Kemper vs JVM410H

Well, this certainly doesn't sound good :/
I am wondering if this relialibility issues happen mainly to you guys in Australia, or this is not market specific? One can only hope :(
Reaaal bummer.
 
I wouldn't really worry about people having issues with amps. You only ever hear when things go wrong, not really when it's going well.

I have a JVM and I love it. I sold my 6505 to get this thing and I've never looked back. I loved the 6505, but this amp is incredible.
 
I would go for the Kemper.
Had a JVM410H, great amp, a bit noisy but good tone.
The Kemper can do that tone too........ and more!

Bogner XTC

Mesa Recto

Peavey 5150

I have done some shows as a FOH soundguy in the past and would have loved to have the signal from the Kemper.

I don't share your point on the thing about being replaced by newer computers. Fractal Audio has had updates but the older ones still hold their value pretty well.
 
Hi,

Just a point on reliability : this will be far more easier to repair an amp than the Kemper (PS: I have a Kemper and I love it, and never switch it for an amp). But the kemper (just like the Axe) is just a bunch of electronic boards full of components impossible to find in several years.
If it is possible to repair an old 70's amp, because it is basically some pots, for passives (capacitor, resistors and inductors), and, of course, tubes. Things you can easily find 40 years after. It will never the case for a stuff like a kemper/axe/pod, ... (believe me, i work as an electronic engineer, and components obsolecence is a pain in the @55 )! So do not expect to keep your kemper/axe as many time as a true amp. Except this consideration, go for a Kemper :D
 
I would go for the Kemper.
Had a JVM410H, great amp, a bit noisy but good tone.
The Kemper can do that tone too........ and more!

Bogner XTC

Mesa Recto

Peavey 5150

I have done some shows as a FOH soundguy in the past and would have loved to have the signal from the Kemper.

I don't share your point on the thing about being replaced by newer computers. Fractal Audio has had updates but the older ones still hold their value pretty well.
Hey, you don't have to sell me on Kemper's ability to replicate an amp's tone :) but great clips nevertheless, I especially like the first one!

From tonal standpoint I don't have any doubts that Kemper is the shit, and in its versatility vastly superior to any real amp. It's just that as I said, at the end of the day it's a computer, and I've heard people having it lock up during live shows. Obviously, not such a big deal in the studio, but live - total turn off. And whatever I decide to buy in the end - I am gonna be needing it for live use. For studio tracking we have some other amps (but since they are not mine - the road use it out of the question).

As for Fractal - that's actually a great example. They introduced the 1st version in 2006, and the 2nd one in 2011, which is by all reports superior to the first one. I don't doubt that you could sell it for a good price after a few years, but I don't actually buy equipment only to sell it afterwards.
OTOH for ex. you can't say that JVM is "better" from JCM800 (or vice versa), it's just different.
I must say though that every time I hear Kemper I droll :lol:

Maybe I'll get Kemper and use some smaller/lighter amp as a backup, we'll see.

Hi,

Just a point on reliability : this will be far more easier to repair an amp than the Kemper (PS: I have a Kemper and I love it, and never switch it for an amp). But the kemper (just like the Axe) is just a bunch of electronic boards full of components impossible to find in several years.
If it is possible to repair an old 70's amp, because it is basically some pots, for passives (capacitor, resistors and inductors), and, of course, tubes. Things you can easily find 40 years after. It will never the case for a stuff like a kemper/axe/pod, ... (believe me, i work as an electronic engineer, and components obsolecence is a pain in the @55 )! So do not expect to keep your kemper/axe as many time as a true amp. Except this consideration, go for a Kemper :D

I hear you, that's exactly why I am in such a doubt ;)
 
The JVM is a damn fine amp. There are no "mediocre" sounds in there. With very little money you can mod it to sound exceptional in some areas at the expense of others, or add more options to the base tone. The amp lacks in design a few parts (a choke, first and foremost) that would have made it a little better in the clean/low gain department, but this would have significantly raised the costs of manufacture, which in the case of a professional sales company like Marshall, something the customer will have to worry about.

That said it has issues with noise, the build quality could have been better (I do not think it is in any way, shape, or form inferior to the Chinese 6505's you will get recommended here). If you really want a better take on what the JVM does you will need at least three decent amplifiers (a Twin Reverb, a 2203, and a 5150). The amp is a compromise by design.

Someone here mentioned the venerable 6100 as an alternative to the JVM. I think it's hard to find an amp so buggy and badly planned in the entire Marshall stable. And for hi-gain, well, you're gonna find out why no metalhead used a Marshall for 20 years. Thank the dual reverb 4100, 6100 and similar. Damn fine cleans and crunch in that head though (the 6100).

You either like or dislike Marshall. I never liked the tone of any Marshall really, I just liked how it sits in the mix. And that is, in my humble opinion, much more important than how the amp sounds in your mom's basement.

