Posts by LordByron

Quote from ggo_101

If you were only getting one controller, which of the 2 would you suggest? Really torn between these exact 2 models.

Morningstar is obviously the superior option, but it's big. On the other hand, it may be more versatile if I ever expand to another setup than the Kemper player.

The main benefit of the Ampero is it's size.

Really unsure which of these two is the best option tbh.

It's a tough call. The Ampero is a bit cheaper and the form factor is definitely a plus, if real estate where you are going to be using it is at premium. The Morning star, OTH, is built like a tank, has more buttons, and has a useable/useful screen. I am glad to have both. I am using the Ampero for gigs lately, though, as I have been playing venues with very limited stage space, so space considerations have been paramount. If space were not a consideration, the MC6 would be the winner for me.

Quote from DhananjayChhettri

Hey. Guys what kind of switching solutions would you suggest to maximize a Player Level 3. I'm looking at the Morningstar MC6 currently, mainly because it has a screen and it would be really handy.

Any other solutions you can suggest?

I have the Morningstar MC6 Mk II as well as the Ampero Controller. The MC6 is great for its screen. The Ampero is decent: it doesn't have a very functional display (it only indicates the Bank and Pedal you last selected), but is slimmer profile/form factor is better when I'm using my Player for gigs (it takes up way less real estate).

Is anyone aware of any walk-throughs or demos of the Level III upgrade and how to implement the extra features (effects slots, etc.)?

Does anyone know if the dual footswitch (I+II and II+III) option is enabled in the new FW and, if so, in what level?

Agreed. This would be a great "add" to the Player.

Quote from Casuso

The USB to MIDI interface did the trick for me. I got one from amazon "OTraki USB MIDI 2 feet...". USB to Kemper and MIID to Ampero Control. Works flawlessly and the only disadvantage is externally power the Ampero.

Thanks! I ended up ordering a very small (about the size of two USB-A connectors stacked) USB hub and it did the trick. No issues with freezing pedals on the Player using this new mini-hub. Now I'm able to fully use midi over USB between the Player and the Ampero Control with zero problems. It's a great combo.

So, mini USB hub arrived today. Plugged it into the Player... no button freezing issue. Plugged in the Ampero... works fine.

So, all's well that ends well... but the introduction of the USB hub as the solution still seems... weird. :shrug:

Out of curiosity, has anyone tried the PaintAudio Midi Captain with the Player?

Quote from LordByron

I, unfortunately, found this thread (and a similar one in the Questions and Answers section) only after purchasing an Ampero Controller. I have found that I am able to successfully power the Ampero with the Player and am able, while doing so, to successfully send midi-to-midi messages to my HX Stomp. Sending midi messages to the Player directly will not work.

Based on what I read in the in the Q&A section, I tried plugging a small USB hub into the Player and then connecting the Ampero to the hub. This allowed me to successfully send midi messages to the Player over USB... BUT, when I do so, the buttons on the Player stop responding and they will not do so until I unplug the Hub and reboot the player.

Any thoughts on why this would be the case and how to work around this?

(BTW, my Morningstar MC6 works swimmingly with the player... it's just an awkward size and layout for my grab-and-go rig, which the Player is part of, thus my preference for the Ampero, if I can get it to work... the form factor is vastly better for my needs.)

Thanks!

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Interestingly, playing around with the setup last night, I discovered that just plugging the USB hub, without connecting the Ampero, caused the issue with the non-operative switches. As such, I have ordered another small(er) hub from Amazon to see if it causes the same issue. I am hoping the problem I experienced using the hub was a result of that particular hub. (That seems most likely.) I'll report back once I try the setup with the new hub.

Of course, this still doesn't explain why the Ampero seems to successfully be able to pass midi over USB with a hub in between, but not without it. I'll admit I'm not an electronics engineer, but that's a head-scratcher to me.

Quote from Burkhard

Our engineering has acquired an Ampero Control and researched it with a USB analyzer. According to their findings that 3rd party product - at least our unit - produces lots of electrical failures on the USB bus and therefor the Player doesn't work with it.

The Player is in line with standards and works with devices that do the same as a USB host (USB A) as well as a USB client (USB B).

It should be possible to use the Ampero with an external power supply and feed MIDI from its MIDI OUT through a MIDI USB interface.

I, unfortunately, found this thread (and a similar one in the Questions and Answers section) only after purchasing an Ampero Controller. I have found that I am able to successfully power the Ampero with the Player and am able, while doing so, to successfully send midi-to-midi messages to my HX Stomp. Sending midi messages to the Player directly will not work.

Based on what I read in the in the Q&A section, I tried plugging a small USB hub into the Player and then connecting the Ampero to the hub. This allowed me to successfully send midi messages to the Player over USB... BUT, when I do so, the buttons on the Player stop responding and they will not do so until I unplug the Hub and reboot the player.

Any thoughts on why this would be the case and how to work around this?

(BTW, my Morningstar MC6 works swimmingly with the player... it's just an awkward size and layout for my grab-and-go rig, which the Player is part of, thus my preference for the Ampero, if I can get it to work... the form factor is vastly better for my needs.)

