kind of hits me... if I and some guy X both go and spend the same money on a Kemper unit, his sounds awesome and mine sounds barely acceptable, I'm not going to do any engineering tricks to compensate, right? Same money, same quality, right?
When that is settled, that the original sound is good and my gear are working properly... THEN it's time to start engineering the mix. I just want to make sure my Kemper is working properly... and that I am working the Kemper properly.
My clip above is just dual tracked, 100% left and right , no magic otherwise - just the standard HP/LP and made marginally louder. The guitar I used was a Jem77V with Dimarzio Breed pickups tuned in Drop C.
D
Even if I doubled and hardpanned L/R, mine wouldn't sound as good as that. Yours sounds awesome! Do you have any opinion what the reason is?
I think it's either the guitar or the Kemper. If I knew it's the guitar - problem solved - I will go and buy a new one. But I would really like to hear some opinions what the reason could be before I start the whole process of acquiring a new guitar.
Sorry I haven't answered. I've been away... testing, testing, losing my mind... now I'm back. And I haven't found out the problem yet. As my Kemper was reseted and tested and people assured me it's working as it should, I ruled it out for a while and thought then there can be only one explanation: that it is my guitars fault. Today I took my guitar (once again) to a music store and I compared it's sound to others. Maybe it didn't sound quite as good as some of them, but the storekeeper said it sounds good to his ears.. not bad enough to be a problem, in his opinion. So is it the guitar, or is it the Kemper... I'm going insane.
Local music shops won't rent one, and I don't know other musicians here, so for now I haven't been able to make a fair test at home.
Even to me, if I'm just playing alone, my guitar sounds ok/acceptable. But put in a mix, and there's so much mud and cloudiness that it just destroys the whole mix. I've gone through literally hundreds and hundreds of profiles and just can't find one that works. They all have the same problem! But when I hear other people's recordings, it doesn't really matter what profile they have, it always sounds good to me. I have been trying to tweak the Kemper and EQ my recordings... but I just don't think it should go like that. The original thing should be good, and then you polish it better, right? Not that it's bad, and then try to fix it.
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You will notice that mine sounds weaker and fainter, right? Like it lacks the punch, crispiness and heavy but tight low end?
I'm wondering, do you have any previous experience with hearing a cab recorded through a microphone?
I dismissed this in the beginning for the simple reason that I have never heard in any commercial recordings, or even adequate non-commercial recordings, anything that sounds as dry and unpleasant as my sounds. I do have experience of a close miked cab, but not in a professional studio. So, if these profiles are meant to sound like this... what can I say? In my opinion, they can't be mixed well.. they are so dry and lifeless that they will just destroy the mix.
So, do you have any tips how to make them "wet" and smoother. I guess using the Space as well as adding some Reverb will help a little. Do you have any other tips?
