Posts by GuyJames

so what setting do you like and where are you setting the volume on the cab?

1. If i'm using an FRFR speaker is it better to use a Merged or studio profile?

2. How does one typically recognize a what the profile type is (Studio, Merged)?

I don't see any indication on MBritts profiles.

@BooUrns

Man I don't know, every other setting besides 4 just doesn't sound right to me. I also haven't taken it to a jam yet so I'm eager to feel it in context.

I'm trying to morph on a bank so I have a separate set of effects, specifically the wah changing to a pitch pedal but it changes the wah on the original un-morphed patch. How can I get it to morph the way i'm trying to make it?

`Guy

First impression, Looks cool and I like the Open option but its held on but what i think is godlyke power grip tape.

Down to the point though, I don't know if the FRFR thing is for me. When I got the Kemper two months ago I had been using it through my studio monitors with mixed feelings. 1 month into I brought home a 2x12 cab, turned off the cab module and it was way better, it felt like an "amp in the room". Yes a lot of the profiles had similar character but there was still enough tonal variance that made the amps feel like their original counterparts.

I'm 2 days into receiving the Xitone MBritt cab though and It's definitely different from the real cab. The Xitone is probably better than most other FRFR's out there but I haven't tried others. I think it's the Tweeter that just feels fizzy, Clean and High Gain. The Bass is so heavy on this thing even with the back panel off too so I think I need to adjust the output bass down a bit.

Out of the 5 different "DSP" modes on the back, option 4 seems to be the most organic. This option is a LRFR with 12” only - No Port Cover. This mode is Limited Range Flat Response in thatonly the 12” driver is used and the tweeter is turned off. Everything else sounds fizzy to me.

Not really sure if I made a mistake by buying this "Active Cab" since I have a powered cab but maybe it'll work out in the end.

FYI, this is 2 days in and i've only played it in my living room but I did turn it up. I'm going to take it into work where I have some more space and see how it feels in a bigger room. I'll give a few more days and if it doesn't do it for me i'll be up for sale.

@BooUrns

Do you have any tips on the Cab? I just got mine today!

Do you use an XLR or Instrument cable to connect and from what output on the Kemper do you prefer (Main or Monitor out)?

Is the volume on the Cab a set and forget thing for you or do you notice it changing the gain/speaker breakup?

Any advice on the five different settings?

I assume i should have the line/mic switch set to line correct?

Lastly, I've noticed this thing has a ton of bass!

`Guy

Thanks guys i'll stick with line level I guess. I use a scarlett 18i8, which apparently has good preamps for it's entry level price.

Hi,

So the guy at Kemper told me to use two XLR's from the Main out of amp into the interface and select instrument level. Then some other folks have suggested selecting line level... What's the difference because switching between the two I don't hear a difference.

`Guy

If my FRFR has XLR and 1/4 inch inputs should i still just use the monitor out on the Kemper? So far I just tried an XLR from the Main out of Kemper into the Cab.

If I used the 1/4 input from the main out section could i still use the XLR outs to go to FOH?

`Guy

I actually just received the Xitone MBritt Signature cab. Out of the box it sounds great. I need to play with it more but I think it's going to serve it's purpose wonderfully. check it out here, https://xitonecabs.com/product/mbritt/

`Guy

I agree, but I'd imagine if the sound guy didn't make sure phantom power off could be a problem or if there is a reason to be line or instrument level. I'm just not sure if there's any safety measures built into this thing.

Couple question regarding live use and If i'm going to run a line out to the sound board..

Is any DI/Snake box sufficient or should I get my own that I know doesn't kill FOH tone?

Is there anything I need to tell the sound engineer to make sure is or isn't on so I don't blow my amp up?

Anything else I should be aware of?

I thought by checking the lock volume pedal box in the rig menu would globally lock what I have the volume pedal set to, in my case post stack. It's not doing it though in performance mode. Do I have to go in on each rigs rig menu and adjust it?

@Ingolf

Thank you man, I didn't think about it but your point made about using monitor out so I still have the XLR's put it in perspective. Do you have any preference on instrument cable you use? I'd imagine the shortest possible vable would be ideal. I use the George L's that I could make a 1 foot cable.

1) First off I am using the powered Kemper head so I assume i'll need to turn the power amp off in the unit or do you know from experience that the powered kempers recognize it's plugged into a powered cab and bypasses it?

2) It seems like using a mic cable would provide best results in connection from a pro audio standpoint but do you have any preference? It looks like there's 3 XLR inputs on the back of the cab but it's a 1x12 so is there a benefit to running two XLR's? Here's the link to the Cab i'm getting. https://xitonecabs.com/product/mbritt/

So i've been reading up on the manual but I need a break and would like some human experience/opinion. I've got a couple questions...

1. Is it even worth using a compressor or noise gate in the stomp section when there's the noise gate knob on front and a compressor in the amp section?

2. I can assign more than 2 effects to one button on the footswitch controller (with the 3rd not being visible) but each of those effects is in a different slot in the Stomps section, I'm curious if there is a way to assign more than one effect to just one slot in the stomp section?

3. Does the order in the stomp section (a,b,c,d) react the same way a real pedal chain reaction in front of an amp? For example does putting a wah in slot A make a difference to putting it in slot D?

@808illest I Turned it off and back on and the whackyness went away but i'm still curious why it happened in the first place. Maybe from editing in performance mode perhaps? Anyway, if you ever make it out here id be happy to do that!

