Posts by Chris Duncan

  • Questions from soon to be owner

    Quote from Digion
    1. I assume the term "amp in the room" means the vibrations felt by volume and bass, especially with a tube amp. I am currently using a Line6 Spider 75 watt. When I turn it up, I can still feel the volume, although less than a tube amp, but is it even less of a feel with the KPA?

    I just plugged in to my new powered head today so I wouldn't presume to speak to most of your questions. That said, I have a couple of observations that you might find useful.


    I'm in a situation where everyone is on IEMs. Previously, I had a Voodu Valve and Line 6 HD and found that having the guitars in my ears alone (no guitar speakers) was problematic for a couple of reasons. First, there's no speaker for the guitar pickup to interact with and second, I can't feel the "thump" (I'm a rock guy). I put a single 12 cabinet under the stage and brought up the volume just enough to address those issues and let the "real" sound go to the PA. That took care of my "feel" issues.


    How much of the volume you feel is less about modeled versus tube and more about moving air / decibels and equalization. For example, my modest little EVH III LBX (15 watt) has a resonance knob on the back to get more of that low end thump, which is often what I want to feel. Playing with your EQ on the low end might yield similar satisfactory effects.


    The other thing I noticed after a couple of hours playing is that I need to let go of my geek attachments to specs and technicalities. The audience doesn't care if I'm going through an early 70s Marshall with an off axis 57 pointed at Greenbacks. They just care if it sounds good. I respect that "authenticity" is an important issue for some folks, but even the most casual browsing of factory profiles reveals a ton of incredibly good sounds. The high gain ones sound like tubes melting on top of my speaker cabinets, and plugged into my Marshall 4x12 they feel every bit as real as any tube amp I've ever played (be sure to disable cabinet simulation on the monitor out).


    For what it's worth, I'd highly recommend not worrying about "what's on the label" / "model versus tube" and just plugging in. I've been screwing around with modeling stuff for ages and I've never heard anything like this in my life.

  • Will loss of power risk data corruption?

    Hey, guys.


    Brand new owner of a powered head. First, allow me to state the terribly obvious - wow. I've been fooling with digital amps since the early Line 6 days but could never warm up to one. An hour after plugging in I listed every amp I own for sale on Craigslist. I sling code for a living, so a most deferential tip of the hat to my German counterparts. Very nicely done, both the amp and the Windows Rig Exchange software.


    Regarding my question, I know that anything even remotely digital should be on a UPS (battery backup), and one's on the way. That said, if for whatever reason the Kemper loses power without being properly shut down, is there a risk of data corruption, e.g. like yanking a USB drive from a computer without ejecting it?


    Just making sure I know all the risk factors so I can practice safe guitaring.


    Any thoughts would be most appreciated.


    Thanks!


    Chris