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Everytime I post a video on YouTube at least one person will ask me what I am using to record with so I figured guitarists are having trouble sourcing this info and thought I would try and help out. Here is my simple and very basic guide to recording with amp modelling software on your computer. There are many many resources for home recording on the internet so if there is something in this post that you don’t quite understand do a google search and check out a few sites and forums. I have embedded an example above where I used an Ibanez JS1000, a Tapco link.FireWireNative audio interface Native Instruments Guitar Rig 4 and Abelton Live.

The most important part of the recording process when going direct to computer is the signal conversion, the signal from your guitar lead needs to be converted into something your computer understands, this is called AD/DA conversion (analog to digital, digital to analog) and for this you will need an audio interface. Now there are loads of interfaces on the market and it will depend on your budget which one you choose but you can either get a USB or FireWire version depending on your preference and computer capabilities. I have a Tapco link.FireWire interface which connects to my Mac which is great and not too pricey, it has 2 inputs which you can switch between instrument and line level (Eg. Guitar or microphone), headphone monitor level and external monitor outputs. When the interface is connected I can select it as my input and/or output audio device which means your interface is taking care if all audio processing which frees up your computer’s CPU for other tasks such as amp modelling and recording. If you don’t use and interface you will get what is called Latency where the computer’s processor is trying to do a million things while processing your guitar which means you hear the sound later than when you pick the note, maybe half a second maybe even a second. Latency makes playing frustrating and recording in time impossible!

Check out Tapco’s Link.USB and Link.FireWire, IK Multimedia’s StealthPlug, Native Instruments Guitar Rig Session and Kontrol and Mobile and Line 6 Guitar Port. These are just a few of the many interfaces available but Native Instruments, IK Multimedia and Line6 are all great options for guitarists.

The next thing you will need is the amp modelling software itself, there are quite a few available these days but I recommend you check out Native Instruments Guitar Rig 4, Waves GTR3 and IK Multimedia’s Amplitube. All of these programs can be used as standalone or as a VST plugin for DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) software, I personally use Abelton Live and all of these programs open with a double click of the mouse giving me access to a myriad of amps, effects, speaker cabinet and microphone options. Using an amp modeller as a plug-in means you can record exactly what you are hearing through your headphones/monitor speakers including effects, mic variations etc. and if you are not happy with the results you can just change your amp, effects cabinet to whatever combination you prefer even after recording. The reason you can do this is that the signal is actually recorded dry from your guitar and processed on playback in realtime, this is why it is so important for the audio interface to take over all the hard work. It also means you can duplicate a track in your DAW and set it up with a completely different rig to add more depth to your recording without any extra tracking.

If you don’t have any software to record with you might want to check out Reaper for PC or Garageband for Mac as a starting point but many interfaces come bundled with recording software. If you happen to have Pro Tools your selection of Audio Interfaces may be a little more limited and expensive as apparently there are only certain brands that are compatible.

If you have any questions just send me an email and either myself or Paul will get back to you as soon as possible.

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