Help deciding if I need KPA and what configuration

    Hello everyone!


    I am new to the forum and this is my first post, but I have been scrolling through the values threads for quite some time now. I know similar questions have come up before., but I would appreciate some unbiased input from the experienced Kemper users, about what it would be best to do in my specific situation. I ask in adavance for your sympathy for my fairly long post...


    I do not yet own a Kemper, but I'm very seriously considering pulling the trigger tomorrow on one. I have been using solely tubes for three years now, after two decades of using modelers and plugins, during which time el. guitar was not my primary instrument. This last period though my compositions rely heavily on guitar and I don't want to go back to digital, as I find the simplicity and warmth of tube heads unsurpassed, extremely inspirational and very much suited to my ear and my current way of composing.


    My setup consists of a Hughes and Kettner Grandmeister 36 head with EL84s, a Conrford Roadhouse 50 head with 6l6s and a H&K 2x12 cabinet with V30s. I am perfectly satisfied with this rig, as I compose mostly grunge - punk - alternative metal with elements of black metal and this setup has turned out to be almost perfect for my needs, save for the extremely high gain tones, which still can be manageable and passable.


    The thing is I have recently formed a new band and we are working on an album. Since I compose the band's music, I have been bent on creating demos of the upcoming album tracks and I found myself short of equipment to record my tubes the way I would like. Due to demanding work hours, I usually only have the time to record in my house in late hours, meaning I cannot crank up the volume of my tubes to get the desired tone, plus the room space is not ideal anyway, even though I have good mics. We have a basement for rehearsals, but I cannot use that for composing and preparing the demos due to the reason I mentioned above (difficult hours) and when we start recording the album we will probably go to a prof. studio for the guitar, bass, vocal and drum parts, but until then I must have already prepared the demos.


    Trying to sort this out I have thought of two possible solutions. 1) To get a reactive loadbox with cab ir sim (probably the two notes torpedo studio, as it seems maybe the best ofmthe bunch) so as to be able to use my heads at full volume at any hour of the day or 2) Get a Kemper profiler, which I have already tried and liked for it's tube -like dynamic response. The second solution seems more appealing, as it gives me the flexibility, say, to recond on my laptop even if I am away from my house for the weekend (Taking the KPA with me is very easy and convenient).


    Now the questions are .... Firstly, if recording quality is of the highest priority here, would I be better off with the torpedo, or with the KPA? Secondly, if I choose to go with the Kemper, should I get the powerhead or with the unpowered version (given that I also have an Alesis RA 300 stereo power amp which can also be bridged - getting the powerhead would save me carrying around the heavy Alesis PA, but the powerhead us only mono) ? Thirdly, in any Kemper scenario, should I also get the Kemper Kabinet (As I understand it, a full Kemper concept is Powerhead plus Kabinet for getting the sound inteneded by the Kemper designers). And last, is there any value in getting the kemper remote too to have the full product line, provided I already have a Vox Tonelab SE, whuch can be used as a very capable midi pedalboard featuring 2 progammable foot pedals?


    Money is not an issue, but by pronciple I don't any more want to acquire stuff that I will not use adequately.


    Apologies again for the huge post, still I keep hope that this thread might help others in a situation similar to mine.


    Any input more that welcome and appreciated!

    Since "Money is not an issue," buy a Kemper and see if it works for you, if not sell it and don't look back. In the end, YOUR opinion will be the only one that matters.

    "Faith don't need no second opinion"

    It sounds like the Kemper will fit your needs well. If you are using it solely for recording, all of the formats of it will do what you need. You will probably want to make sure you get a newer model so you could use SPDIF for recording. The newer ones have a bidirectional SPDIF connection. I wanted to be able to use my Kemper for live gigs so I went with the Kemper Stage. I chose that one because it combined the Kemper with the foot controller. That was less gear to carry around. If you are going to use this as a mobile rig and want the foot controller abilities without carrying an additional piece of gear, that may be the unit for you as well. They all run the same firmware and sound the same so pick the format that works for you use cases.


