Why would anyone buy a Kemper over the Axe-FX II?

guitarnerdswe

Fractal Fanatic
I've noticed alot of people on the other forums I hang on have recently bought Kempers. I actually haven't asked them because there is a flame war in the air when doing that, but I guess I'll be fine here ;)

So, what would the reason for buying a Kemper over the Axe-FX II be? I can't see one besides price. Everything the Kemper can do, the Axe-FX II can do just as good or in most cases, better. Better effects, better interface, better sound, better feel, equal or better tone matching/profiling. It just seems like a no brainer to me.

Any clues?
 
Depends what you need. I had a kemper, two actually. Great little box, but certainly no where near as flexible as the axe2 or the standard axe for that matter. I got some great tones out of it, gigged it a few times, and it's a great tool in that price range-the only thing in that price range. Looking at everything out there now, 11R is pretty much crusty but dropping in price, the GSP1101 is even moreso. HD500 is pretty much a toy in comparison-and yeah-I owned all of those. I still have the GSP as a backup/home practice rig.

I was spoiled by fractal. Things werent moving at all on the kemper side by comparison. In a year or two it might be worth another look as a grab and go rig-if you can cram a power amp in the back and they release a foot controller.

Another reason besides price(and when you add the MFC price IS a reason)-ease of use. Took all of 2 minutes to get a bunch of great tones. 30 minutes to have everything set up to gig, including getting the rocktron all-access configured. The axe2 is so flexible-it can be daunting.

Just as there are folks that love the kemper and think it is the best XXXX, just as many people, probably more-think the same of the HD500-which I absolutely hated.

People justify stuff-it's the human thing to do. Justify spending another 5K on a guitar I dont really need. Justify only spending 500 on a lesser model. Justify either one of those situations to my wife! There seems to be an instant loyalty for a lot of folks to defend whatever they just spent their hard earned money on. Even if they never tried anything else. I owned all of the products listed above concurrently. I kept two. I'm sure there is a place for all of the others for someone out there-that's be beauty of choice-we get to make one...now I gotta go vote!
 
I suspect it's just G.A.S.

I know I'm intrigued by it by the Kemper myself.

I don't *need* it but if a Kemper II comes out, I'd be tempted.

Richard
 
Many like the whole ease of use thing. Others say the raw amps sound better and more realer. To each their own I say. I could see a studio that wanted to capture clients amps easily and were not concerned with effects as they have them in their daws leaning toward the Kemper I suppose.

For live I can't see the Kemper coming anywhere near the Axe and I am a live kinda guy. There isn't a tone on the Kemper I can't cop but there are many I use all the time the Kemper just can't do. That's the bottom line for me.
 
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I still gig and record with lots of different gear.

Amps, pedals, the AxeFx II, etc.

For me, the Kemper would be just another tool in the box to use.

Richard
 
As a former Ultra owner I pretty much bought the Axe II based on my Ultra experience. Pretty much that alone in itself. Very happy with that choice but as with many others found myself intrigued by the Kemper. I had the opportunity to try one out a couple months ago. My curiosity was put to rest that day. Nothing derogatory to say either.

Why would anyone buy a Kemper over the Axe-FX II?... Why would someone ask that question here??... Dunno exactly. Whatever blows your hair back... I guess. People are strange being at time and because of this the variables as to *why* I do what I do are going to be different from someone else. Best thing to do is ask a "convert" and even then you'll get different answers.

I like chocolate/you like vanilla. Easiest explanation they'll be over this particular *why* question.
 
Also, I see some axe owners post on rig talk and elsewhere that have absolutely zero idea how most of the stuff in there works. People are afraid of the complexity. It overwhelms them. Not that you need to go there but just the fact that it exists frightens some. Your basic amp and pedal guy feels comfortable with a device like the Kemper.

I have been playing with computers and complicated devices since the 80s so for guys like me it's second nature.
 
When a profile works for you on the Kemper, it just works. No IR's to mess with. The amp+cab are captured as one, so when the profile is good it just works. Most KPA owners don't profile amps because there is no need to with all the profiles available.

The Kemper is a great product and so is the Axe II. The Axe is much more versatile overall at this point.

You definitely have to invest much more time in the Axe to get the results you want. No question about it. The reason for this comes down to IR's for the most part.

The KPA is pretty simple to use, and there is maybe a days learning curve( not talking profiling).It just comes down to if you dig the sounds or not, and if you can do without many of the features of the Axe II.
 
Also, I see some axe owners post on rig talk and elsewhere that have absolutely zero idea how most of the stuff in there works. People are afraid of the complexity. It overwhelms them. Not that you need to go there but just the fact that it exists frightens some. Your basic amp and pedal guy feels comfortable with a device like the Kemper.

