Assuming the profiling is top notch - would you buy a Kemper MK2 now?

[Boudoir Guitar]

So assuming that the new Kemper profiling is top notch, fixes all of the accuracy complaints, and absolutely smashes people like me in the face with how awesome the core amp profiling sounds.

Would you buy a Kemper??

I would snag a player, but not the full unit. I love the Ui, but the tremolo and rotary were garbage and I don’t think they’ve been improved? The full profiler just doesn’t do enough to justify its physical or financial size even if the profiling is ace.

 

[Desertdweller]

It looks like V2 is aimed at players who have been using Kemper from the beginning and just want the updated sound quality etc without changing the look and workflow they are already accustomed to. It's an interesting strategy.

I would never invest in a company with this strategy. That's a sinking ship if that's the case.

 

[Frodebro]

Honestly, no. For two main reasons:


2. Their (Kemper the company) behavior has been abhorrent over the last few months, in regards to how they've treated people on their own forum. Not interested in supporting such an arrogant and pompous company.

This is a bigger deal than many people would stop to think about, as far as modelers/profilers are concerned. These products evolve over their lifespans (except BOSS, of course), and between the firmware updates/bug reports, new feature requests, and general assistance figuring stuff out there is a LOT of interactions with the manufacturers and customers (except BOSS, of course). So the culture surrounding these products often plays as large a role as the features and specs do when people are deciding which company to invest in.

 

[GuitarBilly74]

It's short road to death.

Probably, but it's similar to what Boss/Roland does. They keep basically the same UI for years or even decades. Like the GT series, which used pretty much the same UI until the 1000 series. Or the Katana series, which is on MkIII and with minimal changes to the UI. Or the ME series etc... And these are successful product lines.

It does seem like a weird strategy to me for a modeling/profiling company though.

 

[Cactusprick]

lucky i don't have golden ears to hear anomalies in MK1 for my uses.
still serves me extremely well, in fact, sounds fantastic.

but no i wouldn't buy MK2 (sold player after ditching buying higher tiers upgrades).

 

[Frodebro]

Probably, but it's similar to what Boss/Roland does. They keep basically the same UI for years or even decades. Like the GT series, which used pretty much the same UI until the 1000 series. Or the Katana series, which is on MkIII and with minimal changes to the UI. Or the ME series etc... And these are successful product lines.

It does seem like a weird strategy to me for a modeling/profiling company though.

Roland is a HUGE company, with so many products that modelers are likely an afterthought for them. They probably make more off of SD-1 sales than they do GT-1000s, so their priorities are very different from the smaller companies that specialize in modelers/profilers.

 

[jonathanthomas83]

I would, yes. And I probably will.

I liked the UI and I enjoyed some v1 profiles that I'd happily use again, accurate or not. I really like the effects, although they are on par with many pedals and other platforms these days.

I don't like the Kemper forum or the dogmatic views shared on there and they're slow as fuck as a company, it seems. But I could complain about things I've shared on the Fractal forum about UI/UX and other stuff and just been told to get back in my box - "it's a non-issue".

I think people may be forgetting that a profile no longer needs to be a snapshot and that one profile should technically be able to get a range of tones and gain levels with the advancement of the profiling process coupled with the liquid profiling technology (old snapshot profiles could too, albeit more artificially). That sets it apart from (currently) NAM and Tonex. Whether that equates to 'usable' or even 'realistic', time will tell, but I am definitely going to get a Kemper Mk II.

Personally, I'm quite excited about getting a QC and a Kemper Mk II and will be running both for different purposes. Got a lot of saving to do first though! :-)

 

[Jarick]

I would snag a player, but not the full unit. I love the Ui, but the tremolo and rotary were garbage and I don’t think they’ve been improved? The full profiler just doesn’t do enough to justify its physical or financial size even if the profiling is ace.

Lack of screen and ability to toggle or edit all effects really tanked the Player, even with all upgrades. Not so bad if you only ever use the computer editor but it's dumb to have all that power and those knobs and barely be able to use them.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

Lack of screen and ability to toggle or edit all effects really tanked the Player, even with all upgrades. Not so bad if you only ever use the computer editor but it's dumb to have all that power and those knobs and barely be able to use them.

I never had more than a half dozen profiles loaded on my big boy Kemper. I might consider using the player the same way I used my OG Kemper -- locked reverb and delay effects with knobs to control mix and reverb decay; toggle amongst a handful of useful profiles; pedals for everything else.

But I'm kinda done with the profile route, honestly. Even if it winds up being a percent or two more accurate than models.

 

[Frodebro]

Just from what I have observed, the people that tend to fuss over accuracy the most tend to have the least experience with the actual amps. Except @James Freeman of course….

 

[Orvillain]

For me, I keep looking at the Kemper hardware, and remembering just how much of a cocking ballache it was to use. Easily the least intuitive experience for me. Constantly having to re-read the screen multiple times in order to understand where I was and what I was looking at.... not a fun time.

Coupled with that:
- no ability to run multiple profiles at once
- no spillover in the ABCD slots
- limited I/O
- doesn't play well with an amp in 4-cable-method

I don't think the improved profiling is enough to entice me back.

 

[Mongillo19]

Just from what I have observed, the people that tend to fuss over accuracy the most tend to have the least experience with the actual amps. Except @James Freeman of course….