    If you go the reactive load box route, look at the Fryette units. I have a PS-100 and use a Two Notes C.A.B. M+ after it for the cab simulation. I like the way it works with the amps. I chose the unit that I have so I can use it as a power amp to run my Kemper into a guitar cab if I want to. They sell a unit that is a reactive load that has the cab sims in it. I was also looking at the Two Notes torpedo units when I chose the Fryette after doing a lot of research.


    One thing to mention is that I see a number of guys that have trouble getting a high gain tone out of the Kemper. On the flip side of that, I have heard some recordings of high gain tones that were produced with the Kemper and they sounded very good. I would expect that you may have to put a little time into getting the tones where you like them. It sounds like you have a very well trained ear so it may not be that big of a deal since you have experience with digital units. I thought it was something to mention because I have seen that complaint a fair amount.


    I personally like the Kemper for the raw amp tones. From the units I have tried it sounds and feels like the real amp. I have profiled some of my amps at the settings I play shows with and the profiles sound just like the amps when run at the same volume. I had the amp in the room along with a FRFR speaker on a stand and ran them at the same volume and couldn't tell the difference between them when switching back and forth. I was also able to get good profiles with some of my overdrive pedals in front of the amps. I don't run them at high settings so it worked well for my needs.

    Quote from Edward Dixon

    Since "Money is not an issue," buy a Kemper and see if it works for you, if not sell it and don't look back. In the end, YOUR opinion will be the only one that matters.

    Thank you for your reply, I have indeed this option and I guess I will need some time with the kemper anyway, to decide if it is for me, but, still, I posted here in the hope that I could gain some insight prior to proceeding with the acquisition of the kemper, as, out of experience, the reselling process always consumes time and effort and time and effort spent this way is always an issue. By the way, I meant money is not an issue regarding the purchase of the full Kemper package minus remote...

    The alternatives you state, are between a product that which has been discontinued and a well proven current product backed by exemplary, class leading service in the Kemper. To me, this would be a very simple and crystal-clear choice.


    An absolute no-brainer.



    If money is no object, I would advise purchasing the Kemper Powerhead as the amplifier can be switched on and off.


    Thus, the unit used typically as a normal head with all its sounds in a convenient package, with the amp switched off, when it’s not needed.


    However, with the amplifier built in, when it is needed, a scenario that likely you will eventually face. you already have its power there available at the press of a button.


    To me, a simple win, win, choice, most especially as when you have actually profiled your existing amplifiers, you find that its often far more convenient to utilise the Kemper, in their place.



    Again, as money is no object, as bundles are available that include the footswitch panel which actively extends the practical usefulness of the profiling amplifier, but at advantageous prices, you may find the most cost- effective solution to buy both units simultaneously.


    I found that after purchasing the profiling amp, it quite naturally followed that the footswitch panel would be an obviously desirable next purchase, powerfully enlarging the usability of the primary unit, as it does.


    The obvious sound level limitations at night your present situation places upon you, is not a singularly unusual situation with which others are unacquainted. The Kemper would appear to provide you with a highly versatile sonic solution, with tremendous connectivity, that would ideally meet the need you describe.


    Expect a serious learning curve, as whatever you imagine the Kemper profiling to be capable of, you will find that it is in point of fact, capable of far more than your wildest dreams ever envisaged. This would be enough for quite a while, see what you need if anything, from there on.

    @ JEverly

    Thanks for the detailed and very helpful reply. I understand that you chose to keep both a kemper setup and a reactive loadbox, which is something I was cosidering too, I just do not have any experience with either for recording and as I said, I am trying to avoid getting equipment I will not eventually use, if it is possible. I have a good deal of analog and digital synthesizer and studio equipment background so I am confortable with the kemper interface and if I went with KPA I would probably go the head route (powered/unpowered) as I think it is more convenient to carry around and use in any enviroment plus it has better controls than the stage for recording use. If I go Kemper, do you think I should go powered or unpowered and Kabinet or no Kabinet? And do you think there is a point to also get a loadbox for my tubes , regardless?

    Kemper is a fantastic recording resource. I use the SPDIF outputs on mine which leads me to ask what recording interface you have? I have used mine for recording for myself and others and in this way, the reamp capabilities are fantastic and very straightforward. I had a powered rack which was stolen and I replaced it with an unpowered head and powered monitor as I almost never use the amplifier in my setup, I’m on straight to FOH and in ears for my live stuff and spdif in for recording. For live, I’d recommend the Kab and remote.

