Any reason not to get a kemper?

[Monkey Man]

... and if you have Profiles you love of amps you love for your Kemper, it'll never become redundant either, at least, no more than a perfectly-maintained tube amp will... IOW, never.

I reckon this is bang on. If you like it as soon as you plug it in (with the amps you want) then it will be like any gear.....you'll be in love for a while then get tied of seeing the same "girl" and the eye will wonder, just like with any tube amp, guitar etc but you will come back to it but also probably buy another amp or 2

Exactly, but in the Kemper's case, you only need to switch Profiles as opposed to buying a whole new rig.

The ultimate cure for Amp GAS™, IMHO.

 

[Mattfig]

Kemper is a great tool for so many things....Even shopping for your next tube amp, you can "audition" tones easily....

 

[CrazyNutz]

Anything digital becomes antiquated and losses it's value if you plan to keep it for years

This 100%

I've seen people buy digital heads, floor, and rack gear since it first became a thing. It will always be superseded by the next best thing, and eventually become next to worthless resale wise. On the other hand a fine tube head (or combo) will hold value, and/or increase.

You want my vintage Blue Voodoo head? I might be will willing to part with it for a decent offer, say in the neighborhood of $1.5k. Remember Marty Friedman played these fine tube heads back in the day and they are not getting any less rare, they only sold like eight of them.

Actually I had a USA made bvh150 (not the crappy bvh120/60) It was a mother F'ing beast. Like this one:

Who knows they may become desirable. Funny thing back in the day you could buy used jcm800s all day log for $300, now they are going for 1 to 2k. Same thing with vintage Sunn's.

 

[the rossness]

Kemper is a great tool for so many things....Even shopping for your next tube amp, you can "audition" tones easily....

Someone profiled a Krank Nineteen80. It sounds FANTASTIC and makes me wonder why krank went belly up? Great amp

 

[Inearthed]

I think I'm going to take the leap here on a Rackmount unpowered profiler - I already have two different power amps handy. Initial use will be for studio / demo / practice. If I possibly move to using it for live use is the remote actually worth it if you can get one for cheap or is any midi foot controller fine?

 

[Monkey Man]

You can use any MIDI controller that can spit out the appropriate data, but it can be a pain to set up properly depending on how-easy it is to navigate the menus on any given unit. Even once "done", you're still probably not going to be able to enjoy all the features the remote offers.

There's also the option of an el-cheapo Behringer controller, for which you can buy "Kemperised" chips that essentially provide a poor-man's version of the remote, but again, not every feature is supported.

The remote is (apparently - I don't have one) brain-dead easy to use, and uses a single connection (CAT cable via an XLR connector for sturdiness) for both power and two-way data transfer. The screen that reflects the Kemper's display is handy too, and something you'll obviously not be able to mimic any other way.

Congrats on your "brave" decision to try the Kemper, man. For most tube heads, contemplating one isn't even an option. The look on my brother's face (died-in-the-wool tube head), when he first heard my Kemper 'though, told the whole story. He insists on playing it every time he comes to visit, and it's only a matter of time 'til he parts with his beloved JVM 410H and plunks down for one. He spends all his money working on cars, and if it weren't for that, he'd have bought one long ago.

 

[amiller]

Let's also keep in mind that Kemper provides updates a few times a year. New features and FXs are made available FREE of charge. There are tons of profiles and cabs to try and new ones coming around all the time. No, I don't see the Kemper becoming obsolete for quite some time.

 

[Mattfig]

Let's also keep in mind that Kemper provides updates a few times a year. New features and FXs are made available FREE of charge. There are tons of profiles and cabs to try and new ones coming around all the time. No, I don't see the Kemper becoming obsolete for quite some time.

Amen!

 

[Shark Diver]

Been using one for a while - as many places I play don't allow amps/speakers on stage. The profiles I like the best are the Big Hairy Profiles.

I currently am running a Soldano X99 in the loop and use the Kemper for pre FXs, an IR and post EQ I got from a BHP profile, and post FXs. I turn the amp models off. Best direct rig I've had, and I've tried most. Using the tube pre really works well. I tried a Friedman OD pedal before the X99 and it was great as well.

But if I could use amp/cabs on stage I would. In the end I find that for the # of sounds I really need the Kemper is overkill, and just not 100%. But paired with the pre it is a pretty damn good direct to board entire rig in 5 spaces.

 

[rsm]

one reason: Helix.



I dig my LT.

 

[Badronald]

Hey, use what you like. Doesn't really matter anyway. I've seen crappy players with very high end rigs sound crap and fantastic players with very simple cheap rigs sound great.

Either you can play or you can't. Buy a quality rig and practice. Get in a room with other guys and play. It's the only way to get tone.

 

[Whowantsamustache]