What makes you say that? I can't say I've seen that at all.

 

[Orvillain]

Just from what I have observed, the people that tend to fuss over accuracy the most tend to have the least experience with the actual amps. Except @James Freeman of course….

Um..... fussing over accuracy of the amps that people have in their collection, have profiled, and weren't satisfied with the results .... and they have the least experience with the actual amps at the same time?

Hombre, you on crack.

 

[Frodebro]

Um..... fussing over accuracy of the amps that people have in their collection, have profiled, and weren't satisfied with the results .... and they have the least experience with the actual amps at the same time?

Hombre, you on crack.

Nah, you see it often if you’re paying attention. There are people who own the real deals who will discuss where models/profiles get it right/wrong, but there are far more people reading from the internet script.

 

[guitarsandcoffee]

I would (which is surprising to me). I have been very critical of Kemper this year and have gone so far to say I'm done. But, I have tried QC and honestly, the effects are still not near Kemper's. Kemper's reverbs, delays, choruses, etc. are still significantly better than QC and Helix. Yes, this is totally subjective - but having played my Kemper for large venues recently, we always get high praise for the tones we use (and we both use Kemper).

I hate the setup of the Player. Get rid of those rig and tap tempo buttons, put in an OLED display to show me what's going on and the thing would be so much better.

Having used the Stage for years and trying the QC layout, I missed the Stage. Maybe I'm crazy, but that's how I felt. The Stage has morphing which is huge. I can also have 5 presets per performance and each one can have whatever amp and effects I want. It is superior to Scenes on the other devices where you are locked to the rig setup for that patch.

I really wish Kemper had updated the Stage with a bigger screen. I don't give a **** about touch screens. I'm not using a touch screen during a performance, I'm using the footswitches. And the layout of the Stage is perfect for my needs. Which, that's what matters for each of us. These are tools and pick the best one for what you need.

 

[crispsandwich]

Agreed that the Kemper FX are amazing. Far better than they get credit for. The drive section needs overhauling, IMO, but everything else is grea.

 

[FuzzyAce]

@Frodebro
And let's face it, if you have a 3-4K priced amp, no modeling or capture of it will ever quite live up to it. It just can't, physically or mentally, but it's tech that is convenient and can even sound awesome. It's completely fine and rational to go that route.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

For me, I keep looking at the Kemper hardware, and remembering just how much of a cocking ballache it was to use. Easily the least intuitive experience for me. Constantly having to re-read the screen multiple times in order to understand where I was and what I was looking at.... not a fun time.

Coupled with that:
- no ability to run multiple profiles at once
- no spillover in the ABCD slots
- limited I/O
- doesn't play well with an amp in 4-cable-method

I don't think the improved profiling is enough to entice me back.

I found it to have a semi-steep learning curve, but then super easy/intuitive afterwards. Honestly maybe even more so than Helix once it was intuitive.

That’s probably in large part because…it also doesn’t have a ton of functionality. Which is why the cost of the big boys seems pretty out of whack. It’s big, and expensive, but just doesn’t do what a “flagship modeler” can do anymore. Honestly, even less functional than an HX Stomp or FM3.

 

[Dom Mcsweeney]

Just saw this posted by GW.
I imagine at least some people who have forked out for the V2, might have a little tiny bit of sicky sick in their mouths after reading that last part.

 

[OneEng]

Wifi, Bluetooth and True Impedance across the range would have made sense for a V2 refresh...kinda strange that the player is the only one with all 3.

Also since they added the extra devices to the V2 sort of button or indicator on the Stage/Profiler devices would have been helpful to know if they are on or off, or to quickly edit them.

Because they didn't even bother to put a new motherboard in those.

It looks like V2 is aimed at players who have been using Kemper from the beginning and just want the updated sound quality etc without changing the look and workflow they are already accustomed to. It's an interesting strategy.

Agree. "Interesting".

I would (which is surprising to me). I have been very critical of Kemper this year and have gone so far to say I'm done. But, I have tried QC and honestly, the effects are still not near Kemper's. Kemper's reverbs, delays, choruses, etc. are still significantly better than QC and Helix. Yes, this is totally subjective - but having played my Kemper for large venues recently, we always get high praise for the tones we use (and we both use Kemper).

I hate the setup of the Player. Get rid of those rig and tap tempo buttons, put in an OLED display to show me what's going on and the thing would be so much better.

Agree completely. For gigging, Kemper is still at or near the top of the pack.

I also think they completely dropped the ball with Player.

@Frodebro
And let's face it, if you have a 3-4K priced amp, no modeling or capture of it will ever quite live up to it. It just can't, physically or mentally, but it's tech that is convenient and can even sound awesome. It's completely fine and rational to go that route.

Getting a tube amp to sound good in the mix isn't a home run either. Everyone seems to assume that if you stand in front of the amp and like what you hear, then that is what is going on out front of the PA ..... but it isn't.

Being an old tube amp (and boutique tube amps at that) purist, I can say that IME, it is WAY easier to get a good mix with Kemper than it ever was with my tube amps.

I think if you are recording, then sure .... NAM is a great bet and just use plug-ins for your efx. Live? I think Kemper is still one of the best in class with or without V2 profiling.

I am just waiting to see a few people say they actually prefer the MK1 profiles to the MK2 .