    A brace of Suhrs, a Charvel, a toaster, an Apollo twin, a Mac, and a DXR10

    I have a Torpedo Captor X load box that I recorded a couple of tracks on for my bands last album. You can get great results with the captor but you need to use decent IRs.. I found York Audio IRs are the best out of the hundreds I've tried hands down.

    I've only had my Kemper for about 6 weeks, and I love the thing. The tones from good profilers such as M Britt and Bighairyprofiles are just plug and play with minimal eq'ing compared to the Captor where I had to set up eqs for bloated lows and high end fizz removal. The Kemper sounds and feels more natural to me. I'll probably sell my Captor.

    Quote from ermis33

    Thank you for your reply, I have indeed this option and I guess I will need some time with the kemper anyway, to decide if it is for me, but, still, I posted here in the hope that I could gain some insight prior to proceeding with the acquisition of the kemper, as, out of experience, the reselling process always consumes time and effort and time and effort spent this way is always an issue. By the way, I meant money is not an issue regarding the purchase of the full Kemper package minus remote...

    Kemper has a 45 day no-questions-asked return policy.

    "Faith don't need no second opinion"

    Like 1

    Crispy Panther

    Thanks for the input. I am leaning towards the Kemper indeed and it is nice to hear reassuring voices, I really hope I get constantly and consistently blown away by the Kemper, I have tried it twice in a music store in Athens, where I am located, and the first time a month ago it blew me way indeed, equally through headphones and through powered studio monitors. Second time I went there yesterday with a lead guitarist mate from another band, also a tube afficionado, with the prospect or leaving the store with at least the powerhead. My friend was impressed by the stack (amp + eq + cab) profiling and also by the dynamic response in playing, but after 1 and a half hour he told me he felt the unit a bit digital-ish and in addition he was not impressed by the effects, while I was. I, too, had the feeling that most of the profiles we scrolled through had the same "core sound", if I make sense. Truth be told, I didn't get to play as much as the first time nor was I as concentrated, nor I messed up too much with gain and eq as I did the first time, and it was messing with these that blew me away... Plus, I have enough experience of digital stuff to acknowledge that it is impossilble to evaluate the full potential of such an advanced device within such a short trial time. It is clear that one has to own a Kemper for some time to get to explore its merits.

    Nevertheless, I didn't buy the Kemper yesterday, as my friend's view somehow stopped me, got me into second thoughts. But later the same evening we went to his band's rehearsal, where he initially was trying to demonstrate to me how much better and more lively his HIWATT Custom 200 Head plus 4x12 HIWATT cab combined with an Eventide H9 harmonizer and various analog pedals would come out, only to find himself a bit later admitting that there was no substantial difference to the quality and dynamic response of the sound of the Kemper. Totally different situations, I know, and not a fair comparison, but an experienced guitarist will undoubtedly know what I mean.

    I will probably get the Kemper tomorrow, but I was wondering about whatnyiu commented about the remote... Wouldn't this money be better invested in a Kemper Kabinet to marry with the powerhead, since I already have a super capable midi pedalboard? What would the remote give me that I won't be able tomachieve with the Tonelab SE? I could of course get the full package (powerhead + Kabinet + Remote) at once, but in this case money starts to be an issue...


    Morph

    Thanks for the reply, sorry to hear about your powerhead having been stolen... Currently I use a MacBook Pro M1 with Logic paired with the Audient iD14 USB interface, I believe it has spdif/adat in out with good results, but have yet to use it to find out. I would like to pose to you the same question as above....Do I really need the remote? And what about the Kabinet?