I had been editing for almost an 1:30 hrs and this happened after I set up an Auto Wah Setting.

Hi Mike! So i've had the kemper for a month now and got a few of your packs when I got it. It's very time consuming to sit down and go through tones and tweak but your profiles have made the plug in and play experience better than the stock profiles for sure.

I'm curious if you have any suggestions though regarding tone tips like maybe global settings, merging, swapping cabs, etc. So far i've been playing through samson RXA5 studio monitors and i'm not that happy with the results but I ordered your signature cab from Xitone which i'm really hoping brings these profiles to life like standing next to a real amp.
Thank you,
~ Guy

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Thanks for writing. Truly the hardest thing about the Kemper is deciding what to monitor with. All consumer and even many professional monitors and headphones will color the tone. I can make rigs all day and they may sound great in my iem’s but not as good on my studio monitors and worse still on my audio technica headphones. I end up tweaking them to sound good for each way but then I’m not sure what sounds good at all after a while. So, I feel your pain.

I feel the Kemper excels in situations where a mic’d amp would be used: through a live p.a., home recording, etc. But it’s a bit more challenging to get it to just sound like an amp in the room. The trick is always getting a captured sound of a mic’d speaker back out of a speaker. Many FRFR’s I’ve tried get close and they may sound good, but they don’t feel like a guitar amp. I have all of these laying around: Tech 21 Power Engine, Mackie SRM150, Mackie SRM550, QSC K10, Atomic Reactor wedge, Atomic CLR wedge, and my Xitone. They all have things I like about them:

Tech 21 Power Engine - feels more like a guitar amp. A bit midrange heavy due to the cabinet. EQ available on T21 amp. I have run this with or without cab sims on and can tweak to make it work.

Mackie SRM150 - little portable monitor. No low end to speak of but sounds really good overall considering it doesn’t get super loud. This works great in my office or in a hotel room. I’ve even used it as a monitor and kemper monitor for acoustic shows, where you don’t need a lot of low end rumbling around.

Mackie SRM550 - floor wedge with really horrible frequency response. I wouldn’t recommend this at all. Scooped mids, shrill highs, and boxy bass.

QSC K10 - very even sounding and fairly lightweight and easy to move around. Sounds better when you use 2 in stereo. It still has a pretty prominent horn so I just use it to check profiles every now and then. I have friends who use these happily.

Atomic Reactor - tube driven power amp, which is nice. The horn has a knob so it can be turned up or down, which I really like. It still doesn’t have a lot of low end response and it’s a little bulky. The horn is kinda farty sounding sometimes.

Atomic CLR - very loud and punchy. The horn can get shrill at higher volumes. I wish this one had the tweeter knob. I stick a small piece of foam in the throat of the horn to tame it a little without cutting it off entirely. I use this wedge mostly for checking profiles and for acoustic gigs. It’s beefy enough and has 2 inputs so I can run my monitor send into it as well as my Kemper. Works great in that capacity. I’ve tried using it on electric gigs but it just seemed bright and not warm enough on the bottom.

Xitone MB - It has a coax 12” and horn assembly but the horn is rear mounted and shoots through the 12” speaker so it’s not as harsh sounding as the Atomic CLR. It’s in a rectagular box instead of a wedge so it’s not pointing back at my head, which helps. The back panel is removable to move air out of the front and back which is nice for some room. It has different modes for a little eq tailoring. I use it on most of the different settings depending on the room. If it’s a lower volume room, I will run Mode 1 (FRFR) and keep the volume lower. On brighter hardwood stages, I will use Mode 2 or 4. At home I tend to use Mode 3 or 5. On loud stages I often run mode 5 (raw 12”) and turn the monitor cabs off on the Kemper.

As far as settings on the Kemper goes, the rule of thumb is that if you’re running into a p.a. or frfr type cab, you’ll want to make sure the “monitor cab off” is unchecked (page 3 of the output menu). If you’re running into a guitar cab, like I still do a lot, you’ll want to make sure the “monitor cab off” is checked. This still allows the cab sims to stay active going to the main outputs but disables them for the monitor output and the speaker output on powered versions.

I don’t typically use any pure cabinet, but please feel free to turn that on/up and try it out. It rolls off a little of the higher frequencies and makes the lower mids a bit more prominent. That’s usually how my profiles are voiced anyway so I don’t need it as much, but everyone’s taste in tone is different and all different monitors sound different as well, so you just have to try to see what works.

For people new to the Kemper, I would usually recommend just using a guitar cabinet and turning the monitor cabs off. This will usually yield a more guitar amp like quality. The Xitone might get you close as well. I would recommend using the monitor output eq (also found on page 3 of the output menu) to tailor your tone to the speaker you’re using. This will change the overall eq for all rigs so you don’t have to eq them individually.

I hope this helps. I know it’s a lot to take in. There’s a bit of a learning curve and getting used to how the Kemper works, but usually after a month or two, it gets dialed in and most people never want to go back. Just be patient and try things out. It took me about 3-4 weeks to find the right profiles and the right form of monitoring things that worked for me. Now it’s just minor changes here and there.

thanks
Mike

(Thought people may find this info useful)

So far they all sound bad to me. The Green Scream is ok but I wish it had an EQ. My favorite OD pedals are J Rockett Dude and Xotic SL Drive. I know I could use those in front of the kemper but I bought the foot controller with the intention of using only the amps and built in effects. If anyone has suggestions on how to make them sound great please share!