Interesting comparison: AxeFxII and Kemper (and others if you want to add them)

[banjoze]

First the AxeFXII:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...3nHTqDw#t=153s (I positioned the clip to the Soldano demo).

Now the Kemper:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...k5sz82A#t=103s (I positioned the clip to skip all the profiling space noises, etc.)

Someone feel free to add the equivalent from the HD500 and the 11rack or your favorite equivalent of a Soldano done via any modeler. I find the comparisons interesting and fun.

[tubiux]

There's a huge difference in philosophy between these two units (or rather, the Kemper and all other modelers) in that there's a built in A/B function in KPA. The Kemper puts itself continuously on the line, whereas the rest merely claim that they're exact models etc. This does NOT in any way mean that the KPA is better or worse than the rest of the pack. So what if the Axe/11R/HD500/... doesn't sound 100% like the original amp as long as you like the sound and it's useful.

It's very, very simple - if you want the real sound - get the real deal. The Axe FX II and KPA costs quite a lot. If you play metal, you can get a used Dual rect for around $800, a decent cab for a few hundred extra. On top of that you could buy a top of the line FX unit like the Eventide used and still save money compared to the Axe FX II. It's a matter of ease of use and versatility. I'm in the market for one of these units myself, but I've been extremely turned off by Fractal and their attitude.

I bought a POD HD500 to fool around with and use live, but I returned it after a week. I went through the chorus and delays in detail for many, many hours, and I simply couldn't make them sound organic. You have a million parameters, but for what? If you can't make a chorus sound good with some simple tweaks, there's no real hope. Although, I gave it a serious shot, by combining several choruses etc.

My personal rule of thumb is simple: If the piece of gear (whatever it might be) inspires you, it's good. It's not enough that some famous guy says it's great. If you enjoy it, you'll most likely make better music and what more can we ask for?

[DGTCrazy]

I doubt the AxeFX Demo is a good sample of what it can sound like. The clip was harsh sounding. The Kemper demo sounded better per se, but the ground noise and compression (maybe from the camera) didn't help either.

[banjoze]

@DGTCrazy (or anyone): Post a better one!

[Earl Mobile]

Originally Posted by banjoze

First the AxeFXII:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...3nHTqDw#t=153s (I positioned the clip to the Soldano demo).

Now the Kemper:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...k5sz82A#t=103s (I positioned the clip to skip all the profiling space noises, etc.)

Someone feel free to add the equivalent from the HD500 and the 11rack or your favorite equivalent of a Soldano done via any modeler. I find the comparisons interesting and fun.

this thread is pointless...

[Eric Thomas]

Those clips are recorded in such different conditions, with different guitars and different players, that they are totally worthless as comparison clips.

What people are waiting to hear is the two units, side-by-side, played through the same monitor/amp for a direct comparison.

[guitarnet70]

Originally Posted by Eric Thomas

Those clips are recorded in such different conditions, with different guitars and different players, that they are totally worthless as comparison clips.

What people are waiting to hear is the two units, side-by-side, played through the same monitor/amp for a direct comparison.

...not even enough, you would need to profile with the Kemper the same exact amp that Cliff has modeled in the Axe and then play both through the same monitors....but then, again: what should the purpose be of this exercise? Do they sound good? That's it! All this is like d!ck waving under the shower of the sport club, it's music, not a car race...IMHO

[desdinova]

Originally Posted by tubiux

So what if the Axe/11R/HD500/... doesn't sound 100% like the original amp as long as you like the sound and it's useful.

And this is the point (and a great second post in the forum ).

I like the Axe: it can be made to sound great, in recording or live, and it's tweakability guaranties that you'll never run out of options.

I like what I hear/read from (and about) the KPA, I don't personally care if it sounds "spot on" but it really seems to have awesome amp tones. The effects need to be proved more, but I'm optimistic.

I also like the 11R, and if it wasn't for a few minor issues (routing, PT as editor, etc), I could gladly buy one, perhaps combine it with a couple pedals/rack for wild and unusual effects and be done with it.

Other offerings are getting improved, and/or will be updated in the following months (e.g. Line6 improves the firmware on the HD and I'm sure Digitech and Boss will introduce new gear in the next few months).

What I'm saying is, we have great opportunities and quite a number of them to choose. When I started playing guitar as a kid, a tube amp cost a fortune, modeling was a dream and quality effects were in the pro domain only. Let's stop all this pissing contest about which gear is the best and enjoy the ride, I say.

[Scott Peterson]

I have an Axe-FX II and have owned the Standard and the Ultra.

That video clip of the Axe-FX is not an indication nor representative of what you can do with the Axe-FX Standard, Ultra or II with the Soldano amp block IMHO. It is representative of what that individual did with it but bears zero resemblance to any sort of authoritative representation of that sort of sound or even what you can get from any of the Fractal products using that sound.

The rest of it will be opinion, but basing opinions of this level of gear using sources like an obviously amateur created video of one product versus one that is professionally released by the company for another product says everything you need to know about the hypothesis of the OP.

In short it's useful as a start to forming your opinion, but it surely isn't anything more than that.

[Brick_top]

+ 1

[randombastage]

The only comparison that really gives a player a 'complete' picture of how any two devices stack up is when he plays through them himself side by side. Anything else is just an example of how the devices sounded in a recording made by someone.

Certainly good sounding recordings can spur us to want to have that personal playtime with the device but recordings we don't like are usually proof of nothing inherent to the device. Of course when 99 out of 100 clips of a device all show the same fundamental flaw the trend probably has merit.... ie; PodII really is fizzy.

I find the best internet source for comparison to be another player who you have a common baseline with. For example, I've owned just about every device out there so if someone like Scott or javilynch plays through a Kemper and tells me it sounded better than a device he and I both have owned and we both like then I'm more inclined to follow his lead than even a dozen comparrison clips on YouTube that seem to favor the Kemper.

[bmi]

The comparison with the real soldano is just missing.

[mattball826]

Originally Posted by bmi

The comparison with the real soldano is just missing.

from what? both?

kemper amp had soldano and then profile.

axe had just its model

[banjoze]

Originally Posted by Scott Peterson

I have an Axe-FX II and have owned the Standard and the Ultra.

That video clip of the Axe-FX is not an indication nor representative of what you can do with the Axe-FX Standard, Ultra or II with the Soldano amp block IMHO. It is representative of what that individual did with it but bears zero resemblance to any sort of authoritative representation of that sort of sound or even what you can get from any of the Fractal products using that sound.

The rest of it will be opinion, but basing opinions of this level of gear using sources like an obviously amateur created video of one product versus one that is professionally released by the company for another product says everything you need to know about the hypothesis of the OP.

In short it's useful as a start to forming your opinion, but it surely isn't anything more than that.

The hypothesis of the OP (me) was that both sounded pretty darn nice. I'm not sure which one I prefer to be honest. Yes, one is professionally recorded by the manufacturer and the other is a guy on Youtube. Ok, whatever. It's not that hard to listen past that and hear the quality of the two tones.

Personally I think Fractal (and others) makes a mistake by not demoing what the AxeII is capable of when setup by pros as is the Kemper.

So, was your theory about my hypothesis right?

[banjoze]

Here's another example:

First the Kemper:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...aM6-Gl64#t=64s

Now the AxeFXII:

http://soundcloud.com/javilynch/delu...-crunchy-clean

I was personally somewhat disappointed by the Kemper in this one. What do you think?