    Quote from ermis33

    Morph

    Thanks for the reply, sorry to hear about your powerhead having been stolen... Currently I use a MacBook Pro M1 with Logic paired with the Audient iD14 USB interface, I believe it has spdif/adat in out with good results, but have yet to use it to find out. I would like to pose to you the same question as above....Do I really need the remote? And what about the Kabinet?

    cool, you don’t need the remote or Kabinet for recording but they’ll be really useful live. Spdif recording in my experience is pristine with the added bonus of really easy reamping as I said earlier. I also have a mac and logic but I have the Apollo twin interface. If you want to record using spdif, you’ll need an analogue to optical converter, I got mine for a couple of quid from Amazon. There are some other bits and pieces of clocking and stuff that will only make sense if you get the Kemper. As I said, I don’t really use a speaker of any sort live but your situation may be different. I had both a midi foot controller and the remote and the remote is better by a country mile, I’d find live performance much less slick without it and would recommend without hesitation if you could afford it.

    A brace of Suhrs, a Charvel, a toaster, an Apollo twin, a Mac, and a DXR10

    i still have several valve amps and a Two Notes Torpedo Reload as well as my Kemper Power Head. I never bother using the amps and Two Notes as I find the Kemper sounds better and is much more convenient. I much prefer the head/rack and separate remote over the all in one Stage form factor but plenty of people seem to like the Stage too.

    Morph

    Thanks again, I can probably afford the remote if I skip the Kabinet, but until now it seemed like a good idea to skip the remote and try my midi pedalboard first. The Tonelab SE is really sophisticated midi wise and most of its controls are freely assignable to any midi controller message, I think it can even do sysex. I am not going live yet and it will take some time for the band to get ready for that, until then I believe I will have sorted things out and if the Tonelab SE doesn't cut it, I could always get the remote later. Still, I have started thinking about getting the remote now. If I did this, an option would be to skip the powered Kemper head, go unpowered and get both the Kabinet and remote. I lean towards getting the powerhead just for the sake of convenience, but it might turn out to be overkill.... On the other hand the powerhead seems perfectly matched to the Kabinet....I really don't know what to do now....


    Wheresthedug

    Thanks, your post was the second reassurance that the Kemper is at least equal to the loadbox route and undoubtedly loads more convenient. As I said I have already decided to get the head, but I am now confused as to which configuration I should choose, at the moment I have to leave out either the Poweramp, the Kabinet or the remote....

    The remote is a great plug’n’play partner for the KPA but a good midi controller will do just as well with a little more work programming. As you already have a midi controller save your money and pass on the remote just now. If you decide later that you need it you can add it any time.


    As your primary need at the moment is for recording rather than gigging you don’t really need a pedal anyway. You can manage individual changes via Rig Manager and if you want to change sounds during a performance take he you can simply add midi control to the DaW automation.

    If it was up to me and I can get all of the sounds from an existing great tube/analogue rig, then the Torpedo would be my choice. As much as I love the Kemper, I still think there's a tiny bit of something that's not identical.


    But for flexibility and great sound, of course the Kemper.

    Wheresthedug

    Thanks for the suggestion! In the meantime I have already decided not to get the remote yet, only problem now is if I go non powered r powerhead and f I should get the Kemper Kabinet too, regarless of what head I choose...


    Finally

    Thanks for the advice, I may end up getting the Torpedo too along the way, but I will go Kemper for now because of the flexibility, I want to be able to record away from home easily and many weekends (i.e. when I have more time for that) I have to be away

    I have a powered head and remote, recently got a Stage and it is amazing. So, esp for recording, I would go with the Stage and possibly an expression pedal. I would also skip the Kab for the moment - you may find you don't need it.


    A head without the remote - I dunno. There are too many functions the remote gives you - so again I say the Stage. I seldom use a cab with the powered head, I'm completely satisfied with monitors. I even use a Fishman LoudBox as a monitor occasionally, works great.


    Best...H

    Quote from HankLinderman

    I have a powered head and remote, recently got a Stage and it is amazing. So, esp for recording, I would go with the Stage and possibly an expression pedal. I would also skip the Kab for the moment - you may find you don't need it.


    A head without the remote - I dunno. There are too many functions the remote gives you - so again I say the Stage. I seldom use a cab with the powered head, I'm completely satisfied with monitors. I even use a Fishman LoudBox as a monitor occasionally, works great.


    Best...H

    I agree that the Head and Remote is a killer combination and for live work I wouldn’t be without the remote. However, for recording it is pretty much redundant. As the OP only wants the KPA for recording I would skip the remote now and add it later if necessary.