Back in 2011, Christoph Kemper introduced guitarists to a powerful digital amplifier that could accurately recreate the sounds of any other amp and store loads of them in one place. Four years later, players were offered the ability to switch Profiler models using their feet. And now the two have been merged into one with the introduction of the Kemper Profiler Stage.
The Kemper Profiler was greeted as something of a game-changer by guitar players upon release, and many renowned artists have since tapped into its awesome power, including Paul Gilbert, Steve Morse, Pat Metheny, Steve Winwood, Matt Heafy and Ola Englund. Impressive libraries of profiled amps have been amassed and made available, meaning that musicians could leave their vintage big rigs at home and take digitally-identical clones out on the road or into the studio.
Guitarists can of course profile their own rigs using the Stage, but it comes preloaded with hundreds of profiled guitar amplifiers, "created under perfect conditions in professional studios worldwide." Adding in functionality from the Remote control interface means that players can access those tones directly from the floor unit, as well as switch rigs, manage parameters and dial in effects.
Five buttons cater for direct access to up to five different rig setups per performance. There are four effects buttons that can be individually assigned on a per rig basis, and can be toggled for pre- and post-amp FX, with Kemper saying that "setting them up is easier than putting a new contact into your cell phone."
Dedicated buttons control tuner and looper modes, and up to four expression pedals can be connected to control sound parameters. A sunlight visible display lets the player know exactly what's going on in the tone department.
The Stage is reported to be built like a tank and has stereo monitor outputs for driving full range or standard guitar cabinets, and features two stereo effect loops with stereo returns for feeding in pedals.
The Kemper Profiler Stage goes on sale on July 24 for US$1,700, the video below has more.
Product page: Profiler Stage