Thanks!

I actually dug up a little USB Hub that I forgot I had and plugged that in between the Player and Ampero Control. That allowed me to successfully send midi CC and PC controls from the Ampero to the Player... BUT, it disables the buttons on the Player, which stay disabled until I unplug the hub and reboot the Player. Arg!

Sadly, it's looking like I may have to stick with my Morningstar MC6 until Hotone and/or Kemper push out updates that fix what is clearly some kind of midi-over-usb weirdness.

Arg! I wish I had seen this thread a few days ago! I am having the same issue with the Ampero Control and the Player.

What a shame, as the form factor of the Ampero is perfect to work with my Player+HX Stomp Nano+ board.

I will have to continue to use by Morningtar MC6 Controller for the time being (which works swimmingly, but the form factor does not fit near as well with my pedal board.

Kettermann what was the brand of the pen-sized USB hub you found?

Quote from Burkhard

I'm afraid there is no MIDI comand for Rig Up/Rig Down at the Player. It works like other models in Performance Mode. This is picked from the Player manual:

#48	Value 1 steps one Bank up and starts scrolling after a while. Value 0 stops scrolling, or steps only one Bank up.
#49	Value 1 steps one Bank down and starts scrolling after a while. Value 0 stops scrolling, or steps only one Bank down.

If you want to step through Rigs, you need to establish a logic in the sending device, that steps through MIDI CC# 50-54, which load one of the five Slots within the current Bank.

Thanks, I pretty much ended up sussing that out myself. It seems a shame there is no midi command for the RigUp/Down function, given it is an accessible command with the on-device switches. Sigh. It is what it is, I guess. (At least until and/or if Kemper adds midi CCs for these in a future firmware update.)

I know that you can assign "Rig Next" and "Rig Last" to the Player's footswitches, but are there corresponding midi commands for these two functions? (They don't appear in the manual.)

Thanks guys! I suspected that was the case, but was not sure.

I've got a potential gig coming up where there is no AC power. There is however a generator available (Honda 2200, with 1800W and 15A). I would need to run at least the Power Kab and the Floor off the Generator. Ideally I'd like to also be able to run at least one of my Yamaha DBR10 PA speakers off of it, but if there's not enough juice for that I do have a battery-powered PA speaker.

Anyway, thanks in advance if anyone has any info on the power draw.

At the advice of Kemper Support, I did an Init Globals from the first page of the System menu and it seems to resolved the weirdness I was having. The Power Amp Boost works properly now, as does the Monitor output levels. I guess something got munged in my settings but the reset of the Global settings got me back on track.

The PowerKab is still a bit quieter than the PS170 at similar settings (and maxed out), but the difference is MUCH smaller now and the PowerKab will definitely get to workable gigging volumes now.

Thanks Kemper Support!

Quote from dmatthews

Do the update to the latest OS on the Kemper and use the "Power Amp Boost" option.

Should be good to go.

Hmmm. I did the updated. The Power Amp Boost adjustment does nothing. I also tried boosting the Monitor output too. Also no effect. There's got to be a bug here somewhere.

I guess I'll put in a support ticket.

Ok. Finally back from the beach and got my Powered Kab all plugged up. It sounds great, although I notice, despite it's 200W rating, it is significantly quieter than my unpowered Kab with the SD PS170 powering it.

I know that power ratings are less than objective measures of how loud a power amp will drive a speaker, but I am surprised by the volume difference. The Powered Kab at full volume is about equal to the PS170 at about 60% volume.

Has anybody else with both of these combinations ( Ingolf ? ) noticed this too?

Quote from Chris Duncan

That's exactly the destination I'm returning from. Quit gigging for precisely this reason and have spent over a decade as an isolated studio rat.

I play classic rock, so the few venues that still book that kind of music are less than impressive here in Atlanta, and often have more TVs than people. And of course, the money has always been crap. Nonetheless, I really miss performing live. Being in a band is also a different social experience than doing solo work in the studio.

So, I'm now in the middle of trying to find the right guys to play with, including bands that were gigging but are down a man and just trying to put together my own thing. I'd forgotten how much fun Craigslist can be.

This is further complicated by the fact that my preferences in classic rock aren't Eagles, Beatles and Stones for a polite restaurant gig but rather Deep Purple, Green Day and AC / DC with the appropriate levels of sweat and adrenaline. It's been a challenge trying to find people who like this genre of music but aren't too old to rock and roll. That's more literal than you might think.

Apparently I'm an oddity in the animal kingdom, but this comes as a surprise to no one.

Similar boat in the same port (fellow Atlantan here). Just left may last band after about 5 years, due to a number of factors, but finding (or building) a replacement is HARD!

P.S. Nothing wrong with your leanings, in my book. That's along the same lines I cross over, although, ideally, I am hoping for something a little more on the Americana meets power-pop and/or garage rock side (Petty, Drive By Truckers, Old 97s, etc.) for my next project. Maybe we should touch base and share leads and maybe even jam sometime.