V10 vs other modelers

I saw a video on YouTube with an HD500 vs the AxeII and they sound about the same in that vid, but side by side with the CLR's I think anyone can tell the difference.
 
Well , that´s nice to hear that my ears still work.
I don´t know what you mean with that the kemper sounds different before posting to soundcloud. But I tried to listen
for some sort of depth and complexity and that´s what I believe I heard in the axe clips.
Maybe the Kemper has less complexity and can´t "afford" to lose anymore :lol
I don´t listen for eq and that kind of shit since that is easy to change, while the "quality" is impossible to change.
It´s more the way the amps responds to a chord or the attack on certain notes.




wembley said:


Tjänare, söta bror! Yes, you're right, Thomas. A & C is the Axe, B & D the KPA. A = Brit Brown with a 4x12 Basketweave G12H30 & SM57, the RW stock one; C = Dumble Clean with the same speakers. B = a Plexi 67 with a boost in front, Marshall 1960 cabinet with an SM57; D = Clean channel (with a boost) of a Two Rock Gainmaster, Marshall 1960 cabinet, SM57. No additional tweaking done to the KPA profiles.


Listening to a Soundcloud file thru pc speakers, I agree with Thomas in that the Axe sounds nicer. This was somewhat surprising to me. Playing the clips uncompressed through my studio monitors, there were things I really liked with both rigs.



Not sure what you mean, as long a the point is comparing two different devices...? We all agree that there are other settings, amps, profiles etc. and that we all probably would tweak to our own liking.

Btw, the Axe Brit Brown patch is a patch I use live, and is tuned for and works well in live settings, imo. I'm curious as to how the KPA works live, though.
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Thomas Larsson said:
Well , that´s nice to hear that my ears still work.
I don´t know what you mean with that the kemper sounds different before posting to soundcloud. But I tried to listen
for some sort of depth and complexity and that´s what I believe I heard in the axe clips.
Maybe the Kemper has less complexity and can´t "afford" to lose anymore :lol
Click to expand...

May very well be, but that's not the impression I get when I sit down with the two devices. They each have their strengths and weaknesses, imo.

Thomas Larsson said:
I don´t listen for eq and that kind of shit since that is easy to change, while the "quality" is impossible to change.
It´s more the way the amps responds to a chord or the attack on certain notes.
Click to expand...

Exactly, and here's where I expected (and perhaps even hoped for, being a long time Axe user/fanboi) the Axe to run in circles around the KPA after the update to V10. But it didn't. Both devices had things going for them, and I guess what you like is a matter of taste, what you're looking for and used to.
 
Listening closer now that I know the answer, it appears that I prefer the Kemper over the Axe? What am I doing in this forum??? LOL... What I like about the clips that you posted are the exact reason that Cliff changed the Axe to better represent the real amps. I guess I like a more idealized version less random variance, less parasitic {what ever that word is} less rude rock and roll. I'm not a full on AC/DC rocker...I'm more a Jello brand gelatin. The only issue I really have with v10 is the fact that its all RAW and always never smooth like in the past. I know it's more real, but that isn't a good thing for me I guess.
 
Johnnyh64 said:
Listening closer now that I know the answer, it appears that I prefer the Kemper over the Axe? What am I doing in this forum??? LOL... What I like about the clips that you posted are the exact reason that Cliff changed the Axe to better represent the real amps. I guess I like a more idealized version less random variance, less parasitic {what ever that word is} less rude rock and roll. I'm not a full on AC/DC rocker...I'm more a Jello brand gelatin. The only issue I really have with v10 is the fact that its all RAW and always never smooth like in the past. I know it's more real, but that isn't a good thing for me I guess.
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IMO neither of these units sound exactly like the real thing and certainly not better as some seem to boast.
I have realized with V10 if you are expecting it to sound exactly like the real thing you will be dissapointed.
That is if you can actually hear the differences to begin with and in no way do I mean that as an insult. There is no question we all
hear things differently. So what I have realized is to ask myself do I like what I am hearing as a sound and can I use it in my arsenal?
No longer waisting time comparing my tube amps to the axe 2. I have found many amazing sounds in V10 and although to my ears I still prefer the
sound of real tube amps and the so called "in the room sound" who cares. The axe has its place in my setting especially with recording as it sounds amazing
when being recorded and saves countless hours setting up mikes. I think people tend to underestimate that we are human and have different perception abilities and different tastes. Great example I have friends who when they hear a note being played only hear the root and not the overtones or at least do not perceive them as
different notes. I can hear these overtones as seperate notes but not as well as other of my friends. Example, when I set up my dumble there is a phase inverter potentiometer. I tried to adjust it by ear but could bearly percieve any differences.
So I used a voltmeter. I had a friend come over who has absolutely amazing music abilities and perception. He adjusted my PI by ear and told me he could hear a hugh difference. So I put him to the test and compared his results to the volt meter every time he was dead on accuracy to the meter out to two decimal places. Mind boggling as I could hear very little difference. I point this out because I find if any of us claim we hear something not right, seems like so many jump on the
band wagon of harrasment because they do not hear the same thing. The bottom line is you have to go with your own individual ear and if you like the sound thats all thats important and I love the sound of the axe fx2 although to my ears(whether good or bad), sounds slightly different than the real thing , Just saying
 
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Back to the original post (sorry, not interested in Fractal vs. Kemper - both are awesome, pick the one you like best and play the crap out of it). When I upgraded from the HD500 last summer, I was in shock - the differences are VAST. And I had been pretty content during the years I had the HD.

So going backwards would shock my system more than I could stand. I instantly decided my HD would not make an acceptable backup (I went another way with that).

As for the CLR stuff, my theory is that a unit like that will bring out the very best - and very worst - in any device. My HD did not sound good in my monitors. My Axe II sounds amazing. I didn't touch any knobs on the mixer or speakers.

Sorry if I'm not getting it, but I'm just saying - I understand and suspect this is what you've encountered.

As for a cheaper all-in-one unit - understanding a little about the engineering involved and the economies of scale, coupled with Cliff's (and the rest of the amazing staff) near-anal (well, maybe totally anal) drive for perfection and awesomeness, I'm just not sure there is enough compromise to get such a unit to a viable price point. I quit wishing for such a unit about 10 minutes after I plugged mine in and just "got over" dealing with a rack and separate controller.
 
I listened to a bunch of (Kemper) clips from theampfactory.com today & have to say that I was really impressed by the tones and, frankly, a little envious of the ability to just buy some amp packs of great sounding profiles like that so easily.
 
In that recording, I preferred B and D. If that's the Kemper, oh well. The reverb was louder and it had better presence; all configurable on the Axe.
 
NeoSound said:
I saw a video on YouTube with an HD500 vs the AxeII and they sound about the same in that vid, but side by side with the CLR's I think anyone can tell the difference.
Click to expand...

I'm really not sure how anyone could reasonably think these two units are in the same class. I switched from the HD500 to the Axe in January and I still have the HD because I'm using it as a foot controller, and until I just got my 2nd Axe as a backup, the HD was my backup. I thought the HD was okay until I got the Axe. Then, I thought it was okay as a backup until V10 came out. After that, I just couldn't be happy with it, even for rehearsals. There is a huge price difference between the two, and there as an equally large chasm in tone, capability, flexibility, and reliability. Line 6 is a fine company, but they are a software company that builds mass-market products. Fractal is playing on an entirely different level.
 
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