Helix or pedals with Kemper

  • I have a few pedals, tc electronic flashback delay and chorus, MLR super comp, wampler clarksdale and tweed 57 plus a Vicks audio rams head, my question is do I still need these or would you sell these and get a Helix for the extra effects to complement the Kemper or is the kemper enough for classic rock, country, don't gig and only play at home but would the helix/Kemper combination expand my setup for the better thanks

  • With the changes made in effects in the KemperWorld recently I would tell you the Kemper is enough. You will not like the Helix effects after having the Kemper. The AX8 is great for effects, but I don't really feel the Kemper is inferior in the effects department any longer. Only you can answer the too much question, but I can tell you first hand for the products you've listed the Kemper is more than adequate.


    If you feel you are not getting enough effects look into the M9 or M13....

    "More Guitar in the Monitors" :thumbup:

    Edited once, last by bshaw92 (September 8, 2017 at 2:13 AM).

  • Of the effects you listed, only the Rams Head has the potential for being missed. There's a Muff Stomp in the Kemper, but it isn't nearly as flexible as your pedal. All the other effects are more than covered by the Kemper or, in the case of the Wamplers, different profiles.

    Edit : I owned a Helix and the only thing I liked about its effects more than the Kempers was the Univibe emulation.

  • Seems to me that if you are spending on a Helix, you'd be better off with a Fractal AX-8. That will give you great quality effects
    as well as the Fractal's amp and speaker sims to go with your Kemper. I have been wanting an FX2 to go with my Kemper,
    but I have greater need for other studio equipment at this point.

    Don't get me wrong, I own and use a pair of Line 6 L2m FRFR cabs with my Kemper, so I am not brand biased. I just think you'd
    get more with the AX-8.

  • Here is my 2 cents: I LOVE using external pedals with my Kemper. I always have at least one pedal (Ibanez TS Mini, Timmy Clone, MXR Micro Amp or another booster) before the Input. Even if not engaged - it also has the advantage that the Kemper input jack will not be abused that much - I know I am crazy ^^

    Cause authentic spring reverb is not available yet in the Kemper I use a Boss FRV-1 Fender Reverb pedal, that does a good job.

    Also preamp pedals like Orange Bax Bangeetar or MXR EVH 5150 work glorious - and "feel" is very responsive.

    And then I do something, I am very convinced it sounds brilliant, even if some of you guys now will look like this :/:thumbdown:;( : I put a cheap Digitech RP 360 XP in the Kemper loop. And I am totally happy with it :thumbup: No need for Helix or FX 8!

    Distortion pedals sound close enough and really killer (Boss OD-1, different Tubescreamers, voodoo lab sparkle drive, exclusive Redline pedal...). I also use it as volume pedal, the Wha' s and for crazy experimental tones. The Lexicon Verbs are more than usable too. But the BEST thing is the EASY and super fast editor.

    Conclusion: So instead of selling nice pedals a GOOD (meaning good for your aims) and much-cheaper-than-helix multi-effect could be an alternative. For me it is.

    Edited 2 times, last by Ibot39 (September 21, 2017 at 11:37 AM).

  • the helix gain sounds were fuzzy, grainy,, to my ear,brittle,,,,, the AX8 was just great,LOVED the editor, so freakin easy to set up rigs,,, but it choked out on my bigger rigs Just not enough power with one chip,, ,,, nothing has beat the Kemper for great pure guitar tones, of BOTH clean and high gain,
    when the reverbs come, I'll call it a day ,no more gear chasing,, But ,,,a better / slightly bigger display,, more featured, with assignable name slots, floor board would be GREAT,,
    Id buy it,,,

  • Right there with you on those points. The choke out is what stopped me from buying the AX8 as a backup incase the Kemper had to go into the shop for a fix. The FX8 is not bad on CPU, but it also can choke out depending on the type of Reverb quality (but no amps with that one). I have to admit though I like the Headrush and what it is offering, but I got burned by the 11 rack support in the past so I am hesitant. Not sure which way it is supported now since it uses 11's code.

