Kemper Profiling Amplifier
ALTERNATIVES
Line 6 Pod HD Pro
£699
From the home of amp
modelling this 2U rack unit
has a ton of effects,
microphone models, a 48s
looper, stereo inputs and
integration with Line 6
Variax and DT series amps.
www.line6.com
Fractal Axe FXII
2,299 euros
Awesome sound and deep
editing available. IR Cab
capture tool and ‘Tone
Match’ function
approaching KPA’s
modelling capabilities.
www.g66.eu
Digidesign
Eleven Rack
£807
Everything you would
expect, no surprises, and
probably the world’s best
rotary speaker emulator.
www.avid.com
Kemper Profi ling Amplifi er | Reviews
99
the USB stick method chosen by
Kemper. The process of having the KPA
format the stick was painless, and all I
had to do PC-wise was drop a
downloaded fi le into the right directory.
The stick gets put back into the back of
the KPA, and a restart autoboots the
update. Job done.
I connected the KPA to a stereo
channel in ProTools and instantly it
sounded great. From gritty little amps
with attitude to hi-gain monsters and
sumptuous stereo soundscapes, I was
left in no doubt that any kind of sound
was achievable.
Find your way
Navigating through the rigs is a little
clunky, especially with the autoload
option on, which of course you want
when you’re exploring. Now I keep that
off and paging through the rigs either
with the browse knob or the four
navigator buttons is much brisker. It
would be really useful to have a
number/renumber option included
alongside the ‘sort by’ date/author/patch
name system.
The sound of the amps is very
playable and inspiring, and the
expander-based noise control on the
input is effective and non-intrusive.
The claim made by Kemper that the
input impedance allows for lifelike
amplifi er response when using the
volume control on the guitar is well
borne out, and the depth of control over
the amp (and valve) behaviour is
awesome, perhaps only bettered by the
über-detailed valve behaviour modelling
of the Fractal Axe FXII.
Copying and pasting module setups
between rigs is easy, and the ability to
lock certain modules as you scroll
through rigs makes designing your own
rigs a pleasure.
There’s all the stomps and effects
you’re likely to need, but the KPA
allows you to take well-known amps and
drive them to new extremes of
fi lth – and also cleanliness. The
Defi nition, Pick, and Clarity settings are
a godsend for a mix engineer, allowing
you to manipulate clean and fi lthy in
new and subtle ways that would be
impossible in any other environment.
Minor grumbles
A USB/computer software GUI editor
would be great, especially for patch
management, and a proper tuner
meter would be better than the slightly
jokey spirit level bubble used in
v1.1 – perhaps a stroboscopic meter?
The display is certainly big enough.
It would also be fantastic if a single
expression pedal or MIDI controller
could control multiple parameters as
implemented in the TC Electronic
G-System. To be fair to Kemper, there
are improvements and refi nements
planned with upcoming fi rmware
updates including the mysterious
‘Performance’ mode...
Impressive
I haven’t stopped
using the Kemper
Profi ling Amplifi er
since I unpacked
it. It feels way
better than using a
plug-in, and has
real character. Everything has been
thought of, and there’s not the room to
go into detail about the utilities/output
confi gurations available to enable the
KPA to handle any environment and
any guitar.
All parameters are MIDI controllable
and there’s analogue inputs for two dual
momentary switch controls and two
expression pedals, all user routable. You
can insert your own real stomps at any
point, and feed your own real power
amp and cab, and the ability to capture
your own actual rig is nothing short of
revolutionary.
The Kemper is in a class of its own,
and I will not be without it.
SPECS
Presets: More than 200
complete rigs
Stomps: EQ, Distortion,
Compression, Gate, Chorus,
Vibrato, Rotary, Tremolo,
Phaser, Flanger, Insert loop
Effects: ‘X’: as stomps but
in stereo, Mod: as stomps
but stereo and with
hardware knobs, Delay: Tap,
Free and Analogue (with
pitch artifacts), Reverb:
Hall, Large/Small Room,
Ambience and Matchbo
Control and data
interfaces:
MIDI: In/Out/Thru
Switch/pedal: Two 1/4-inch
TRS, each for mono/stereo
switch or expression pedal
(10kOhm min, 100kOhm
max impedance)
Network: RL45 connector
USB: USB2 (FS) compatible
device, USB-A and USB-B
connectors
Digital inputs and outputs:
S/PDIF In/Out 44.1kHz
(24-bit)
RCA Phono
Dimensions:
378 x 217 x 173mm
Weight:
5.32kg
The sound of the amps is very
inspiring, and the expander-based
noise control is effective
VERDICT
BUILD
❚❚❚❚❚❚❚❚❚
VALUE
❚❚❚❚❚❚❚❚❚
EASE OF USE
❚❚❚❚❚❚❚❚❚
VERSATILITY
❚❚❚❚❚❚❚❚
RESULTS
❚❚❚❚❚❚❚❚❚
Profi le your own sound with this
unique studio tool – the KPA is not
to be missed.
To make your own profi le,
set up your amp, mics
and outboard as usual.
The KPA sits between the
guitar and the real
amplifi er input, and the
mix or the mics is
returned to the Return
Input on the KPA. You
monitor your real sound
via the main L and R KPA
outputs. After checking
levels hit the Start
Profi ling button. There
follows a minute of loud
test signals through the
amp. When it’s fi nished,
you can use the Refi ne
process by playing some
loud chords for 20
seconds or so. And that’s
essentially it. You can A/B
between the real sound
and the profi led sound at
the touch of a soft-key.
There are deeper options
to explore, but a group of
highly sceptical
‘golden-ears’ awarded the
KPA an unheard of 9.5/10
for accuracy. Why not 10?
Ever so slightly light on
the bottom octave, see.
Making Your Own Profi les
input impedance allows for lifelike
amplifi er response when using the
volume control on the guitar is well
borne out, and the depth of control over
the amp (and valve) behaviour is
awesome, perhaps only bettered by the
über-detailed valve behaviour modelling
of the Fractal Axe FXII.
Copying and pasting module setups
between rigs is easy, and the ability to
lock certain modules as you scroll
through rigs makes designing your own
rigs a pleasure.
There’s all the stomps and effects
you’re likely to need, but the KPA
allows you to take well-known amps and
drive them to new extremes of
fi lth – and also cleanliness. The
Defi nition, Pick, and Clarity settings are
a godsend for a mix engineer, allowing
you to manipulate clean and fi lthy in
new and subtle ways that would be
impossible in any other environment.
Minor grumbles
A
USB
/computer software GUI editor
would be great, especially for patch
management, and a proper tuner
management, and a proper tuner
meter would be better than the slightly
jokey spirit level bubble used in
v1.1 – perhaps a stroboscopic meter?
The display is certainly big enough.
FMU260.rev_kemper.indd 99 11/8/12 3:41 PM