I have been playing with computers and complicated devices since the 80s so for guys like me it's second nature.

Friend of mine, studio cat with LONG experience (he played in a band with Madonna before she was signed), has owned a bajillion amps, was BLOWN OUT by my AXE-FX II, but clearly intimidated by the complexity. Thought he'd get one for the studio, but never, ever use it live. I tried to explain that the soft buttons could be set up to do what an amps front panel knobs do (more or less), but still too 'techy' for him. Hell, I'm a geek, but the amount and complexity of the tweakage on the II intimidates ME sometimes!

As to Kempner: never gave it a thought. Two reasons: a) Love my II (and my Ultra). Not perfect, but damn close. b) even a cursory look at the kempner shows it to be far, far less flexible. They are apples and oranges anyway.
 
I've noticed alot of people on the other forums I hang on have recently bought Kempers. I actually haven't asked them because there is a flame war in the air when doing that, but I guess I'll be fine here ;)

So, what would the reason for buying a Kemper over the Axe-FX II be? I can't see one besides price. Everything the Kemper can do, the Axe-FX II can do just as good or in most cases, better. Better effects, better interface, better sound, better feel, equal or better tone matching/profiling. It just seems like a no brainer to me.

Any clues?

So have you actually tried a Kemper? "Better" is a highly subjective word.
 
Each device has it's own sound which will appeal to some users but comparing the Axe and Kemper is kinda moot as they aren't the same thing. The Kemper profiles real amps with some editing capabilities and the Axe contains 100+ amp models for the user to edit, and deep edit, to get their sound.

As one of the effects the Axe has Tone Matching which can get similar results to the Kemper. The big difference is the Kemper process is automated (automating the process of matching an amp is the patent Kemper has applied for). As far as accuracy - with both it depends on how close the underlying model is to your amp (the Kemper has 1 clean and more than one distorted models). If your reference amp is compatible with the Kemper/Axe's model then the results are astounding, if there's not a close model then you'll hear some differences.

One thing I like about Tone Match over Profiling is you get the full editing power of the Axe to use with your TMA, I approach TMAs as capturing the 'sonic signature' of an amp then use the power of the Axe to bring that Tone Match to go places the real amp can't go.

Between one or the other it's a matter of which sound and process fits you.
 
Bought a used Ultra to learn the curve while on the waiting list for an Axe2 - this was during the KPA build up and launch period.

Went ahead with the Axe2 order when my delivery date came in - better with the devil you know I reckoned. No complaints on my decision.

Besides the mega store of fx available in the Axe there's the versatility of the routing and I don't have access to many amps I could profile with the KPA and was wary about trusting shared ones. I also wasn't keen on Herr Kempers legs when he wore shorts while demo'ing the prototype in that YT video from a studio somewhere in the deep south of the US.

I'd certainly like both units ..... just like I'd like a Ferrari, an Aston Martin, houses in Monaco, Tuscany, Paris, NY ...........
 
Honestly, I actually like the basic amp sim character in the Kemper better than Axe's. At the moment I prefer using the Axe though, because of the efx, routing and rack shape.
 
I have a Kemper that I am trying to sell. What turned me off was 1. the aliasing, (To me it was like an 8 lane highway that was missing the 2 middle lanes) , 2. the forum and 3. the DB's that try to sell their profiles. Just my .02 please dont taze me bro!
 
I think this is a good question. I have just sold my Ultra and I will hopefully become the proud owner of an Axe Fx II in a few weeks.
I have been keeping an eye on Kemper ever since I heard about the product, but when it came to make the decision I realized that I actually had not really thought of buying the Kemper at all, although purchasing it would be much easier for me (Kemper has a distributor in my country...) It was my prior experience with the Ultra that helped me make my choice.

That being said, Kemper looks definitely more user-friendly and that I guess this is a significant factor for some. I still do not plan using my Axe Fx II for live use or studio rehersals. The idea of editing my tones for any random amp I might have to use in some rehersal studio or club still scares me. Actually, I am not sure if Kemper has any edge on that department either, but it seems easier to edit. Truth be told, after seeing the "lunch box" design of Kemper, I remember thinking something like "if only the Axe could have such a large front panel for ease of use..."
 
Maybe if you're German and can get a hand in the programming...? (hint ;) )
No, actually that still doesn't make sense...! :p

Anyway, I don't mind that some want Europe to have a strong product as well, so go ahead and support Kempers :)
If everyone had an Axe, the hands would decide everything. We don't want that! :mrgreen ;)
 
I'm glad that BOTH exist. I'd like to try a Kemper at some point just for the hell of it but I couldn't be happier with my AFX II.
 
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