  • The last few days I've been seriously considering moving over to the Helix or Fractal gear only because of the Kemper's shortcomings in the FX department, so I'm very interested in the responses so far to the OP. My external pedal inventory has been growing steadily. I already use a stand-alone Wah and Whammy, plus a DOD440 Envelope Filter inserted into the FX loop. I've since added to that a Digitech Drop pedal. This has been necessary either because I didn't like the KPA's version of these FX or because I noticed too much latency using an expression pedal. The limitations of the Remote & Performance mode also frustrate me (such as not being able to assign more than 4 stomps to a rig).

    Love the Helix user interface but wouldn't use the amp modelling, and by all accounts the FX are sub-par. Love Fractal's FX but hate their switching interfaces. What to do...

  • I've been chasing tone my whole life, The kemper is the answer to all my tone quests, night after night gig after gig, its always been perfect,
    That said, I still have the same problems I had with every other set up.
    That being the EFX / Stomps,and build/editing rigs QUICKLY esp in a high pressure session,,
    after trying the editor on the fractal I was stunned just how much time I do spend squinting at the tiny screen on the Kemper, fighting with the rig manager, etc,rolling knobs,,, with the fractal it was SO easy to build a rig, but more importantly edit a rig quickly,
    But it choked out way too fast and required all kids of trickery to build the rigs I need, lots of efx options needed,,
    The helix was cool ,loved the scribble strips,the editor was great, but the high gain tones were very grainy and fizzy,, so back to the Kemper,
    Next I'm going to grab a Headrush,,try it,
    Its just such a shame that these requests , to make this a better product, by the folks that use it, make a living with it, get little/no response,no offense intended, just my observation,
    I've been on this board for 3 years plus watching the same requests go un answered, over and over,,
    would it be so bad if the mother ship just came out and told us what was up?even in small bits?
    Would it be so hard to have a guy who just responds to the boards here and gives us all a little info on whats happening at the mothership, what we can expect?
    So here I sit every morning, waiting for a reverb that will make my fender profile, sound like a,,,,, fender,amp..been three years now, and counting,,
    PLEASE understand,, I'm not bashing, I love this thing, period, I will always have one in the studio and in my rack,but It could be SO much better,,quicker, smarter,with just the smallest of improvements,but they take so loooooong,,so,,,
    I've been chasing tone my whole life, The kemper is the answer to all my tone quests, night after night gig after gig, its always been perfect,
    Please,,,,,, reverb,,, editor,,,,,something or at the very least tell us no,,,it wont happen ever,,,,, so we can move on,,,
    LOVE my Kemper,,altho,,the way they do biz,,,,is a little frustrating,,thanks all,,

  • please understand, I am just frustrated, not mad or bashing,,its like someone gave me half a candy bar,,, I want the other half,,,
    only human I guess,,I want to clean up my board, loose the extra pedals,cords, etc,,get on and off stage in under 5-10 min,, ( yes I said 5-10 min)
    I have a big job in my band,I was the only guitar, up till last month,,, we had to get another guy to cover some parts, but players come and go,cant count on jobbers,so,,,,,,, I go from crystal clear twang to raging marshall stack to a leslie trem,, all in 1, 3 min tune,( BUY ME A BOAT),,,,
    I just cant have lag, top tapping and other such distractions,the Kemper, for the most part, is the answer I've been looking for, after all it all starts with GREAT tone, and thats the Kemper,now if I could just get the icing on the cake,,,,,,,,,,,last of the fest season for us and I will have the winter in the studio, where the kemper really shines,and I continue to blow producers minds by pulling up just about any amp they could ask for,..
    I LOVE this thing,,,,,,,
    have a listen, first 9 tunes are my origs,,,
    http://www.GhostRyderBand.com
    thanks again,MR Kemper,,,, maybe a little more coffee at the mothership?????

  • Both.

    I got a special road case for my toaster that had a small rack underneath.

    The plan is to get the Helix foot control for the rack and put my h9 and other pedals in the loop of the helix. I haven't decided yet but I may ditch the kemper remote and just use the helix control to send midi to my toaster. The routing is worth it IMO and I don't feel the setup will be too big of a hassle. I like the effects in all the units, some more than others . Something to consider is the idea of using a preamp or amp only model in the helix as a distortion box to drive various clean and slightly gritty profiles on the kemper. The tones you can get when stacking these together plus or minus a tiny bit of post eq is IMO unparalleled to anything else that would be possible otherwise. A new frontier of tones await beside infinity... LOL