I wouldn't know a damn thing about the Kemper. I'm the kind of person that will wait 20 years until they're going for a hundred euros to jump on that boat. Unless Kemper the company goes belly up, that too shall pass eventually :)
 


:loco:

Began to think you could purchase cabinet models. But I guess it doesn't work that way. Or does it? :rolleyes::lol:
 
When the hell did I post those DIs/backing??

(I do not think it is in any way, shape, or form inferior to the Chinese 6505's you will get recommended here)


What?? The 6505 is a stupidly durable, robust, road-worthy amp that I've seen used and abused like no other. The JVM on the other hand has constant reports of failing while being used in studio-only settings.
 
When the hell did I post those DIs/backing??




What?? The 6505 is a stupidly durable, robust, road-worthy amp that I've seen used and abused like no other. The JVM on the other hand has constant reports of failing while being used in studio-only settings.

I've not heard any reports of JVM's failing. Mine certainly has not in the 3 years I've owned it. The early versions had some resistor that must be removed. Mine (2007 vintage) had the resistor in question omitted.

Have you had a peek inside a recent 6505?

DSC00018.jpg.html


So, ribbon cables, board mounted pots n' tubes. Hardly a Hiwatt. I will give the Peavey a slight advantage since the power and preamp tubes are both mounted on their own pcb's separate from the main board, but the JVM also has way more components on the BoM, and therefore, congestion. I have yet to see one fail because it's a bad design or badly manufactured. UK minimum wage is also a whole lot more than Chinese. Not that it makes any difference in my humble opinion what nationality the techs who build the amp are. Everyone has good and bad days on the assembly line I suppose :)
 
Why are you calling OP a tubescreamer?

TS = Thread Starter, n00b :lol:

The point is, you said you hadn't seen a lot of love for it. I'm saying you're not looking in the right places. I don't see a lot of love for the 5150 on the Telecaster forums out there... doesn't mean I'm going to assume no one digs them!! :loco:

And my point is that, of course people, on a forum dedicated to a specific brand or amp are going to like the amp, otherwise they wouldn't post on said forum. My statement was based off of generalized forums, with members who (for the most part) have very little loyalty to a company, and thus, can make decisions more objectively.

Someone here mentioned the venerable 6100 as an alternative to the JVM. I think it's hard to find an amp so buggy and badly planned in the entire Marshall stable. And for hi-gain, well, you're gonna find out why no metalhead used a Marshall for 20 years. Thank the dual reverb 4100, 6100 and similar. Damn fine cleans and crunch in that head though (the 6100).

You either like or dislike Marshall. I never liked the tone of any Marshall really, I just liked how it sits in the mix. And that is, in my humble opinion, much more important than how the amp sounds in your mom's basement.

Eh... the 6100 has a great high gain channel and there's PLENTY of metal bands who use/d Marshalls for metal since the inception of the JCM800. A boosted 2203 is still one of the best metal tones I've ever heard. There are two versions of the 6100 and I've owned both. The 6L6 (5881) version seems to get a bad rap, but I actually found that one to be way more pleasing than the EL34 version... and this is coming from someone who generally dislikes 6L6 power tubes in 95% of amps.

FWIW, I love the Marshall sound, I just don't dig the JVM. Plenty of guys seem to be perfectly happy with them, though. So if they're happy, that's all that matters.

What?? The 6505 is a stupidly durable, robust, road-worthy amp that I've seen used and abused like no other. The JVM on the other hand has constant reports of failing while being used in studio-only settings.

The 6505 is also made in the USA, so...... :loco:
 
And my point is that, of course people, on a forum dedicated to a specific brand or amp are going to like the amp, otherwise they wouldn't post on said forum. My statement was based off of generalized forums, with members who (for the most part) have very little loyalty to a company, and thus, can make decisions more objectively.

Plenty of guys seem to be perfectly happy with them, though. So if they're happy, that's all that matters.

Does not compute. As I said - I cannot agree with you. On generalised forums, as well as the JVM forums, there is universal appreciation for the JVM. If you don't see that, it's because of confirmation bias.

But then you go ahead and invalidate your previous comment by actually saying that plenty of people are happy with them. Er.... What you talkin' about Willis???

Also, lets not forget your original point was this:
I'm still baffled as to why everyone on this forum seems to love them so much.

This forum. Not generalized forums. You can't have it all ways guvnor!

Ultimately, it really is the best amp Marshall have made in a long time. Okay, that's my opinion, but it happens to be held by a lot of other people too. Annnnyyyway... not trying to be a bitch about it, just wanted to see some accuracy. I'll stop whining now.

The Satriani version offers a choke, and improvements to the range of tones, and the noise levels. Only reason I sold it was because as much as I loved it, it didn't work as well in a band situation because of the way we write stuff - a lot of it is interlocking guitar lines, and the JVM wasn't subtle enough for a lot of it.

That'd probably be my main complaint about it. It doesn't clean up on the gain channels as well as some other amps, and the tones are kind of always cranked to 11 and always in your face - which isn't what I wanted. My Diezel is much better in this respect.