Two years of using digital amps lead me back to the real thing. The last year (2019) has been a massive overhaul for me, in terms of gear. I started the year with a Kemper Profiler and many of you will know that I have raved about that piece of kit for the best part of 18 months now. It’s a game changer. However, I missed the flexibility of real amps and pedals at my fingertips....
The paralysing limitations of having access to every guitar amplifier in the world. I admit, the last few months have been a bit of a struggle with the Kemper. Not because it sounds anything less than superb, but simply because the profiles aren’t versatile enough once I’ve found ‘the one’. Once I’ve settled on a profile, I’m stuck with it because no other profile comes close. That makes me feel a little uneasy as I’d like to feel a bit more freedom than that....
After seeing a video comparing the Axe FX III and the Kemper (that has unfortunately now been deleted by its maker, Camilo Velandia— an Axe FX III owner) which I spoke about in my previous post, “One year later with the Fractal Axe FX II XL, was it a keeper in 2018?”, my first instinct was to try the Kemper in the interim, whilst I wait for the Axe FX III to arrive in the country....
In March 2017 I made the massive leap to a fully digital guitar rig. I can now document my year long journey from Axe FX newbie to massive digital convert. Big investment I had to sell a lot of my old analog gear, including my amp and pedals, to get back some of the money I spent on the Axe FX II XL. It was a huge make or break investment of time, money and loss; of things I’d come to cherish....
Sometimes, you just need to accept the facts. [Disclaimer: this is an old article and explains my thoughts about the Fractal Axe FX II XL in 2017] So, after finally coming to a place where I could accept that I had most of the basic tones covered, why did I still want more? Why was I still missing my Mesa? Why did I suddenly feel the urge to buy a Plexi style amplifier?...