Guitar Rig 2

Buy this item from Musician's Friend through Rocket Sounds! Native Instruments Guitar Rig 2

General

Guitar Rig 2, manufactured by Native Instruments, is a teriffic software/hardware system that combines a gazillion amps, effects, mics, and cabinets into an "all-in-one" recording and performance package.

It is extemely versatile, easy to use, and is the only modelling software where each item looks like the real deal. A Marshall amp looks like a Marshall, the Roland Jazz Chorus has the same goofy look as the original, and the Ibanez Tube Screamer is green like it should be.

There are a lot of modelling software packages out there, including Waves GTR and IK Multimedia Amplitube. If you have ever used Native Instruments software, you know that their product support and customer support is awesome! Have a question? Drop them an email and the response is fast and positive. Native Instruments offers a 30-day Free Trial, a fully functional Guitar Rig 2 package with ample opportunities to try out any of their pre-sets (and there are a lot of them) or tweak your own settings.

Use

Guitar Rig 2 gives you the ability to combine any amp, cabinet, and a wall of effects into a virtual rack. Just drag and drop the components into the virtual rack, in any order, then choose how you want to mic the cabinets (on- or off-axis, near or distant) and in what order you want to process the effects chain. Change mics or cabinets at will, split the rig's signal into seperate paths. Basically, anything you could think to change in a real rig, you can do with a few mouse clicks in Guitar Rig 2. Only you don't have to drag around suitcases of effects pedals and amps. Gone are the days when Tomy Tedesco and the rest of the studio pros hired cartage companies to drag 20 amps and 10 effects racks to the job. The potential to create sounds is just ridiculous!

The Rig Kontrol foot pedal uses USB 2.0 and acts as the hardware interface to the program. While it has normal ins and outs, it also acts as a DI box, letting you run one signal to the software and another to a real amp. That's how I like to use it, combining one live amp signal with the direct signal to get a great blend, and also using the amp for feel and feedback like I am used to doing on stage. The pedal includes 6 buttons and an expression pedal, and is built like a tank. It looks really cool, too!

To mess with your tone even more, Guitar Rig 2 provides a bunch of modulation effects that include filters, LFOs and more. Whether you use the pre-sets or tweak the parameters, they offer tonal changes not usually available in a standard guitar rig. Of course there is a tuner, some loop machines, and a ton of other gear included, but the heart of Guitar Rig 2 sits squarely in the amp and effects gear.

Setup and configuration are easy. Go to the website to check out a host of great tutorials, tips, and the Guitar Rig 2 forum. You can learn a lot about the software and how people are using it. There is also a great forum not associated with Native Instruments where you can trade patches and ask questions. For more in-depth information on how to use Guitar Rig 2, check out the book Guitar Rig 2 Power!: The Comprehensive Guide that explains in great detail each component of the system. It's a great read for getting the most out of the software.

Final Take

Try the Guitar Rig 2 demo, and you won't turn back. It's that effortless to use, and that much fun to play with. Are the sounds perfect? Does a Marshall JCM 800 or Jazz Chorus sound exactly as they should? That's not really the point. Add enough effects and worn out tubes to any amp, add in the characteristic the player gives to the tone, and every amp is different anyway. The Guitar Rig 2 amps and effects are surely close enough to get you in the ballpark of where you want to be. Highly recommended.