Guitar emulation software

equalsql

I'm surprised no one's mentioned S-Gear.. It is generally agreed to be pretty much  the best software amp-simulator on the market. I've got Ampiltude 3, Bias Desktop and Have tried Amplitude 4, Guitar Rig, Revalver etc..and IMHO S-Gear is  considerably better in terms of sound and feel. It's not as pretty as the others...but all the development effort has been spent on getting the amps right.

thomasross20

Think I'm going to have to try the demos for all these products then buy. 

But I can't do that with the hardware interface. 

WHat a PAIN this is!

thomasross20

What about Waves GTR?

sweepy

Waves GTR sounds very shiny and synthetic compared to Amplitube and Positive Grids Bias

thomasross20

Can everybody who's replied here list what hardware interface and software they use like this? 

HARDWARE: xxx

SOFTWARE: xxx

Honestly, the Apogee stuff looks my best bet for hardware IF I can use it with Tracktion. Then it'd be a case of getting the software.

chrispy108

I can't see any reason why something that works with the Mac won't work with Tracktion.

But, having said that why are you stuck with it? It's old software aimed at beginners. Get yourself something proper like Reaper or what was the point in upgrading the machine to be limited by the same software?

Go out today, grab a decent sound card and then download all the guitar software demos and give them a play.

thomasross20

All my projects are currently in tracktion and I know how it works. I think it's actually a great program (it works, is easy to use and allows me to get on with playing) - I tried reaper and thought there was too much going on. But reaper/ableton etc do seem popular. Might take your advice and try them again.

Only point was that apogee stuff says it's specifically for garageband . I emailed them to ask so will report back.

Out of interest, what is your setup?

ToneControl

thomasross20 said:

What about Waves GTR?

was quite good when it came out, about 5-6 years ago

I think there has been no change since

I have it, and AT2,3,4 and Guitar Rig 3,4, 5

and eleven.... etc tried most stuff

thomasross20

I Defo need to try all demos...

I see reaper has a one-off cost of 60 dollars - not bad. In honesty though, traction is still alive and being supported and a lot easier to use than reaper (for me). I'm likely going to stick with traction and focus on the hardware interface and emulation software I need.

sweepy

My setup MacBook Pro 2015 and Mac Pro 2009 . Interface, Digidesign 003r with FW400-Thunderbolt adaptor for the MacBook and connect as normally for the Mac Pro. Software, Amplitube 4, Positive Grid Bias and Waves GTR, supplemented by my Helix. All being used by Logic X

Danny1969

I wouldn't advise sticking with Traction, Reaper is effectively free, it just holds up a nag screen when you start it that reminds you how long you've been "evaluating" it  ...... nothing is disabled as it would be on a normal demo

If not Reaper than Logic or Protools. 

My own recommendation if you want to spend a bit of money is a Apogee Duet and Protools 12 bundle. That gives you a world class interface with superb mic preamps, great Hi Z input for guitar and the best professional audio editing in the world which comes with free Avid Eleven  guitar amps sim, superb  virtual instruments bundles, great processing plugins. It's a bit of money, about £450 ish 

My setup is Mac Pro  \ Tascam DM4800 \ Protools 9 and Dell Precision Workstation \ HD2 cards \ Digidesign 192 with Protools 10

The software is a personal preference, some people prefer Logic, Nuendo, Reaper or Cubase etc but not Traction ...I honestly think sticking with Traction would be a bad move

ToneControl

Logic Pro was only £150 last time I checked. You won't get such a Pro DAW with as much thrown in for that price, since you've bought a MBP, you should probably just get that

for my lightweight new DAW, I'm using the KA6 on win7 with Protools 12 and ableton 9

and also KA6 with macbook 12 with Logic Pro and ableton 

thomasross20

I don't get the dislike for Tracktion? Why do you think it'd be a bad move? I know it's different to other DAWs with less features but to me it's plug and play and seriously easy to use and can handle whatever I throw at it plus any virtual instruments. I don't see what I'd gain going with Reason, to be honest, other than it being more of a "standard". I'm not going to change DAW mid-album though - maybe in future if I really need to. Would I not be better sticking with Tracktion, that I've paid for, and spend on the interface and emulation software at this point?
Tracktion IS really popular with a lot of people. To me it removes uneccessary time spent on working a DAW so it's all focused on getting tracks down. I tried a demo version of reaper moons ago and thought it was a bit much for what I wanted. Still looked very good, as do most DAWs (logic pro looks good)

thomasross20

By the way, garageband is a lesser version of logic , right?

I think you guys do a lot more "serious" editing than I do

chrispy108

It's basic, limited, and basically a bit weird. What is the point of spending thousands to basically end up with the same recording setup you had before? Surely you did it to upgrade, so upgrade your DAW as well.

I've got it, and use it occasionally, but not for recording, just as a quick host for VSTs.

thomasross20

Well I must admit Logic Pro looks excellent and a good price. But I'm not going to change the DAW mid-album. I'll wait until that's over and then make the change. Problem then is... I'm sure I can use the Apogee gear with Logic but not sure if it would work with Tracktion (might, I don't know!) so got to make sure hardware can deal with the lot... OR just upgrade everything now and go through the pain of transferring all album files from Tracktion to Logic Pro - I can only see hassle there (trying to match VSTs, line up to click etc).

kin

Your giving mixed messages Thomas, lovely guitars, £2k laptops and then want to use £80 equipment to connect them.

Arrangement, production and mastering etc have a learning curve just like guitar and are just as valid.

Seems like you've made the effort to become very good on guitar ( and spent money on really good instruments to sound the best you can ) but don't want to spend the time or money on the other things.  

Approach the rest of your set up and educate yourself about it ( if your serious about the quality of your album ) the same, no point spending tons on a guitar if the amp, effects, drum  software , Daw etc  are not the same standard.

Lots of good tunes were played and recorded on very basic gear , so you don't need to spend thousands to get your stuff recorded .

Seems a bit daft though to spend serious money on a couple of components of the chain and then skimp on the rest.

Lot of good advice on here from people who know a lot more than me , thanks for starting the thread

 

edit, makes good sense not changing  half way through. Just seen your post

chrispy108

The Apogee stuff is just a standard soundcard, so it will work fine with Tracktion.

If it works with the OS, it'll work with any DAW.

I agree there is no point changing in the middle of something, so why did you change at all?

thomasross20

Don't worry - I'm not buying cheap stuff to go with this - I'm trying to understand what I need...

There are still 3 songs to be recorded so I can use the new gear for that. 

The existing tracks still need to be mastered and have bits added, so I've downloaded Tracktion to my MacBook and can do that there. I've been doing recording 10pm - 2am for the last 8 months and getting a bit tired of it (PC is in shared room and no room for it in other rooms) so this will finally give me the power to record anywhere.

I'm also using the MacBook to make a music video, and to help with YouTube videos in general. I've been using Lightworks (free edition) and the PC couldn't hack it. Lightworks has a steep learning curve but I've managed it on a few other videos. Might look into other software for that, also. 

John_P

Another reason for upgrading to more standard software like Reaper is that it could do your video edits as well,  I haven't used it that way but it looks pretty straightforward.